Adam Silver, commissioner of the NBA, affirmed this Saturday that he sees it possible to organize preseason games outside the United States this year.although he excluded that the pandemic allows planning regular season games at the international level.
“What we want to do again is international travel. We are an international league and the opportunity to move teams is a way to grow.”assured Adam Silver in a press conference organized in Cleveland (USA), in the run-up to the contest of skills, dunks and triples on Saturday’s All-Star.
Asked if it will be possible to watch pre-season matches this year, Silver answered with a “potentially yes”.
“It’s something we’re looking at right now,” he added.
The commissioner expressed the hope that this All-Star will mark the beginning of the real exit phase of the pandemic, but stressed that there is still too much “insecurity” to be able to plan matches regular season outside the United States.
“It will not happen in the regular season. It is possible that there will be pre-season games in Europe. There is a lot of insecurity and we have to plan those games well in advance. Without a doubt, we would love to return to Europe,” he said.
At the press conference, Silver stressed that the pandemic, among other factors, has increased the stress load on players and considered that it is increasingly important to protect their mental well-being.
“Psychological problems multiplied in the pandemic, for everyone. It is an additional stress. The teams are putting additional resources to work on the welfare of the players, “he said, without wanting to comment on particular cases, such as that of the Australian Ben Simmons, who has not competed for almost a year alleging personal problems.
“We are talking about human beings who do a high-stress job. People can be very intense with them,” he added, recalling that social networks also represent a major source of pressure for gamers.