It seems like these days that just about everyone wants an NBA franchise so why not throw all caution to the wind and do some dramatic expansion. For my modest proposal I'd like to keep the divisions all even so I'd say go from 30 franchises to 36--effectively adding one team to every division.
Seattle Super Sonics--Bringing the Sonics back is a no brainer. Seattle is currently the 2nd largest media market without an NBA franchise. The city had its team stolen from them by David Stern and Clay Bennett in one of the shadiest deals in NBA history. Giving them a new team is simply the right thing to do and the energetic and enthusiastic ownership group led by Chris Hansen seems ready to take on the task of running a franchise.
Kansas City--While I'd love to return the Kings to Kansas City they currently have a home and if the NBA could pry the franchise away from the Maloof kids a stadium deal could be worked out for a new stadium thus insuring the Kings' success. Kansas City would be perfect because an arena, the Sprint Center, is already in place. The viability of the Kansas City franchise could also be enhanced by having them play a "Plains City Series"--let's say 10 home games a year, at Century Link Arena in Omaha, Nebraska. At first glance, this seems like a set up destined to fail but I think its a winner: playing games in Omaha gives the franchise more of a regional appeal--two cities and much of the Great Plains Region would be behind this team. As only a limited number of games are going to be played in Omaha they'd all likely be sell outs. Furthermore, it makes the supply of tickets for games in KC smaller and scarcity would drive up demand. The Sprint Center would see larger crowds and more sell outs by only hosting 31 of the 41 games. Not to mention season ticket packages would become far more affordable for the rabid new fanbase.
Virginia Beach--Personally I'm not a real fan of giving the Hampton Roads area its own team. I think it dilutes the fan pool of two of the league's weaker franchises: the Charlotte Bobcats and Washington Wizards. However the folks down there seem pretty determined to get a team and they are using hotel taxes to build an arena so if they have the means to have a team why not give them one? While the television market is modest 43rd in the US (only the Thunder, Grizzlies, and Hornets are smaller), the market would be all theirs as there are no other pro teams vying for fan loyalty and dollars.
San Diego--Much like with the Kings, I would really rather move the Clippers back to San Diego where they started but Los Angeles is far more lucrative and the area has demonstrated that it can support two teams. San Diego is a modest sized market, 28th, and would have no professional sports to compete with during the winter season.
For the last two cities I think we have to consider a full out assault on the NHL by going after cities where support for their NHL franchise is weak but a NBA ready arena is already in place. Cities that come to mind here are Columbus and Tampa. A lot of folks would be inclined to pursue franchises in larger media markets like St Louis and Pittsburgh but those cities are steadfastly loyal to their hockey teams at the moment. Mayor Coleman of Columbus has all but concluded that his city isn't supporting the Blue Jackets and the team will eventually move to a more hockey-friendly locale so he wants a new tenant for Nationwide Arena, hence his vocal appeals to Commissioner Stern for a team. Tampa on the other hand is the largest media market without the NBA and while it could certainly cut into the Orlando Magic's fan base the state of Florida is only going to continue to grow and thus I believe that all three Florida franchises are safe in the future. My alternate picks, for those who are not allured by Columbus, or perhaps Virginia Beach are Vancouver and Las Vegas. Vancouver is certainly big enough to host a team. The reason they lost the Grizzlies was because the NBA purposely sabotaged the Canadian expansion franchises by not giving them access to the top lottery picks and allowing the other teams to protect too many players in the expansion draft. Stern should have learned his lesson--those early teams were just so awful I can understand why Vancouver residents would rather watch the Canucks. Vegas is on the list purely because lots of other people think its a good idea--I do not--it's a town full of people from somewhere else who root for the teams they did growing up.
Here is how I'd realign the NBA with the 6 new franchises:
Northeast: Boston, New York, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Washington (from SE), Toronto
Southeast: Virginia Beach*, Charlotte, Atlanta, Orlando, Tampa*, Miami
Midwest: Cleveland, Columbus*, Detroit, Indiana, Chicago, Milwaukee
Northwest: Minnesota, Kansas City*, Denver, Utah, Portland, Seattle*
Southwest: Oklahoma City (from NW), Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, New Orleans, Memphis
Pacific: Phoenix, San Diego*, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Golden State, Sacramento
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