Maybe it seems stupid to put this much pressure on a random regular-season game in the early days of an NBA season, but the November 7th matchup between the Denver Nuggets and Indiana Pacers could have massive ripple effects over the next few years as the league plans its next expansion.
The NBA has been looking for new cities to expand to, notably earmarking Las Vegas and Seattle. Both cities have rich basketball history.
Vegas is home to the Las Vegas Aces, who have won multiple championships in the WNBA, and the UNLV Rebels, who ran an ahead-of-their-time system back in the 80s behind Jerry Tarkanian. Seattle has the WNBA's Seattle Storm and once housed the Seattle SuperSonics before they were stolen from the city to create the Oklahoma City Thunder.
While these are certainly decent options, it's important to consider that there are other ones hiding in plain sight.
Most notably, Mexico City.
Many critiques of Mexico City as a franchise location lean on largely xenophobic and racist views of what Mexico is as a country. However, these concerns could not be further from the truth. CDMX would be an excellent location for the next NBA team and would continue the league's goal of trying to become more and more International.
In a weird way, the Pacers game against the Nuggets will likely be a test run of how the city can accommodate a team. That means this could very likely be the first step in bringing basketball to Mexico City. And the Pacers could be the ones to do it.
Why Mexico City?
Part of the reason that the now-Memphis Grizzlies did not work out in Vancouver was that basketball was always going to be, at best, the second most popular sport in the area.
The Vancouver Canucks are an institution and will never be challenged by any other franchise in the city or region. Part of the reason the Toronto Raptors succeeded was because they found a franchise star so quickly, and the Toronto Maple Leafs were absolutely terrible.
A lot of the same can be said about soccer in Mexico, which would certainly make it harder to command the city's attention.
However, if the last few years have shown us anything, it's that people can be fans of multiple sports and that interest in the NBA is always growing. While fans in Beijing would surely be more rabid over a franchise coming over there, Mexico City's audience should not be ignored because basketball is largely American.
There's so much excitement out there to foster and grow, and so many fans waiting to find the game. It's a pleasure and an honor that the Pacers can invite them in.
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