NBA Expansion: Adam Silver and team governors discuss potential franchise in Europe

The NBA has been the top league in the basketball world since what seems like its inception, raising awareness of the sport and making its stars globally recognized household names. These days, it looks like Adam Silver is set to bring some action to the European countries as well.

On Wednesday, the Sports Business Journey reported on the league's intentions to expand its reach to European countries.

According to Tim Reynolds from the Associated Press, Adam Silver, alongside league officials, will look into expanding operations to European countries this week in a BOG meeting in New York.

SBJ reported that the league is in talks with FIBA, the international basketball governance body in Europe, about the potential of the game in Europe. A proposal from FIBA suggests the inception of a new NBA-controlled league in Europe.

According to James Herbert from CBS, the board members are considering a league with four reserved sports for the top teams in the EuroLeague, possibly with 8 to 10 teams in total.

The ownership of the franchises in the new league has been discussed to have a similar ownership structure as the former WNBA setup, where the NBA would own 50% equity in the franchise while the owner would have the rest 50%.

According to SBJ's sources, the league is willing to sell the franchises to people outside of the league, such as wealthy individuals, sovereign wealth funds, private capital, or existing Europe-based basketball clubs. Adam Silver is yet to make a public comment on the subject and has decided to remain discreet on the proceedings.

Adam Silver foreshadowed the NBA's expansion to Europe

Adam Silver foreshadowed the basketball community about the ongoing talks about the league's possible expansion in Europe. In January, the San Antonio Spurs and the Indiana Pacers faced each other in back-to-back regular-season games held in Paris, France, as part of a program that aimed to bring elite basketball action to European countries.

However, before the game on Jan. 23, the league's commissioner foreshadowed a Europe expansion.

"We might eventually have NBA franchises here, but it's not our priority right now," Silver said. "That's not something we're discussing at the moment. We'd need supersonic jets to make it work."

"We're moving slowly to ensure that anything we do is accepted by the existing basketball ecosystem."

The NBA is no longer a league full of American players with a fanbase consisting entirely of American audiences. The league went global a long time ago, and for the better part of the last decade, European players like Giannis Antetokoumpo, Luka Doncic, and 3x NBA MVP Nikola Jokic have come in and dominated the league.

The league has built a strong fan base around the world with players like Victor Wembanyama attracting the newer generation as well. If Adam Silver decides to expand the league in Europe he sure won't have to deal with the lack of a fanbase.