Dishing an assist to NBA expansion

Born and raised in Europe, thriving in the NBA and now promoting basketball around the world — French hoops legend Tony Parker is a living embodiment of the game's globalization over the past three decades.

And six years into his retirement, the former San Antonio Spurs playmaker is ready to dish out another assist for the league's expansion ambitions.

As the current owner of French club ASVEL, the four-time NBA championship team member and Basketball Hall of Famer voiced his support for the NBA's next major move — to build a new European league that will feature many of the established clubs on the continent, possibly including his own, and new franchises based in major cities such as London, Paris and Berlin.

Although still in its infancy, the NBA's proposal, already endorsed by governing body FIBA, sounds beneficial for the game's overall growth in Europe should all parties involved work as a team, Parker said.

"I think it's a great idea," Parker told China Daily on Sunday while visiting Chengdu to promote a street basketball tournament in the Si-chuan provincial capital. "If the EuroLeague, the NBA and FIBA can find a way to work together to build a strong league, that will be amazing for European basketball."

The new European project, jointly communicated by NBA commissioner Adam Silver and FIBA secretary-general Andreas Zagklis at a news conference in March, is aiming to launch an independent league from the current continental system, based on the established EuroLeague, in the next two years, pending approval from FIBA and the NBA Board of Governors.

The new league is expected to consist of up to 16 clubs, welcoming traditional EuroLeague powerhouses, such as Real Madrid from Spain and Galatasaray from Turkiye, to join a slew of new franchises to be built, with 12 permanent entries guaranteed and four spots available each year for a potential qualifying tournament winners to take, according to NBA's preliminary design.

Having spent his prime years as a player in the United States and now running a club in the EuroLeague as an executive, Parker insists that only by working in collaboration would the new-league experiment yield desired outcomes.

"There is a lot of room for improvement (regarding commercial operation of clubs in Europe currently). I agree with that," said Parker, who won four NBA titles with legendary teammates Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili from 2003-14, and was awarded the Finals MVP in 2007.

"At the end of the day, we are talking and we are trying to go in the right direction. For me, as an owner of a French club, having an agreement between the three (NBA, FIBA and EuroLeauge) is the key for the success of European basketball.

"The NBA is a very strong brand that is recognized around the world, and, in Europe, everybody knows the NBA for sure. That's why I think the NBA can be very helpful to help elevate the game's profile in Europe.

"NBA Europe league, for me, is just a matter of time. They are coming, and it's going to happen," said the 43-year-old six-time NBA All-Star.

Selected 28th overall by the Spurs in the 2001 NBA Draft, Parker, a 6-foot-2 (1.88m) guard, averaged 15.5 points, 2.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 30.5 minutes across 1,254 NBA games, mostly representing the Spurs. He spent the final season of his professional career in 2018-19 with the Charlotte Hornets, after San Antonio opted not to bring him back as a free agent in the summer of 2018.

Promoting his game in soccer-mad Europe, where many of the top basketball teams have some affiliation to the continent's soccer behemoths, FIBA chief Zagklis said the international body expects to count on the NBA's strengths in marketing and branding to help improve the financial status of the European clubs, a majority of which run at a loss.

"We have come to the conclusion that the popularity of the sport and the success that we've had with the national team competitions is not matched by fan interest and a commercial impact commensurate to that success," Zagklis said back in March.

"It is very important that we are having these conversations for our fans, and for the growth of our sport.

"This does not mean that this happens to the detriment of other stakeholders. It's actually trying to raise the tide for everyone in European basketball."

It's yet to be seen, though, whether the existing league will buy it.

The 20-club EuroLeague, which tips off its 2025-26 regular season on Sept 30, boasts 25 years of history and has built deep connections with a number of "A-license" major clubs, such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, CSKA Moscow and Maccabi Tel Aviv, which take part as both competitors and co-owners of the league.

EuroLeague CEO Paulius Motiejunas, in a recent interview with The Athletic, reiterated his firm stance on working together with the NBA, rather than going in separate ways.

" (The NBA) has a really strong image. They can help with TV deals and they can help with sponsorship. We can grow the pie bigger if we go and work together," he said in the interview.

"But, we have a huge fan base. We have 25 years of history. This is what we said to them. Why not sit down and see how we go, and make decisions together, rather than just creating a new league and for them to start over?"

Another international basketball icon Pau Gasol, who won two league championships playing alongside the late Kobe Bryant at the Los Angeles Lakers from 2009-10, agreed with the FIBA boss that the European competition needs to step up its financial game.

"The basketball model in Europe must evolve and improve. Economically, it's not sustainable, and the vast majority of teams lose money," the six-time NBA All-Star told Marca in June at the launch of the Pau Gasol Academy in Barcelona.

"The work is underway. It's in progress ... and it's an opportunity for growth for our sport."