By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net
Speaking to international media on the occasion of the NBA season tipoff, the deputy commissioner of the NBA, Mark Tatum, went into details about the league’s plan for Europe in collaboration with FIBA.
Tatum repeated that the goal would be to launch NBA Europe in the next two years, that teams would also qualify via the Basketball Champions League, and maybe via their domestic league.
Also, while speaking about the markets with permanent franchises, he named seven countries.
“In phase one, our plan is Spain, UK, France, Italy, Germany, maybe Turkey, and maybe Greece. But there will be some open spots in the ecosystem, so in the early phase, they will be able to qualify,” he replied to a question about NBA Europe featuring teams from Israel and the Middle East, which, for the moment, can’t aim for a permanent spot.
Answering a Eurohoops question about Greek teams, since so far there’s no information, reports, or rumors about talks with the two Greek EuroLeague shareholders, Olympiacos and Panathinaikos, Tatum added: “We are talking with many clubs, including from Greece, but I can’t go into specifics”.
“The reason we are doing this is not primarily commercial,” he also mentioned, “Basketball is the No. 2 sport in Europe, and you see in the EuroLeague, there are no permanent franchises in the UK, Paris, Rome, or Berlin. The league is not open to all clubs in Europe, and we want to serve all fans the best way possible”.
“By finding the right partners, they will invest more money in the sport and not only in the league, but in academies, arenas, and that will bring more resources to the sport of basketball,” continued Tatum.
The 55-year-old executive also confirmed the projected start date.
“Our goal is to launch in the next two years,” he said, “We hired JP Morgan and Rain as advisors, and they are working hard to refine our model. We had already talks with local stakeholders and now we are taking the next step.”
As for the recent meeting with the EuroLeague and FIBA in Geneva, and the reaction from the EuroLeague, Tatum repeated that all EuroLeague clubs are welcome to the new ecosystem. However, it’s more than obvious that they can’t have all permanent spots, and they might have to compete in the Basketball Champions League to qualify for NBA Europe.