NBA, FIBA draw strong interest for proposed European league
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An NBA ball goes through the basket before the game between the Boston Celtics and the Oklahoma City Thunder at TD Garden in Boston on March 25, 2026.
PHOTO: IMAGN IMAGES
LOS ANGELES – The National Basketball Association (NBA) and basketball governing body FIBA have received strong interest from prospective teams and investors seeking permanent franchise spots in a proposed new European league, NBA deputy commissioner and chief operating officer Mark Tatum said on April 1.
“The level of engagement and the scale of the bids reflect the marketplace’s belief in our proposed model and the enormous, untapped potential for European basketball,” he said in a statement.
“We will now review the bids in more detail and shortlist the partners who share our vision and commitment to accelerating the growth of the game across the continent.”
NBA governors again expressed overwhelming support for the proposed league at the Board of Governors meeting on March 24 and 25, sources told Reuters. More than 120 prospective investors, including existing teams, outside investment groups and high-net-worth individuals, have shown serious interest in the venture.
The NBA has received multiple bids in the US$500 million (S$643.4 million) to over US$1 billion range, the sources said. There is competition from a range of investors across each of the league’s 12 target cities.
They are London, Manchester, Paris, Lyon, Rome, Milan, Barcelona, Madrid, Berlin, Munich, Athens and Istanbul.
In recent weeks, the NBA has held talks with more than a dozen existing basketball teams and received bids from multiple clubs, including EuroLeague teams, sources said.
The NBA and FIBA plan to take a phased approach, prioritising the most serious bids that align with their long-term vision, the sources said.
The NBA would then engage with its board of governors to select partners, while FIBA would follow its own process.
Announcements on final terms, the league’s launch and participating teams are expected to come on a rolling basis, rather than all at once.
The NBA and FIBA also remain in active talks with the EuroLeague, but a successful bid through their process is the only way to secure a permanent place in the new competition, the sources said.
In on-court action in the NBA on April 1, Victor Wembanyama powered the relentless San Antonio Spurs to a 10th straight win with his second consecutive 41-point game, brushing aside the Golden State Warriors 127-113.
Two days after the 22-year-old French star scored the fastest double-double in NBA history, he also grabbed 18 rebounds in a wire-to-wire victory.
San Antonio have emerged as genuine NBA title contenders in the second half of the season, winning 26 of their past 28 games.
They sit second in the Western Conference, just two wins behind the Oklahoma City Thunder (60-16), with six regular-season games remaining in the battle for top seed.
The two Western giants are the favourites to win the NBA championship, with the play-offs beginning in mid-April.
While the Thunder are the reigning NBA champions, the Spurs have not reached the play-offs since 2019.
Wembanyama laughed off the suggestion that a lack of experience would hurt them this spring.
“We don’t have experience, right? Screw it,” he told ESPN.
“We’re not going to play any different way just because... it is this way. We’re still going to play 100 per cent to go to try to win this championship.”
Elsewhere, the Boston Celtics tightened their grip on second seed in the East, and put a little pressure on the conference-leading Detroit Pistons, with a breezy 147-129 win over play-off hopefuls the Miami Heat. REUTERS, AFP
