Google
 

Saturday, December 8, 2007

The Most Valuable Franchises In The NBA According To Forbes

Despite the struggles and antics of the New York Knicks on and off the court, they still remain the NBA's most valuable franchise for the third straight year, according to a list compiled by Forbes. The Knicks were valued at $604 million, up 3 percent from the previous year despite a spate of losing, an embarrassing defeat in a sexual harassment lawsuit, poor team chemistry, and continuing questions about the future of coach Isiah Thomas.

The NBA's marquee franchise also had a league-high $196 million in revenues for the 2006-07 season while topping the list with negative $42.2 million in operating income after going 33-49 and missing the playoffs.

A lot of the Knicks' success, money-wise, has to do with where they play. New York is the medulla oblongata of American culture and I am willing to bet that if the Knicks played anywhere else, people wouldn't waste their time and money watching this team. I would rank the circus as a slightly better tourist attraction, though the Knicks aren't far from that. The Knicks may have the most valuable franchise, but not the most valuable team

The Los Angeles Lakers decreased in value 2 percent, down to $560 from $568 million, but remained second on the list. I would suspect this is due to their recent lack of success and the other number of California teams available to watch. It can't be because of Kobe; he's probably the only reason why the Lakers draw in the money they do.

The Chicago Bulls were third with a value of $500 million and a league-best $59.3 million in operating income. Let's see how long this lasts with that amazing team of theirs who inexplainably can't win.

The Detroit Pistons and Houston Rockets rounded out the top five.

The Cleveland Cavailers showed the biggest jump in value among the top 10 teams, increasing 20 percent to $455 million. They jumped from 10th to seventh. I believe two words are responsible for that: Lebron James.

No comments: