“SIMPLY INCREDIBLE”: LeBron James stoked to be at $2,300,000,000 worth Las Vegas venue for U2’s opening night gig
LeBron James recently attended the first event at the 'Las Vegas Sphere - a revolutionary venue that features 18,600 seats. The venue has been teased for quite some time, with videos of its exterior going viral time and time again leading up to the opening.
While attending a U2 concert on the opening night of the Sphere, James took to Instagram. Like many other fans who were in attendance, the star was blown away by the capabilities of the Sphere.
In one instance, the entire sphere was programmed to look as though it was covered in metal panels, while at other points it created a visual effect resembling the 'Matrix' movie.
The capabilities of the $2.3 billion venue left many, LeBron James included, in awe of what the technologically advanced venue is capable of. In an Instagram post he shared a series of videos highlighting the different things the Sphere can do, while writing:
"U2 Opening night at The Sphere in Vegas last night! SIMPLY INCREDIBLE VENUE!! WOW WOW WOW!!"
Of course, at the same time, many were quick to point out that having a venue such as the Sphere could help sway James towards owning an NBA franchise in Las Vegas.
Earlier this summer, the Sphere displayed an image of a basketball for the NBA Summer League.
Around the same time, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver spoke about an expansion and stated that when the league's media rights deal is up in 2025, the league would entertain the idea of an expansion.
Could LeBron James own an NBA expansion team in Las Vegas?
As Silver stated, two of the potential cities for expansion teams are Las Vegas, and Seattle, who has continued to campaign for a team in recent years.
Given that, it's entirely possible that LeBron James winds up owning an expansion team in the future. Over the years, he has made clear that one of his goals is to own an NBA team.
In October of 2022, James, who is a member of Fenway Sports Group, targeted Vegas as an ideal location to own a team. At the time, he joked that Adam Silver needed to target Vegas as an expansion city for a team so he could purchase the franchise.
While speaking to The Athletic earlier this year, LeBron James spoke about ownership. The way he saw things at the time, and likely still sees things, owning a team will be a great way to remain a part of the game.
"I will own a team someday. That's my next thing."
"Why do I want to own team? I think it'll be cool. I'll stay part of the game and still be able to put people in positions of power. I've always loved that, putting people in a position of power to feel like they can make a change and make things happen."
Given that, and his recent experience at the Sphere, it sounds as though ownership is likely in LeBron James' future. The big question is, when will an NBA expansion actually happen?