As expansion talks heat up, Commissioner Adam Silver taps Mavericks governor Patrick Dumont to scout Sin City arena sites, leveraging his deep local expertise to finalize expansion logistics.
No, Dallas Mavericks aren't moving to Las Vegas. But the NBA probably is ... and Mavs co-owner Patrick Dumont is involved in that.
Dumont led a review of potential NBA arena sites in Las Vegas this week, according to league commissioner Adam Silver - who praised Dumont as a strong voice.
The NBA's Board of Governors met in New York, and Silver confirmed that he topic of expansion is in play.
The commissioner said there are several active groups involved in Las Vegas expansion talks while declined to elaborate further.
There have been rumors, of course, that Dumont's family background in the casino and resort buisness might lead the Mavs to leave Texas. The organization has vowed that that's not the case.
But Dumont as a helper of an NBA move to Sin City? Silver is giving that a thumbs-up.
"I'll say that there was a discussion led by Patrick Dumont, of course, who's a Las Vegas resident and [has] enormous operating experience there in Las Vegas, just sort of an independent objective party, led a discussion around the various sites, potential sites, in Las Vegas," Silver said.
Dumont is the CEO and chairman of Las Vegas Sands. He and his mother-in-law, Sands majority owner Miriam Adelson, bought a controlling stake in the Mavericks from Mark Cuban in 2023.
Dumont serves as the Mavs governor and represents Dallas on the NBA board.
What needs to happen in Vegas in the coming years?
There is "real excitement" regarding potentially renovating T-Mobile Arena, Silver said, but it would need "significant improvements" if it were to become a team's permanent home.
There are other potential ownership groups that have presented plans for a "modern entertainment palace," which Silver compared to Sphere Las Vegas.
Said Silver: "My personal view is, it's premature to start locking in a site. I think there are several different locations that would be very viable for NBA basketball in Las Vegas."
The NBA is exploring the idea of expansion teams in both Las Vegas and Seattle, but the league has not committed to bringing a team to either city. Silver said Tuesday that this week's discussions focused more on Las Vegas, in part because the arena issue is yet to be settled on..
"If we were opening in five weeks, we could be ready in Seattle," he said, noting that the city's Climate Pledge Arena is state-of-the-art and capable of hosting an NBA team.
Expansion seems inevitable, and good for the NBA if Dumont can offer guidance ... but best of all for the NBA is the fact that the team Dumont owns is Dallas-based. Period.
