Samantha Holloway's One Roof Sports and Entertainment has retained JPMorgan Chase and Moelis & Co. to help advise and structure a formal bid for a new NBA team in Seattle, according to multiple reports confirmed in May 2026.
The hiring of two of Wall Street's most prominent sports finance advisers signals that One Roof is moving from exploratory conversations to a formal, structured bid — and that the group has the institutional backing to compete at the $7 billion to $10 billion franchise fee range the NBA is targeting.
Who Are JPMorgan and Moelis?
JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States and one of the most active advisers in professional sports transactions. The bank has been involved in numerous franchise sales and expansions across the NFL, NBA, and MLB.
Moelis & Co. is a boutique investment bank that has become one of the go-to advisers for complex sports transactions, including league expansions and franchise restructurings. The firm's involvement signals that One Roof is treating this bid with the same financial rigor as a major corporate transaction.
Holloway's Strategic Position
Holloway's group holds a majority stake in Climate Pledge Arena through a private-public partnership with the city of Seattle — a structural advantage that no other potential bidder can easily replicate. The arena, which opened in 2021 and hosts the Kraken, the Storm, and the PWHL's Seattle Torrent, was designed with NBA specifications from the start, including dedicated NBA locker rooms.
The Competition
While Holloway's group has been the only publicly declared bidder in Seattle, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver confirmed on July 15 that multiple other groups are quietly competing for the franchise. The identity of those groups remains unknown, but Silver's comments suggest the bidding process in Seattle may be more competitive than it appeared.
Any competing group would need to either negotiate arena access with One Roof or propose an alternative venue — a prospect that could push total costs well above $10 billion when combined with the expansion fee.