By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Ongoing talks between the NBA and FIBA about Europe and a possible expansion of the league in some form or another have become ‘much more serious’, NBA commissioner Adam Silver explained to The Associated Press.
“We certainly haven’t made any definitive decisions,” he mentioned in an interview during a visit to France to follow the 2024 Olympic Games, “I continue to believe there’s enormous opportunity here. It’s not something where we’ll transform a league structure in the short term. But I think that there’s an appetite among our team owners for additional investment in global basketball. We have a huge initiative in China. We have a huge initiative in Africa. Given the quality of the basketball here in Europe, it would seem to make sense that we should be doing something here as well.”
The league based in North America and the international basketball federation have been considering options focused on Europe for decades, as noted by Silver.
At this stage, the format of a potential expansion remains unclear. An annual tournament or a separate league operated by the NBA are among the discussed options, revealed Silver.
“We certainly don’t want to do damage to the strong bones of the basketball infrastructure that are in place,” he rejected changes to the existing format, “On the other hand, in terms of regional and pan-regional competition here in Europe, it would be my sense — and again, I’m still studying — that lots of investors are losing significant amounts of money every year. And while this isn’t just about money, most things that continue to lose money without a trajectory towards profitability ultimately do not survive. And so, whatever we do here, I think it’s important that it’s additive to the European basketball structure.”