$6.1bn NBA franchise may leave historic home after being forced to trade $235m superstar

Aug 21, 2026 - 13:30

TD Garden is a world-class venue but Boston Celtics owner Bill Chisholm admits the team may have to move.

The private equity mogul bought the franchise for $6.1 billion in 2025 — a world-record fee at the time, which has since been surpassed by the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Lakers.

The Celtics have dominated the NBA but TD Garden is a huge disadvantage

He is delighted with the home arena, but with franchises battling for financial supremacy to fuel wins on the court, the Garden has one massive drawback.

It is owned by Delaware North, which runs the Boston Bruins NHL team.

Chisholm appeared on on WEEI’s The Greg Hill Show to discuss the situation.

He praised Delaware North and the arena’s “really good location”, but said the Celtics need to “create the best fan and player experience we can.”

Chisholm also cited the “ability to influence” the agenda and said if “owning the building needs to be part of that, then great, but it’s not a necessary thing.”

TD Garden is sports Mecca

An NBA-record 18 world championship banners hang from the rafters of TD Garden, which replaced the original Boston Garden in 1995.

It is the most visited sports and entertainment arena in New England, with nearly 3.5 million people visiting the each year.

Despite that success and the team’s obvious draw, the $800 million arena isn’t filling the organization’s coffers.

The Celtics have a lease extension to remain through the 2035-36 season, but relocation will always be on the cards, especially when extra revenue would help with the cap.

“I personally hate the idea of the Celtics playing anywhere else besides the Garden,” one fan told talkSPORT during a tour of Boston in 2025.

Chisholm may ultimately have no choice, with the Seaport an area making a lot of noise if relocation is considered.

Boston was forced to trade Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers over the offseason.

Paul George, two first-round draft picks and two second-round draft picks came the other way, but money was the reason behind the deal.

“They knew they were not going to offer Jaylen Brown the two-year, $140 million contract extension,” ESPN’s Shams Charania told The Pat McAfee Show. “That would have caused a reaction.

“Both sides would have had to have even harder conversations, and this could have gone another way. This could have gotten ugly potentially because you’ve already shopped the player multiple times. In 2022, he was offered for Kevin Durant.”

The answer may not be one the fans like, but a 19th world championship would go some way to silencing the doubters.