Overview
- Golden State ranks No. 1 for a fifth straight year at $11.33 billion, second in U.S. sports only to the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys at $12.8 billion.
- The Lakers are valued at $10 billion off Mark Walter’s purchase agreement, edging the Knicks at $9.85 billion, with the Clippers and Celtics rounding out the top five.
- The average franchise is now $5.51 billion, up 20% year over year and 113% since 2022, with every team rising at least 9% and the floor set by the Grizzlies at $4 billion for a combined league total near $165 billion.
- Sportico bases values on control-sale prices, with recent deals for the Celtics (~$6.1B–$6.5B), Lakers ($10B) and Trail Blazers ($4.25B) helping drive an average value-to-revenue multiple of about 13.5 and pushing the ownership entry point sharply higher since 2022.
- Arena economics and international ambitions remain key factors, highlighted by the Warriors’ estimated $833 million in revenue and Chase Center ownership, alongside media contracts that lift per-team TV distributions from roughly $103 million to $143 million at the start of the new deal.