Thursday's hoops: NBA still talking about expanding footprint in Europe

Thursday’s hoops: NBA still talking about expanding footprint in Europe

Posted by author January 24, 2025 NBA

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Detroit News staff and wires
| The Detroit News

Paris – The NBA is still exploring ways to expand its role in European basketball and those talks with FIBA and other stakeholders will continue, Commissioner Adam Silver said Thursday.

That means there’s no deal – yet. But Silver, speaking before the start of the NBA Paris Games between San Antonio and Indiana, gave no indication that the league is softening its stance that more can be done. Meetings were had in Paris this week, and those talks will continue in the coming months.

“We are looking very closely to see if there’s an opportunity to professionalize the game to another level here, to create a larger commercial opportunity,” Silver said. “And not just because commercial opportunity suggests you can grow revenue, but because we believe that with markets, if you can create proper incentives, you can get significant additional investment. And ultimately, that’s the way to grow the game at all levels.”

In August, during the Paris Olympics, Silver said in an interview with The Associated Press that the league had started ramping up talks with FIBA, the sport’s global governing body, on adding either an annual competition in Europe or even having an NBA-operated league.

Similar talks have been taking place for some time. But these conversations are about the vision that the NBA and FIBA evidently share about the potential of the game in Europe from both a commercial and competitive standpoint.

“We have no agreements in place,” Silver said. “We’re not ready to make any additional announcements and we’ll continue to learn all we can and to see if there is a path to move forward.”

Hero’s reception

The first enormous roar from the crowd came before the game even started. All Victor Wembanyama needed to do to get the fans in Paris into a full-blown frenzy was, it turned out, say hello into a microphone.

The cheering just from that lasted about 30 seconds.

Welcome home, Wemby. For the first time as an NBA player, Wembanyama played in his homeland on Thursday – the star attraction in this two-game set of games between San Antonio and Indiana, a series that concludes on Saturday night.

“Tonight was definitely different,” Wembanyama said. “It’s a different kind of support that the crowd brings. We try to use the circumstances to our advantage every time, and tonight was an easy night to use that.”

The sellout crowd wasn’t disappointed. Neither was Wembanyama. He had an incredible game – 30 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, five blocked shots – and the Spurs rolled to a 140-110 win, San Antonio’s second-largest victory margin of the season and Indiana’s second-largest defeat margin.

Countless fans showed up in Wembanyama jerseys. All of his jerseys, that is. Spurs jerseys in at least three different colors. French national team jerseys. The jerseys he wore when he played in the French league. NBA games are a big deal wherever they go in the world, but this was different. This was a homecoming and a celebration.

“I would just say it’s a pleasure to be part of a league with Victor Wembanyama,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said before the game.

Wembanyama got – by far – the loudest ovation when the starters were introduced. When his face was shown on the scoreboard video screens during the playing of France’s national anthem, the building simply roared. He won the opening tap to start the game; another roar. He missed the game’s first shot, drawing an audible groan. There weren’t many of those the rest of the way.

“It’s not easy to stop him,” Indiana guard Bennedict Mathurin said. “We do what we can. But he’s really good.”

This wasn’t Spurs-Pacers. This was Wemby and a lot of other guys. And if there was pressure, Wembanyama – the league’s reigning rookie of the year – didn’t seem fazed.

“The ovation for him obviously was very, very moving just in terms of a reflection of how this city and country and these people feel about him and he feels about them,” acting Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “There’s certain games you know you don’t need to get the guys up for, as you say. This was one of them.”

Michigan-area basketball schedule

Men

Wednesday

Albion 83, Alma 55

Calvin 65, Hope 60

Cleveland State 65, Detroit Mercy 50

Oakland 76, Purdue Fort Wayne 72

Olivet 95, Kalamazoo 64

Trine 83, Adrian 55

Thursday

Ferris State 85, Northern Michigan 79

Grand Valley 59, Parkside 49

Kentucky Wesleyan 85, Northwood 50

Lake Superior 82, Michigan Tech 72

Purdue Northwest 80, Davenport 59

Wayne State 88, Saginaw Valley 84

Friday

Michigan at Purdue, 8

Saturday

Michigan State at Rutgers, 1:30

Buffalo at Eastern Michigan, 2

Western Michigan at Central Michigan, 7

Roosevelt at Saginaw Valley State, 3

Michigan Tech at Ferris State, 3

Parkside at Davenport, 3

Purdue Northwest at Grand Valley State, 3

Northern Michigan at Lake Superior State, 3

Women

Wednesday

Albion 54, Saint Mary’s 53

Alma 75, Kalamazoo 64

Hope 97, Adrian 46

Kent State 77, Central Michigan 56

Michigan 70, Minnesota 65

Michigan State 82, Penn State 61

Northern Illinois 78, Eastern Michigan 70

Purdue Fort Wayne 72, Detroit Mercy 65

Trine 73, Olivet 52

Western Michigan 63, Bowling Green 60

Thursday

Ashland 70, Hillsdale 59

Grand Valley 72, Parkside 43

Michigan Tech 101, Lake Superior 52

Northern Michigan 78, Ferris State 48

Northwood 79, Kentucky Wesleyan 63

Purdue Northwest 69, Davenport 66

Robert Morris 73, Oakland 63

Wayne State 71, Saginaw Valley 67

Saturday

Michigan State at Michigan, noon

Central Michigan at Western Michigan, TBA

Eastern Michigan at Ohio, 1

Northern Michigan at Lake Superior State, 1

Purdue Northwest at Grand Valley State, 1

Parkside at Davenport, 1

Michigan Tech at Ferris State, 1

Roosevelt at Saginaw Valley State, 1