7th NBA Arena Site Proposal in Play Also Plans a Casino

Posted on: April 13, 2026, 08:08h. 

Last updated on: April 13, 2026, 08:10h.

• Starr Vegas is a new $10 billion proposal for an NBA-ready arena 2 miles south of the Las Vegas Strip
• The 63-acre site would include a basketball arena, retractable-roof soccer stadium and a casino
• The project marks the seventh site currently competing to host a Las Vegas NBA franchise

A new contender has stepped into Las Vegas’ increasingly crowded NBA expansion sweepstakes. Starr Vegas Development is pitching a $10 billion sports‑anchored resort district, including two sports venues and a casino with a sportsbook. It’s to be situated on 63 acres on the southwest corner of West Starr Avenue and South Las Vegas Boulevard, 1.7 miles south of the Welcome to Las Vegas sign.

The project was announced on Monday, just weeks after the NBA’s Board of Governors voted unanimously to begin formally exploring expansion bids for Las Vegas and Seattle, opening the door for ownership groups to present arena proposals and long‑term development visions.

CEO Chuck Haifley framed the project as a purpose‑built home for the city’s next major franchise.

“We are building world‑class facilities for soccer, basketball, concerts, combat sports and more — the future home of professional sports in Las Vegas,” he said in the project’s announcement.

According to the development group, Starr Vegas has already secured $6 billion in funding toward the $10 billion buildout. The partnership includes longtime Southern Nevada land figures Larry Canarelli and K. Roohani, along with Lou Weisbach, who is simultaneously involved in a competing stadium proposal for the Chicago Bears.

Hoop Dreams

The plans include not only a 25,000‑seat indoor basketball and concert arena designed specifically for NBA and WNBA use, but also a 50,000‑seat covered soccer and concert stadium with a retractable roof and Strip‑facing sightlines.

Also included would be a casino and sportsbook and the Big Vision Tower — a rooftop dome venue for up to 1,000 guests with full broadcast integration. (It would share a name with Haifley’s long‑running production, broadcast, and equipment‑rental company.)

Surrounding the venues would be a cultural district featuring the Don King boxing museum, a Las Vegas Combat Sports Hall of Fame, comedy theaters, Broadway‑style productions, and a proprietary ticketing platform called Starr Tickets.

Residential towers, retail, office space, and hotels would round out the master plan, which Haifley says is designed to relieve congestion on the Strip by creating a new southern hub for sports and entertainment.

The group is actively inviting conversations with NBA and MLS ownership groups, as well as existing Las Vegas franchises seeking upgraded homes. (Hello, Aces!)

Haifley claims the timing is ideal, pointing to the planned Brightline West high‑speed rail station and the long‑term possibility of a supplemental airport as catalysts for transforming the southern valley into the city’s next major development corridor.

Crowded Court

But Starr Vegas enters a competitive landscape. Here are the six other NBA arena proposals in various stages of planning. We placed them in order of how likely we think each is to win the finals:

1. T-Mobile Arena: MGM Resorts International and AEG are pushing to upgrade Las Vegas’ existing building so it can host basketball in addition to Vegas Golden Knights hockey. Though scheduling can be a challenge since the seasons of both leagues overlap for 175-180 days a year, 11 American arenas currently manage to host both NBA and NHL teams.

2. Rio: In 2024, The Oak View Group — a leading global sports‑and‑entertainment development firm co‑founded by former AEG president Tim Leiweke and music supermanager/former Ticketmaster CEO Irving Azoff — abandoned plans to build a $10 billion arena four miles south of the Strip, retraining their sights on the parking lot behind the off-Strip Rio.

3 & 4: City of Las Vegas: Earlier this month, Mayor Shelley Berkley proposed two new sites for an NBA arena: a parking lot across from City Hall owned by the Plaza and the north parking lot of the World Market Center, which is owned by Blackstone Inc., holder of the real estate assets of the Cosmopolitan.

5: Resorts World: Last month, Nevada Gaming Control Board member George Assad encouraged Resorts World president Carlos Castro to build an NBA arena on vacant land at Resorts World.

6: LVXP:A team of Las Vegas-based real estate professionals proposed a 752-foot, 2,605-unit hotel and condominium project with an 18,000-seat arena and a 6,000-seat theater on land between the Sahara and Fontainebleau. That’s the same parcel that languished for more than a decade while the All Net Arena proposal never got off the ground.