Commissioner Adam Silver breaks down state of NBA at Summer League in Las Vegas
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver addresses the media following a Board of Governors meeting in Las Vegas.
LAS VEGAS – NBA commissioner Adam Silver brought the seasonal look Tuesday so appropriate to the NBA 2K25 Summer League and its 109 degree temperatures – no tie, open collar under his charcoal gray business suit.
He had just come from a day of Board of Governors meetings to a media session at the Thomas & Mack Center, where he spoke and was asked about an array of topics.
Media rights deals are not done: Despite intermittent reports in recent weeks that the NBA’s choice of broadcast partners and final revenue numbers are settled, Silver said that is not true. The situation is enough in flux he declined to answer most questions on the topic.
“We did approve this stage of media proposals,” Silver said. But he continued to term it “an ongoing process.”
ABC/ESPN/Disney, Amazon and Comcast/NBC Universal have been reported as the companies most likely to split up programming, in a combined package estimated at $76 billion over 11 years beginning in 2025-26. Warner Bros. Discovery, which operates TNT, also has been involved in the negotiations, with a partnership with the league that dates back 35 years.
Besides money – which could reportedly triple the league’s income from its existing TV deals – Silver spoke generally about objectives the league has sought in the deals.
“Additional broadcast exposure,” he said, with a greater emphasis on streaming to serve the manner in which fans increasingly consume NBA coverage. He cited global reach and sufficient resources to promote the league.
“Lastly, I’d say innovation,” Silver said. That means technology, from ways to make games easier to find across so many platforms to customization in presenting them in multiple languages and camera angles.
The league’s TV network and its website have been operated under a contract with WBD. Asked specifically about those outlets, Silver said: “I don’t know yet.”
WBD maintains it will have a five-day window once the deals are complete to exercise matching rights and keep one of the packages, such as Amazon’s, to continue its NBA presence.
Said Silver: “Much of it is outside my control. We’ll see.”
Expansion process this fall: The league’s focus in recent years has been, in order, securing a new collective bargaining agreement with the National Basketball Players Association, then negotiating the media rights, and finally considering expansion. The first got done in July 2023 and the second is nearing a conclusion, which means groups representing Seattle, Las Vegas, Mexico City and other markets will likely be vying for consideration in the fall.
Offseason maneuvers vs. new rules: As NBA teams dealt with aspects of the new CBA, some ran into restrictions that might have hindered their ability to acquire new players. Free agency was alive and well this month but “frenzy” – a label often used in the past – probably doesn’t apply.
“I know reports have come out that the summer was boring from a fan standpoint,” Silver said. “I don’t think it was. But at the same time, (with) this new system … I want to put [30] teams in a position to better compete.”
Too complicated? The commissioner was asked if the intricacies of the CBA – with its caps, luxury tax restrictions, penalties on big spenders and concepts such as “first and second aprons” – have made it difficult for fans and even media to follow along.
“We always try to find that balance that we want a system both that substantively serves its goals,” Silver said, “but we want it to be understandable.”
Parity vs. dynasties: The NBA has had six different champions over the past six years, something that last happened from 1975 through 1980. That’s a dramatic departure from the period that followed (1981-2005), during which just six teams won 24 of 25 titles.
Which way is better? “As long as we can create something close to a level playing field in terms of the tools available to teams to compete,” Silver said, “I’m absolutely fine with dynasties and I’m fine with new teams emerging every year.”
He did acknowledge that the CBA was set up to level that field, which suggests the streak could extend to 7-in-7 or beyond.
Celtics on the block. Silver used the word “bittersweet” to describe his feelings on Wyc Grousbeck’s decision to sell the Boston Celtics after more than two decades of stewardship. He said he’s saddened to lose a “first-class owner” but respects Grousbeck and his family in deciding the time is right to sell.
Next stop, France. Silver will head to the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he estimated that 130 NBA and WNBA current and former players will participate for their national teams. “I think that says a lot about the state of the game,” he said.
Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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