The San Francisco Bay Area is on the verge of getting a WNBA team, with the owners of the Golden State Warriors set to be granted an expansion franchise, multiple media outlets reported Tuesday night.
The team would play home games at the Warriors’ arena, Chase Center, in San Francisco will operating out of the NBA club’s practice facility across the bay in Oakland, according to The Athletic.
The Warriors issued a statement Tuesday night that read, “We have had productive conversations with the WNBA and look forward to the possibility of being a part of the league’s expansion plans. However, it would be premature to assume any potential agreement has been finalized.”
Warriors owner Joe Lacob previously owned the San Jose Lasers of the American Basketball League, a circuit that disbanded in the late 1990s shortly after the launch of the WNBA.
Northern California most recently had a WNBA team in 2009, when the Sacramento Monarchs folded.
The WNBA currently has 12 teams, with the most recent addition being the Atlanta Dream, who started play in 2008.
The Bay Area is set to get an expansion team in the National Women’s Soccer League next year, when Bay FC is due to begin playing in San Jose.
–Field Level Media
