Ice Cube Names 3 Cities That Deserve an NBA Team: “Give Seattle Their Team Back”

The founder of the BIG3 basketball league, Ice Cube, recently named three cities he believes should have an NBA franchise. During an interview, Ice Cube didn’t hold back, calling out the NBA for relocating teams from these cities and advocating for their return: Seattle, Kansas City, and Buffalo.

“Stop playing. You stole a team from Seattle, put the dаmn team back. Seattle needs a team. Took a team from Kansas City, put the team back. Kansas City needs a team. You also took a team from Buffalo, put that sh*t back. Buffalo needs a team. Stop playin’,” Ice Cube declared.

Seattle SuperSonicsSeattle has been without an NBA team since 2008, when the SuperSonics were moved to Oklahoma City and rebranded as the Thunder. While the Thunder have found success with stars like Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden, and now Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, many fans still lament the loss of their team in Seattle.

Kansas City KingsKansas City hosted an NBA franchise from 1972 to 1985 before the team relocated to Sacramento, becoming the Kings. Despite the move, the Kings have struggled to find consistent success, owning the longest postseason drought in NBA history at 16 years.

Buffalo BravesBuffalo last had an NBA team with the Buffalo Braves, who played from 1970 to 1978. The franchise was moved to San Diego and renamed the Clippers, eventually relocating to Los Angeles in 1984. The Clippers have yet to find major success, still awaiting their first NBA Finals appearance.

The Future of NBA ExpansionWhile the NBA hasn’t officially announced plans for expansion, there is widespread speculation that the league will consider it after finalizing its new media rights deal. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has mentioned several potential expansion cities, including Seattle, Las Vegas, and Mexico City.

“There’s been some discussion about going back to Seattle. Potentially, Las Vegas is very interested in a team. Mexico City one day. But there are lots of other U.S. cities and Canadian cities, frankly, that have reached out to us to tell us they’d be interested,” Silver said.

With the growing interest in expansion, it’s likely that new teams will be added in the near future. NBA legends like LeBron James and Shaquille O’Neal have expressed interest in owning an expansion team in Las Vegas, while Kevin Durant has advocated for bringing a team back to Seattle, where he began his career in 2007.

The push for NBA expansion continues to gain momentum, and it remаins to be seen which cities will ultimately be awarded new franchises.