'It would be fun': NBA players, coaches seem excited about expansion possibilities
Erik Spoelstra is from Portland. Spoelstra's reaction to Wednesday's news that the league finally is going forward with formal exploration of expansion — and will be looking at Seattle and Las Vegas as the two candidate cities — largely mirrored the thoughts of many in the NBA.
NEW YORK (AP) — Erik Spoelstra is from Portland. He grew up as a Trail Blazers fan, which means he absolutely could never bring himself to root for the Seattle SuperSonics. But the idea of NBA games in Seattle again — about two decades after the SuperSonics were relocated to Oklahoma City — most certainly appeals to the Miami Heat coach.
Spoelstra's reaction to Wednesday's news that the league finally is going forward with formal exploration of expansion — and will be looking at Seattle and Las Vegas as the two candidate cities — largely mirrored the thoughts of many in the NBA. He's for it. “It would be fun,” Spoelstra said Wednesday.
“I think all the Pacific Northwest people were sad when it left. I loved the games there. I grew up disliking the Sonics very much because I was a Trail Blazer fan, but it was an awesome environment.
It’s a city that can really rally around their team. ” It's not a guarantee that expansion will happen, and the earliest possible season for a new team, or teams, to be added is likely 2028-29. Still, just getting to this point is significant and brought reaction right away from Las Vegas, Seattle and other places around the league.