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Rudy Gobert: So I have a small apartment in Paris. So in the summer, I try to spend a lot of time in France too, because it’s the only time when I can really do it. But I also really like it there. I still have the house in Utah, so I have everything I need there. I have a half basketball court, a weight room, a pool. Before every season, I spend a few weeks in Utah.” Interviewer: “Okay. Because of the altitude too?” Rudy Gobert: “Yeah. So, for the oxygen…” Interviewer: “You’re always chasing performance, even on vacation.” Rudy Gobert: “Well, listen, I’m teasing, but yes, it’s true. That’s it. I really appreciate the place already, but on top of that, the fact that there are benefits that help me with my performance, my career, and my longevity—well, it’s all upside. It’s important.”
Fournier explained that the idea of retirement crossed his mind after a challenging stretch in the NBA and that he took some time to reflect on what he wanted next in his career. “I seriously considered retiring after the Paris Olympics,” Fournier said. “I had given myself a little bit of time to think about it. I went to the mountains and I thought, ‘Okay, let’s give it a go. I’ll enjoy it.’ “I was coming off two difficult seasons with the Knicks and I deeply love basketball, so I thought, ‘Enjoy yourself and end your career on that note.’”
Kevin Durant, the all-time leading scorer for the United States men's basketball team, told ESPN earlier this month that he does plan on returning for another run of international play in 2028. The 37-year-old swingman, who won an Olympic-record fourth gold medal at the 2024 Games, disputed the notion that Paris was a last run. "That narrative, where did the last dance thing come from?" Durant said. "I didn't say I wasn't playing. LeBron [James] said he wasn't. You didn't hear that from me or Steph [Curry]."
Silver wants to put new teams in London, Paris, Rome, and Manchester, England, backed by soccer giants and the biggest investment funds in the world (the Saudi PIF has expressed interest). Existing clubs with similar financial backing are being targeted in Barcelona and Madrid, in Milan, in Athens and Istanbul, Berlin and Munich, and Lyon, France. If Silver is (and in all likelihood, he will be) successful in bringing this new league on line, current NBA players said, overwhelmingly, they would consider, some day, playing in NBA Europe. “Yeah, it would interest me a little bit. I think that’s pretty cool,” said Charlotte rookie and Rising Star Kon Knueppel.
Bane is officially listed as American by the NBA but has Nigerian heritage and is yet to represent any nation on the international stage. Having qualified for their first Olympics at London 2012, Nigeria's basketball team went on to also compete at Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, but missed out on the 2024 Games in Paris. "I would for sure," said the shooting guard when asked about the possibility of answering the call if it came. "We just need to get all the Nigerians together for the Olympics coming up in the next couple years and make something happen."
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So LDLC ASVEL, whose contract with the EuroLeague expires in June, is expected to be part of the NBA Europe, probably with the club being sold, at least partially, to a new investor. The other big bet is Paris. Per Eurohoops sources, Paris Basketball at the moment is excluded from any talks with the NBA for a variety of reasons, so the obvious target is to lure PSG into the fold, as Adam Silver openly said. There’s no reaction yet from Paris Saint-Germain, other than that in the past they have admitted that there are talks.
Investment firm Qatar Sports Investments, which owns soccer giant Paris St. Germain, has been linked to Silver’s venture for Paris and is just one of the groups interested in either partnering with existing basketball clubs or starting new teams in targeted cities. According to league sources, investment groups with ownership of five percent or less of an NBA team will be permitted to own an NBA Europe team.
According to L’Équipe, Adam Silver is considering PSG the main option in Paris for the project. “They play at the highest level of competition (in soccer), and they have the know-how to operate a basketball club at the highest level, if they’re interested. Yes, it’s a club we’re talking to,” the NBA commissioner commented in a roundtable in London on Saturday.
Mark Tatum, Adam Silver’s second hand, emphasized the desire of being in Paris for NBA Europe. “Paris is a market we absolutely want to be in,” he said. “There’s their ability to create a brand, a culture, their association with the Jordan brand (Michael Jordan’s), which is linked to basketball. We’re looking for the right partners for our project, and PSG brings a very interesting level of expertise in terms of marketing, promotion, and building a global brand.”, Tatum commented.
Jean-Pierre first heard about Coulibaly from Washington assistant coach David Vanterpool, who bought a painting and helped connect the two Francophones. Coulibaly is from Paris, Jean-Pierre is Haitian American, and the two switched between English and French throughout the session. “In the artist statement for that exhibition, I talked about how D.C. is a Chocolate City for sure and the Wizards are here as a kind of stalwart,” the artist said. “… Paris is a Chocolate City, Cape Town is a Chocolate City, Johannesburg, Dakar. … Just thinking about people and place and how we’re all connected by water. So I feel a kinship with [Coulibaly] to a certain extent.”
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You’ve said that you’ve liked Tuomas’ ideas as first-year head coach. What has that collaboration been like so far? Aldama: “He’s obviously very numbers-driven. He reads the game at a very high level. I’ve been lucky enough to be with teammates with the [Spanish] national team that have played a very similar style of basketball. He coached for Paris, and Valencia plays a very similar style. So throughout the whole summer, I spent time with three or four guys that played that same style of basketball. We had a sneak peek with the last nine games and the playoffs. But now being back with Coach, I’m chopping it up and understanding where to get the advantages and what they’re doing in Europe and how it translates to NBA offenses.”
Paris Basketball’s rise is a rapid one. American David Kahn, a former sports writer, lawyer and Minnesota Timberwolves president of basketball operations, bought the rights and absorbed the debts of a French second division team, Hyères-Toulon, and relocated them from the south of France to Paris in 2018. They were promoted to the French first division, known as the LNB elite, in 2021, and for the past two seasons have also competed in the EuroLeague — the premier basketball league on the continent. Kahn, unfortunately known for passing up on Stephen Curry twice in the 2009 NBA draft while at the Timberwolves, has created a harmonious culture in Paris, one where decision-makers are aligned and share the same vision, said Francesco Tabellini, Paris Basketball’s current head coach. Khan, the club’s president, general manager James Newman and co-owner Eric Schwartz are the teams decision makers. “I think he (David) has tried since Paris Basketball was established to bring coaches here that were playing fast basketball,” Tabellini told The Athletic from his Parisian office.
Paris, London, Manchester, and Berlin have hosted—or will host—NBA regular-season games. Another major European city, Madrid, might be joining that list in the future. Spain's capital, considered for a potential NBA Europe project, is home to the iconic Bernabeu Stadium, which was recently renamed after Real Madrid dropped "Santiago" from its venue's name for marketing and corporate purposes.
Coach emphasized the importance of fan and media interest in major cities. "In cities like Paris, London, and Manchester. If there is no interest in these cities, how will a strong league be created? First, there must be interest, and the interest is created by journalists," the coach explained. "They need to seriously consider this because it's a very dangerous situation for European basketball."