Worst Idea Ever: NBA Europe

[Yi Jian Lian]

NBA aiming to set up in Europe - report
Reuters - February 14, 2008, 7:54 am

MIAMI, Feb 13 (Reuters) - The NBA is weighing up a plan to create up to five European teams to play in their league, U.S. media reported on Wednesday.

Sports Illustrated's Web site SI.com (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com) said they had been told by a source that NBA commissioner David Stern will announce the proposal at a news conference on Saturday.

A spokesman for the NBA told Reuters that the idea had been circulating within the organisation but could not confirm details.

"We have been talking about this for some time as a possibility or as one of many scenarios," he said.

According to SI.com, the idea is to create five new teams in large markets to create a fully-fledged European division within the NBA. The teams would participate in the entire 82-game schedule and compete for the title as any other team would.

The report said the location of possible European franchises was linked to the availability of large arenas which could be NBA-ready and cited London, Berlin, Rome and Madrid as possible venues.

The SI.com source said that Stern's idea was to move the NBA into recently built arenas before a potential rival might start up a Europe-wide league.

The report is the latest sign of increasing globalisation of top sports leagues - the NFL and NHL have both played games in London in the past year and in March Major League Baseball teams, the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres will play games in China.

Last week, English soccer's Premier League announced plans to play a round of league matches internationally.

The road-trips are as bad as it is now, having to play in a different time-zone etc. etc. etc. Playing in another country, when it is suppose to be 5am back at home? Jet-lag is gonna kill the teams...David Stern, don't do this...

[cdubbz]

its all about the benjamins son. NBA is a money making machine, but yeah i dont see this working very well with time zones and travel especially. He wants to do this within the next 10 years too...wow. Plus I dont think europeans care too much or will be interested in the NBA as much and wont pay money to see it especially if its expansion franchises with no stars.

[Thugleavy34]

When it's 4-7pm over here what time is it in London? I'm wondering whether the game times would actually be feasible for fans to watch here in America.

[Thugleavy34]

4pm = Midnight, apparently. I don't see how this has any chance of working. People have to work during the day and sleep during the night. This whole thing would **** up the experience of being an NBA fan.

I guess it works for soccer? Maybe that's what Stern envisions...but I don't like it.

[Rainbow Jumper]

The time zone and travel issue is an obvious issue, but if I remember correctly, I think that it has been previously discussed that when teams go on the European road trip, they would play all of their road games over there before returning to the US, so if they were to play two roadies against each team it would be a 10 game roadie. Pretty brutal if you ask me, but better than making the trip more than once with jet lag issues.

I think the biggest thing for me is how players will be allocated to the European teams. Will there be expansion drafts? Imagine the mess that would be for established NBA vets that would have to pack up and leave the US, what about their families? I also think that there would be a lot of college players that would pull a Steve Francis and refuse to report if drafted by a European team. If players are only allocated from Europe, how does that impact the American team's ability to draft European players and wouldn't that negatively impact European teams' ability to compete with American teams on an even level, since they would have a smaller talent pool to draw from? I see a big mess coming from this move from the NBA.

[Rainbow Jumper]

4pm = Midnight, apparently. I don't see how this has any chance of working. People have to work during the day and sleep during the night. This whole thing would **** up the experience of being an NBA fan.

I guess it works for soccer? Maybe that's what Stern envisions...but I don't like it.

Speak for yourself... I work night shift

[St.Nick]

As much as I'd like to see this work, it will not. It is a logistical nightmare in every way.

Yes, you could work out something that allows a team to play every European away game on a single road trip, but what about the European teams? They would constantly be traveling through the US.

Imagine, 5 teams in the Euro Division, each playing against each other four times, that leaves another 65 games to be played in the States! These guys would hate it!

Not to mention, what do you do about the playoffs? Imagine that the Warriors and the Munich Pretzel Eaters have to meet in the Finals. How do you manage the scheduling? 4 games in California then the final three in Germany (with a 14 hour flight and a 9 hour time difference in the middle). How will the ratings be with games at 10am US time and 7pm Euro time? That makes it pretty hard for people that go to work.

The NBA has ulterior motives when they make statements about starting a division in Europe. Don't know what they are, but there is something there.

[Sleepy51]

The NBA has ulterior motives when they make statements about starting a division in Europe. Don't know what they are, but there is something there.

I think you're right the logistics of intercontinental road trips are just crazy and it is a huge disadvantage for the Euro teams.

More likely, Euroleague will get integrated with (or hopefully) absorb D league.

[St.Nick]

-= original quote snipped =-

More likely, Euroleague will get integrated with (or hopefully) absorb D league.

Thats definitely the way to go. Or better yet, Summer League in Europe. What 22 year old kid with a $10 million dollar contract wouldn't love to tour around playing basketball in Spain, Italy, and France for two months during the Summer?

That also wouldn't compete against the Euro League schedule, I believe. So some top Euro players could crossover and fill up the rosters.

[Sid the Squid]

You guys don't understand what this is about...It's about killing off the competion for worldwide basketball talent...Europe is starting to pay their players major $$$..In a few years they will be paying their home grown stars enough that they won't feel the need to cross the Atlantic..Stern , being the ultimate proactive comish, is stomping down any aspirations the Euro League might have of directly competing with the NBA.

[Sleepy51]

You guys don't understand what this is about...It's about killing off the competion for worldwide basketball talent...Europe is starting to pay their players major $$$..In a few years they will be paying their home grown stars enough that they won't feel the need to cross the Atlantic..Stern , being the ultimate proactive comish, is stomping down any aspirations the Euro League might have of directly competing with the NBA.

I don't think anyone is arguing that Stern doesn't have motivation to pursue this. He has every good reason in the world to try. But the realities of travel make it a daunting challenge. The travel schedule is just one aspect.

What's the TV deal going to be like on 4AM games (or worse, the daytime rebroadcast on NBA TV and ESPN Ocho of games already played ) against players US residents don't know and didn't get to hype up in college or the MacDonalds game? Filling arenas is one thing, but what about the Erupe TV deal? Will Euopean advertisers shell out the kind of Euro's required to make the expenses of launching and marketing this thing feasible? Soccer provides significantly stiffer competiton for viewers attention and dollars than Hockey does here.

This isn't to say it won't ever happen, but the world needs to get a little bit smaller IMHO before this can work, or there would have to be some more drastic changes to the NBA's framework and season platform.

How does FIFA make it work? I know I am a total soccer ignoramous, but do they have a real "season" or is it tournament based after teams position themselves in their own continental leagues? Anyone out there have a good handle on that league's growth and structure?

[enderboy]

NBA Europe should be the home of the d-league. i went on about this in another post on some other topic, but the d-league should re-organize how it goes about its business.

the draft should be extended to, i don't know, 6 rounds & teams should have their own affiliates. eliminate the age limit too. if a 17-y/o prosepect isn't fit for college, but has crazy talent, let him be drafted by a team & run him through a little d-league to get a professional experience. it would then send the message that the d-league is for PROSPECTS - not guys in their mid to late 20s that couldn't make it to the big show & likely never will. there's a reason why LF calls our boys "nice stories." the d-league shouldn't be about nice stories. it should be the place where prospects become pros - not where never-was' become instant has-beens.

NBA Europe should be the home of the d-league affiliates. if the NBA is willing to invest overseas, i personally would be more intrigued by knowing how our 5th round draft pick from boondocks high school is doing over in madrid than how expansion draftee mickael pietrus did back in paris.

based on the way the NBA drafts euros/international anyway, there'd be plenty of rooting interest in europe for nba teams that have d-leaguers that came from europe. screw the ncaa. the best players only go there now because they sorta have to.

[warriortone]

I don't see how any foreign born player would want to play in the US if they could play closer to their home. Say goodbye to any European players on any of the US teams. This seems like such a bad idea in so many different ways. Somebody needs to take the keys from Stern before he crashes the bus into a tree.

[Sleepy51]

NBA Europe should be the home of the d-league. i went on about this in another post on some other topic, but the d-league should re-organize how it goes about its business.

the draft should be extended to, i don't know, 6 rounds & teams should have their own affiliates. eliminate the age limit too. if a 17-y/o prosepect isn't fit for college, but has crazy talent, let him be drafted by a team & run him through a little d-league to get a professional experience. it would then send the message that the d-league is for PROSPECTS - not guys in their mid to late 20s that couldn't make it to the big show & likely never will. there's a reason why LF calls our boys "nice stories." the d-league shouldn't be about nice stories. it should be the place where prospects become pros - not where never-was' become instant has-beens.

NBA Europe should be the home of the d-league affiliates. if the NBA is willing to invest overseas, i personally would be more intrigued by knowing how our 5th round draft pick from boondocks high school is doing over in madrid than how expansion draftee mickael pietrus did back in paris.

based on the way the NBA drafts euros/international anyway, there'd be plenty of rooting interest in europe for nba teams that have d-leaguers that came from europe. screw the ncaa. the best players only go there now because they sorta have to.

Ender FTW.

Give the scholarships back to the student athletes.

I think in the NCAA, schools scholarships should be tied to their graduation rates. A school's program should only get scholarships for the % of thier roster matching their rolling 3 year graduation rate in the sport. If you can't graduate more than 50% of your basketball players over the last 3 years, you should only get scholarships for 50% of your roster spots. If you want more roster spots, find walk-ons and graduate them - thus improving the academic results and atmosphere of your program. The new scholarship kids you plug in will be comming into an enviornment where graduation is a priority and an expectation, not a footbnote. Put some teeth to the academic priorities. But the NCAA will never do something like that because it's a whorehouse.

If a young man/his family/his mentors make education a priority, then that's who the 4 year university scholarships should be there for.

As for the kids who have been let down by bad schools, bad parents, or bad workethics of thier own? The NBA could build some kind of education requirement into their Euro/D league contracts: "get your AA before you can go to the show." That would be a very socially responsible approach, and a lot more realistic.

We have a terrible school system in this country. And the responsibility and consequences for that shouldn't entirely fall on 15 & 16 year olds who haven't been taught or shown better (but ultimately they do.) I want our society and institutions to give these kids the means and opportunity to catch up and get back in the game, but hate the idea of prop 48'ing kids who aren't prepared (if even motivated) so that your school can leech a couple of years of TV coverage and booster money out of them before they leave, still uneducated and just more jaded about the society and systems that they haven't been adequately prepared to navigate.

Man do I hate the NCAA.

[enderboy]

[quote="Sleepy51"][/quote]

Sleepy FTW.

[Sleepy51]

For the record:

When I say I hate the NCAA, I don't mean I hate college sports. I love a lot of college sports, I love how a lot of schools, coaches and athletes bring their passion to the game.

But I hate the NCAA organization. There are too many conflicted interests involved and too much money changing hands with TV so heavily involved. I really liked the NCAA tournaments in the pre-age rule years. I like that the Darius Miles's were out of the way and kids who went to class a little bit got some run.

A lot of the coaches I've known over the years feel similarly. They would like to stay on mission as teachers and leaders of young men, but to keep their jobs, they have to compete in an enviornment that dillutes and often opposes thier mission. The only way to restore the priorities in DI athletics would be to reduce the commercial interests i.e TV and advertisers. To do that, it would have to be less of the product it has become. For that to happen, the non-academic talent has to be diverted elsehwere, but no one with any power in the NCAA seems to be interested in seeing that economy shrink.

[enderboy]

For the record:

When I say I hate the NCAA, I don't mean I hate college sports. I love a lot of college sports, I love how a lot of schools, coaches and athletes bring their passion to the game.

But I hate the NCAA organization. There are too many conflicted interests involved and too much money changing hands with TV so heavily involved. I really liked the NCAA tournaments in the pre-age rule years. I like that the Darius Miles's were out of the way and kids who went to class a little bit got some run.

A lot of the coaches I've known over the years feel similarly. They would like to stay on mission as teachers and leaders of young men, but to keep their jobs, they have to compete in an enviornment that dillutes and often opposes thier mission. The only way to restore the priorities in DI athletics would be to reduce the commercial interests i.e TV and advertisers. To do that, it would have to be less of the product it has become. For that to happen, the non-academic talent has to be diverted elsehwere, but no one with any power in the NCAA seems to be interested in seeing that economy shrink.

preachin to the choir.

[St.Nick]

Nice post, Sleepy. Lots of sense in there. I particularly like the part about giving scholarships based on graduation percentage.

But this would cripple the NCAA behemoths that pull in billions for the NCAA, universities, TV stations and shoe companies...so good luck with that one.

[Sleepy51]

Nice post, Sleepy. Lots of sense in there. I particularly like the part about giving scholarships based on graduation percentage.

But this would cripple the NCAA behemoths that pull in billions for the NCAA, universities, TV stations and shoe companies...so good luck with that one.

Instead of putting Roger Clemens congressional hearing on TV 24/7, I'd like Waxman and Specter to haul Miles Brand up there to talk about how to fix this problem. That's a hearing with a genuine public interest at stake.

[St.Nick]

-= original quote snipped =-



Instead of putting Roger Clemens congressional hearing on TV 24/7, I'd like Waxman and Specter to haul Miles Brand up there to talk about how to fix this problem. That's a hearing with a genuine public interest at stake.

Corporatism is the #1 problem in America today. These politicians would be bought by lobbyists if the issue ever came up (if they haven't been bought already).

Vote Ron Paul.

Or at least Obama. He claims to be against special interest groups and lobbyists.

Tangent over.