What are the favorite Las Vegas hot spots for NBA stars?
During the NBA Summer League, superstars such as LeBron James could be spotted casually strolling through Wynn Las Vegas and other venues on the Strip.
Their presence was an example of the $280 million economic impact that NBA commissioner Adam Silver said would be generated for the valley during the league’s annual two-week stay.
With the preseason basketball accounting for 133,000 room nights, it’s worth wondering where all of the players, coaches and agents spent their money.
During games at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center, all you had to do was listen to find out — an endeavor that discovered that Wynn Las Vegas was the most popular hangout.
As the final seconds ticked away in a late-night game between the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets, staffers from both teams were focused on something far more important than the outcome.
“You’ve never had the Caesar salad at Delilah?” one asked.
The comment prompted several eavesdroppers to chime in almost immediately.
Plans were soon finalized for a postgame dinner at Wynn.
Fortunately for them, the hot spot stays open until 2 a.m. That’s not true of all the property’s eateries.
Not far away, two other team employees were discussing a potential coastal Mexican meal at Casa Playa, only for one of them to check its hours and discover it closes at 9:30 p.m.
Here are all the overwhelming favorites based on a series of survey interviews:
Delilah reigns
More than 50 percent of the surveyed players, coaches and agents mentioned Delilah as their must-visit restaurant in Las Vegas.
Stacey Augmon, the former UNLV star and the team’s new basketball director of community engagement, said the spot is so popular because of “food and the vibes” — specifically, the spare ribs.
The American fine dining restaurant touts its location in Wynn’s Tower Suites enclave as “exclusive” and offers dinner entertainment ranging from a live band to dancers.
“I like Delilah just to hang out, watch a good show and get a good bite to eat,” Minnesota Timberwolves summer league coach Kevin Hanson said. “The possibilities are endless.”
Honorable mentions
Most teams stayed at the Fontainebleau Las Vegas, while basketball agents preferred Aria or Vdara.
Aria boasted the most frequently mentioned restaurant runner-up: Carbone.
The Italian American fine dining spot was most often mentioned by coaches but also is popular among players.
“They genuinely always eat at Carbone,” athlete manager Alexis Robinson said of her NBA clients.
The other honorable mentions in order of frequency of answers:
— Catch Las Vegas.
— Red 8.
— Wakuda.
— Javier’s.
— Lo-Lo’s Chicken & Waffles.
— Papi Steak.
— Komodo Las Vegas.
Chris Jent, who coached the Charlotte Hornets to the championship, was the only person to offer Casa di Amore as an answer.
“It’s that little, little hole-in-the-wall Italian spot that I used to go to when I recruited in college,” he said.
Off-court activities
Topgolf Las Vegas was the most popular answer when players and coaches were asked for their favorite activity in their off time.
The Los Angeles Lakers even went to the entertainment venue as a team, summer league coach Lindsey Harding said.
“Just to watch everybody swing a golf club — some of them it was for the first time ever, so that was fun to do that,” she said.
That said, regular golfing is still alive and well for NBA personnel.
Chauncey Billups, a former NBA player and the Portland Trail Blazers coach, scoffed when his answer was mistaken for Topgolf.
“Not Topgolf, real golf,” he said. “Shadow Creek.”
Reporters Adam Hill and Alex Wright contributed to this story. Contact Callie Fin at cfin@reviewjournal.com. Follow @CallieJLaw on X.
