The NBA falls in love with the new Bernabéu: "We will tell Florentino Pérez to organize an official match here"
“I was at the new Bernabéu today, it's incredible. They gave me a demonstration, with the machines that lift the grass. “It is a good idea to organize an official match there in the future, we will tell President Florentino Pérez about it.”. On their visit to Madrid, Luka Doncic's Mavericks have been accompanied by Mark Tatum, vice commissioner of the best basketball league in the world. Adam Silver's right-hand man shared a round table with a small group of journalists at the Four Seasons Hotel in the capital, among whom was EL MUNDO, and spoke about the possibilities of expansion of an NBA that does not stop looking at the world.
“We are a league based in the US, but global,” Tatum explained.. Although he ruled out the expansion of more franchises in the league – “expansion is not on the table right now” – he did talk about the new markets, the importance they have for the NBA and the possibility of more official games being held. compete in Europe, beyond London and Paris.
“We have a great opportunity to continue growing. The calendar is very condensed and the trips are long. Those matches are very intense, like All Star. We could do more and we will continue to evaluate it. But there has to be a balance,” said Tatum, who had previously described his “incredible” visit to the Bernabéu again: “I have seen the system with which they raise and lower the grass, it is truly a world-class stadium when it is finished.” all. “We would like to play there if the circumstances arise and I'm sure those conversations will take place with Real Madrid.”
Spain, “key” to growth
Tatum celebrated being back in Madrid. “The last time was in 2016 and Doncic was at Real Madrid. I remember that game, it was resolved in an exciting overtime,” he recalled the duel against the Thunder, before talking about the Spanish influence in the development of world basketball.. “The history of the NBA in Spain is long. The first team game here was 35 years ago (Larry Bird's Celtics). The culture and history of basketball here is incredible. We have seen the Spanish team, until recently the number one in the ranking. And Spain has been a key place for the growth of basketball, the Dream Team was born here, at the Barcelona Games,” he explained.
The NBA Deputy Commissioner valued the European influence in his competition. “The last three MVPs came from Europe, the number one in the last draft (Victor Wembanyama), Germany is the recent world champion…”, Tatum listed, highlighting the “players who inspired us” and who are at the base of all the others, the pioneers, “Pau Gasol, Tony Parker, Dirk Nowitzky.”
The influence goes both ways. That is why this year the NBA will inaugurate the In-Season Tournament, a Copa del Rey ACB style tournament that will culminate with a Final Four in December in Las Vegas. “We are educating fans in the US, explaining to them what it will be like. We believe it is an opportunity for the teams to win one more title, because the season is very long,” explained the Vietnam-born manager. “25% of our players were born outside the United States and have played in systems with many competitions per year. They helped talk to the rest of their teammates and explain the benefits to them,” he concluded.