Next Major League Expansion Team: Next NBA Expansion Could be a Safe Bet. And Now.

Monday, January 18, 2016

Next NBA Expansion Could be a Safe Bet. And Now.

And I say this all for a few little reasons which are called........ backup plans.

So what? A team becomes a Vancouver or in a few years a Seattle or some such... .

The name of the backup plan is any number of cities.

The first one that pops into mind is called Chicago. And it would be a second team for them of course. Long time yander ago there was the Buffalo Braves became the San Diego Clippers and ended up doubling up Los Angeles. Happened for another north NY team in Rochester that is now planted in Sacramento.

Not that I think the Kentucky Colonels would fail in the commonwealth or Louisville market with a next expansion (or relocation). To me, it's the only sure expansion location the NBA pretty much has in the east. But what if some expansion in the east happened and it wasn't a slam dunk?

What if it didn't work out in the likes of Birmingham, Cincinnati, Tampa or Virginia Beach?

What's a list of backups? I do realize that some on the list below might be better stacked alongside the above-mentioned medium markets, but I find a little more room in some arena-ready spots
Seattle (likely to counter a Louisville expansion for the West)
NYC
Chicago
Las Vegas*
Kansas City*
Pittsburgh
St. Louis
San Diego, especially if they lose the Chargers and become a one horse town.
Columbus
Austin
Little Rock
Omaha
I guess I can go on and on and say Boise or Albuquerque, but I'll take a break.

*I consider those places on the NBA radar for the NBA right now. So a four team expansion might look like a KC, LV, Seattle and Louisville. KC and LV have those shiny new places to play. Cinci will soon enough.

Even though I see much of the list as lackluster, I think it's a quick shift for the NBA to make in countering a failure. If Cincinnati flops, give Columbus a call. A Missouri Showmen brand could be the new old KC Kings brand that played home in two states in the 1970s.

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NYC, Seattle and Chicago are likely sure bets. More than Knickerbockers, Nets and Bulls could be had. And for freedom's sake, I'll float a few images. Picture a Bulldog on a collar. Chicago Blue Collars. New York Knights was a toughy. Drivers? Thinking about it all is a fun exercise nonetheless. What say you?