Ranking all 29 NBA arenas in terms of construction cost
Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt opened up talks on a potential new arena for the Oklahoma City Thunder during his State of the City address earlier this month.
Holt announced that the team signed an extension to their lease with Paycom Center — who’s been home to the Thunder since their arrival in 2008 — that will keep the team there for four more seasons.
But after the 2025-26 season, Holt ideally wants the team to have a new arena done or close to done by then to secure the long-term future of the franchise in the city.
A lot of talk has thus occurred from both sides of the fence on how much a new arena should be publicly funded when the franchise is worth over $1.6 billion.
When nuanced dialogues such as these occur, it’s important to look back at history to provide some historical reference on how much arena constructions usually cost. This article will provide a clearer picture of that as it will list out all 29 NBA arenas and how much it costed to construct them.
It’s important to note that most of these costs have an inflation-adjusted 2021 number to correspond with it as it will help provide the full picture for some of the older arenas in the league that were made in the 1990s and early 2000s.
While some arenas have undergone expensive renovations since opening, those numbers will not be reflective on this piece for simplicity’s sake.
With all that clarified, let’s rank the 29 NBA arenas from the most expensive to least expensive in terms of raw construction cost.
1. Chase Center
Credit: Darren Yamashita-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Golden State Warriors
Construction cost: $1.4 billion
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $1.48 billion
Opened: 2019
2. Fiserv Forum
Team: Milwaukee Bucks
Construction cost: $1.2 billion
Opened: 2018
3. Barclays Center
Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Brooklyn Nets
Construction cost: $1 billion
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $1.18 billion
Opened: 2012
4. Little Caesars Arena
Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Detroit Pistons
Construction cost: $862.9 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $988 million
Opened: 2017
5. Golden 1 Center
Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Sacramento Kings
Construction cost: $558.2 million
Opened: 2016
6. Amway Center
Credit: Fernando Medina/Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Orlando Magic
Construction cost: $480 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $604 million
Opened: 2010
7. American Airlines Center
Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Dallas Mavericks
Construction cost: $420 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $643 million
Opened: 2001
8. Crypto.com Arena
(Photo by Rich Fury/Getty Images)
Team: Los Angeles Lakers and LA Clippers
Construction cost: $375 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $610 million
Opened: 1999
(The LA Clippers will open their own arena — Intuit Dome — in 2024 with the $1.8 billion in construction cost privately funded by ownership)
9. Scotiabank Arena
Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Toronto Raptors
Construction cost: $288 million
Construction cost in 2021 2022 dollars: $499 million
Opened: 1999
10. Moda Center
Credit: Steve Dykes-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Portland Trail Blazers
Construction cost: $262 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $466 million
Opened: 1995
11. Capital One Arena
Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Washington Wizards
Construction cost: $260 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $411 million
Opened: 1997
12. Spectrum Center
Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Charlotte Hornets
Construction cost: $260 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $361 million
Opened: 2005
13. FedExForum
Team: Memphis Grizzlies
Construction cost: $250 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $359 million
Opened: 2004
14. Toyota Center
Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Houston Rockets
Construction cost: $235 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $346 million
Opened: 2003
15. State Farm Arena
Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Atlanta Hawks
Construction cost: $213.5 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $347 million
Opened: 1999
16. FTX Arena
(Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Team: Miami Heat
Construction cost: $213 million
Opened: 1999
17. Wells Fargo Center
Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Philadelphia 76ers
Construction cost: $210 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $384 million
Opened: 1996
(A new arena plan was recently announced, where Sixers’ ownership will privately fund the $1.3 billion construction cost)
18. Ball Arena
Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Denver Nuggets
Construction cost: $187 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $316 million
Opened: 1999
19. AT&T Center
Credit: Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
Team: San Antonio Spurs
Construction cost: $186 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $280 million
Opened: 2002
20. Gainbridge Fieldhouse
Team: Indiana Pacers
Construction cost: $183 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $298 million
Opened: 1999
21. United Center
(Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Team: Chicago Bulls
Construction cost: $175 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $320 million
Opened: 1994
22. TD Garden
Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Boston Celtics
Construction cost: $160 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $285 million
Opened: 1995
23. Madison Square Garden
Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Team: New York Knicks
Construction cost: $123 million
Opened: 1968
24. Smoothie King Center
Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
Team: New Orleans Pelicans
Construction cost: $114 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $185 million
Opened: 1999
25. Target Center
Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Minnesota Timberwolves
Construction cost: $104 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $238 million
Opened: 1990
26. Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Cleveland Cavaliers
Construction cost: $100 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $183 million
Opened: 1994
27. Vivint Arena
Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports
Team: Utah Jazz
Construction cost: $93 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $193 million
Opened: 1991
28. Paycom Center
Team: Oklahoma City Thunder
Construction cost: $89.2 million
Opened: 2002
29. Footprint Center
Credit: Mike De Sisti-USA TODAY NETWORK
Team: Phoenix Suns
Construction cost: $89 million
Construction cost in 2021 dollars: $172 million
Opened: 1992
