00:00Today on Forbes, the most valuable NBA teams 2025.
00:06Private equity billionaire Mark Walters' agreement in June to buy the Los Angeles Lakers at a $10
00:11billion valuation, currently awaiting approval by the NBA, is set to establish a record sale
00:17price for a control stake in any sports team. Yet for all the attention the deal has attracted,
00:23the Lakers are not even the most valuable team in their league.
00:26For the fourth year in a row, that honor belongs to the Golden State Warriors,
00:32who Forbes estimates could fetch $11 billion if owners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber were willing
00:38to part with them. No other NBA team was within $300 million of the Warriors' estimated $880
00:45million in revenue last season, with the club far outpacing the rest of the league with its income
00:50from sponsorships and premium seating, and ranking in the top three in virtually every category tracked
00:56by Forbes. In fact, Golden State more than doubled the $417 million league average for total revenue,
01:03and compared with the other North American sports leagues, the Warriors surpassed every franchise
01:08except the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, who topped $1.2 billion in 2024 revenue.
01:15Despite that financial muscle, not all NBA insiders agree that the Warriors should sit above the Lakers
01:21in the ranking of the league's most valuable teams. Or, for that matter, above the New York Knicks,
01:26which land at number three on Forbes' 2025 list at $9.75 billion.
01:32Then again, not everyone believes the Lakers are actually worth the $10 billion that Mark Walter,
01:38who is also the controlling owner of MLB's Los Angeles Dodgers, was willing to pay.
01:42Some bankers, for instance, suggest the club's true value might be better captured with a blended
01:48valuation, perhaps between $8 and $9 billion, that reflects both this year's purchase and Walter's
01:55initial 2021 deal for a minority stake in the franchise. The relative muddle at the top of the
02:01hierarchy stems in part from the fact that the Lakers and the Knicks' valuations aren't entirely
02:06grounded in the franchise's ability to generate cash. Rather, they hinge on the team's appealing
02:12home markets, storied history, and global brand recognition, as well as their scarcity. In many
02:18cases, it takes decades for such a marquee asset to come up for sale. So while Forbes' $11 billion
02:25valuation of the Warriors comes in at a robust 12.5 times their estimated 2024-25 revenue,
02:31the equivalent figure for the Lakers is 18.1. In the words of one league insider, more like a
02:38quote, old-school software multiple than a number typically associated with a sports team in a
02:43nearly 80-year-old league. The Knicks, meanwhile, are valued at 18.3 times their estimated 2024-25
02:50revenue. Those multiples are such outliers that they may not have much to say about the economics
02:56of pro basketball more generally. But even for the rest of the NBA, business these days
03:01is very, very good. According to Forbes' estimates, league-wide revenue last season was up 10% year
03:08over year to roughly $12.5 billion, including money from non-NBA events held at teams' arenas
03:15but netting out arena debt service. Another significant jump is coming in 2025-26,
03:21the first season of the 11-year, $76 billion national media package the NBA signed last year
03:28with Disney, NBC Universal, and Amazon Prime Video. On average, the broadcast deals will pay
03:34roughly $4 billion more annually than the league's previous agreements. With all of that cash pouring
03:41in, Forbes estimates that the 30 NBA teams are worth $5.4 billion on average, or just over $160
03:49billion collectively. This represents an increase of 21% over last year and more than doubling the
03:55average of $2.5 billion from just four seasons ago. The league's floor is also up 17%, with the Memphis
04:02Grizzlies rising to $3.5 billion from $3 billion in 2024. In the future, what may be more alluring for
04:11potential pro basketball team investors is the NBA's pipeline of new arenas and renovations.
04:16The Oklahoma City Thunder, for example, are in line to receive $850 million in public money toward
04:23construction costs. Meanwhile, voters in Texas are set to decide the fate of up to $311 million in
04:29funding toward an arena to replace the San Antonio Spurs' Frost Bank Center, on top of $489 million the
04:36city has already committed. And the Philadelphia 76ers and the Dallas Mavericks are also pursuing
04:42new homes. For full coverage and to see the whole list, check out Justin Teitelbaum and Brett Knight's
04:49piece on Forbes.com. This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes. Thanks for tuning in.
05:06you
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