The NBA’s push into Europe may take a fairly significant turn next month.
Owners of EuroLeague shareholder clubs are scheduled to meet Oct. 5 to consider a potential offer from the NBA to acquire a stake in the competition, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport and L’Equipe.
And this isn’t exactly your standard owners meeting. The EuroLeague owners council meets infrequently, generally when larger strategic decisions need to be made. This one could determine whether the NBA and EuroLeague ultimately become partners or competitors.
According to the reports, one possibility would involve the NBA buying into EuroLeague and building its planned NBA Europe competition around the existing league.
The alternative? EuroLeague moves forward independently, including plans for expansion and a transition toward a franchise model, while preparing to compete with the NBA’s new operation.
Details of any proposal aren’t yet known. The league is expected to discuss its European plans during an upcoming Board of Governors meeting before the EuroLeague gathering.
NBA Europe has been in development for some time, but this would represent a pretty important fork in the road. Instead of trying to build an entirely new basketball ecosystem in Europe, the NBA may have an opportunity to buy its way into one that already exists.
At that point, EuroLeague’s owners apparently will have a decision to make.
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