The Globalization of the NBA

Even though USA Basketball took the Gold in 2008, we can't forget 2004. In August of 2004 the United States Basketball Team finished third in the Sydney Olympics. It was a cold reality for most American basketball fans who thought that when it came to playing hoops, there was no country that could put a better team on the floor than the United States.

Despite the fact that the U.S.'s 2004 third-place finish was a major disappointment to those who supported the NBA and its players, America's agony of defeat represented a much bigger, and more influential, period in the world of basketball.

Sure, you can argue that the 2004 Men's Basketball team did not have its best representation there with faces like Shaquille O'Neal, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett and Jason Kidd not on the squad. However, our nation's best had not always been participants in the Olympic games of the past and yet that never prevented the team from walking over its opponents before.

So what changed?

Naturally, it was the competition.

The competition was and is that much better. But I don't have to tell you that. It's evident to you 82 times a season. International players are taking the game by storm. And players like San Antonio Spurs guard Manu Ginobili aren't just leading their homelands to Olympic glory, but they are raising the awareness of basketball in their respective nations and globalizing the sport.

Just look at some of the teams to get medals over the past two Olympics. France, an established tennis and soccer nation, got the Silver in 2000. Lithuania won the bronze that year, too. And Argentina and Italy played for the championship in 2004.

The interests and fascination that the success of other national basketball teams have created has turned the sport of basketball from a U.S. based niche activity in the eyes of the world, into a worldwide phenomenon teeming with international enthusiasts.

That all adds up to one thing... opportunity!

You can rest assure that the NBA and NBPA are set to take advantage of it.

For starters, you may have already heard about the NBA's interest in introducing a European division to the NBA. The plan, which Stern unveiled during this past year's All-Star game, talks of the creation of five new NBA teams placed in major European cities. The teams would play a full 82-game schedule, and should they qualify for the playoffs, they would go on to compete for the NBA championship.

There are many questions that arise with having a European division, including whether or not players would take kind to living in Europe. In addition, the traveling logistics of such a move make the whole thing seem quite improbable. Yet the mere fact that any of this is being discussed is newsworthy enough. However, Commissioner David Stern's business interests in expanding the NBA into Western Europe cannot be ignored, and they are so strong that the idea is too fathomable to be glossed over. Stern told Sports Illustrated that "We need to do more market research, of course. But in the end there's only one way to find out, and that's by going there and doing it."

However, the prospects for a separate and independent basketball league in China has far fewer questions, and much more financially backed potential. In fact, Stern's earlier plans from 2003 to invest in Europe were eventually scrapped in favor of perusing basketball interests in China. Several large Chinese corporations, and ESPN itself, have been reported to have pledged an undisclosed amount into the NBA's venture into the Eastern world.

In case you're wondering just how big of a deal a subsidiary company in China would be, just compare the number of people in the U.S. to the number of people who play basketball in China. There are roughly 300 million people in the United States. China has over 300 million people who play basketball alone. Forgetting about fans and corporate interest and just banking on the Chinese men and women that play the sport, NBA China would have a fan base that exceeds the number of people in our entire country.

Which is why it is not unfathomable to project that if NBA China catches on in the far East, the league has the potential to dwarf the NBA as it is presently constructed. Considering the Chinese enthusiasm for Yao Ming, their activity on NBA.com and NBA related websites, and their consumption of players jerseys, there is plenty of reason to suspect that NBA China will do just that.

So what does all of this mean to you as players?

Starting with the possibility of a European division, many players would have to adapt to playing overseas. Obviously, veterans and more established players could not be subjected to play with a European team unless traded, but then again, what trading pieces will an expansion team have to offer? However, for prospective NBA players, this could be a big deal, in that they would then have the possibility of being drafted by a team outside of the United States. That could play a major role in deciding when to declare for the draft, rookie salaries, and a wealth of other issues that come with moving to another country. That said, even veterans would have to deal with the idea of spending two or three weeks in Europe, where in all likelihood, a team would play their entire European schedule all at once.

NBA China, on the other hand, does not pose much of a threat to the current ongoings of today's, and tomorrow's, NBA players. There really is very little downside to this proposition should it be successful. NBA China would open the NBA up to new deals fans, new players, new advertisers and basically, new money. That should mean a trickle down affect for players, which could be seen via higher salaries and new revenue streams for players. And if NBA China becomes as big as Stern & Co. hopes it does, then that brings about the issue of how the original NBA and NBA China would coexist.

On one hand, it could operate like Major League Baseball and Japanese baseball do, with the Japanese league operating completely independently, but eventually sending their biggest and brightest stars to the United States.

Or they could operate independently but at an equal level, like the USFL and the NFL did for a stretch of time in the 80's, where players turning pro had a legitimate decision to make between which league they would join.

Then of course, there is the possibility of NBA China looming over today's NBA, where perhaps advertising deals and exposure in the world's largest nation is just too much of self-promotional opportunity for transcendent players to pass up. Could you imagine, an up and coming player like say a LeBron James or Chris Paul, opting to play in China where they have the opportunity to acquire maybe three times the exposure they could in the United States?

While opportunities like that seem far way, do not fall asleep on that fast-approaching horizon. Already you have players like Damon Jones, Shaquille O'Neal and obviously Yao Ming, with shoe deals with Chinese based shoe companies, and there are more on the way. And you already have been apart of, or at least have seen, franchises take their teams overseas for training camps, exhibitions games, and even bring foreign teams to the United States, just as the New York Knicks did at Madison Square Garden this past off-season.

The globalization of the NBA isn't just fast approaching, but it is already here. And while some opportunities have a ways to go before they reach fruition, there is nothing speculative about the myriad of global prospects that have already arrived.