This year's NBA Summer League in Las Vegas will include all 30 teams for the "first time and is expected to easily break the attendance record set last year when 24 of the 30 teams participated and drew 127,843 fans through 11 days," according to Alan Snel of LVSPORTSBIZ.com. The event "headlines an unprecedented 12-day, 82-game run starting Friday at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center and adjoining Cox Pavilion." Thomas & Mack Center Exec Dir Mike Newcomb said that he "expected the profile of this year's summer league to expand bigger than ever, from fanfest-style activities for kids to high-profile press conferences if teams have major free agent announcements to share." Summer League games "offer fans a look at rookies and young players who are looking to make a name for themselves at the games that are televised by ESPN and NBA TV." MGM Resorts will be the "summer league's title sponsor," and it is no secret MGM Resorts Chair & CEO Jim Murren is "working behind the scenes to get an NBA team to serve as a tenant of T-Mobile Arena." Meanwhile, the Summer League also "serves as a pro basketball mecca and career networking forum," where GMs, coaches, agents, foreign basketball team reps and retired NBA players can be "seen chatting along the Thomas & Mack concourse and conducting business behind closed doors." The event also "offers a platform" for Commissioner Adam Silver to "hold league sessions in Las Vegas." Newcomb said that the NBA and its media partners will also "use the summer league games at UNLV to test out overhead cameras" (LVSPORTSBIZ.com, 7/4).
