Is Buffalo Next To Get A Professional Basketball Team?

Buffalo has a football team, a hockey team, a women's hockey team, a lacrosse team, a minor league baseball team, and more.  Should we have a basketball team too?

A new basketball team wouldn't be Buffalo's first basketball team

In 1970, Buffalo was one of three expansion teams to join the National Basketball Association (NBA).  They shared the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, known to Buffalonians as "The Aud" with the Buffalo Sabres.

They were called the Buffalo Braves and they lasted through 1978.  In 1972, they even set an NBA record that still stands for most points in a single quarter with 58 in the fourth quarter against the Boston Celtics.

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Although the team saw stars like Bob McAdoo and Moses Malone on its roster, it was eventually moved to San Diego and became the San Diego Clippers (Now the LA Clippers.)

Is it time for Buffalo to have a basketball team again?

It looks as though the NBA is looking to expand again.  According to Adam Silver, they're hoping to talk about expansion after discussing media rights next spring.

Would Buffalo support a basketball team?

Buffalo is always considered one of the smaller cities in professional sports.  There's no question that when it comes to professional sports, markets like Dallas, New England, and New York will always be bigger.  But Buffalo's fans show up.

Someone pointed out that last weekend there were around 35,000 people downtown to watch sports and it wasn't for either the Bills or the Sabres.  It was for the championship of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) with the Buffalo Bandits and for minor league baseball with the Buffalo Bisons.

It's well-documented that Buffalo supports its sports teams.  We show up.

But where would we put them?

One of the biggest problems with having a professional basketball team in the first place was scheduling games.  They had to share the Aud with the Sabres and with multiple college teams including the Canisius Golden Griffs.

Considering hockey season and basketball season run almost concurrently, would we have trouble solidifying a schedule of home games for a new team?