Is A WNBA Expansion Team Coming To A City Near Yours — Or To Yours?
Tuesday, February 18, 2025 at 05:08PM By Barry Janoff
UPDATED February 18, 2025: Boston: Via the Boston Globe: Donnie Wahlberg and former NBA player Michael Carter-Williams are leading an ownership group laying the groundwork for a WNBA expansion team in Boston.
The ownership group is known as Boston Women’s Basketball Partners. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey are throwing their support behind the WNBA bid.
“Would love nothing more than to bring a WNBA team to my home. Let the sun rise in Boston!” Carter-Williams posted to social media.
(Editor’s note: It was not indicated if the group filed with the WNBA before the league’s Jan. 30 deadline.)
Industry analysts say Cleveland has the best chance to become the next city to land a WNBA franchise, paying a record $250 million expansion fee.
February 11, 2025: The WNBA is still months away from its scheduled 2025 season opener on May 16, but the league is in full-court mode regarding expansion.
The expansion Golden State Valkyries will join the WNBA in 2025 as its 13th franchise; the Toronto Tempo and Portland will join the league in 2026.
But the WNBA is also looking toward its 16th franchise, which commissioner Cathy Engelbert said she would like to add by the 2028 season.
January 30 was a deadline set by the league for groups seeking to place a bid for a league expansion team, and no fewer than ten cities submitted bids.
According to industry analysts, they include groups representing Austin, Charlotte, Cleveland, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Kansas City (MO), Milwaukee, Nashville, Philadelphia and St. Louis.
The WNBA is working with Allen & Co. on the expansion planning.
The Valkyries paid a $50 million expansion fee, Toronto Tempo’s ownership group paid a $115 million expansion fee, Portland’s $125 million, according to industry analysts.
Regarding expansion, according to Engelbert, “Just in general for the 16th spot, as I've mentioned, the good news is we have a lot of demand from many cities. I'd say ten or so, maybe even plus at this point."
“The more people are watching the WNBA and seeing what we're growing here and seeing these players and the product on the court, more people are interested in having it in their cities,” the commissioner said during a WNBA Finals media conference in October. “They see the economic impact of having a WNBA team in their city, the role model in the community these players represent.
“We're not in a huge rush. We'd like to bring it in in '27 or no later than '28, as I mentioned.
“So I'd say there's ten to 12 cities that are very viable that we're evaluating, and we have a process. I'd say I don't have a deadline by which we have to name it because it'll be out to '27 or '28.
"But I would think in the next couple months or so we'll start — now as we get into the off -eason, we'll start taking a look at those that will go to the top of the list through our process.”
• Austin: A group that includes former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry, Fran Harris, Jenny Just and NBA star Kevin Durant officially has submitted a bid to own a WNBA expansion team in Austin, Texas, according to USA Today Sports
• Charlotte: Hornets Sports & Entertainment, which owns the NBA Charlotte Hornets, G-League Greensboro Swarm and operates Charlotte's Spectrum Center, said it would support the move to bring back the Charlotte Sting, a franchise that played in the WNBA from 1997-2006. The bid is led by local businesswoman Erica Berman.
“The Charlotte Sting have a storied history and a passionate fan base within our community,” Hornets Sports & Entertainment said via the company. “ We are proud to back the Berman family and be a part of this larger group that is bidding to bring the WNBA back to Charlotte.”
• Cleveland: The Cleveland Cavaliers ownership unveiled their intentions to apply for a WNBA team. According to AP Sports, Rock Entertainment Group, which is also tied to the NBA's Cavaliers, is trying to bring a WNBA expansion team to Cleveland.
"It has long been woven into our mission to utilize our platform to unite our community in ways that drive equal opportunities across the board," said Nic Barlage, CEO of the Cavaliers, Rock Entertainment Group and Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
"To that end, we are actively pursuing bringing a WNBA expansion team to Cleveland.
"Cleveland's vibrant ecosystem of world-class assets, passionate and engaged sports fans, coupled with a culture that has allowed professional sports to thrive, make our team and city uniquely positioned to provide an ideal home for the W's next franchise."
Cleveland previously had a WNBA team, the Rockers, from 1997 to 2003.
• Denver: Denverite previously reported the influential Dimond family was part of the Denver bid. Navin Dimond is the founder of the hotelier Stonebridge Companies. Ashley Dimond, his daughter, confirmed to The Athletic that they plan to build a new arena for the team, assuming they win the bid. Bryan Leach, CEO of Ibotta, also is involved in the bid.
“We would be thrilled to welcome a WNBA team with open arms,” wrote Jordan Fuja, a spokesperson for Mayor Mike Johnston.
• Detroit: Via AP Sports: Detroit wants to bring the WNBA back to the Motor City, backed by an investor group led by the owner of the NBA’s Pistons and NFL’s Lions.
Pistons owner Tom Gores submitted the bid. The group includes Sheila Ford Hamp and her husband, the principal owners of the Detroit Lions; the chief executive officer and chair of General Motors Company; Hall of Famer and former NBA rookie of the Year Grant Hill; Lions quarterback Jared Goff and his wife; and others.
The Detroit Shock were one of the WNBA’s first expansion teams, winning three titles between1998 and 2009.
• Houston: Via the Houston Chronicle: Houston Rockets owner Tillman Fertitta is fronting a bid for one the WNBA’s original cities and most successful teams. "It's time to bring the WNBA back to Houston," Rockets owner Tillman Fertitta told the Houston Chronicle. The defunct Houston Comets won the first four WNBA championships from 1997-2000.
• Kansas City (MO): Per ESPN: The ownership group of the National Women’s Soccer League’s Kansas City Current, which includes Patrick Mahomes and his wife Brittany, has met with the WNBA to discuss a possible Kansas team.
Said Mahomes, “We want to get basketball to Kansas City in general, and then WNBA and the success that (Current, ownership) has had these last few seasons, it’s kind of a no-brainer . . .
"Let’s try to get a WNBA team in here as well [with] that same ownership group. They’ve done the Current the right way, and I want to continue to work with them to take that next step and get a WNBA team here.”
"Kansas City would be a good spot for it, obviously, it's a great sports town that supports women's sports," WNBA star Caitlin Clark said during the recent Women's Sports Awards.
"I'd say there's ten to 12 cities that are very viable that we're evaluating. I don't have a deadline by which we have to name it because it'll be out to '27 or '28."
• Milwaukee: Via the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Basketball fans might get another team to follow as the Milwaukee Bucks ownership group has submitted a proposal for a new WNBA franchise. The Bucks ownership group is led by Wes Edens, Jimmy Haslam, Jamie Jinan and Mike Fascitelli.
• Nashville: Via Yahoo Sports: The WNBA could be coming to Nashville as a group that includes football Hall of Famer Peyton Manning and basketball legend Candace Parker, who both played collegiately at the University of Tennessee, have submitted a bid to bring a team to "Music City."
Former Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam and his wife, Crissy, and country music stars Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are also part of the ownership group.
Should Nashville get the team, the franchise would not begin play until the 2028 WNBA season and they would share Bridgestone Arena with the NHL's Nashville Predators.
As for a team name, the WNBA franchise would be called the Tennessee Summitt, in honor of the late Tennessee Lady Vols basketball coach Pat Summitt.
• Philadelphia: Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Sixers, and Comcast said HBSE and Comcast Spectacor “have entered into a binding agreement to form a 50-50 joint venture to build a world-class, state-of-the-art arena in the South Philadelphia Sports Complex that will be the new home of the Philadelphia 76ers and Philadelphia Flyers.”
The venue is scheduled to open in 2031, but “with the potential to accelerate to an earlier date.”
As part of the strategy, “Comcast is planning to take a minority stake in the 76ers and will join with HBSE to bid to bring a WNBA team to the city.”
• St. Louis: Via the St. Louis American: Boston Celtics All-Stsr Jayson Tatum, a native of St. Louis, is part of an ownership group trying to lure the WNBA to Tatum's hometown.
Richard Chaifetz (an American businessman, investor, licensed neuropsychologist, and philanthropist with an approximate net worth of $1.4 billion), would be part of the ownership group along with real estate developer David Hoffman.