NBA House appearance in Vancouver raises basketball fans' hopes

As some wondering if the league itself might also be making a comeback here. Sophie, whenever the words NBA and Vancouver are mentioned in the same breath, there's folks around here, they just start having visions of Big Country and Sharif and those beautiful teal jerseys that the Grizzlies wore. Well, no, the NBA is not coming back to Vancouver. However, the league does continue to include the city in many of their endeavors, and this NBA House event is just the latest best example of that. It's been almost 25 years since the Grizzlies said goodbye to Vancouver, and while there were a handful of good times, it was mostly a sad state of affairs. But that hasn't stopped the city and fan base from yearning for a second chance, and the NBA hasn't been shy in its interest. I appreciate y'all allowing listen to y'all beautiful part of the country this week. Y'all's open arms. I hope y'all enjoyed the show. Over the years the Toronto Raptors have played pre season games at a sold out Rogers Arena and now from June 6th to 9th the NBA will be holding a free immersive basketball experience at the Plaza of Nations. NBA House will feature NBA Finals viewing parties, meet and greets with NBA alumni and the Larry O'Brien Champion Trip Trophy will also be on hand. This will be the first time the NBA has brought the NBA House to Canada. One of two questions people ask me about will basketball ever come back? Griffiths, who brought the Grizz to Vancouver in 1995, feels the city is more equipped than ever to host an NBA team. I think that there's a a recognition one that the city is a quality city, but also a potential NBA city down the road. Local documentarian cat Jamie has become a staple for Grizzly fandom. I think I have a Google alert for whenever the Vancouver Grizzlies are mentioned in like any articles. But this time around she's got her eyes on a different prize. The WNBAI think it's also just way more viable than an like price, price point wise to bring AWNBA team here and that WNBA is looking to expand. Toronto just got awarded A-Team which is like so awesome. But like, I want to see a W NBA team here in Vancouver. With the NBA expansion price likely well over $3 billion, Jamie may be on to something. Either way, as long as the NBA continues to have a presence in Vancouver, the question of getting a team back will never fade away. Good memories with the Grizzlies. All right, Troy, interesting point that Cat Jamie made about the WNBA perhaps being more feasible, more realistic for Vancouver. What is the going expansion fee for a WNB A-Team? Yeah, Sophie, the last city to be awarded a WNB A-Team was at the Golden State. That cost some $50 million. And then, as you heard in the story, the going rate for the next NBA expansion teams somewhere in the three to $5 billion range. So you can see the discrepancy there and why some folks like Kat and I'm sure many others think that the WNBA might make a bit more sense for Vancouver right now.