Courtesy WNBA
Confetti falls from the ceiling as the WNBA’s new Las Vegas Aces name and logo are revealed at the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, Monday, Dec. 11, 2017. Las Vegas’ first major pro basketball team will begin play in the spring.
Published Monday, Dec. 11, 2017 | 6:20 p.m.
Updated Monday, Dec. 11, 2017 | 11 p.m.
Las Vegas has a new pro sports team — again.
It was announced on Monday that the city’s WNBA franchise, which will begin play in 2018, will be called the Las Vegas Aces. The team name and logo were revealed during a press conference at Mandalay Bay:
The franchise was formerly known as the San Antonio Stars, until MGM Resorts International bought the team in October with the intention of relocating it to Las Vegas.
The team will play its home games at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, a 12,000-seat venue. As part of Monday’s announcement, the team also revealed plans to spend $10 million on upgrades to the arena.
Bill Laimbeer, a former NBA all-star who has 13 years of coaching experience in the WNBA, will be the Aces' head coach and president of basketball operations.
WNBA President Lisa Borders said the Aces can be an immediate success and that getting people through the turnstiles will be the top priority for the team’s first year in Las Vegas.
"Full arenas," Borders said. "Tickets, tickets, tickets. Tickets being sold, people buying tickets, individuals, groups, premiums, people sitting in the arena watching the game. That’s the benchmark for success. You’ve seen the Golden Knights come in a few months ago with 18,000 at their game; we’d like to see the same thing at Mandalay Bay. It’s a smaller arena, so obviously you can't have the same numbers, but you’d like to see a full arena."
Following the Golden Knights, the NFL's Oakland Raiders (scheduled to relocate in 2020) and the United Soccer League's Las Vegas Lights FC, the Aces are the fourth pro team to call Las Vegas home.
Kayla Alexander, a forward who has been with the Stars/Aces franchise since 2013, said she's ready to make the move to Las Vegas.
"When we found out the team was moving, that came as a huge shock to all of us," Alexander said. "I’m not going to lie, at first I was a little sad because my whole career I’ve been in San Antonio, so that was kind of like a second home. But then when I found out we were coming to Las Vegas, and then getting here and seeing the facilities, seeing how passionate and how excited everybody is about the team, I was all on board. Now I’m really happy to be here and excited to get started."
The former San Antonio Stars were not one of the WNBA's premier franchises in recent years. The team finished in last place in the Western Conference in each of the last three seasons, compiling a combined record of 23-79 during that span.
Despite the franchise's poor record, Laimbeer is a good bet to elevate the team's performance. He has orchestrated dramatic turnarounds in previous stops with the Detroit Shock and New York Liberty, and he's got three WNBA championships on his resume. And after 13 years as one of the league's top coaches, few have a better grasp on the WNBA landscape.
The affable Laimbeer, who was a memorable villain and a two-time NBA champion during his 14-year playing career, said he expects the Aces to field an exciting, entertaining team that will fit right in with the rest of Las Vegas' pro squads.
"This is a natural place for a lot of teams to be," Laimbeer said. "It's the entertainment capital of the world, and we're all playing a sport, but it's still entertainment."
Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.
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