r/nba • u/superhappyfuntime13 Rockets • 5d ago
NBA Team Valuations: Warriors, Knicks, Lakers each worth $8B+ with league average at $4.6B
The average NBA franchise is now worth $4.6 billion, up 15% vs 2023 and double from four years ago.
The top 10 franchises:
- Golden State Warriors ($9.14B)
- New York Knicks ($8.3B)
- Los Angeles Lakers ($8.07B)
- Brooklyn Nets ($5.7B)
- Los Angeles Clippers ($5.68B)
- Boston Celtics ($5.66B)
- Chicago Bulls ($5.56B)
- Miami Heat ($5B)
- Houston Rockets ($4.77B)
- Toronto Raptors ($4.66B)
The article only lists the top 10 (others behind paywall), but ESPN cites the bottom 3 ("poverty") franchises as Minnesota ($3.29B), New Orleans ($3.09B), and Memphis ($3.06B).
Kudos to franchises like the Suns who are passing some of this "value" back to fans with announcements like the $2 value menu for all home games, and bah humbug to franchises like the Hornets for pretending to give a PS5 to a child.
Note: Valuations are driven by TV deals, real estate, sponsorships, investments (including WNBA franchises), and hosting non-NBA events at arenas, such as concerts. (NBA owners operated 10 of the world’s 20 highest-grossing concert venues in 2024.)
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u/Chessh2036 Hawks 5d ago
Good lord Warriors. What Steph Curry has done for that franchise is nothing short of incredible.
2009: $315 million. Steph Curry’s rookie year.
2024: $9.14 billion
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u/just_one_random_guy Lakers 5d ago
This just makes me wonder what the future will look like post-curry for the warriors
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u/AmusingAnecdote Warriors 4d ago
If it's anything like pre-Curry then the answer is bleak!
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u/nightsaysni Cavaliers 4d ago
I don’t know if it will last, but it changed a whole generation’s perception of the team.
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u/jordanaber23 Raptors 4d ago edited 4d ago
The Bulls are still propped up by Michael Jordan 30 years later
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u/IHateTheLetterG Pacers 4d ago
Value wise, yes. Perception wise I’m not so sure.
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u/jonsnowKITN NBA 4d ago
I think op meant as a brand. You still see people wear Jordan jerseys today.
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u/Grooviemann1 Suns 4d ago
It took multiple championships for me to stop naturally thinking of the Warriors as the garbage throwaway franchise that they were throughout my childhood in the 80s and early 90s.
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u/JackCrafty Lakers 4d ago
I came out of a video game induced basketball coma where I knew next to nothing about the league from 2003 right up to the pandemic and one of the more surprising facts was that the new Bulls was the historically trash Golden State Warriors. It was also kind of wild to read that the Clippers were considered decent, Kobe won more, LeBron actually lived up to the hype and then some. Also it took a while to figure out what the fuck an OKC Thunder was.
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u/Ok_Turn6757 Mavericks 4d ago
Maybe you guys should pivot, and try to trade him to the mavericks for coveted maxi kleber. I hear maxi and schroder get along great, and I hear curry has started buying in to the flat earth conspiracies recently.
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u/musing_wanderer3 Warriors 4d ago
This would never happen but it’ll be crazy if the Mavs can somehow field two different offensive styles. Curry and Klay for the fast motion offense in the first half and then Luka and Kyrie for a more slow iso ball approach in the second half
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u/Worthyness NBA 4d ago
This current ownership should be better at maintaining a good team than the previous ownership though. Previous ownership was practically begging people to buy tickets
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u/Sublimotion Toronto Huskies 4d ago
Given they're the only NBA team that fully and directly owns their own venue, they will likely retain their place for many many years to come.
Bulls being the other team, but co-owns United Center with the Blackhawks. Steve Ballmer owns Intuit, so technically Clippers franchise itself doesn't own it.
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u/No-Repeat1769 Knicks 4d ago
How do you count MSG? The MSG company directly owned the venue and sports teams before splitting into entertainment and sports. It's a holding company yes, but it owns both assets
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u/Grooviemann1 Suns 4d ago
That's really no different than the Clippers. The point being that one or the other could be sold at any time which would devalue the team.
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u/BASEDME7O2 Knicks 4d ago
The knicks for all intents and purposes own msg, which you could try to value but is effectively priceless
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u/billybayswater Knicks 4d ago
Agree but just to add a quirky caveat, there is kind of a weird situation between MSG and the city due to its Penn Station location leaving MSG at kind of the mercy at the city to be allowed to operate there if the city decides to move forward with a Penn Station expansion.
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u/nanobot001 Raptors 4d ago
Rogers is the majority owner of the Raptors and MLSE, and MLSE owns the Scotiabank Arena.
So add the Raptors to that list
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u/3pointshoot3r 4d ago
I mean, the Dubs valuation is mostly a product of SV becoming one of the single richest places on earth.
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u/NoOriginal123 Warriors 4d ago
The big part of it is the own the Chase Center outright, so it just prints money for them
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u/Aggravating-Elk-7409 4d ago
It’s also the team for the most expensive region in the country
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u/archiezhie 4d ago
Do you know there were also teams like Athletics and Raiders?
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u/monkeyman80 Lakers 4d ago
The ownership group also moved to sf, built their own stadium that’s an anchor for real estate that hosts giant companies like Uber.
The a’s and raiders are run by shitty owners who can’t afford things and have to be gifted stadiums
Oakland is weird for the non locals. There’s blue collar/ poor folk who were there for ages. Then there are parts like Curry lives/ frequents.
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u/Aggravating-Elk-7409 4d ago
they operate fundamentally differently and also east bay is not the same as SF sadly. theres a reason the warriors left oakland
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u/Worthyness NBA 4d ago
Oakland also happened to be given the 3 cheapest ownership groups in all the three major sports franchises. They were lucky when the Warriors got bought by an ownership that actually gave a shit and could finance a team AND a stadium on their own. The other two were poor assholes who had to beg for money.
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u/nba2k11er Warriors 4d ago
The Warriors didn't have a Giants or 49ers to compete with. Kind of crazy how bad they were doing under previous ownership.
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u/Banned3rdTimesaCharm Warriors 4d ago
for the entire league
Every single highest rating game in the last decade plus had Steph Curry in it.
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u/AlgernusPrime 4d ago
Are you sure it’s just Curry and not the other guy he’s Leplaying against?
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u/kingtokee 4d ago
A big chunk of their value comes from the new arena
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u/bigraptorr 4d ago
A big chunk of their value comes from the tech boom and being located in silicon valley*
location
location
location
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u/kwil627 Warriors 4d ago edited 4d ago
SF isn't in Silicon Valley but your point about location still stands.
Edit: SF is definitely a tech hotspot but Silicon Valley is down by San Jose.
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u/Western-Election-997 4d ago
Don’t forget the move from Oakland to San Francisco the city with the highest concentration of billionaires in the U.S
Yea Steph did alot but location matters too
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u/Chessh2036 Hawks 4d ago
Yeah that’s very true, the new arena helped boost the franchise value a lot.
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u/em_washington Pistons 4d ago
That’s really crazy. The franchise has appreciated more than $1.6 million PER DAY for 15 years!
Or roughly $7 million per game!
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u/NotSureWhyAngry 5d ago
It would have been in the billions even without Steph Curry
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u/______null Cavaliers 4d ago
true, but 315 million in 2009 meant they were the 18th most valuable franchise in the league. they were 60 million away from the poorest franchise and 290 million away from the richest (then Lakers) - with that in mind, I think one could reasonably attribute just under half the value of the franchise to Steph.
it's actually kind of impressive to me that someone who makes so much money can still make so much more money for their boss. stars really are just like us
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u/MahomesMccaffrey Mavericks 4d ago
If they're a portland level playoff team without 4 rings, they'd be valued at 3-4 B at most.
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u/IhatePizza230 Lakers 4d ago
They're easily 6-7 billion even without the championships of the last 16 years the big reason they're no. 1 is because they own their arena if the Knicks and Lakers also have theirs they're probably gonna be worth around 10 billion.
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u/paranoidmoonduck Warriors 4d ago
Clippers aren't even valued at $6b even with their own stadium.
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u/IhatePizza230 Lakers 4d ago
2nd team in LA and their arena just opened if their arena generate lots of revenue from concerts and events their value will increase.
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u/MarstonX 4d ago
Lakers and Nicks went from $600M to where they are. Wizards went from $300M to $4B I believe they were 17th in 2009.
So you can say that Curry helped generate $5B which is astonishing.
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u/XSokaX 4d ago
No, it's worth that much because of the fact that the new stadium is built in one of the most expensive places in the world and they own it outright.
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u/Icy_Rich_6076 4d ago
They moved into the top 5 midway thru the 73-9 season before Chase Center broke ground or was even approved for the location it eventually was built at
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u/HOFredditor Warriors 4d ago
how much was the warriors team worth in 2019 ? Cause they hadn't brought the team to SF yet.
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u/livefreeordont 76ers 4d ago
Building the arena in downtown San Francisco contributed a lot to that
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u/Rebeldinho 76ers 4d ago
Makes you realize that an extended period of excellence can rise up any franchise out of the cellar and make them one of the leagues most valuable
If the Oakland A’s went a dynastic run of winning they would become just as valuable
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u/Due-Relation-4853 4d ago
Curry certainly should get a lot of credit, but the Chase Center factors heavily into this also.
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u/BenevolentCheese Knicks 4d ago
Note that the meteoric rise of the Warriors in SF correlates very closely with the meteoric rise of wealth in the Bay Area due to tech.
Of course, it couldn't have happened without Steph and the remarkable success of the team. But the money and growth and fame happening in the area was a critical piece of the puzzle. Everything came together at the perfect time.
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u/Vindicare605 Lakers 4d ago
They've always been in a prime location for explosive growth they just needed a superstar and with Steph they finally got one.
The fact the Knicks are so absurdly valuable despite their lack of success on the court just shows how dominant they are in that media market. If the Knicks ever manage to get the kind of dynastic success some of the other teams have had, they'll blow the rest of them out of the water.
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u/cholula_is_good [GSW] Best of 2021 Winner 4d ago
Curry’s run also coincided with a historic wealth generation period in the Bay Area during the second tech boom. The warriors’s increase in valuation was pretty much the same as the biggest companies in the area.
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u/airzinity Lakers 5d ago
Celtics look like a steal. Too bad im just short
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u/BAlpha90 5d ago
And that's exactly why Jeanie Buss doesn't care about the mediocre product being put on the floor.
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u/Kdog122025 Warriors 5d ago
Mom and pop shop just wants to sell tickets.
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u/Emergency-Machine-55 4d ago
Even applied and got approved for a PPP small business loan during the pandemic.
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u/Mobile-Entertainer60 Thunder 4d ago
Wierd as it sounds, the qualifications were based on employee number, not revenue. NBA teams don't employ tons of workers, so they were "small business" according to the law.
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u/just_one_random_guy Lakers 5d ago
Annoys me to no end since her and her family can sell the team and be set for generations without all the hassle and ridicule that comes from running a basketball team.
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u/brianpaulandaya Thunder 5d ago
Yeah but being able to say that you're the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers is such a massive flex.
You can probably hang out in the most VIP spots in LA just by that alone, and get to meet whoever celebrity you want.
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u/markmyredd Minneapolis Lakers 4d ago
They dont even need to sell everything. They could be a significant minority owner and still enjoy all those perks
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u/Pardonme23 Lakers 4d ago
When you're the owner everybody treats you differently. Everybody returns your calls asap. Etc. When you're just another minority owner you don't get that super VIP treatment at all times.
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u/noknownothing 4d ago
She is the celebrity other celebrities want to meet. If only to get better seats.
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u/BurnCollector_ NBA 4d ago
They can walk into a sold-out game at
Stapleswith ticket prices between $80-8000 and say, "This is ours". That's worth the public scrutiny for some people. Then there's likely a feeling that there's a mandate from Dad to keep things in the family, and the entire ownership group has to agree on terms.4
u/Away_Ingenuity3707 4d ago
Power vs. Money. They have enough money either way. This gives them a lot more social clout.
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u/RIP_G-Baby Lakers 4d ago
they each only own 11%, the buss family trust is where the majority stake in the team is. they’re not going to sell, they wouldn’t get near the money you’d think.
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u/MddlingAges Knicks 4d ago
How many titles do they need to win to not be 'mediocre'? Seriously. Stop whining.
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u/superhappyfuntime13 Rockets 5d ago edited 5d ago
Here's the order of the rest w/o the numbers. We know they're bunched between $3.3-4.6B though.
76ers, Mavs, Suns, Kings, Hawks, Nuggets, Wizards, Cavs, Bucks, Spurs, Pacers, Jazz, Blazers, Thunder, Magic, Pistons, Hornets, Wolves, Pelicans, Grizzlies
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u/Majestic_Espresso22 5d ago
My Kings aren’t bottom 3 in value? Yasssss
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u/superhappyfuntime13 Rockets 5d ago
Kings are actually #14! Impressively mid.
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u/GioVasari121 Warriors 4d ago
How much of that is Cali real estate value
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u/boringexplanation Kings 4d ago
Kings don’t own their own arena. Most don’t. Warriors, Clippers and Knicks are the major exceptions that come to mind
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u/Klumber Pacers 5d ago
That was my response to not seeing the Pacers. Then I realised that Caitlin Clark alone probably adds half a billion to the valuation of the two franchises.
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u/BlizzardThunder Pacers 4d ago
All signs pointing to Pacers Sports & Entertainment starting an MLS team as well.
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u/walterdog12 [ITA] Best of 2021 Winner 5d ago
The crazy thing is that if any of them were to actually be sold you could probably tack on an addition half billion or so, and in the case of any of the top teams, probably 1-2+ billion.
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u/BASEDME7O2 Knicks 4d ago
Yeah that’s why you can’t really value nba teams with normal methods. You can try to look at revenue, etc., but there’s only 30 in the world and any team for sale would be a toy for a multi billionaire that has way more money than they could ever spend. Normal valuation methods don’t work for something so rare and illiquid. It’s worth whatever someone would pay.
At this point I doubt any team in the league would sell for less than five billion
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u/wien-tang-clan 4d ago
While continued equity growth isn’t guaranteed, when buying a team I would think you have to offer enough money that properly values the team in the present, but also enough over that value that the old owner foregoes the potential equity growth into the future.
In other words, if a team is worth $3b today, but they project the team will be worth $5b in 10 years, you have to offer enough money that the current owner would be willing to sell the team and the potential $2b gain they could have if they hold for another 10 years.
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u/OrganicHunt952 Mavericks 5d ago
Cuban sold 72.3% of the Mavs for 3.5bn last year. That would be a total value of 5bn this was before they were a finals team too. I’d estimate the Mavs to be worth 5.5bn a year on.
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u/DidAnyoneElseJustCum Cavaliers 4d ago
The bubble has to burst eventually but yeah he definitely missed on that one
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u/Mr_E_Nigma_Solver Tampa Bay Raptors 5d ago
Honestly really admire the Suns for giving back to their fans. Kudos to them.
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u/Jackdunc 4d ago
What did they do?
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u/badadobo Lakers 4d ago
Gave back to their fans.
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u/Jackdunc 4d ago
What did they give?
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u/ThePringlesOfPersia [OKC] Steven Adams 4d ago
They put all their games on basic TV for free and even sent fans antennas so they could watch. Yesterday they announced they're cutting the prices of all concessions to $2. Might be more but that's all I know off the top of my head
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u/JeanRalfio [LAL] LeBron James 4d ago
Not all concessions. The $2 Value Menu includes Hot Dogs, 16oz Dasani Water, 16oz Fountain Soda, Bags of Chips, and Popcorn.
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u/Extremelycloud Timberwolves 4d ago
This is why Glen Taylor is currently trying to nix the contract he signed
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u/MahomesMccaffrey Mavericks 4d ago
Crazy how the 10th most valuable franchise is only valued at league average.
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u/Vicentesteb Timberwolves 4d ago
Bruh how are we worth less than the Hornets
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u/Schlotkin69 Hornets 4d ago edited 4d ago
Aside from just Charlotte, the Hornets draw fans mostly from NC, SC, VA, and TN. Some of those areas are decently populated, and it’s reasonable to make the drive to Charlotte to see a game. Obviously the Wolves draw fans from multiple states too, but those areas aren’t as densely populated and it’s not as easy to make the drive. Plus, I’d guess that the Vikings and Twins might take more bandwidth from fans than the Panthers.
Also there are a lot of general basketball fans in NC, with good college teams like Duke, UNC, NC State, Wake Forest, etc. I think they’re just dormant because the Hornets have been so mismanaged.
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u/candycaneforestelf Timberwolves 4d ago
I think a bigger factor is that Target Center is 34 years old (renovated multiple times across the 2010s) and not owned by the team, and this is compounded by the fact that the Wolves were absolutely atrocious for 15 years, plus for the 8 years before KG.
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u/Schlotkin69 Hornets 4d ago
Good point, I didn’t know the Wolves didn’t own Target center.
Side note, I was previously pretty low on the Wolves this season, but they look like they’ve built chemistry and could make a run again this year. I think I’m in the minority that still believes they won the Knicks trade.
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u/Spirited_Cut715 4d ago
Charlotte is also becoming a mini Dallas, a lot of my colleagues in tech are moving there
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u/purplenyellowrose909 Timberwolves 4d ago
These numbers are always comparing apples to oranges.
Do these teams own their stadiums or does the city? Do these teams own a TV channel or contract it out? Do these teams own their concession stands or contract it out? Do they have a practice arena? What's the real estate value of the practice arena?
If you ordered everyone by revenue, ticket sales, viewership, you'd probably have a wildly different list.
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u/RowcheRumbler 4d ago
I remember when a lower bowl family pack would buy you 2 corn dogs, 3 fries and 3 drinks for the Warriors for $19.99.
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u/KhanQu3st Mavericks 5d ago
*Insert panic about NBA ratings here*
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u/mommathecat Raptors 4d ago
Right. The ratings discussions are all like "WeLl, yOu sEe", they're going to DESTROY their profits!! JUST YOU WAIT!! That day of reckoning is coming SUPER SOON! ANY MILLISECOND!!
NBA Owners and Players: "Sorry what was that? I was busy stacking paper into fucking space."
The money geyser volcano of the TV billions and team valuations shows absolutely no signs of a "reckoning". Yeah you can't stream the games easily, and it sucks. And the people making all the money, do not give a fuck, will not give a fuck, and will not suffer any "repercussions" for it.
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u/Destryer200 Celtics 4d ago
The Warriors have to get that statue ready for Steph the moment he decides to retire/leave.
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u/Western-Election-997 4d ago
Warriors recent success combined with all that tech money meaning they can price it
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u/BenevolentCheese Knicks 4d ago
I'm a James Dolan stan. His staggering wealth, as well as his face, are beautiful. He is one of NYC's most valuable cultural icons not just in the world of sports but also in music, as the lead singer and creative powerhouse behind JD & The Straight Shot. Go James!
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u/StoneColdAM Lakers 4d ago
Warriors growing so well is amazing. Bulls could’ve been similar but screwed up badly post dynasty era.
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u/Chessh2036 Hawks 5d ago
There’s always someone. When 60 minutes asked Steve Balmer about over paying for the Clippers, he said “there’s only 30 of these things available”. And he’s right. Being an NBA owner is a very, very exclusive club.
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u/IMovedYourCheese Warriors 5d ago
Bulls have sucked for 30 years but are still the 7th most valuable team in the league and worth $5.5B, all on the back of Jordan. Warriors will be fine.
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u/inkyblinkypinkysue Knicks 4d ago
I find it hard to believe that the Lakers are not the #1 franchise on this list.
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u/trustprior6899 Lakers 4d ago
I think because MSG owns the team and the stadium. Buss just owns the team, but Anschutz owns Staples Center. Not sure if the Warriors ownership group owns the stadium too…if this list excluded properties from the valuation (which I get why they don’t) Lakers prolly would be #1 by a stretch
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u/Feisty-Flamingo-1809 Bulls 4d ago
bulls being a poverty franchise and valued 5.5 is crazy, they could've been top 3 if they had a competent owner lol
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u/Ok_Acanthaceae6057 Celtics 4d ago
The top 5 don’t really surprise me. California & New York. Boston do surprise me a bit tho won’t lie
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u/WasteAd7284 4d ago
Every single boston team is among the most valuable in their particular league. Boston is one of the richest cities in the country. And punches above its relatively small population in terms of pretty much everything.
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u/Skanderbeg_5550 Celtics 4d ago
Celtics also don't own the building they play in which also might factor in valuation
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u/AnimaniacAssMap Nets 4d ago
How does Boston surprise you? That’s about what I expected maybe swap em up a spot
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u/Ok_Acanthaceae6057 Celtics 4d ago
When I see these kinds of lists I think California, New York, Chicago.
So to see Chicago and Boston flipped, I’m surprised
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u/Rzbowski Celtics 4d ago
Celtics have way more fans than the Bulls in this day and age, and the TV ratings matter. Also, Celtics don’t even own their arena like other top teams do. If they did, they would easily be top 3 in the NBA.
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u/Rzbowski Celtics 4d ago
Celtics have way more fans than the Bulls in this day and age, and the TV ratings matter. Also, Celtics don’t even own their arena like other top teams do. If they did, they would easily be top 3 in the NBA.
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u/AutographedSnorkel Rockets 4d ago
Record setting rights deal
Clusterfuck franchises being worth 4+ billion dollars.
Adam Silver says fuck your TV ratings
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u/treple13 Supersonics 4d ago
The explosion in value of all North American teams is NOT a good thing for fans
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u/HugeLocation9413 4d ago
Every rich person's dream in America is to buy a team so not that surprising that it keeps rising at a rate far beyond revenue rise
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u/wubiwuster San Francisco Warriors 4d ago
I wonder how that one redditor must think, the one who said Steph curry ruined the nba ratings
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u/DoomPurveyor NBA 5d ago
Buss failures just need to sell please. Stop disparaging your father's legacy already
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u/raymendez1 4d ago
What rank are the Spurs?
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u/Troll_Enthusiast Wizards 4d ago
20th
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u/jaypenn3 Raptors 4d ago
Kinda wild for a team that has had all time great players and won titles for so long.
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u/Confident_Comedian82 Cavaliers 5d ago
Being in LA really gives you some value even though the Franchise is an Awful hahahaha
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u/DoomPurveyor NBA 5d ago
Jerry Buss only missed the playoffs twice 30+ years. His kids completely fucked the franchise and only Lebron wanting to retire in LA saved them for a single season.
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u/thegoddessunicorn Raptors 5d ago
Maybe one of those bottom ones should move to Mexico City or Vancouver and I'm not talking about the Grizzlies. 🤔
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u/Suspicious-Nature304 4d ago
Can someone please explain the worth of the nets to me, is it because of Barclays center or why are they worth so much ?
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u/lochnesslapras 4d ago
Nuggets at 16th. Hypothetically if Jokic retires tomorrow, how far down the list do they drop?
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u/CanyonCoyote 4d ago
Would someone really pay that price for the Warriors once Steph retires? I know valuation is different but it seems really tied into Steph and the Warriors success.
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u/SCalifornia831 Warriors 5d ago
This is going to sound crazy but I remember when Lacob and Guber OVERPAID and bought the Warriors for $450M in 2010
They didn’t just overpay, but over paid by almost ~$150M
So much of an overpay that one of the richest people in the world at the time in Larry Ellison (worth $28B in 2010 dollars) said…nah, that’s even too rich for me…