{"id":326055,"date":"2025-10-07T05:44:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T05:44:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/326055\/"},"modified":"2025-10-07T05:44:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T05:44:10","slug":"grizzlies-santi-aldama-helping-push-nbas-europe-agenda-while-eyeing-desmond-bane-rematch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/326055\/","title":{"rendered":"Grizzlies\u2019 Santi Aldama helping push NBA\u2019s Europe agenda while eyeing Desmond Bane rematch"},"content":{"rendered":"

The post Grizzlies\u2019 Santi Aldama helping push NBA\u2019s Europe agenda while eyeing Desmond Bane rematch<\/a> appeared first on ClutchPoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The NBA\u2019s push toward global expansion has slowly moved from aspiration to reality. Commissioner Adam Silver<\/a> has long championed international growth, and now teams are experiencing what that vision looks like in practice. For Tuomas Iisalo\u2019s regrouped Memphis Grizzlies<\/a>, that future arrives this January with games in London and Berlin. However, Santi Aldama already knows what to expect when matching up against Desmond Bane\u2019s Orlando Magic<\/a> across the pond.<\/p>\n

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\u201cYeah, about the games (in London and Berlin versus Desmond Bane<\/a>\u2019s Magic), obviously super excited,\u201d Aldama told ClutchPoints. \u201cIt\u2019ll be a home game for them in Germany for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is easy to understand why Aldama feels that way. The Magic\u2019s roster reads like a European all-star team, particularly with their German contingent. Brothers Franz and Moritz Wagner will undoubtedly draw massive support in Berlin, alongside German national teamer Tristan da Silva. French prospect Noah Penda should also attract his share of supporters, creating what could feel like a hostile environment for the Grizzlies despite the neutral-site designation.<\/p>\n

Yet, the primary storyline for Memphis remains the chance to compete directly against their former teammate.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlaying against Des again, such a competitive guy. When we play (Bane) for the first time, I think it\u2019s going to be great,\u201d shared Aldama. \u201cI am very much looking forward to it. I know he wants to beat us for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

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One game\u2019s outcome is relatively inconsequential. As Aldama sees it, these European games as part of a larger movement<\/a> by the NBA\u2019s executives.<\/p>\n

\u201cRegarding expansion and the NBA being more of an international game, for Europe it will be great just having the NBA brand there,\u201d Aldama explained. \u201cI think the NBA is the best league in the world. There\u2019s no doubt about that. I think European basketball has always been at a super high level. If we can just make a way where the NBA is global, it will be good for the sport.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Spanish star\u2019s perspective carries weight, given his own background in European basketball. Santi Aldama has experienced both the European and American systems, making him a natural advocate for a more integrated global basketball landscape. His support aligns perfectly with Silver\u2019s public push for international growth as well.<\/p>\n

That is why fans should expect more international ideas to come from the league offices over the next few years. An NBA presence in Europe is not just a business initiative; it is the natural next step for the league and basketball in general.<\/p>\n

Related: Kendrick Perkins vents frustrations with Grizzlies guard Ja Morant\u2019s career fall off<\/a><\/p>\n

Related: Grizzlies\u2019 Ja Morant hit with unfortunate ankle injury update<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The post Grizzlies\u2019 Santi Aldama helping push NBA\u2019s Europe agenda while eyeing Desmond Bane rematch appeared first on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":326056,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3795],"tags":[2214,7,497,52352,294,52351,293,177,4070,8423,6,3544,76,1185,203,1253],"class_list":{"0":"post-326055","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-memphis-grizzlies","8":"tag-adam-silver","9":"tag-basketball","10":"tag-desmond-bane","11":"tag-global-expansion","12":"tag-grizzlies","13":"tag-international-growth","14":"tag-memphis","15":"tag-memphis-grizzlies","16":"tag-memphisgrizzlies","17":"tag-moritz-wagner","18":"tag-nba","19":"tag-noah-penda","20":"tag-orlando-magic","21":"tag-santi-aldama","22":"tag-the-nba","23":"tag-tristan-da-silva"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/115331299039370688","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=326055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/326055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/326056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=326055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=326055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=326055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}