Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement - scroll for more content
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
“How much, at this point, are you kind of like, ‘I actually really care who the seventh pick is,’ versus, ‘If I get it, I get it. If I don’t, either way we’re going to find out in 30 seconds anyway’?” Shams Charania: “The nature of who I am is that I care. I care beforehand, as much in advance as I can get it. Even last year, when we had the draft on ESPN, I was hearing the picks maybe one, two, or three minutes before they were made. Obviously, I’m a team player, so I thought it was best for the network to allow Adam Silver and all of us to break it down. “And I think the way I viewed my role was: how can I give the ‘why’? If there’s a big move, a big trade, if there’s a draft-pick trade, or anything like that, how can I explain it and give behind-the-scenes coverage on the overarching sentiments about the draft around the league? That’s really where I focus my attention.”
Nevada’s congressional delegation sent a letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver urging the league to select Las Vegas as a site for a future franchise. The letter, dated March 19, 2026, was signed by Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen, along with Reps. Dina Titus, Mark Amodei, Susie Lee and Steven Horsford.
The lawmakers urged Silver to consider Las Vegas’ 20-year partnership with the NBA through hosting the Summer League and NBA Cup championships. “As you consider the future of the NBA, we strongly urge you to build on the League’s local momentum by selecting Las Vegas as a site for a future league franchise,” the letter reads in part.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson on Thursday previewed an upcoming meeting with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver ahead of a planned vote on league expansion that could bring men’s professional basketball back to Seattle. ESPN has reported that the Tuesday and Wednesday meetings of the NBA’s board of governors next week in New York would include a vote on initiating expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas.
Ferguson is set to meet Monday afternoon with Silver, according to his public calendar. It’s unclear if the meeting is in person or virtual. “It’ll be a private conversation, but I plan to do a lot of listening,” Ferguson told reporters Thursday. “I want to hear as much as he’s willing to share about what’s going on, and I appreciated that in the past with him.” “Obviously, if this is to happen, there will be a role for the state in some capacity to be helpful,” Ferguson continued. “What I’ve tried to emphasize with him and others is that the state stands ready to be helpful, that this is a priority for me.” Ferguson called himself a “die-hard Sonics fan” who grew up watching franchise legends Slick Watts, Jack Sikma and Dennis Johnson.
Advertisement
The NBA is determined to launch its own European league. If it succeeds, will that mean the end of the EuroLeague? Chus Bueno: I'm taking a preliminary step. As you know, I have a very good relationship with the NBA and many of its executives, including Adam Silver and Mark Tatum. They've opened what's called a 'data room,' which is a collection of files where they explain the project to the people they want to explain it to. This ends on the 26th or 27th, and then they'll present their conclusions to their Board of Governors. For now, we have to be respectful, we have to wait, and we have to see how the market responds to what they say they want to do and what their proposed project is worth. We agreed with the NBA that we would wait and that once this process is over, we would sit down together. Because, as they themselves have said, they would be delighted to discuss the matter with the EuroLeague and see if there's any common ground and if we can reach some kind of agreement.
Steve Kerr has said several times this season that he thinks the NBA should shorten its schedule. Rick Carlisle was asked about it on Tuesday. "It’d be great if it was possible to do that. There would be a lot involved with it. An obvious big revenue shift," Carlisle said. "You’re talking about 10-12 percent of the games being eliminated... the question is, would everyone be willing to do that if it was deemed that it would really help the game. It's a lively conversation. I’ve heard Adam talk about the possibility of shortening the season slightly, going back a few years.
Draymond Green says NBA should relocate Grizzlies to Nashville: There’s no great hotels in Memphis. I love the people but from a NBA standpoint there’s not sauna or hot tub in site. No where. Not at the gym, not at the spa, not at a hotel, nothing. So the NBA either needs to send them to Nashville so they can have proper facilities or it should be mandatory that teams have at least a hot or cold tub in their visiting locker rooms. Get Memphis the hell out of Memphis and send them to Nashville… Do us all a favor Adam. Nobody will be upset. Not one person.
To right a past wrong. Seattle has been the biggest city in the country without an NBA team for nearly 20 years, since the SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City. Bringing a team back to Seattle in 2028-29, 20 years after the Thunder began playing in OKC in 2008, would become one of the defining events of Adam Silver's tenure as commissioner. For years, the issue with the NBA's return to Seattle was the lack of a replacement for KeyArena, deemed inadequate by the league as part of the Sonics' move. That changed in 2021 when the renovated Climate Pledge Arena opened as home of the WNBA's Storm and the expansion NHL Kraken.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver met with Gov. Joe Lombardo last week on a Zoom call to discuss expansion and the Las Vegas market, according to a person familiar with the situation. Silver told Lombardo the league probably would add two expansion franchises, with Las Vegas and Seattle the destinations of choice, the person said. NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson and his group, the MAGI, expressed an interest last week in being part of the ownership group if Las Vegas gets a franchise. Lombardo met with Johnson in February, the first NBA expansion-related talks between the top government official in Nevada and an interested ownership group.
Advertisement
As Castro described his background and answered regulators’ questions, one board member encouraged him to use vacant land at the Strip property to build an arena for use by a likely National Basketball Association expansion team for Las Vegas. “I think it would be fantastic for the north end of the Strip and for the entire city of Las Vegas and the state for that matter, to have an NBA team here,” Board member George Assad said in the hearing. “And that venue could also be used for concerts and other things as well,” he said. “I saw in the paper the other day that (businessman and former Los Angeles Laker) Magic Johnson met with Gov. (Joe) Lombardo and he’s interested in moving forward with some type of ownership structure that would be able to bring an NBA team here. I hope Mr. (NBA Commissioner Adam) Silver is listening and watching and we definitely will support an NBA team.”
NBA commissioner Adam Silver attended the Trail Blazers' game against the Jazz on Friday night following the Oregon Legislature's approval of funds for the renovation of the Moda Center. Lawmakers passed the measure last week that gives the state joint ownership of the Moda Center with the city and provides a mechanism to secure $365 million for renovation of the 30-year-old building. The legislative effort comes amid the sale of the Trail Blazers by Paul Allen's estate to a group led by Tom Dundon, owner of the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes. It helped allay fears that the new ownership might move the team out of Portland. During his visit to Portland, Silver met with local officials about the next steps. He noted that Moda Center is not just home to the Trail Blazers, but it will also be home to the expansion Portland Fire in the WNBA. "I've had great conversations with the governor and the mayor, and it's been a bipartisan effort," Silver said. "I think everyone in this community recognizes that, even in addition to the Trail Blazers and the Fire -- and we can't forget about the Fire, which are about to open this season -- that these arenas are multiuse facilities, whether it's conventions or trade shows, concerts, graduations, you name it. They're part of the lifeblood of communities. So it's not just for the Trail Blazers and the Fire. You need a state-of-the-art arena here."
The Trail Blazers have maintained that the arena needed renovation to attract big events, like the NBA All-Star Game and future NCAA tournament games. The estimated total cost of the project is $600 million. "The Moda Center has become probably the oldest building in the league. There may be a building or two that are older but have already gone through significant renovations," Silver said. "So you know that this work needs to be done, not just for the basketball teams in town, but for all those events, and because I know, on behalf the economy of Portland, you guys have lost out on some big events because this arena hasn't been updated in a long time. So it's just work that needs to get done. But it seems like the spirit is there."
All right, we will get to those renovations, but I want to talk about All-Star Weekend. It’s no secret that we want it, Adam. We want it here in Portland. So, what goes into making that decision in terms of what city does get it? Adam Silver: Well, first of all, the city has to apply for it. Assuming that Tom Dundon becomes the new governor, majority team owner of the team, he’s a very ambitious guy. I’m sure he would love to bring an All-Star here. Part of it, obviously, is that we need a state-of-the-art arena, and that’s something we’re very focused on now. The other thing is that the event keeps growing, and the biggest issue becomes the availability of hotel rooms. I haven’t looked into it lately because the team isn’t focused on that right now, but we want to get everywhere in the league that we can. We just have to make sure there are enough rooms, because we bring thousands of people to the market. All-Star Weekend has become All-Star Week. There are events throughout, and even beyond the ticketed events, there are literally hundreds of receptions and parties. I’m sure if we were here, Nike would have enormous events. So, we would love to come here for All-Star. We just have to get into the dates and some of the logistical issues.