Business is booming in the NBA thanks to a monstrous national television deal with Turner and ESPN, as well as ever-growing interest in the sport. While players have benefitted from that in the form of huge salary cap jumps, no one comes out better than the owners.
Franchise valuations in the NBA have steadily climbed over recent years, but over the past year even those franchises that have lived in the middle to bottom of the yearly Forbes list saw incredible leaps in values. The league is in such good shape that in the latest Forbes valuations every team is valued to be worth at least $1 billion, with the average franchise being worth over $1.6 billion.
Along with the national TV deal, increasing local TV deals, the new Nike sponsorship, multiple new arenas and jersey advertisements have helped the massive jump for many franchises this season. The Knicks continue to hold down the top spot in the valuations at $3.6 billion, a nine percent increase from last year, with the Lakers ($3.3 billion) at No. 2 and the Warriors ($3.1 billion) leaping the Bulls ($2.6 billion) for third.
.@Forbes new NBA valuations. Every single team worth at least $1B. pic.twitter.com/Jt0NvxM2rP
— Christopher Lavinio (@ChrisLavinio) February 7, 2018
The Warriors’ 19 percent jump in value is impressive considering where they were already at last year, but they aren’t close to the biggest climbers this year. The Sixers saw their franchise valuation go up an incredible 48 percent to $1.18 billion, putting them at 21st in the NBA. Other massive jumps include the Timberwolves (38 percent to $1.06 billion), the Bucks (37 percent to $1.07 billion), the Wizards (35 percent to $1.35 billion) and the Hornets (35 percent to $1.05 billion).
Every team in the league went up in value, with the Bulls and Clippers making the smallest moves upward, and in total 18 franchises saw their value go up by more than 25 percent from last year (the average franchise went up 22 percent). It’s an incredible time for the league, but it’s also one of the reasons owners have to start wondering if this is the best time to cash out on their investment before this TV deal runs up and the broadcast rights bubble bursts.
