Basketball royalty has been circling Las Vegas ownership for a while now. Shaquille O’Neal publicly said that he wanted “his own group” to land the city’s eventual NBA franchise, while LeBron James has also been floated as a potential investor once the league finalizes a bid. With the NBA reportedly closing in on a decision among its finalist ownership groups, Stephen A. Smith just added a new name to the conversation, Kenny Smith.
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Smith on ESPN’s First Take. “I’m rooting for my brother, Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith, and his group to get the Las Vegas franchise,” he said, “and that is what I came on First Take to say this morning.”
The framing made it clear that this wasn’t an offhand aside. Smith treated it as news worth dedicating airtime to, a notable move given how competitive and well-funded the race for Las Vegas has become.
That competition has been building for months. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported that the league is weighing at least three finalist groups for the franchise, with price tags for the team and a new arena landing somewhere between $12 billion and $13 billion – in the same range as the record-setting sale of the Lakers earlier this year.
Reported bidders have included Walmart heiress Nancy Walton Laurie alongside Bill Laurie. Canadian businessman Steve Apostolopoulos is paired with former Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry, and Golden Knights owner Bill Foley is teaming with Hall of Famer Jerry Colangelo’s group, which already includes former players Vinny Del Negro and Jay Williams.
Where exactly Kenny Smith’s group fits into that picture isn’t yet clear publicly. But Stephen A.’s willingness to vouch for him on national television signals there’s a real push happening behind the scenes.
Kenny Smith has long been one of the most respected voices in the sport, both as a two-time champion and as a fixture of TNT’s Inside the NBA desk. It has given him the kind of name recognition and basketball credibility that ownership groups often lean on to strengthen their pitch to the league’s Board of Governors.
The NBA has targeted as early as the 2028-29 season for its Las Vegas franchise to begin play. Commissioner Adam Silver said a formal approval could come before the end of the year. That timeline means whichever group ultimately wins the bid will need at least 23 of the league’s owners to sign off, a threshold that typically rewards groups with strong basketball pedigree alongside deep financial backing.
If Kenny Smith is genuinely part of a serious push for the franchise, Stephen A.’s on-air endorsement adds a layer of visibility to that group right as the league appears close to making its final call.
Whether it moves the needle with owners remains to be seen. But it’s clear that Stephen A. wanted Kenny’s name in the conversation before any decision gets made.