NBA Global Games and the league's quest for new fans

The NBA has been doing everything in its power to expand its popularity outside of North America, including through its “NBA Global Games.” Logistically, this can be a bit of a challenge at times in terms of travel and scheduling. This comes as 29 of the NBA’s 30 franchises reside in the United States, while the 30th is right next door in Canada. The league also features a long, grueling 82-game regular-season schedule, making it difficult to find time to venture overseas.

However, the NBA has still made it a priority to play games in foreign countries every chance they can get. According to ESPN, the NBA has hosted over 200 events in more than 20 countries.

“There have been more exhibition games in more countries than you could remember — the first happening in Israel in 1978, and from then on continuing in a range of countries, from Beijing to South Africa,” Connor O'Halloran of ESPN wrote.

“There have been preseason games in four different continents, with Africa edging closer to holding one in the years ahead. And there have been regular-season games, too, including games in London between 2011 and 2019,” O'Halloran continued.

On Thursday, the NBA returned overseas to Paris for “NBA Paris Game 2023,” featuring a matchup between the Chicago Bulls and Detroit Pistons. The game marked the second regular-season game in Paris, with the first having taken place between Milwaukee and Charlotte on Jan. 24, 2020.

In between the two games, the NBA and the world as a whole faced numerous setbacks due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This made it temporarily impossible for the NBA Global Games to continue.

On Thursday, shortly before the NBA Paris Game 2023 kicked off, NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke about the pandemic’s effect on the NBA Global Games.

“I actually remember when we were here (Paris) then … we started to see people wearing masks,” Silver said.

“People knew something was coming. No one was predicting at that time that the world was going to shut down and we’d go on to play in a bubble, etc,” Silver continued.

However, Silver went on to note the positive changes he has noticed since the pandemic died down.

“Our hope is, of course, that we’ve bookended that pandemic, and the worst is behind us. … We don’t see a lot of masks, and Paris is the vibrant city it was back then. That’s fantastic news,” Silver said.

Ralph Rivera, managing editor of NBA Europe and the Middle East, also spoke about the pandemic’s impact on the scheduling of the NBA Global Games. He then went on to speak about how exciting it was for the NBA to venture back to Europe this week.

"When we actually did our last game in Paris at that time, we announced that we were coming back the following year,” Rivera said.

“That was in January 2020, and obviously because of COVID-19 we weren't able to bring games. It also impacted our other on-court activities through that time. So this is the first opportunity for us to bring the game back to Europe, back to Paris, and we could not be more excited," Rivera continued.

Rivera added that improved digital access to NBA content in Europe has led to increased growth in the popularity of the game across the continent.

"There has never been a better time to be a fan of the NBA in Europe than right now, and part of it is that we are able to distribute the games and our stories, both via broadcast and online," Rivera said.

Likewise, Rivera explained that the influx of NBA star talent from Europe has increased the game’s popularity as well. This comes as the NBA's MVP race is currently being dominated by European stars like Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"There is so much content that is available, but in particular, the fact there are so many successful and MVP-caliber players from Europe in the NBA obviously increases the interest,” Rivera continued.

How important are the NBA Global Games to European basketball fans?

NBA Paris Game 2023

As for exactly how big of a deal the NBA Global Games are to European basketball fans, Ralph Rivera said they are like All-Star games. This comes as they are only an annual occurrence.

"We only have one game in Europe each year, and we consider it to be our European All-Star game," Rivera said.

"So, it made sense to move that game around a bit having been in London for a number of years consecutively. It made sense to move to another place in Europe," Rivera continued.

Meanwhile, Adam Silver wouldn’t go as far as to compare the NBA Global Games to the current NBA All-Star game. However, Silver noted that the atmosphere was pretty similar.

“I don’t want to quite compare this to All-Star, but it’s the closest thing to a European All-Star Game that we have,” Silver said.

In terms of the future of the NBA Global Games, the NBA hasn’t determined its international schedule for the 2023-24 regular season. However, there have been talks about the NBA hosting a preseason game in Africa.

Silver also hinted during his press conference that the league has big plans for its NBA Global Games moving forward.

“Getting back out in the market is giving us an opportunity to sit with our colleagues in Europe and formulate new plans. Stay tuned.” Silver said.