June 2025

There were 1,837 posts published in June 2025 (this is page 138 of 184).

NBA at ‘least a couple years away from launching’ NBA Europe league, Adam Silver says

OKLAHOMA CITY — In March, the NBA and international basketball governing body FIBA announced a joint “exploration of a new professional men’s basketball league in Europe.”

That’s still moving forward, just don’t expect it to happen quickly, Adam Silver told reporters at an NBA Cares event at a refurbished Boys & Girls Club in Oklahoma City on Friday, via Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press.

“I will say it’s measured in years, not months,” Silver said. “So, we’re at least a couple years away from launching. It would be an enormous undertaking. And while we want to move forward at a deliberate pace, we also want to make sure that we’re consulting with all the appropriate stakeholders, meaning the existing league, its teams, European players, media companies, marketing partners. There’s a lot of work to be done.”

Silver told reporters that the NBA is in talks with the existing EuroLeague (the basketball equivalent of the soccer Champions League, featuring the top clubs on the continent) about a partnership at some level. However, what that might look like (or if it would even work) is up for debate. The NBA’s initial target was a 16-team league, something Silver previously said would be “integrated into the current European basketball landscape,” which means teams would continue competing in their respective national leagues. There would be permanent members in the NBA Europe league (existing clubs and possibly some new ones) as well as a chance for teams to be promoted into it each year.

Speaking at the NBA Paris games in January, Silver said the goal was to “professionalize the game to another level here, to create a larger commercial opportunity” — to make more money, both for European teams, but also to expand the NBA brand (and with that make the American owners more money). Silver discussed the European league in terms of NBA expansion when speaking with the media before Game 1 of the Finals.

“We have been discussing potentially creating a league in Europe. I view that as a form of expansion as well,” Silver said. “Again, just as the same as in American cities, we think there’s an opportunity to serve fans in Europe. No knock on European basketball, because most of those international MVPs I just talked about are coming from Europe. There’s really high-level basketball being played there. But we think there is an opportunity to better serve fans there. I view that as a form of expansion as well, and that’s something we’re also thinking hard about.”

There are numerous stakeholders, and a lot of mouths to feed; putting together this new league is a massive challenge. The NBA owners will discuss next steps when they meet in July, Silver said. Whatever those next steps are, this is a process that will take years, not months.

Adam Silver says Larry O’Brien Trophy logo could return to NBA Finals court in 2026

OKLAHOMA CITY — Tune into a December NBA Cup game, and you instantly know it’s an NBA Cup game by looking at the specially designed court (teams also wear special uniforms for those games). There are clear visual designations this is something special.

Tune into Game 1 of the NBA Finals and the court looked like the one the Oklahoma City Thunder would use for a random Tuesday night game in January. There was no Larry O’Brien trophy logo on the court, no NBA Finals logo on the court, just the usual Paycom logo.

NBA Twitter took notice and it became a discussion point during Game 1. The court looked plain. While it has been that way for a few years, people are now discussing it, and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver suggested that the Larry O’Brien Trophy logo, or something similar, will return to the court next season. Quote via Sam Amick at The Athletic.

“To be honest, I hadn’t thought all that much about it until I (saw) it (on social media). I’m nostalgic, as well, for certain things. And also, I think for a media-driven culture, whether it’s people watching live or seeing those images on social media, it’s nice when you’re looking back on highlights and they stand out because you see that trophy logo or some other indication that it’s a special event. So, we’ll look at it.”

There hasn’t been a large Larry O’Brien logo on the court since 2014, primarily due to player safety concerns — the decal logos placed on top of the court were slippery. With the NBA Cup and plenty of lead time, specially-designed courts are made with all the paint and logos under a thin polyurethane coating, just like every other NBA court. However, for the Finals — where the participants are not locked in until about a week before the games start (often less) — there isn’t time for that, so decals were placed on top of the court. Those can get slippery. While the league moved away from the larger center-court logos, it did try smaller ones on parts of the court in 2017 and in the bubble in 2020. However, it has been a while since the court had a logo.

This year, the Internet took notice, and with that so did the league. In a world where player statistics and other graphic information can be added to a broadcast in real-time, there may be technological ways to add a court logo without potentially endangering the players.

However it gets done, expect there to be some kind of Finals logo on the court for the 2026 NBA Finals. Just not this year.

Celtics draft fits: Can Rasheer Fleming be a 3-and-D in Mazzulla’s system?

Celtics draft fits: Can Rasheer Fleming be a 3-and-D in Mazzulla’s system? originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The modern NBA is all about wings who can shoot 3-pointers and defend. You can never have enough of these 3-and-D players who offer scoring, versatility and more.

With superstar forward Jayson Tatum potentially missing all of next season recovering from a torn right Achilles, the Celtics could use more wing depth. This roster need would be increased if the team has to trade someone like Sam Hauser in the offseason. Hauser is one of the league’s best 3-point shooters, but with Boston being over the second apron of the luxury tax, shedding salary this offseason might be required.

Given the Celtics’ limited options to improve their roster as a second apron team, the most effective way for them to bolster their wing depth is through the draft.

More Celtics best draft fits:

The Celtics own the No. 28 overall pick in the first round and the second pick (No. 32 overall) in the second round of the 2025 NBA Draft.

One player who fits what the Celtics are looking for and could fall to them in the late first round is Saint Joseph’s forward Rasheer Fleming.

Learn more about Fleming and his potential fit with the C’s below:

Rasheer Fleming’s bio

  • Position: Forward
  • Height: 6-foot-9
  • Weight: 240 pounds
  • Birthdate: July 10, 2004 (20 years old)
  • Birthplace: Camden, New Jersey
  • College: Saint Joseph’s

Rasheer Fleming’s collegiate stats

  • 2024-25: 14.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.5 blocks per game, 53.1 field goal percentage (35 games)
  • 2023-24: 10.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 1.5 blocks per game, 52.8 field goal percentage (35 games)
  • 2022-23: 5.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.9 blocks per game, 42.7 field goal percentage (31 games)

Rasheer Fleming’s collegiate accolades

  • 2024-25 Atlantic 10 First Team
  • 2023-24 All-Big 5 Honorable Mention

Rasheer Fleming’s highlights

Why Rasheer Fleming fits with Celtics

Fleming could potentially make an impact right away in two areas: 3-point shooting and rebounding.

Fleming made steady improvement as a 3-point shooter in college, hitting a career-high 39 percent of his attempts as a junior last season.

He’s also a tremendous rebounder with his impressive athleticism and 7-foot-5 wingspan. He averaged a career-high 8.5 rebounds last season.

Our Celtics insider Chris Forsberg believes Fleming has the chance to be a “Mazzulla ball fever dream.”

“This all comes with the caveat that he did it in the A-10 (Atlantic 10 Conference) against slightly lower competition,” Forsberg said. “But Fleming showed an ability to roll to the hoop and finish in the two-man game on top of some good defensive energy.

“If teams believe his 3-point shot will transfer to the NBA — Fleming shot 39 percent on 4.53 attempts per game as a junior — then he might just get drafted ahead of where the Celtics can comfortably trade up to.

“If he last into the early twenties, the Celtics could move up and strike.”

Josh Hart is glad Jay Wright isn’t interested in Knicks head coaching job, saying, ‘Stay retired!’

Jay Wright has no interest in being the New York Knicks‘ next head coach, and one of his former players is relieved about that decision.

Wright — who coached Villanova to two national championships, four Final Fours and 642 wins — had been mentioned as a possible candidate for the Knicks opening after they fired Tom Thibodeau last week. NBA teams have long been fascinated to see if Wright’s success in college basketball could translate to the pros.

The Knicks were a particularly intriguing choice because three former Wildcats — Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart — are star players on the roster. (Apologies to Donte DiVincenzo, who was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves last season. But he got an AT&T commercial out of it.) 

However, Wright told college basketball reporters Seth Davis and Matt Norlander he is retired from coaching and wants to remain a studio analyst for CBS. That’s not surprising since Wright is 63 years old and had always been a college coach during his nearly 40-year career, 28 as a head coach at Hofstra and Villanova.

Perhaps taking those factors into consideration, Hart responded to news of Wright’s desire to stay retired by saying, “Man Thank You. Stay retired!” 

Hart was certainly successful playing for Wright at Villanova. He won a national championship in 2016, along with first-team All-America and Big East Player of the Year honors. That put him in position to be an NBA first-round pick, drafted No. 30 overall by the Utah Jazz in 2017. (Hart was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, and also played with the New Orleans Pelicans and Portland Trail Blazers before being traded to the Knicks.) 

Wright reportedly also has a good relationship with Knicks president Leon Rose, with whom he communicates regularly. Yet that means Rose knows Wright well enough to be aware that he prefers to stay retired. 

The Knicks are apparently targeting experienced NBA head coaches in their search. They’re reportedly expected to request permission to interviewDallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd. The Houston Rockets have already declined a similar inquiry regarding their coach, Ime Udoka.