THE AVERAGE NBA team is worth $1.1 billion, 74% more than last year and three times more than five years ago. Why? In October the league inked expanded national media deals with Walt Disney (ESPN/ABC) and Time Warner (TNT) that will begin with the 2016-17 season and are worth nearly three times the current deals. With live sports proving one of the few DVR-proof plays (people watch the commercials), local rights deals are surging, too. Plus, it never hurts when rich people look for trophy assets in a bull market-and credit is cheap. For much more on the business of basketball, go to
www.forbes.com/nba.