Adam Silver drops truth bomb on NBA Europe expansion progress

As basketball continues to be a global sport, the NBA is keen on expanding its reach. The league is in the middle of forming NBA Europe, which could tip off in October 2027.

NBA Europe is planning to have 16 teams, including champions from domestic leagues. The NBA, in partnership with FIBA, sees it as a rival of the EuroLeague, which has produced multiple stars over the decades, including Luka Doncic, Pau Gasol, Marc Gasol, Manu Ginobili, and Ricky Rubio, just to name a few.

On Wednesday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver held his annual media conference in the Summer League in Las Vegas to address various topics. According to ClutchPoints’ Brett Siegel, Silver remained bullish on the progress of NBA Europe.

“NBA commissioner Adam Silver says the NBA Europe project is in the process of finalizing bids for an initial group of cities,” wrote Siegel.

Siegel also quoted Silver as saying: “I am very pleased with the interest across the board in Europe.”

Silver recently hired Arturas Karnisovasa as a consultant for NBA Europe. He will be tasked with rules and governance, recruitment, and youth development, while also serving as a liaison between the NBA and NBA Europe.

Karnisovasa previously served as executive vice president of basketball operations of the Chicago Bulls. He was fired in April.

Based on a report from ESPN’s Ben Golliver, there have been multiple bids of over $1 billion from major cities to join NBA Europe, including Barcelona, Madrid, London, Manchester, Paris, Lyon, Berlin, Munich, Milan, Rome, and Istanbul.

The bidding process began in February.

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