It looks like Adam Silver is about to start rolling out imminent changes to the NBA. Today, Silver spoke on the possibility of ads being featured on NBA jerseys and said that it will happen within the next five years. This isn’t a new concept, because the WNBA and NBA D-League use the format, as well as for most soccer leagues across the world. Apparently, the NBA is split on the idea, but there is no denying that it would be very lucrative for teams. For smaller market franchises, this could really be a way to bring in some much needed revenue.
Our real concern is how they would end up looking on the jerseys and what companies are doing the sponsoring. We really don’t want to see ads plastered all over jerseys, especially if they’re dumb ones. But, if they are reasonably sized and they make sense, we see no problem with these teams getting some more money.
Read Silver’s full comments on the situation after the jump.
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“It just creates that much more of an opportunity for our marketing partners to get that much closer to our fans and to our players. It gives us an opportunity just to have deeper integration when it comes to those forms of sponsorship. … Increasingly as we see Champions League and English Premier League televised in the U.S., I think it’s going to become more acceptable and more commonplace for our fans as well.” When asked if the switch would come within five years, Mr. Silver answered “definitely.” After a moment’s thought, he amended that to: “Most likely.”
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