NEW YORK, Oct 28 — Reigning NBA champion Golden State topped the list of most valuable NBA franchises released on Thursday by Forbes magazine, the Warriors coming in at US$7 billion (RM33 billion) to dethrone the New York Knicks.

The Warriors valuation jumped 25 per cent from a year ago after a 2021-22 season in which Golden State generated the most revenue at US$765 million and the greatest operating income at US$206 million.

Golden State doubled any rival club by pulling in US$150 million from arena advertising and sponsorships at the US$1.4 billion Chase Center in San Francisco and led the NBA with US$250 million in premium seating revenue in its first full season at the facility due to Covid-19 issues in the two prior campaigns.

It didn’t hurt that the Warriors captured their fourth NBA title in eight seasons.

This marks the first time a team other than the Knicks or Los Angeles Lakers has topped the Forbes list.

The Knicks, leaders the past seven times the NBA list was compiled by Forbes, ranked second at US$6.1 billion followed by the Lakers at US$5.9 billion, the Chicago Bulls at US$4.1 billion and the Boston Celtics at US$4 billion.

The Los Angeles Clippers were sixth at US$3.9 billion -- nearly twice the US$2 billion owner Steve Ballmer paid for the club in 2014. They will move into an under-construction arena with a new US$500 million naming-rights deal.

The average NBA team is worth US$2.86 billion, a 15 per cent increase from last year, with league-wide revenue at a record US$10 billion after arena debt servicing. Operating income was at a record US$2.7 billion while sponsorship and advertising revenue reached a record US$1.35 billion.

Only one NBA team, the Brooklyn Nets, lost money last season, with operating income down US$34 million. The Nets still rank seventh on the NBA value list at US$3.5 billion.

The NBA team with the greatest one-year increase in value was the Phoenix Suns, which jumped 50 per cent to US$2.7 billion to rank 13th on the overall value list. They were at US$1.8 billion in 2021.

Suns owner Robert Sarver said last month he would begin the process of selling the Suns after an independent investigation uncovered racist and misogynist remarks and bullying. Sarver was suspended for a year and fined US$10 million but many top players saw that punishment as too light.

With the Suns up for sale, the likely selling price is expected to shatter Ballmer’s purchase price from eight years ago as the NBA’s all-time record whenever a deal is done.

The New Orleans Pelicans were rated the least-valuable NBA franchise at US$1.6 billion, still a 5 per cent jump from last year, with the Memphis Grizzlies just above them at US$1.65 billion. Others in the bottom five included the Indiana Pacers at US$1.8 billion in 26th, the Charlotte Hornets in 27th at US$1.7 billion and the Minnesota Timberwolves in 28th at US$1.67 billion.

Growth in media rights is coming with the NBA’s next US television deal starting in the 2025-26 season and the price is likely to double the current US$2.66 billion a year from ESPN and Turner Sports. — AFP