LONDON (AP) \u2014 European basketball often is a hot mess of passionate fandom, heated rivalries and financial problems.<\/p>\n
Holding some powerful fiefdoms together is the EuroLeague. It\u2019s not thrilled about the NBA\u2019s plans to create a new competition<\/a> on the continent.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not concerned, either.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve only heard the plan or the fireworks of how amazing it will be, how much potential there is,\u201d EuroLeague CEO Paulius Motiejunas said of the NBA\u2019s proposed league. \u201cBut having a theory is one \u2014 and making it work is two.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been here for 26 years. We know how Europe functions.\u201d<\/p>\n With clubs like Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, the EuroLeague is considered the best men\u2019s professional competition outside the NBA. The 20-team league is comprised of 13 \u201cshareholder\u201d clubs immune from relegation. The rest either qualify through their domestic leagues or through invitation.<\/p>\n The NBA, in partnership with FIBA, is eying a 16-team model with 12 permanent members \u2014 with a target start of October 2027<\/a>. It has identified Athens, Istanbul, Paris, Lyon, Munich, Berlin, Rome, Milan, Madrid, Barcelona, London and Manchester as potential host cities.<\/p>\n Attention is currently on three EuroLeague shareholder clubs that haven\u2019t renewed their 10-year licenses \u2014 Real Madrid, Fenerbahce in Istanbul and the Tony Parker<\/a> -owned ASVEL near Lyon. Parker has signaled his support for the NBA, and Spanish sports daily Diario AS reported<\/a> that Real Madrid favors the NBA project.<\/p>\n Recent holdout Barcelona has indicated it will extend for another 10 years beyond this season.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a big deal, of course. It\u2019s an important brand, and we\u2019re happy that they committed,\u201d Motiejunas said of Barcelona, which hasn\u2019t commented publicly.<\/p>\n Motiejunas, in an interview with The Associated Press, said he\u2019s confident all 13 clubs will stay.<\/p>\n \u201cThe NBA has been announcing and announcing things for a year but still it\u2019s nothing that you can grasp on,\u201d Motiejunas said. \u201cAs businessmen, these are team owners, they also begin to see it\u2019s a little bit of a broken record of \u2018we will announce later,\u2019 … The \u201927 start is already around the corner.\u201d<\/p>\n EuroLeague clubs reportedly have a 10 million euro ($11.6 million) exit clause, but Motiejunas would only say that through \u201cconsequences and legal teams\u201d contracts can be broken. There\u2019s no NBA opt-out, he added.<\/p>\n NBA vs EuroLeague?<\/p>\n The EuroLeague claims to still be open to some type of relationship with the NBA, whose executives have expressed similar sentiments. But in the meantime, the EuroLeague sent a letter to the NBA warning of legal action should talks with EuroLeague shareholders continue.<\/p>\n NBA Commissioner Adam Silver shrugged off the threat Thursday in Berlin ahead of the Orlando Magic\u2019s 118-111 win over the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA\u2019s first regular-season game in Germany<\/a>.<\/p>\n He also shrugged off the EuroLeague more generally.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I thought that the ceiling was the existing EuroLeague and their fan interest,\u201d Silver said, \u201cwe wouldn\u2019t be spending the kind of time and attention we are on this project.\u201d<\/p>\n Media reports indicate the NBA is looking for at least a $500 million franchise fee. Silver noted that any investors will have to be patient because \u201cit will take a while, I think, before it is a viable commercial enterprise.\u201d He added it will be \u201cmulti-decades in the making.\u201d<\/p>\n Silver cautioned that \u201cpotentially\u201d starting a new league is an \u201cenormous undertaking\u201d and described talks with Real Madrid and other Spanish clubs as \u201cmore in the category of fact finding.\u201d<\/p>\n European market<\/p>\n The European basketball landscape is similar to soccer. EuroLeague is like UEFA\u2019s Champions League in quality, though entry is more restrictive. Basketball also has several other international leagues \u2014 but they\u2019re lesser known than their soccer counterparts, so fans get confused. FIBA, for example, has its own Basketball Champions League, which would be a potential feeder to an NBA league.<\/p>\n Silver sees potential because basketball is the No. 2 sport in Europe after soccer.<\/p>\n \u201cRather than think of us as taking share from (soccer), I look at the commercial side of basketball as it exists now in Europe, and it probably represents about 1 percent of the commercial sports marketplace,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Middle East impact<\/p>\n Many European basketball teams, including some in the EuroLeague, have struggled financially. The system has often relied on wealthy owners to cover team debts each year. EuroLeague has implemented spending restrictions to promote financial sustainability.<\/p>\n In a revenue boost, the EuroLeague last season took its \u201cFinal Four\u201d championship outside Europe \u2014 to Abu Dhabi \u2014 for the first time. It brought a flavor of Euro hoops chaos, too, as Panathinaikos majority owner Dimitris Giannakopoulos<\/a> was handed a 5-game ban for his \u201cthreatening actions\u201d against referees.<\/p>\n EuroLeague also granted a multi-year license to a newly created Dubai team and recently extended its partnership with global sports marketing agency IMG.<\/p>\n \u201cWe focus on ourselves,\u201d Motiejunas said. \u201cWe will be able to adapt, there\u2019s no question about it, and we will continue to fight.\u201d<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n