Three Finalists Bid $12 Billion-Plus for the NBA's Las Vegas Team

Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas. Photo by David Jones.

The NBA is reviewing three finalist bids for a Las Vegas expansion franchise at a price of at least $12 billion to $13 billion for the team and a new arena, with a winning group expected in the very near future, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania on Tuesday.

That number sits next to a December formal approval window for two expansion teams and a target as soon as the 2028-29 season. ESPN gave two reasons Vegas is closing ahead of Seattle. Las Vegas has "a livelier bidding market with higher offers," and Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena is already a ready-made home, while a Vegas winner has the logistics of a new arena to work through.

Read the three groups and the basketball DNA is the real filter. Nancy Walton Laurie and Bill Laurie bring a Forbes-estimated $17 billion net worth and a Henderson home already inside the market. Laurie is the daughter of Walmart co-founder James "Bud" Walton. Bill Laurie previously owned the NHL's St. Louis Blues. That group already has the cash and the local footprint. The open question is how fast a first-time NBA ownership room learns expansion-draft roster construction under rules the league has yet to set.

Steve Apostolopoulos and Marc Lasry arrive with a different ledger. Apostolopoulos, a Canadian billionaire, discussed buying the Charlotte Hornets from Michael Jordan in 2023, then turned his focus to the Washington Commanders, who sold to Josh Harris's group for $6.05 billion. He wants a multi-league portfolio. Lasry already ran an NBA room. He bought the Bucks for $550 million in 2014, was governor when Milwaukee won the 2021 title, and sold his stake in 2023 at a $3.5 billion valuation. His Avenue Sports Fund closed last year with more than $1 billion in commitments. If an expansion pick sheet ends up choosing between a wing and a stretch five, that 2021 Bucks experience could matter more than the headline bid.

Bill Foley spoke in June about playing at T-Mobile Arena, and Jerry Colangelo entered in July with the Las Vegas Jacks. The two began talking about joining forces four months ago and agreed to partner. Sources now say a new arena gets built if that group wins, so T-Mobile is no longer the venue plan. Foley owns the Golden Knights and AFC Bournemouth, with Forbes putting his worth around $2.5 billion. Colangelo sold the Suns in 2004 for $401 million, owns four NBA Executive of the Year awards, ran USA Basketball from 2005 to 2021 through four Olympic golds, and has chaired the Hall of Fame since 2009. The Jacks room also includes David Levy, Scott Colangelo, Vinny Del Negro and Jay Williams. The pitch leans on Foley's ties, the Jacks' new-arena plans and relationship equity with key league stakeholders.

The hoop consequence of a $12 billion-plus Vegas tag shows up in the expansion draft and the competitive window. Two new teams as soon as 2028-29 mean two more rosters stocked from the existing 30. How many players each club can protect, and how the apron rules treat a first-year team, remain open questions, since the league has not announced expansion-draft rules for 2028. An ownership group that has already paid for a new arena still has to build a roster worth watching.

The next steps come in order. A Vegas winner is expected in the very near future. The Seattle process follows, and the Vegas runners-up could join that bid. The league then aims for formal approval of both expansion teams by the end of December.

Sources

• ESPN / Shams Charania. Sep 29, 2026. Three finalists (Laurie; Apostolopoulos/Lasry; Foley/Colangelo); at least $12 billion to $13 billion for the franchise and a new arena; winner expected in the very near future; formal approval of two expansion teams by the end of December; Vegas ahead of Seattle (livelier bidding market, Climate Pledge Arena a ready-made home); Vegas runners-up could join the Seattle process; target as soon as 2028-29; group backgrounds and new-arena note.
• Shams on X. Sep 29, 2026.
• Photo: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0). T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas. Photo by David Jones.