New York Knicks Still NBA’s Most Valuable Franchise, ‘Forbes’ Reports

Although the New York Knicks have exhibited substantial improvement under head coach Tom Thibodeau this season, the club is likely still some time away from competing for an NBA title. However, there is one area where the franchise continues to reign over the rest of the association.

Per Forbes‘ latest list of NBA team valuations, which was released on Wednesday, the Knicks continue to hold the top spot with a value of $5 billion, a number that represents a one-year change of 9 percent. This is the sixth consecutive year that the Knicks have beaten the field in terms of their actual worth in dollars and cents.

Meanwhile, the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Chicago Bulls and Boston Celtics rounded out the top five. Golden State was the first franchise since the 1999 Bulls to break into the top two, where the Knicks and Lakers have largely held steady.

New York is reportedly only the third sports club worldwide to have achieved a $5 billion valuation, following the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys and the MLB’s New York Yankees. Its number was bolstered by a billion-dollar renovation of Madison Square Garden and its “blockbuster” local TV rights deal.

During the 2019-20 campaign, the Knicks had revenue of $421 million and operating income of $178 million, both of which ranked second-highest in the league. The club achieved these figures despite how it finished 21-45 last season and did not receive an invitation to conclude its campaign in the league’s Orlando, Florida, bubble.

Moreover, the Knicks have lost nearly 70 percent of their games over the past six seasons while winning just one playoff series since 2000.

The Knicks are part of the publicly-traded Madison Square Garden Sports, which is controlled by the Dolan family. James Dolan serves as chairman of MSG Sports and supervises the day-to-day business operations of its teams and regional networks.

Elsewhere on the list, the Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans and Minnesota Timberwolves made up the bottom three, with each franchise being valued between $1.3 and 1.4 billion.

Forbes‘ methodology for calculating team values was to employ revenue multiples (equity plus net debt) to arrive at a figure while further factoring in the economics of each team’s current arena deal. Where teams had a new arena, media deal and/or sponsorship agreement set to begin after the 2019-20 season, its impact on the enterprise value was estimated.

As relayed by The Inquisitr, the Knicks are reportedly monitoring star guards Bradley Beal and Victor Oladipo as potential trade targets as they eye a return to postseason play.