While the NBA hasn't generated the type of revenue it anticipated this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Michele Roberts remains bullish on the financial future of the NBA.
"That there is a future," said Roberts when was asked what her takeaway is on the future of the NBA following her meeting on Sunday with Adam Silver. "As bad as this thing is, it’s never occurred to me and I won’t allow it to occur to me that somehow basketball, as we know it, is over. This has been an incredibly successful sport in terms of popularity and revenue-generating possibilities. That’s not going to change. We’re certainly on a detour right now, but at the end of the day, professional basketball is still going to be an incredible machine. What we’re doing now is figuring out how to manage what is a short-term problem. We’re not going to make as much money. Money is not a dirty word, it’s the reality. So we need to figure out what we’re going to do about a season that is revenue-challenged. That’s what we’re addressing and once the Finals end, then we’re going to have conversations in a very significant way. We’re just setting the table for that.
"We’ve been able to create a relationship where there’s not this built-in antagonism. Adam’s got his constituency that he’s got to be mindful of; I do as well. We acknowledge we both have in common the health of this sport. We want this game to continue to be successful. We’ve had our fights and disagreements, some have been significant, but at the end of the day, I don’t throw chairs at him and he doesn’t throw chairs at me. I respect him and I believe he respects me. I actually like the guy. I think he’s a cool guy. He’s smart, he cares, and most importantly I think he respects our players. And as long as he does that, there’s room for us to have dialogue."
