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KCMO considered as temporary home for NBA Raptors

With a history of hosting NBA and NCAA games as well as the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament, Kansas City, Mo. is in the running for those being considered to serve as the temporary home to the NBA’s Toronto Raptors next season.

A report last week that the Raptors were considering Louisville, Kentucky, as a home base for the upcoming season has been shot down. But Louisville and Kansas City were among options studied in a column by Jason Mills of raptorsrapture.com.

Mills pointed out that Kansas City previously was an NBA city, with the Kings playing here until 1985. The city has grown since then, and added the T-Mobile Center arena in the middle of Downtown.

While the same Covid-19 restrictions that could bring the Raptors to Kansas City would limit attendance, a temporary run with the NBA team could prove a dress rehearsal for a future bid to lure an existing team or win an expansion team.

The arena was built as a possible home to an NBA or NHL franchise and the possibility was even baked into a naming rights deal with Sprint Corp., which T-Mobile US Inc. took over this year after completing a merger with Sprint.

T-Mobile Center has hosted more than 12 million guests since opening in 2007. It has hosted NBA exhibition games, NCAA basketball tournament games as well as serving as home for the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament.