The Case for Bringing the NBA Back to Seattle

The Sonics have been gone for 15 years. But in their departure, the city still has a thriving basketball culture. As the NBA eyes potential expansion, they should look no further than the Emerald City.

I fell in love with the NBA in the mid-1990s. It was an era of league history that has been glorified for its toughness, vibrant personalities, and dominance of Michael Jordan. I grew up in New York City, and fell in love with the Knicks of that era where the paint was dominated by Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley. But as I watched more of the league, there was another team I found fascinating that I became a fan of: the Seattle SuperSonics led by Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton.

Seattle, of course, no longer has an NBA franchise. The franchise packed its bags and left the Pacific Northwest 15 years ago to formulate a new franchise: the Oklahoma City Thunder. I recently posed a question on the Seattle subreddit asking how fans in the city feel about the NBA. A few mentioned hating the NBA for taking the Sonics away, others mentioned focusing on the WNBA’s Seattle Storm, while a large majority have pivoted to college basketball by adopting Gonzaga and the University of Washington.

But all hope is not lost, as NBA commissioner Adam Silver has recently hinted at the league exploring the idea of expansion in 2024. Along with…