The NBA likes the market but American markets are better.
If the National Basketball Association does decide to expand, Mexico City, Mexico is not on top of the list of potential expansion markets. The list starts with Seattle and Las Vegas and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has already put out the word, American markets first. Silver said that he would love to have a team in the Mexican capital that has a population of around 22 million but it “would be more difficult to expand to Mexico City than it would be to expand to US cities that have very publicly sought NBA teams”.
“Being direct, it’s highly unlikely Mexico City would jump above US cities that are currently under consideration,” Silver said. “But at the same time, once we move into expansion mode and start looking at all the considerations that go with expansion, I think that would then allow us to have more of a template to understand whether a city like Mexico City would be suitable. In many ways, Mexico City would be more additive. Flipping a switch in a country of 130 million people and 22 million people here in Mexico City. And so not just from a business standpoint, but in terms of generating more interest and enthusiasm around the game. So we’re going to continue to study it.” While Seattle and Las Vegas seem to be the frontrunners for the NBA’s 31st and 32nd team, some potential owner in some less desirable market might make the case that that less desirable market makes financial sense for the NBA such as Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City ended up with the Seattle SuperSonics business in 2008. “I don’t think prior to that, people had necessarily been talking about expansion in Oklahoma City,” said Silver. “So sometimes you can be surprised by things that happen.” There is no timetable for NBA expansion.
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