The ownership group behind the Philadelphia 76ers is trying to bring a WNBA team to the city. Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment put in an official bid to the league for a WNBA expansion team, a company spokesman told The Athletic on Friday.
Tilman Fertitta, the owner of the Houston Rockets, has also submitted a bid to the WNBA for an expansion team, a spokesperson for the Rockets confirmed to The Athletic. The prospective team would play its games at the Toyota Center, where the Rockets play.
Fertitta has been open about his desire to bring a WNBA team back to Houston, which used to be the home of the Comets. That team won the first four WNBA titles in the league’s existence behind stars Sheryl Swoopes, Cynthia Cooper and Tina Thompson. But the team was disbanded after the 2008 season.
The bids backed by the Sixers ownership group and Fertitta are the latest entrants in what is expected to be a competitive bidding process to land the WNBA’s 16th team. Tom Gores, the owner of the Detroit Pistons, announced Friday that he is trying to bring a WNBA team back to Detroit. The owners of the Nashville Predators said Thursday that they will try to bring a team to Nashville.
The WNBA has already added three new teams in the last two years, with expansion clubs in the Bay Area,…
