LeBron James wants to be an NBA owner, and in a direct plea to the commissioner Wednesday night, he said that he already has a spot picked out.
During a press conference following the Los Angeles Lakers’ preseason game in Las Vegas against the Phoenix Suns, James received a question about the venue of the exhibition game and took the opportunity to send a message to Adam Silver.
“I would love to bring a team here at some point. That would be amazing. I know Adam is in Abu Dhabi right now, I believe, but he probably sees every single interview and transcript that comes through from NBA players,” James said. “So, I want the team here, Adam. Thank you.”
James has previously expressed a desire to one day become an NBA owner, and already owns stakes in the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool F.C. He recently partnered with fellow NBA players Draymond Green and Kevin Love to acquire a pickleball team. His most recent request for an NBA team comes amid a period in which the league is not considering expansion but could begin to do so in the future.
On the *an Patrick Show* in June, Silver said that he was not thinking about adding any teams to the league soon, but if he did, he would consider Las Vegas and Seattle as promising markets.
“There’s no doubt Seattle would be a great market, Las Vegas would be a great market,” Silver said. “There’s state-of-the-art arenas in both those communities.”
Las Vegas has attracted a number of sports leagues in recent years, as the newly formed Golden Knights in the NHL and moving Raiders in the NFL have both settled into the city. Long avoided because of its ties to gambling and other illicit activities, a massive boom in sports gambling seems to have made it a more attractive landing spot.
Because James is currently playing for the Lakers, he is unable to own an interest in an NBA team, and he has repeatedly said that he has no intention of retiring soon. But should the stars align, James’ playing days could end at the dawn of a new expansion in his former league, one in which he could take an owner’s stake.
