Commissioner Adam Silver obtained a number of questions on growth earlier than the Warmth and Spurs performed Saturday in Mexico Metropolis, tweets Jeff Zillgitt of USA At this time. The league used to journey to Mexico regularly, however due to the pandemic, at present marked the primary NBA recreation within the nation since 2019.
At a information convention previous to tip-off, Silver was peppered with questions on Mexico Metropolis sometime being thought-about for an growth workforce. His responses echoed feedback made by NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum last month, saying the league isn’t prepared so as to add groups, however the metropolis will likely be a robust contender each time that occurs.
“By way of Mexico Metropolis, I imagine you’re doing all of the issues essential to reveal to the league that finally we could also be in place to accommodate an NBA workforce right here,” Silver mentioned. “Actually from a journey standpoint it’s very accessible, time zone smart, in fact.”
Mexico Metropolis has hosted greater than 30 NBA video games in a relationship with the league that spans three many years. The G League’s Mexico Metropolis Capitanes lately started taking part in in Area CDMX, which is taken into account to be an NBA-quality facility.
Silver cited analysis exhibiting there are 30 million NBA followers in Mexico and mentioned he hopes that quantity will improve because the nation will get extra media entry to video games.
“I’ll add one issue that I wouldn’t have considered even once I was right here in 2019,” Silver mentioned. “We’re seeing a quicker transformation to streaming than I might have predicted even a couple of years in the past, and whenever you transfer to streaming platforms and also you’re speaking to those companions which might be very a lot international, I feel the addition of a workforce, for instance, in Mexico may need a really totally different impression and relevance to them than possibly a historic U.S.-based media associate.”
Most of the gamers who participated on this yr’s journey to Mexico Metropolis have been impressed by what they noticed, writes Tom Orsborn of The San Antonio Express-News. On Friday, they attended a Capitanes recreation the place the group cheered intensely from begin to end whereas beating drums and chanting the workforce’s identify.
“It was loopy,” mentioned Spurs rookie Blake Wesley. “I used to be like, ‘How is it this many individuals for a G League recreation?’ I loved it. It was enjoyable.”
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich, who has been concerned in lots of the NBA video games in Mexico, believes the town has earned consideration when the league decides to broaden.
“That’s above my pay grade to resolve the place the groups go, however I do know they find it irresistible,” he mentioned. “It’s a viable place for such an endeavor, and I’ve little question that Adam and his crew are doing every thing they will to resolve whether or not that ought to occur.”
