NBA commissioner says Vancouver and Montreal are expansion options

With Canada winning medals on the world’s stage and continuing to host successful NBA events year after year, expansion up north could be more of a matter of when than if at this point.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver added fuel to the maple-leaf-shaped fire while being interviewed on the Boston Celtics’ broadcast during Monday’s game against the New York Knicks. After basically confirming that the NBA will expand once new television deals are in place, Silver spoke of Canada’s potential, using the Raptors’ success as an example.

“It’s interesting. We, of course, had a team in Vancouver, ended up moving to Memphis. That’s become a great basketball market,” he said. “I will say the Toronto Raptors have done a good job… of making themselves Canada’s team.”

The commissioner then named two cities that have been making waves as potential markets for teams.

“I know there’s interest from Montreal. We’ve heard from them,” he explained. “There’s still ongoing interest in Vancouver.”

“We have, I think, close to 25 players from Canada now in the NBA. Look how strong their national team has become. It began so much as a hockey market when we first expanded there, young people love basketball now,” Silver added. “There will be more opportunity over time.”

NBA commissioner Adam Silver on possible Canadian expansion:

“I know there’s interest from Montreal… there’s still ongoing interest in Vancouver.” pic.twitter.com/yUhwTwsCtS

— Al Sciola (@al_sciola) November 14, 2023

Most people believe that Seattle and Las Vegas are the two frontrunners to land the next available NBA expansion teams, and Silver also mentioned Mexico City as an option, but there is reason to believe in Canadian expansion.

Both Montreal and Vancouver hosted preseason games to great success last month. And players and coaches at both events made comments that got fans excited about the future.

“It was almost like it was a real NBA game. Not almost. It definitely felt like it was a real NBA game,” the Oklahoma City Thunder’s star Canadian player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, said of the atmosphere at the Bell Centre before proclaiming that “the NBA should put a team here.”

Meanwhile, Raptors head coach Darko Rajaković said something to the same effect to the folks in BC.

“It’s an amazing city, in my opinion, it really deserves to have [an] NBA team one day,” the bench boss told reporters at Rogers Arena. “But until that day, we’re very happy with the support that we’re getting here.”

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