Billionaire Joins Las Vegas Expansion Team Proposal Worth $12 Billion

Las Vegas had a place in the NBA long before anyone put a price on a franchise there. At his Summer League press conference in July, Commissioner Adam Silver said the event “has operated as the NBA’s 31st team now for 22 years,” while refusing to commit to expansion. “It could be to expand. It could be not to. It could be one, it could be two.”

Three months later, that caution is gone. The bidding has turned into a real contest among billionaires, and the newest name to join it already owns a piece of one of the city’s biggest teams.

Egon Durban, co-CEO of private equity giant Silver Lake and the largest minority owner of the NFL's Las Vegas Raiders, has joined the Walton Laurie-led bid group pursuing the Las Vegas NBA expansion franchise, according to the Sports Business Journal.

Durban bought into the Raiders in 2024. In March, NFL owners approved a succession plan that lets him increase his stake and gives him an option to buy controlling interest from Mark Davis. He joins Nancy Walton Laurie and her husband Bill Laurie, who live in Henderson just outside the city and are worth an estimated $17.8 billion, as the financial backing of the bid.

The numbers attached to the deal are enormous even by modern sports ownership standards. The franchise fee is expected to be around $9 billion, with roughly $3 billion more for an arena, putting the total investment near $12 billion.

That figure sits within the broader range the NBA has floated for Las Vegas expansion, with some reports suggesting the final price could land between $12 billion and $13 billion once all costs are included.

Why Durban's Addition Strengthens a Crowded Field

The Walton Laurie group isn't the only bidder still standing. Two other finalist groups remain in contention: Steve Apostolopoulos and Marc Lasry, and Bill Foley paired with Jerry Colangelo, the former Phoenix Suns owner whose group includes former NBA players Vinny Del Negro and Jay Williams.

Walton Laurie herself has chased NBA ownership unsuccessfully before, with prior bids for Denver, Vancouver and Charlotte all falling short between 1999 and 2001, making this pursuit a long-delayed attempt rather than a first try.

Durban's arrival adds both capital and local sports infrastructure experience to a group that already had deep pockets. That could matter, because Las Vegas still doesn’t have a home for the team.

Speaking after September’s owners meetings, Silver said Seattle “could be ready” if a team were opening “in five weeks,” but not Las Vegas.

“In Las Vegas, it’s not even clear what the site will be, let alone the arena yet,” Silver said. “Therefore, it’s a much longer timeline before we can throw the ball up for NBA basketball.”

The NBA is expected to pick a winner soon, with a formal approval process in December and expansion teams targeted to debut as early as the 2028-29 season.

Durban's addition to the Walton Laurie bid arrives right as the league nears a decision that will determine which group gets to turn Silver's old "31st team" line into an actual franchise.