Ten years ago this August, LeBron James first publicly declared his interest in owning an NBA team. And nearly four years ago, he said he wanted his team to be in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n
With the league set to take a big step next week<\/a> toward placing teams in both Las Vegas and Seattle, James\u2019 decade-long dream is dwindling.<\/p>\n When asked following the Lakers\u2019 124-116 win<\/a> in Houston on Wednesday if he was still interested big-picture in NBA ownership, James flatly said, \u201cNo, I\u2019m not.<\/p>\n \u201cNot at all.\u201d<\/p>\n Fenway Sports Group, James\u2019 business partner since 2011 that owns both the Boston Red Sox and English Premier League soccer giant Liverpool, is not currently interested in pursuing the likely expansion opportunity in Las Vegas, two sources with direct knowledge of the firm\u2019s intentions told The Athletic. One of those sources, who was not authorized to speak publicly for Fenway, said the global sports investment firm was out on NBA ownership in Las Vegas because of the expected cost \u2014 the league is reportedly seeking expansion fees as high as $8 billion per team.<\/p>\n FSG was long expected to be James\u2019 primary financial backer in his stated desire to be an NBA team owner, and because of that, a source close to James said, \u201cWith Fenway no longer pursuing NBA ownership, it is less likely that LeBron will pursue a team.\u201d<\/p>\n A spokesperson for FSG declined to comment to The Athletic.<\/p>\n James, 41, who still stars for the Los Angeles Lakers as a player, is worth $1.4 billion as of Wednesday, according to Forbes. But his personal worth is not nearly high enough to cover the cost of the expansion fee, and he was always going to need to join a team of investors to make his bid come true.<\/p>\n He has relationships with wealthy business owners and conglomerates beyond FSG. For instance, LeBron made a trip to Saudi Arabia in 2023, where he was the guest of the country\u2019s Ministry of Sport, a collaborative partner of the Saudi Public Investment Fund. But current NBA rules do not allow sovereign wealth funds to own more than 20 percent of a team.<\/p>\n As an aside, James would first need to retire to launch a bid for team ownership. He is undecided if he will play in 2026-27, and with the NBA reportedly eyeing the fall of 2028 as a potential launch for the new teams (if the NBA ultimately approves expansion), the timeline would either be very tight or impossible for James to find new investment partners and submit a bid.<\/p>\n