Silver said that it was not acceptable for the industry to stick to sportsMarc Bryan-Brown
The NBA took home the Sports Business Award for League of the Year, further codifying what has been a multiyear run of strong growth for the property. The NBA’s '17 included new records in average and total attendance, national and local TV ratings growth and a continued industry leadership position in social media. And while many other sports properties have struggled to strike clear positions on issues such as gambling, the National Anthem and other segments of national politics, the NBA has often been a consistent leader on these fronts, speaking repeatedly in a unified voice between the league office and team ownership. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver in his acceptance remarks, after recognizing outgoing SBJ/SBD Publisher Richard Weiss, said it was not acceptable for the industry to “stick to sports,” and reminded the packed audience that “sports has never been more important than it is now, and what we do matters.” He went on to urge the crowd to “use sports to build bridges and bring people together.” Backstage, Silver went on, saying it was important for the league to embrace its role as a disruptor, both technologically and societally. “That’s our charge, and we have an ownership group that is already accustomed to being disruptors in their own careers,” Silver said.
