WNBA Expansion: $9.4B NBA owner aims to revive Michigan franchise

The WNBA continues to grow and is beginning to attract more attention from hoops fans. That was especially true last season with the emergence of rookies like Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese. With the women's professional league enjoying growth, adding more teams might be a worthwhile idea to explore.

That's what the owner of the Detroit Pistons, Tom Gores, is reportedly looking to do. However, Gores isn't just looking to bring in a new team. Instead, he wants to revive an old one.

According to Yahoo! Sports' Vincent Goodwill, in an article published on Thursday, Gores has submitted a bid for a WNBA franchise in Detroit. The report said that a team in Detroit will play by 2028 if the bid is accepted.

Tom Gores, the man behind the bid for a franchise in Detroit, has a 100% stake on the Pistons. According to Forbes, he and his private equity firm named Platinum Equity bought the Pistons in 2011. In 2015, Gores bought out Platinum Equity's stake. His net worth is valued at $9.4 billion (as per Forbes) and he is reported to have over 40 companies.

Michigan had a franchise in The WNBA previously, with the now-defunct Detroit Shock. The Shock played its inaugural season in 1998 and called Detroit home until the 2009 season. During this period, the Shock won three championships - 2003, 2006 and 2008.

In all three of these titles, they were coached by Bill Laimbeer, a four-time NBA All-Star and a two-time champion, all while he was with the Detroit Pistons.

After the 2008 season, the Shock moved to Tulsa, Oklahoma. The team stayed in Tulsa for another six seasons and retained their name. In 2016, the Shock moved to Dallas where it rebranded into the Wings.

While the women's professional league has a lot of history in Detroit, it's yet to be announced if Gores' proposed franchise would be called Shock again.

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A group of investors from Nashville have submitted a bid for a WNBA franchise in Tennessee

The WNBA has just expanded from 13 to 14 teams with the addition of the Golden State Valkyries — a franchise that will play its inaugural campaign in 2025.

Despite having just expanded, several groups are already looking to add more franchises to the league. Aside from a bid for a new team in Detroit, another group has submitted for a bid to start a franchise in Tennessee.

According to an article by Ben Pickman in the New York Times, a franchise called the Tennessee Summitt is being proposed. The article said that Bill Haslam is leading a group of investors that includes three-time WNBA champion Candace Parker and two-time Super Bowl champion Peyton Manning.

Both Parker and Manning are University of Tennessee alumni. Meanwhile, Haslam is a co-owner of the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL).

The name Summitt for the team is reportedly being proposed as a way to pay homage to the late Pat Summitt, who was the basketball coach at Tennessee from 1981 to 2012.