The NBA is looking to increase its influence in European basketball by teaming up with FIBA to create a new league, something the two organizations have been discussing for many years.
Not many details are available yet, but the goal for now is to create a 16-team league. The announcement made on Thursday by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and FIBA Secretary General Andreas Zagklis marks a big step forward in this long process of discussing what could work.
“We feel now is the time to move to that next stage,” Silver said, mentioning that NBA team owners were “enthusiastically supporting” this idea.
This has been a logical idea for a while, especially with the growing popularity of basketball in Europe and the rise of talented players from the region. Around one in every six current NBA players comes from Europe, including stars like Nikola Jokic from Serbia (Denver), Giannis Antetokounmpo from Greece (Milwaukee), Luka Doncic from Serbia (Los Angeles Lakers), and Victor Wembanyama from France (San Antonio). These four players have won five of the last six MVP awards.
“Basketball is the No. 2 sport in Europe. It’s widely popular. Hundreds of millions of fans. Roughly 15% of the players in the NBA right now are from Europe. Five out of the last six of our MVPs have been European,” Silver said. “But there’s a huge gap, I think, between the amount of interest in the sport and the development in terms of how we operate a league here in North America.”
The league would likely follow FIBA rules, which include a 40-minute game, shorter than the NBA’s 48-minute game. But many other details, such as the teams, the timing, and the locations, will be figured out in the coming months.
“FIBA has been running competitions for almost seven decades, since the 1957-58 season, and certainly we have seen great product,” Zagklis said. “We have seen great players. But at the same time, we have come to the conclusion that the popularity of the sport and the success that we’ve had with the national team competitions is not matched by fan interest and a commercial impact commensurate to that success.”
The NBA and FIBA have been talking about adding a European competition for a while. There was a discussion on this topic during a Board of Governors meeting in September, which Zagklis attended.
Victor Wembanyama reacts after scoring in the 2nd halfZagklis was back at this meeting, and it was clear that things had been moving in this direction since at least last summer, if not even longer.
“Coming out of the most successful World Cup and Olympics ever, we also believe it is the right time to take the next step for club basketball,” Zagklis said.
In January, at the NBA Paris Games, Silver said that he believes the NBA is “on track” in its efforts to expand its presence in Europe. That was when he mentioned that the league’s owners would be briefed more at the March meeting.
“The response we’ve gotten from the marketplace is very positive,” Silver said.
Zagklis added that FIBA’s leadership fully supports the idea of partnering with the NBA for the new league.
“Our role as a federation is to unite the basketball ecosystem,” Zagklis said.
The new league would likely carry some NBA branding, given how well-known the league and its logo are. It would be a part of the current European club system, and teams would still play in their own national leagues. One idea being considered, if the league ends up with 16 teams, is to have four spots that could be determined through relegation, which is common in European leagues but not seen in major U.S. sports.
The NBA and FIBA would also provide funding and resources to help further develop basketball in Europe. This includes more team academies and expanding existing programs for players, coaches, and referees.
“Given the opportunity to design a league from scratch, one of the things we’re looking at is what are the best elements we can take of both systems,” Silver said.
