Potentially expanding to Seattle and Las Vegas pales when compared to the NBA’s biggest move.
While the NFL gets closer to an 18-game season — with every team in the league playing an annual international game — the NBA is considering a huge leap that will make The Association even more global.
Stephen Curry and LeBron James took over London in 2024GettyShai Gilgeous-Alexander will try to even the ‘small-market’ NBA Finals in Game 2 on Sunday, following Tyrese Haliburton’s instant-classic dagger from Game 1.
But while the final round of the 2024-25 season plays out, plans are already moving forward for what could eventually become NBA Europe.
“Call it a 14-to-16 team league with some number of permanent franchises in some number of cities,” NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum told talkSPORT and others on a conference call this week.
“And then an open competition for all other clubs to be able to participate in the top-tier leagues.
“So, for example, whatever second-tier division there might be — which in the case that we’re contemplating would be the Basketball Champions League, for example — it could be the winner or the top-two finishers in the Basketball Champions League could automatically qualify into the top-tier league.
“And then you could have sort of a play-in tournament for all the rest of the teams in Europe to play into this league.”
Tatum emphasized that having the ability to “play into the top-tier league,” is a key piece of the NBA’s overseas puzzle.
Promotion and relegation are missing from American sports, but they’re at the core of the Premier League and European football.
There could also be eventual cross over between the NBA’s 30 teams and the league’s new European association.
The NBA has bigger plans than the Finalsgetty GettyAdam Silver, left, is balancing potential expansion in the US and international growth[/caption] GettyThe King might be able to cross the pond again before he retires[/caption]“I think that’s one of the interesting things that you could see here,” Tatum said.
“You could see a series of NBA clubs coming over and playing preseason games against European clubs. Sort of what we used to do with Europe Live.
“We’d have a lot more incentive to do that, clearly, if we were operating in the top-tier league in Europe. And we could have those European clubs come into play in the US.
“Well down the road, you could see things like having the winners or the top-two finishers in the European League come enter into the NBA Cup and get injected to the NBA Cup.
“And then really down the road, once supersonic travel happens, you could see a division of the NBA in Europe.”
Improving the state of basketball in England is critical for the NBA’s international vision.
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“There are no top-tier teams in the UK,” Tatum said.
“We think that there has to be, because we know that the demand –that the number of fans in the UK, that the size of the market — that we have to service those fans.”
Meanwhile, London and Manchester have arenas that could factor into the NBA’s future plans.
“I did meet with Mayor Sadiq Khan in September, and we discussed our shared ambition to expand basketball in London,” Tatum said.
“He was clearly pushing me for return of games back to London. And I do think that that’s something that will happen in the not too distant future.”
While Todd Boehly is primarily focused on Chelsea’s return to the Champions League and ushering the Dodgers to another World Series trophy, he’s also a part-owner of a Los Angeles Lakers team that features LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
Victor Wembanyama could become the international face of the NBAGetty“I think what you’re going to see is more and more professional sports, like the NBA, come to Europe,” Boehly said in March at the Financial Times Business of Football Summit in London.
Boehly’s expansive sports portfolio provides him with a unique global view of the athletic world.
He’s a 51-year-old from Connecticut with an estimated net worth of $8.5 billion.
“I think the NBA is going to be a really interesting thing to watch over the next 20 years,” said Boehly, while discussing the difference dealing with European football and American sports agents.
“Because I think the NBA is going to become much more global, right? And then I think you’re going to see kind of the evolution of that agent market, as the NBA really becomes global.”
Rising star Victor Wembanyama was showcased with regular-season games in Paris earlier this season, before an injury placed the San Antonio Spurs sophomore on the shelf.
But Boehly is thinking much bigger than just a couple midseason contests in an overseas country.
He made it clear that the biggest move for the NBA could be across the pond and beyond.
“I think it’s going to be a fascinating thing to observe,” he said.
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