The Latest NBA Team Valuations Are Here And, Damn, Some Crappy Teams Are Worth A Helluva Lot

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I don’t know why I love finding out the most valuable sports teams in the world every year, but, for some reason, it’s fun. Maybe it’s the fact that I know I’ll never, ever, in my entire life, have the billions of dollars it takes to own a pro sports team — squashing my hope of ever becoming an owner — or that I’m always blown away at the amount of cash a team actually makes. Either way, it’s always interesting.

And, if you’re an NBA fan, you might be interested in finding out the most valuable sports team in the Association, as Forbes just released the latest version of their annual valuations list. As you might expect, there are some surprises up towards the top, while others — like my Cleveland Cavaliers — took a major hit following the departure of LeBron James over the summer, leading to a ton of lost money and decrease in value.

Here’s a look at the full list of the NBA team valuations, with the New York Knicks — who are also Forbes‘ second-most valuable sports team in America, trailing only the Dallas Cowboys — leading the way. Who knew that losing could actually lead to so much money, right?

  1. New York Knicks – $4 billion
  2. Los Angeles Lakers – $3.7 billion
  3. Golden State Warriors – $3.5 billion
  4. Chicago Bulls – $2.9 billion
  5. Boston Celtics – $2.8 billion
  6. Brooklyn Nets – $2.3 billion
  7. Houston Rockets – $2.2 billion
  8. Dallas Mavericks – $2.15 billion
  9. Los Angeles Clippers – $1.9 billion
  10. Miami Heat – $1.75 billion
  11. Toronto Raptors – $1.675 billion
  12. Philadelphia 76ers – $1.65 billion
  13. San Antonio Spurs – $1.625 billion
  14. Portland Trail Blazers – $1.6 billion
  15. Sacramento Kings – $1.575 billion
  16. Washington Wizards – $1.55 billion
  17. Phoenix Suns – $1.5 billion
  18. Oklahoma City Thunder – $1.475 billion
  19. Utah Jazz – $1.425 billion
  20. Indiana Pacers – $1.4 billion
  21. Denver Nuggets – $1.375 billion
  22. Milwaukee Bucks – $1.35 billion
  23. Orlando Magic – $1.325 billion
  24. Atlanta Hawks – $1.3 billion
  25. Cleveland Cavaliers – $1.275 billion
  26. Detroit Pistons – $1.27 billion
  27. Minnesota Timberwolves – $1.26 billion
  28. Charlotte Hornets – $1.25 billion
  29. New Orleans Pelicans – $1.22 billion
  30. Memphis Grizzlies – $1.2 billion

While there’s some serious discrepancy between the Knicks and the Grizzlies, you can’t feel too bad for the Memphis ownership group, since the average NBA team is worth an astonishing $1.9 billion, which, per Forbes, is up 13 percent over last year and three times the valuation level just five years ago. That means that, if you’re a billionaire and are looking for a huge investment, owning an NBA team is probably the way to go.

Some other interesting info from the data about the most valuable sports teams in the NBA is the biggest five-year gainers, with the Golden State Warriors leading the way, which makes sense given the popularity of the team and the winning it has seen during that time. Per Forbes, here are the NBA teams who rose the most during that timeframe.

  • Golden State Warriors – 367 percent
  • Los Angeles Clippers – 282 percent
  • Philadelphia 76ers – 252 percent
  • Milwaukee Bucks – 233 percent
  • Toronto Raptors – 222 percent

The entire statistics are pretty in-depth, showing revenue per fan and the team with the most debt, so to see more about the most valuable sports teams in the NBA, head on over to Forbes‘ site to take a look.

(H/T Forbes)

Nick Dimengo avatar
Nick's a Sr. Editor for BroBible, mainly relying on his Sports Encyclopedia-like mind to write about things. He's also the co-host of the BroBible podcast "We Run This," and can be seen sweating his ass off while frequently running 10+ miles around Seattle.