The NBA's push toward a Las Vegas expansion franchise has taken another major step, with three ownership groups reportedly reaching the final stage of the bidding process.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the league is expected to select the winning bid for ownership of a potential Las Vegas expansion team in the very near future.
The three finalist groups are Nancy Walton Laurie and Bill Laurie; Steve Apostolopoulos and former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry; and Vegas Golden Knights owner Bill Foley alongside longtime NBA executive Jerry Colangelo.
The scale of the project is extraordinary. ESPN reports that the expected price for the franchise and a new arena will be at least $12 billion to $13 billion.
The development follows months of formal expansion work by the NBA after its Board of Governors authorised the league to explore adding teams in Las Vegas and Seattle earlier this year.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said earlier this month that the league remained on course to make a decision regarding expansion by the end of 2026.
No Las Vegas franchise has yet been formally awarded and no ownership group has been selected. The latest reporting instead indicates that the bidding process has reached its final stage.
NBA expansion has spent years living somewhere between expectation and inevitability.
This feels considerably different.
We now have three reported finalists, a selection described as coming in the very near future and a financial figure that illustrates just how valuable entry into the NBA has become.
At least $12 billion to $13 billion for the franchise and arena isn't simply an expansion fee. It is the price of building an entire NBA operation and its home in one of America's fastest-growing sports markets.
Las Vegas already hosts the NHL's Golden Knights, NFL's Raiders and WNBA's Aces, while the NBA has steadily increased its own presence in the city through Summer League and the NBA Cup.
The interesting part now is what each ownership group offers beyond money.
Arena plans matter. Financing matters. Basketball experience matters. And with numbers this enormous, the league will be selecting a long-term partner rather than simply accepting the largest cheque on the table.
There is still one important brake to apply to the excitement: Las Vegas does not officially have an NBA team yet.
The NBA has formally explored expansion and is now reportedly approaching a decision on its preferred Vegas ownership group, but the final approvals required to actually create the franchise have not been announced.
LEAN EDGE VERDICT
Las Vegas NBA expansion has moved from a question of whether there is serious interest to a competition between three enormous bids.
The $12 billion to $13 billion figure is staggering, but the bigger development is how far the process itself has advanced.
Three finalists. A winning bid expected soon. Arena plans tied into the proposals.
We're not at the point where Las Vegas can start printing NBA jerseys just yet.
But after years of expansion speculation, the finish line is becoming much easier to see.
