NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said legislators in the state of North Carolina "have heard loud and clearly" from the league about its opposition to the HB2 bill and politicians "know what's at stake" in terms of the '17 All-Star Game potentially moving out of Charlotte. Silver, appearing on ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike," said, "It would be problematic for us to move forward with our All-Star Game if there is not a change in the law. ... It’s been my feeling that, rather than tell the people of North Carolina how they should run their lives or how they should run their legislature, that we’ve made our position clear and that we should be constructive and engage with them any way we can.” He added that he believes constructive engagement is the "best way to go as opposed to putting a gun to their head and saying, ‘Do this or else.’” Several top musical acts, including Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam, recently have cancelled concerts in the state over the law, and the NBA has been called to take a similar stance. Silver said, "It would be easy to make a statement, but I can’t cut and run here. I am leaving my team there. ... In the case of Bruce Springsteen, it’s a concert. He pulls the concert, he moves on, he’s done with North Carolina. In the case of the NBA, had we been in that same situation, we have a team that’s in the playoffs that has a playoff game in North Carolina next weekend." He added, "Whatever we do, we have to keep an eye on the fact that we have one of our 30 franchises (that) operates in that state. ... We’ve got a much bigger issue in North Carolina than the All-Star Game. It’s the ongoing operation of our team. What’s most important to this league is that there be a change in law.”
JERSEY SCORE: Silver also addressed the implementation of jersey ads for the '17-18 season, saying he believes the league is "doing it in the right way in that it's small." He said, "There’s no doubt we’re doing it because it’s good for business, but it’s good for business in ways that people might not see. I think it will lead to a lot more promotion of our league. Companies will pay the teams for the right to put those patches on their uniforms, but probably even more importantly, once a company attaches to a uniform in that way, they will use all of their assets -- media that they buy outside of the NBA -- to promote that relationship. ... That to me will pay huge dividends.” He noted the players will get 50% "of the money generated from these patches." Silver: "There's this recognition now (if) you put some sort of advertising on a jersey, you’re talking to a global audience. There’s a social media community around the NBA on a global basis that people estimate to be as big as 1 billion people, so it’s no longer what is the incremental difference between the size of the Oklahoma City market and the Chicago market. It’s now, 'Alright, if our team is successful and we’re in the playoffs, there is going to be exposure for this sponsor all over the world.’ So there’s been a real equalization of markets” (“Mike & Mike,” ESPN Radio, 4/21).
