Adam Silver – NBA to reassess G League Ignite in wake of NIL

INDIANAPOLIS — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver questioned the future of G League Ignite, saying the introduction of name, image and likeness into the college basketball landscape has diminished the need for the league to potentially continue the program.

“I think, given that this happened, I think we're re-evaluating Team Ignite,” Silver said Saturday evening as part of his annual All-Star Weekend press conference here at Lucas Oil Stadium. “Because now some of these same players who didn't want to be isolated players because they felt it was unfair and wanted the opportunity to not only make a living playing basketball but also make deals agents that weren't available to them in college, to hire professional agents, an opportunity that wasn't available to them in college, now – all of those same opportunities have become available to them.

“I'm not sure what the future of Team Ignite will be, because before there was a hole in the market that we thought we would fill before we did, and now I'm focusing on the earlier development of these players. “

This is the fourth season that the Ignite have existed. This is a program that was originally created, as Silver said, to allow pre-draft eligible players to get paid to play basketball before being eligible to enter in the NBA due to the league's age limit for prospects.

The league billed it as a chance to give players a lot of money before they could make millions by being drafted into the league, and the program has helped attract several high-profile prospects in recent years. years.

But the introduction of NIL allowed college players to earn good money while going to school and reduced the need for the NBA to create such an in-league feeder program.

And while the program has produced several high-profile picks — including Scoot Henderson (No. 3 in 2023), Dyson Daniels (No. 8 in 2022) and Jalen Green (No. 3 in 2021) — this season has been a season difficult. one on the ground.

The Ignite are 6-31 and have the league's worst offensive rating (102.6 points per 100 possessions) and net rating (-12.7 points per 100 possessions) with a roster featuring several players who are draft-eligible prospects.

One of those top draft prospects, Ron Holland, recently told Marc Spears of Andscape that he will not return this season after undergoing thumb surgery, allowing him to fully concentrate on preparing for the draft. the NBA.

Silver also discussed the state of the entire American youth basketball system, something he has previously cited as a concern, and said it could be an area the league should focus on in the future.

If you see now what we're seeing in terms of almost 30 percent of the league's players being born outside of the United States, it's clear that the development is very different in a lot of these programs outside of the United States. United,” Silver said. “[There’s] The emphasis is more on practice and less on games, which seems to be the opposite of most youth programs in the United States.

“I think now that we've started discussions with the NCAA, the vast majority of the best players will play in college and never play in the NBA, of course, so we have a common interest in just improving the game and developing the players. “

“[Players are] “I come into the league with incredible talent,” Silver continued. “But that doesn't necessarily mean they're team basketball players. And then what I hear from some of these same coaches who are maybe complaining about their inability to playing defense is that these players are not as prepared as I would like, especially as very high draft picks.”

Silver also touched on several other topics, including:

• In a season in which there has been plenty of talk about referees — including Jacyn Goble fouling New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson to give the Houston Rockets the win on Monday evening – Silver said the league will improve. communication between referees and players is a “real area of ​​focus” for the future.

“I'm very sympathetic to both players who feel like an official missed a call, and sometimes they do, and I'm incredibly sympathetic to officials who have some of the toughest jobs in sports and that are under the microscope and occasionally, of course, we miss calls, and we recognize it when they do,” Silver said. “I think what frustrates me the most are precisely the problems that you are referring to, the communication problems between the players and the officials. I think that is an area where we should be able to make a best job, both ways.

“There just needs to be a sense of respect back and forth. I understand the frustration and I think it's an area where we can improve.”

• Silver said he was “unsure” whether supermax eligibility should be decoupled from the media voting process for the awards, adding that while there had been much discussion about the merits of the 65 game eligibility rule for voting, only time will tell if this is the case. functioning.

“The idea was that we needed to get more players, especially star players, to play more games,” Silver said. “So I'm not prepared to say it's not working so far. I can tell you that the number of games players have played in is up this season and, interestingly, injuries are down. Que This is significant data though, I don't know.

“I think the right time to take a closer look at this rule is at the end of the season, when we have at least a year under our belt.”

• Silver rejected the idea of ​​increasing the size of the All-Star Game rosters, saying it was not necessary to go from 24 total (12 in each conference) to 30 (15 in each conference) to mimic the change in workforce sizes across the world. league.

“There are no plans at this time to add any roster spots,” Silver said. “I think part of the problem is that, even if you're right, we've increased the number of teams, we haven't increased the number of minutes, and there's still only one ball .And then the question is how to distribute these minutes to the All-Stars?

“Also, I think when we sat down with the players and talked about it during the negotiations, there's this feeling of specialness of being an All-Star or being one of the 24 rather than to be one of many.”