The Bay Area may soon be awarded a WNBA expansion team.
The league is “finalizing” a deal to add a team in the region, according to The Athletic, which reported Tuesday night that the team would be owned by Warriors owner Joe Lacob.
A team spokesperson said Tuesday evening that the Warriors have had “productive conversations” with the WNBA, but no actual deal has materialized.
Ever since the WNBA announced in 2022 its plans to expand in the coming years, the Bay has been seen as a legitimate target market to be the home of a new franchise, with the Warriors appearing to be a frontrunner between the two Bay Area-based ownership groups vying for a team.
Golden State has spent the last year meeting with WNBA executives about potentially being part of the league’s plans to expand. This news organization previously reported the Warriors even hosted the WNBA on a site visit in San Francisco within the last 12 months.
“[The Warriors] look forward to the possibility of being a part of the league’s expansion plans,” the statement said. “However, it would be premature to assume any potential agreement has been finalized.”
Golden State declined further comment at this time. The WNBA didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Warriors owner Joe Lacob has long been a supporter of women’s basketball, having owned the San Jose Lasers of the American Basketball League, a major professional women’s basketball league that preceded the WNBA. Lacob told this news organization in July that he believes San Francisco “would be a phenomenal place” for a WNBA team. And WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert previously said it “doesn’t seem right” that the Bay is without a WNBA team.
If the Warriors were to get an expansion team, their WNBA counterpart would practice at the Warriors’ Oakland facility and play at Chase Center, sources said.
Exactly when an announcement could be made remains unclear. Engelbert previously said she planned to identify a city or two by the end of 2022, with the goal of having a team or teams up and running as soon as the 2024 season. A year later, though, the league has not announced any expansion.
The Athletic reported a deal could be struck as soon as early October. If that’s the case, a team could be operating by the 2025 season.
The Warriors were one of two potential ownership groups making a case to bring the WNBA to the Bay. The African American Sports and Entertainment Group, the competing Oakland bid led by 16-year WNBA star Alana Beard, appeared to have lost steam in its pursuit of an expansion team over the last few months.
