NBA Commissioner Adam Silver Gets Support on Pitch to Explore Possible European League

Karl Rasmussen | Mar 27, 2025

NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks in a press conference / Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

NBA commissioner Adam Silver reportedly pitched the idea of a European basketball league to the NBA's board of governors during a Thursday meeting, according to the New York Times.

After the meeting, Silver announced that the NBA was set to "explore" a league in Europe, which indicates that he got approval from the 30 team owners to further his probe into the new league.

The Times reports that the league could include as many as 16 teams, including defectors from the EuroLeague as well as upstart franchises in other major European cities such as Paris and London. It could get underway as soon as 2026.

"We're ready to go to the next stage, and that is to explore a potential league in Europe with FIBA as our partners," said Silver, while sitting alongside FIBA's secretary general Andreas Zagklis, in a press conference after meeting with the board of governors.

Adam Silver made the announcement that the NBA will explore a potential league in Europe with FIBA as the NBA's partner: pic.twitter.com/6invtvgbiK

— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) March 27, 2025

The idea for the league seems to be in its preliminary stages, but there does appear to be support from NBA owners. There's plenty more work to be done until this league possibly comes to fruition, but things are trending in the right direction.

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