Frenchman Victor Wembanyama will play two official games with the San Antonio Spurs in Paris in January against the Indiana Pacers. Mexican-American Jaime Jáquez will be on November 2 in Mexico City defending the Miami Heat against the Washington Wizards, in a game that will have a nod to the Day of the Dead. With the record participation of foreign players (125), the trips abroad and the adjustment of schedules, the NBA redoubles its commitment in the season that begins this Tuesday to be a truly global competition.
“This season, we are going to reach fans in 214 different countries and territories in 60 different languages,” Mark Tatum, deputy commissioner of the NBA, explained this Tuesday in a telematic press conference. “We just announced a few moments ago that there are a record 125 international players from 43 countries on six continents on the opening night rosters, and that includes some of the best players. It is the eleventh consecutive season with at least 100 international players on the squads. “All of these players are generating incredible interest in their home countries, in their regions and around the world, and we see a huge opportunity to build on that momentum,” he added.
The figure of 125 players actually equals the record set last year. There are more players than ever from Australia (13), Germany (8) and Cameroon (5). The most represented country continues to be Canada (with 21 players) followed by France, with 14, while Serbia has 6. But it is not just about quantity. In last season’s ideal quintet there were four foreigners: the Serbian Nikola Jokić (Denver Nuggets), the Canadian Shai Gilgeous Alexander (Oklahoma City Thunder), the Slovenian Luka Dončić (Dallas Mavericks) and the Greek Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks). Jokić also achieved his third award as best player of the season this year, which together with the two from Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid (Cameroonian nationalized as an American), adds up to six consecutive distinctions for best player for foreigners.
France is one of the countries that is making its mark in the NBA, with two number ones in the draft consecutive: Wembanyama, called to mark an era in the competition, in 2023, and Zaccharie Risacher this year, in which also the Frenchman Alexander Sarr was number two. Spain, on the other hand, will only be represented by Santi Aldama, of the Memphis Grizzlies, after the departure of Usman Garuba (who almost did not play with the Golden State Warriors) and Ricky Rubio (who was on the Cleveland Cavaliers roster at beginning of the year, but did not participate). There has not been a single Spanish player since the 2002-2003 season, 22 years ago, with Pau Gasol.
Global audience
Tatum has indicated that the NBA maintains the idea of continuing to take official games to other countries. This year, after the preseason premiere in Abu Dhabi, the next event is in Mexico and then, twice, in France, where Wembanyama has caused interest in the NBA to skyrocket. The NBA wants to continue offering games in Europe, Latin America and even debut in Africa, he explained. Beyond that, it also wants to capture the audiovisual audience, the goose that lays the golden eggs of the league.
“We know that 99% of NBA fans will never set foot in an NBA arena, so we are very focused on making it as easy as possible for our fans to follow and watch the NBA on the devices and platforms they use and in the languages they use. those who are used to it, and this season, more than 40 weekend games will be broadcast in prime time in Europe, the Middle East and Africa,” Tatum said.
The number two in the NBA’s executive structure also discussed new features in the league’s application, including a multi-view, which gives fans the option of watching up to four games simultaneously if they are subscribed to the NBA League Pass. Additionally, fans can also now rewind matches from any point, download full matches for offline viewing and access a wide range of match highlights. “We are using generative AI to localize content, offering match highlights in French, Portuguese and Spanish, as well as live translations of matches and selected original programming,” Tatum explained.
The executive of the professional league has highlighted the success of the NBA Cup, whose games also include the regular league. That triggered interest and audience for confrontations in the first part of the season that in other years were seen with less interest. The final of the second edition will be on December 17.
Tatum also highlighted the great equality of the competition, which has seen six different teams win the title in the last six years. The Boston Celtics, who open the season against the strengthened New York Knicks, aspire to break that curse of the champion.
