NBA expansion hasn't happened for 20 years, so what does the future hold as league looks to grow to 32 teams?

The Charlotte Bobcats played their first game exactly 20 years ago, and the league has had 30 teams ever since

The NBA has had 30 teams for the past 20 years. The Charlotte Bobcats joined the league for the 2004-05 season, and they played their first game on Nov. 4, 2004 -- exactly 20 years ago. Despite years of rumors, no new teams have been founded since. But rumors of expansion have grown louder and louder in recent years. First, the COVID-19 pandemic made the idea of a quick cash infusion very attractive to the league. Then, the NBA put expansion on the back burner while it negotiated a new CBA. After the CBA, the media deal came next. But commissioner Adam Silver was straightforward as all of this played out. The league had other priorities in those moments, but expansion was something that would be considered in the future.

Well, the future may not have arrived, but it's rapidly approaching. The league and its players agreed to that new CBA in 2023. The new media deal followed a year later. Expansion hasn't been announced formally yet, but it appears inevitable. Last month, the Clippers and Trail Blazers played a preseason game in Seattle, a former NBA market that is rumored to be getting a new team in future expansion.

The widespread assumption is that new teams are coming. Then what? How are these teams formed? How will their presence impact the league? Where will they play? Below is a guide to how exactly expansion works. Keep in mind that the NBA has not actually expanded in two decades. It is possible that the league tweaks certain rules and precedents this time around. But broadly speaking, here is how the expansion process works.