While it may not happen in the near future, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has international expansion in mind.
“We haven't decided at this point to expand, but we know there's a lot of interest out there,” Silver told reporters Thursday. “…At some point, we would like to look outside the U.S., in addition to Canada. Now may not be the right time to do that, but we're thinking about it long-term.”
The Memphis Grizzlies once played in Vancouver, while the Toronto Raptors are the only NBA team outside the United States.
This isn't the first time Silver has mentioned the possibility of expanding into another country. NBC Sports Boston's Jordan Daly was on NBC Sports Boston's broadcast of the Celtics game and said he had discussed the possibility of having a team in Mexico.
“Mexico City is easier in terms of the altitude. It's 2,000 feet higher than Denver, so that does impact the players a little bit, but the flight time from New York to Mexico City is shorter than it is from Los Angeles. So it would be great to actually expand into a market like Mexico City at some point,” he said.
He also spoke about the league's international appeal.
“Meanwhile, we're playing again in Paris in January,” Silver said. “It's truly a global league, with players from roughly 40 countries and more than a quarter of the players born outside the U.S., and especially now with digital media and streaming media, as you all know, we'll be receiving fan mail from over 200 countries to our games.”
The NBA announced last month that the San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers will play two games in Paris next season. The Atlanta Hawks and Orlando Magic are playing in Mexico City this season and the league is hosting numerous preseason and regular-season games in other countries.
After all, expanding to Europe, Asia, Africa or anywhere in the Eastern Hemisphere would likely be too difficult given the travel concerns that would come with a shortened 82-game season.
Unlike the NFL, which has teams based in London or elsewhere with at least a week between games, the NBA will have more games, which means less rest and more travel.
However, having a team in Mexico in the Western Hemisphere is feasible and likely will happen at some point.
But Silver's comments didn't suggest that, even if he is thinking about the league's future, it's happening anytime soon.
