Aces could move to Henderson as soon as next season
Talks are underway for the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces to play at the 6,000-seat Dollar Loan Center in Henderson as early as next season, according to Golden Knights owner Bill Foley.
The under-construction arena in Green Valley will be home to the American Hockey League Henderson Silver Knights and to a to-be-named Indoor Football League team. Foley revealed the Aces also could soon be in the fold.
Foley said he’s talked to Raiders owner Mark Davis about such a move. “It’s going to be a great venue. He has to kind of get ready and get going because he’s got to build out some locker rooms, but we have the space.
“I think having the Aces here is kind of offseason for the Silver Knights, so it would be great … They could start next year.”
Davis, who recently purchased the Aces, has a deal in place to play at Michelob Ultra Arena at the Mandalay Bay this season. After that it’s still up in the air where the team will play. The Aces have two, one-year options to play at the Mandalay Bay after this season.
“We had some conversations, but that’s as far as it’s gone,” Davis said. “Nothing imminent at all. The mayor and the Knights brought it up, as far as if there was interest.”
The trio of teams would complement each other as their schedules match up pretty well, without much interference with one another, according to Foley.
“I think it would be fantastic because you have teams that are really not competing for the same times of the season,” Foley said. “I think it could really work.”
Henderson Mayor Debra March noted the Aces would make a great addition to the city’s sports landscape, which includes the Raiders headquarters and the Aces training facility under construction, both located in west Henderson.
“We’re negotiating on that,” March said. “We’re hoping we’ll have opportunities coming here. We couldn’t be more pleased to becoming a sports city … finding a home for the Raiders and then Lifeguard Arena and bringing the Silver Knights here and, of course, the arena football.
”Hopefully the Las Vegas Aces will be a nice addition to our community.”
Foley also said they’re in talks with a number of college basketball conferences to host their season-ending tournaments at the arena.
“We have one that we’re probably going to announce … in the next couple of weeks,” Foley said. “That’s going to be fun.”
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on Twitter.
WNBA announces tournament, streaming deal
The Commissioner's Cup, an in-season tournament, will make its WNBA debut this year, with the championship played Aug. 12 in Phoenix.
Players on the winning team will each receive more than $30,000 as part of a $500,000 overall pool.
Amazon Prime Video will stream nine tournament games and the championship. The service, which agreed to a multiyear deal with the WNBA, has streaming rights to 16 games each season.
