A lot of D-League, err G-League, teams are doing what AHL teams are doing by moving closer to the parent club. The Hornets affiliate did this a few years ago from Maine to Greensboro.
no, they did not, the model changed.... same thing happened in the WNBA, WHICH is why the Rockers and Comets and Monarchs (CLE/HOU/SAC) no longer have franchises..... even though the Lynx (MIN) just tied the Comets for most WNBA Titles....
the Swarm are an expansion franchise, much the way Washington is starting the Capital City GO GO's (named aptly for the Wizards Dance team, btw).....
Maine is the last of the hybrids of the original agreement between the G-League and its clubs, they are not owned by the Celtics but the business ops are operated by them, the teams you've seen come in via outright expansion are owned outright by the NBA franchise, no matter where the affiliate is.... Charlotte was told outright that the hybrid affiliation was coming, I believe Fort WAYNE HAD 6 OR 7 affiliations under its banner of the Mad Ants before settling on Indiana.... the G League is what the WNBA model began years ago, it just ADAPTS better to this league than the WNBA.
