Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Justin Quinn

Former Boston point guard Gary Payton, Sr. believes an NBA return to Seattle is coming soon

Quite a few members of the wider Boston Celtics family have ties to the Pacific Northwest, from Bill Russell, Dennis Johnson and Bill Walton up to Isaiah Thomas, Avery Bradley and many others.

With rumbles of expansion rippling through the league and Commissioner Adam Silver strongly hinting that adding teams to the NBA is just beyond the process of wrapping up a new media rights deal, a return of the NBA to the state of Washington seems the most logical next step to take.

Buy Celtics Tickets

One person interested in seeing a revived Seattle SuperSonics franchise is former Celtics defensive menace Gary Payton, Sr., who recently spoke with Sports Illustrated’s Landon Buford about such a prospect and Silver’s words to such an end. “Silver is great as a commissioner, he knows what he’s talking about,” related Payton.

“We have already done the collective bargaining agreement; now we have to deal with the TV deal, which will be next year,” he continued.

“I think we have got a good chance of getting (an NBA team in Seattle) back in 2025-26, and it will be there,” the former Celtics guard suggested.

“I’m not worried about that. I think Seattle is the first one on the list of getting an expansion team, and it should be that way.”

Listen to the “Celtics Lab” podcast on:

Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3zBKQY6

Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3GfUPFi

YouTube: https://bit.ly/3F9DvjQ

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.