List_of_relocated_National_Basketball_Association_teams
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional men's basketball league, consisting of 30 teams in North America—29 in the United States and one in Canada. The NBA was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA).[1] It adopted the name National Basketball Association at the start of the 1949–50 season when it absorbed the National Basketball League (NBL).[1] The NBA is an active member of USA Basketball, which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) as the national governing body for basketball in the country.[2] The league is considered to be one of the four major professional sports leagues of North America.[3]
The list contains current franchises in the NBA. It does not include name changes.[4]
| First | First year in original city |
| Last | Last year in original city |
| Win% | Winning percentage |
| PA | NBA Playoffs appearances |
| C | Championship titles |
| ^ | City later received a new franchise |
| * | Later relocated again |
More information Team, First ...
| Team | First | Last | Relocated to | Seasons | Win% | PA | C | Main reason | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tri-Cities Blackhawks | 1949 | 1951 | Milwaukee Hawks* | 2 | .409 | 1 | 0 | Small city | |
| Milwaukee Hawks^ | 1951 | 1955 | St. Louis Hawks* | 4 | .324 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Fort Wayne Pistons | 1948 | 1957 | Detroit Pistons | 9 | .506 | 8 | 0 | Small city | |
| Rochester Royals | 1948 | 1957 | Cincinnati Royals* | 9 | .576 | 7 | 1 | Lack of profitability | |
| Minneapolis Lakers^ | 1948 | 1960 | Los Angeles Lakers | 12 | .545 | 11 | 5 | Poor attendance | [5] |
| Philadelphia Warriors^ | 1946 | 1962 | San Francisco Warriors | 16 | .506 | 12 | 2 | Sold to San Francisco owner | |
| Chicago Zephyrs^ | 1961 | 1963 | Baltimore Bullets* | 2 | .269 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Syracuse Nationals | 1949 | 1963 | Philadelphia 76ers | 14 | .569 | 14 | 1 | ||
| St. Louis Hawks | 1955 | 1968 | Atlanta Hawks | 13 | .550 | 12 | 1 | Sold to Atlanta owners | |
| New Jersey Americans | 1967 | 1968 | New York Nets* | 1 | 0 | 0 | Overbooked play location | ||
| San Diego Rockets^ | 1967 | 1971 | Houston Rockets | 4 | .363 | 1 | 0 | Sold to Houston ownership group after original owner Robert Breitbard came under financial distress due to tax assessment issues surrounding the arena he developed, the San Diego International Sports Center | [6] |
| Cincinnati Royals | 1957 | 1972 | Kansas City–Omaha Kings* | 15 | .467 | 7 | 0 | ||
| Baltimore Bullets | 1963 | 1973 | Capital Bullets§ | 10 | .493 | 7 | 0 | The Capital Bullets were later renamed Washington Bullets (1974–1997) and Washington Wizards (since 1997). Despite relocating, the team would play a few home games in Baltimore from 1989 to 1997. | |
| Kansas City–Omaha Kings | 1972 | 1975 | Kansas City Kings* | 3 | .459 | 1 | 0 | Moved all games to Kansas City | |
| New York Nets | 1968 | 1977 | New Jersey Nets* | 8 | 1 | 0 | NBA-ABA Merger, poor attendance | ||
| Buffalo Braves | 1970 | 1978 | San Diego Clippers* | 8 | .395 | 3 | 0 | Sale to California owner Irv Levin | |
| New Orleans Jazz^ | 1974 | 1979 | Utah Jazz | 5 | .393 | 0 | 0 | Lack of profitability | |
| San Diego Clippers | 1978 | 1984 | Los Angeles Clippers | 6 | .378 | 0 | 0 | Sold to Donald Sterling, who wanted the team in his hometown and eventually succeeded in relocation. In 2024, the Clippers' NBA G League team moved from Ontario, California to San Diego, adopting the San Diego Clippers branding. | |
| Kansas City Kings | 1975 | 1985 | Sacramento Kings | 10 | .465 | 4 | 0 | Low attendance | |
| Vancouver Grizzlies | 1995 | 2001 | Memphis Grizzlies | 6 | .220 | 0 | 0 | Financial problems caused by low attendance and the weak Canadian dollar; sold to Michael Heisley with the intention of moving the team to Memphis. | [7] |
| Charlotte Hornets^ | 1988 | 2002 | New Orleans Hornets* | 14 | .485 | 7 | 0 | Declining attendance, reported lack of profitability, and the declining popularity of owner George Shinn. In 2014, the franchise's history in Charlotte was given to the new Charlotte franchise (formerly the Bobcats) which started play in 2004, thus retconning the original relocation as a suspension of the Charlotte NBA team and the expansion of the New Orleans NBA team. | [8][9] |
| New Orleans Hornets^ | 2002 | 2005 | New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets* | 3 | .512 | 2 | 0 | Damage to the New Orleans metropolitan area caused by Hurricane Katrina forced the Hornets to play most of their home games in Oklahoma City. | [10][11] |
| New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets^ | 2005 | 2007 | New Orleans Hornets | 2 | .470 | 0 | 0 | The Hornets returned to New Orleans for the 2007–08 season after repairs to the team's home arena were completed. | [12] |
| Seattle SuperSonics | 1967 | 2008 | Oklahoma City Thunder | 41 | .524 | 22 | 1 | Financial problems exacerbated by the failure to provide funds for a new arena in Seattle; sold to Clay Bennett in 2006 who concealed the intention of moving the team to Oklahoma City. | [13][14] |
| New Orleans Hornets | 2007 | 2013 | New Orleans Pelicans | 6 | .480 | 3 | 0 | The team was renamed the New Orleans Pelicans in 2013. | |
| New Jersey Nets | 1977 | 2012 | Brooklyn Nets | 35 | - | - | - | Nets former owner Bruce Ratner bought them to move them to their new arena in Brooklyn, which is within 14 miles of its former arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey, both of which are in the same New York Metropolitan Area | |
| Toronto Raptors+ | 1995 | 2020 | Toronto Raptors (Tampa) | 25 | - | - | - | The Raptors played their home games at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League during the 2020-21 season, as a result of COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Canada. | [15] |
Close
+Active franchise
- Goldaper, Sam (17 April 2006). "The First Game". NBA.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. Retrieved 6 July 2009.
- "Inside USA Basketball". USA Basketball. Archived from the original on 11 June 2010. Retrieved 4 July 2009.
- Pennington, Bill (April 4, 2003). "Drugs; Anti-Doping Executive Plans to Prod Pro Leagues". The New York Times. Retrieved July 6, 2009.
- "Team Index". Sport Reference. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
- "History of the Lakers". Lakers.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- "Owners, fans waited years before Rockets took off". Houston Chronicle. September 16, 2001. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- Beamish, Mike (February 19, 2011). "NBA dreams rekindled, 10 years after Grizzlies' demise". The Vancouver Sun. Archived from the original on February 23, 2011. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- "HORNETS: Move to New Orleans Approved". www.nba.com. Archived from the original on 5 August 2002. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- "Charlotte Hornets Name Returns to Carolinas". Hornets.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. May 20, 2014. Archived from the original on May 22, 2014.
- "Hornets to Play in Oklahoma City". Pelicans.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. September 21, 2005. Retrieved September 21, 2005.
- Smith, Jimmy (September 21, 2005). "The buzz is Oklahoma City – Hornets will play 35 games there, six at the PMAC". New Orleans Times-Picayune. p. C5.
- Longman, Jeré (November 1, 2007). "Putting the New Orleans in the New Orleans Hornets". The New York Times. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
- "NBA Commissioner David Stern Statement on Settlement Between Sonics and the City of Seattle". NBA.com. NBA Media Ventures, LLC. July 2, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
- Brunner, Jim; Pian Chan, Sharon (July 2, 2008). "Sonics, city reach settlement". The Seattle Times. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
- "Toronto Raptors to Start Season in Tampa". SI.com. November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2020.