Before tip-off of Game 2 of the NBA Finals in Dallas, NBA Commissioner David Stern talked with SportsBusiness Journal staff writer John Lombardo about league and team issues.
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| Stern and the NBA are keeping an eye on
ownership situations in Seattle and Portland. |
It has been a good postseason for the NBA, but the Portland Trail Blazers and Seattle SuperSonics ownership groups are in flux. What is being done to address the ownership issues?Stern: We always have [ownership issues]. But basically things seem to be headed in the appropriate direction with the announcement that the [Blazers and the Rose Garden] arena will explore ways to maximize their value.
However oblique that may be, I take that to mean they are turning it over to an investment banking company that will ultimately lead to a serious consideration of a sale. That’s an important next step there.
What about the ownership future of the Seattle SuperSonics?
Stern: In Seattle, the ownership has made their intentions known and that is that they’d like to stay in Seattle in a new building. They don’t intend to move the franchise out of Seattle, but if there isn’t going to be a new building in Seattle, they don’t want to own the team in Seattle. Things are moving along as we’d expect them to.
In terms of teams relocating, Anaheim seems to be always mentioned as a new market for the NBA. But can the NBA really have three teams in what essentially is the same market?
Stern: That is something that is always up to the owners to decide.
Charlotte Bobcats owner Bob Johnson recently overturned top levels of his team’s front office, with the team president and other key executives leaving the franchise. What is the league’s involvement and is it a concern?
Stern: Sales are actually are up over last year [for the Bobcats], but obviously there was a certain decision to be more aggressive and that’s the prerogative of ownership and we are assisting [Johnson] in any way possible with NBA resources in this period of transition.
On the international front, what’s the latest on the league’s continued focus on China? When will the league decide on what teams will play in China next?
Stern: The China push will continue in huge ways. We will begin an India push as well. When [the U.S. men’s national team plays in China just before the upcoming FIBA world championships], I expect to have some discussions about the next NBA/China either exhibition or regular-season games. We have three offices in China and 24 television deals there. Adidas has almost 2,500 franchised outlets and our sponsorship deals continue apace and our China relationships are moving ahead.
Former Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo is running the men’s national program, so how important is the U.S. men’s national basketball team’s performance in this summer’s FIBA world championships in Japan to the NBA’s international push?
Stern: The national team is more about the U.S. than the NBA, and that’s why we are glad that Jerry and Coach K have stepped up. We recognize that we are either the victims or the beneficiaries of performance — good and bad. The Athens Games left its own mark on the NBA, not so much over the loss, because there are now 47 NBA players eligible to play for teams other than the U.S. and that’s the wave of the future, but there was a lot of other sub-rosa whisperings about our players, which were unfounded or unfair. But now with Coach K and Jerry, we are looking forward to the kind of effort you would expect from the U.S. team.
There has been a lot of restructuring and changes at the NBA office in New York with Russ Granik leaving and Adam Silver named as deputy commissioner. You also hired a new senior marketing executive and there have been changes at NBA Entertainment and in the league’s interactive services area. What’s the impact of the changes?
Stern: We think we have a spectacular mix. Of the eight people who reported to [NBA Entertainment senior vice president Gregg Winik, who is leaving the league to start his own company] their average length of stay is 15 years. We have an enormous bench ready to go. We have some new blood to mix with the longer standing group and with our lawyers who are playing an increasing important role in basketball operations and business affairs, we have an enormous group of executives who understand what our strategy is and how to get it done.
What effect do you believe this year’s playoffs is having on overcoming the problems of last season?
Stern: In small pieces, the pendulum is swinging nicely the way we’d like it to.
