Seattle Kraken CEO says they will follow NBA’s lead on expansion

Despite rumors to the contrary, the NBA is not expected to take up serious expansion talk for at least a couple of years, until both the new CBA and new television and streaming rights deals are in place. If the owners are going to open the doors, they are going to wait until they can do so at the highest possible price (with locked-in labor peace and higher television revenue).

The fans in Seattle have been more than patient waiting for the NBA to return, but they will have to wait a little longer (they will get a taste in October when the Trail Blazers will host the Clippers for a couple of preseason games). Seattle Kracken co-owner and CEO Tod Leiweke struck the right tone (from the NBA league office’s perspective) when asked about rumors of an NBA full-time return to Seattle by Fox Sports 13 in the city.

“I’m not going to address that [rumor]. There’s going to be a lot of rumors and innuendos. You know, we think the best thing that we can do is not ever get ahead of the league. They’ve got big issues coming: They’re in a CBA discussion, and they’ve got broadcast deals coming up. In due time, they will get to this. And in due time, we’re going to be well positioned…

“The hard work is done, building a world class arena. That’s why the team left. We now have that world class arena in place. It will stand the test of time. The building is phenomenal for basketball. And we’re super excited about the Clippers playing the Portland Trail Blazers here. And in fact, two games that are gonna play here, the first NBA game in our building will happen that first week in October – and we’re going to have a packed house and in our own Seattle way we will tell the world we are here. We are ready.”

Kracken majority owner David