List of relocated NBA teams

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional men's basketball league, consisting of 30 teams in North America—29 in the United States and one in Canada. The NBA was founded in New York City on June 6, 1946, as the Basketball Association of America (BAA).^[1] It adopted the name National Basketball Association at the start of the 1949–50 season when it absorbed the National Basketball League (NBL).^[1] The NBA is an active member of USA Basketball, which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) as the national governing body for basketball in the country.^[2] The league is considered to be one of the four major professional sports leagues of North America.^[3]

Relocated teams

The list contains current franchises in the NBA. It does not include name changes.^[4]

First	First year in original city
Last	Last year in original city
Win%	Winning percentage
PA	NBA Playoffs appearances
C	Championship titles
^	City later received a new franchise
*	Later relocated again

Team	First	Last	Relocated to	Seasons	Win%	PA	C	Main reason	Ref
Tri-Cities Blackhawks	1949	1951	Milwaukee Hawks*	2	.409	1	0	Small city
Milwaukee Hawks^	1951	1955	St. Louis Hawks*	4	.324	0	0
Fort Wayne Pistons	1948	1957	Detroit Pistons	9	.506	8	0	Small city
Rochester Royals	1948	1957	Cincinnati Royals*	9	.576	7	1	Lack of profitability
Minneapolis Lakers^	1948	1960	Los Angeles Lakers	12	.545	11	5	Poor attendance	[5]
Philadelphia Warriors^	1946	1962	San Francisco Warriors	16	.506	12	2	Sold to San Francisco owner
Chicago Zephyrs^	1961	1963	Baltimore Bullets*	2	.269	0	0
Syracuse Nationals	1949	1963	Philadelphia 76ers	14	.569	14	1
St. Louis Hawks	1955	1968	Atlanta Hawks	13	.550	12	1	Sold to Atlanta owners
New Jersey Americans	1967	1968	New York Nets*	1		0	0	Overbooked play location
San Diego Rockets^	1967	1971	Houston Rockets	4	.363	1	0	[note 1]	[6]
Cincinnati Royals	1957	1972	Kansas City–Omaha Kings*	15	.467	7	0
Baltimore Bullets	1963	1973	Capital Bullets§	10	.493	7	0	[note 2]
Kansas City–Omaha Kings	1972	1975	Kansas City Kings*	3	.459	1	0	Moved all games to Kansas City
New York Nets	1968	1977	New Jersey Nets*	8		1	0	NBA-ABA Merger, poor attendance
Buffalo Braves	1970	1978	San Diego Clippers*	8	.395	3	0	[note 3]
New Orleans Jazz^	1974	1979	Utah Jazz	5	.393	0	0	Lack of profitability
San Diego Clippers	1978	1984	Los Angeles Clippers	6	.378	0	0	[note 4]
Kansas City Kings	1975	1985	Sacramento Kings	10	.465	4	0	Low attendance
Vancouver Grizzlies	1995	2001	Memphis Grizzlies	6	.220	0	0	[note 5]	[7]
Charlotte Hornets^	1988	2002	New Orleans Hornets*	14	.485	7	0	[note 6]	[8][9]
New Orleans Hornets^	2002	2005	New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets*	3	.512	2	0	[note 7]	[10][11]
New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets^	2005	2007	New Orleans Hornets	2	.470	0	0	[note 8]	[12]
Seattle SuperSonics	1967	2008	Oklahoma City Thunder	41	.524	22	1	[note 9]	[13][14]
New Jersey Nets	1977	2012	Brooklyn Nets	35	-	-	-	[note 10]
Toronto Raptors	1995	2020	Tampa (Temporarily in 2021)	25	-	-	-	[note 11]	[15]

1. Sold to Houston ownership group after original owner Robert Breitbard came under financial distress due to tax assessment issues surrounding the arena he developed, the San Diego International Sports Center
2. The Capital Bullets were later renamed Washington Bullets (1974–1997) and Washington Wizards (since 1997). Despite relocating, the team would play a few home games in Baltimore from 1989 to 1997.
3. Sale to California owner Irv Levin, who previously owned the Boston Celtics and swapped franchises with Braves owner John Y. Brown Jr.
4. Sold to Donald Sterling, who wanted the team in his hometown and eventually succeeded in relocation. In 2024, the Clippers' NBA G League team moved from Ontario, California to San Diego, adopting the San Diego Clippers branding.
5. Financial problems caused by low attendance and the weak Canadian dollar; sold to Michael Heisley with the intention of moving the team to Memphis.
6. Declining attendance, reported lack of profitability, and the declining popularity of owner George Shinn. This relocation was reversed retroactively in 2014 when the newly rebranded Charlotte Hornets (founded as the Bobcats in 2004) was awarded the history and records of the original Hornets in Charlotte from 1988 to 2002, while retroactively suspending operations from 2002 to 2004. The now-New Orleans Pelicans (rebranded from the Hornets in 2013) kept the history and records of the team in New Orleans from 2002 onward, but were retroactively reclassified as an expansion team.
7. Damage to the New Orleans metropolitan area caused by Hurricane Katrina forced the Hornets to play most of their home games in Oklahoma City.
8. The Hornets returned to New Orleans for the 2007–08 season after repairs to the team's home arena were completed. The team was later renamed the New Orleans Pelicans (since 2013) and subsequently returned the Hornets brand to the NBA, which was reclaimed by the new Charlotte team (originally Bobcats) in 2014.
9. Financial problems exacerbated by the failure to provide funds for a new arena in Seattle; sold to Clay Bennett in 2006 who concealed the intention of moving the team to Oklahoma City. Retains the SuperSonics franchise records but not the team colors and trademarks, which remain in Seattle for use by a future expansion team. Said expansion team may also share the records with the Thunder.
10. Nets former owner Bruce Ratner bought them to move them to their new arena in Brooklyn, which is within 14 miles of its former arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey, both of which are in the same New York Metropolitan Area
11. The Raptors played their home games at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League during their 2020–21 season, as a result of COVID-19 cross-border travel restrictions imposed by the Government of Canada. They returned to Toronto the following season.

See also

• List of defunct NBA teams