CLEVELAND — The Cavaliers are looking to make a second foray into the WNBA, with majority owner Dan Gilbert “actively pursuing” the American pro women’s league’s 16th team.
“Cleveland’s vibrant ecosystem of world-class assets, passionate and engaged sports fans, coupled with a culture that has allowed professional sports to thrive, make our Team and city uniquely positioned to provide an ideal home for the W’s next franchise,” Gilbert’s chief business executive in Cleveland, Nic Barlage, said in a statement Wednesday.
The Cavs have also launched a website — wnbacleveland.com — announcing its bid.
If Cleveland’s bid is successful, its new women’s team would play at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse, where the Cavs play downtown, and would practice at the Cleveland Clinic Peak Performance Center, a sparkling new headquarters for the Cavs’ training and business facilities expected to open in 2027.
A Cavs source said those two items — playing games at the Fieldhouse, which has undergone massive renovations over the last few seasons, and practicing at the new Cleveland Clinic facility when it opens — are two of the strongest components of Cleveland’s bid. The source said the Cavs had been working directly with the WNBA on a bid for about a year. Because…
