International Wiretap

The NBA Board of Governors is scheduled to review a second round of bids from prospective NBA Europe owners Tuesday. Sources said the league and FIBA are making significant progress toward an October 2027 launch, with additional action possible during the board's summer meetings in Las Vegas this week.

Sources with knowledge of the bidding process said the NBA has received numerous offers ranging from $500 million to more than $1 billion across each of its 12 target cities. More than 20 existing basketball and football clubs have submitted bids, including several current EuroLeague teams.

Every shortlisted club and investor group has extended an offer, with additional bids emerging for markets outside the league's original targets. Those target cities include London, Paris, Rome, Milan, Lyon, Madrid, Barcelona, Athens, Manchester, Istanbul, Berlin and Munich.

The NBA continues separate discussions with EuroLeague on a potential merger. EuroLeague clubs being courted by the NBA have renewed their EuroLeague license agreements, which include exit clauses worth roughly €10 million. Real Madrid, which holds a EuroLeague basketball team, is among the clubs that renewed its license while also considering NBA Europe membership.

No club will receive an NBA Europe license without paying the league's entry fee. Beyond its 12 permanent members, the league plans to add four teams annually based on performance in domestic leagues and FIBA tournaments.

The NBA has hired Arturas Karnisovas as a consultant for its planned NBA Europe league Karnisovas, who most recently ran the front office of the Chicago Bulls, will advise Adam Silver on governance, game rules and talent recruitment for the new venture.

The former Lithuanian star will help develop pathways for players entering NBA Europe and potentially transitioning to the NBA. He will also serve as a liaison between the NBA, NBA Europe teams and FIBA, the international governing body partnering with Silver on the launch.

Karnisovas won two Olympic bronze medals with Lithuania and played professionally across Europe in the 1990s. He later worked as an assistant general manager with the Denver Nuggets, where he helped scout Nikola Jokic, before taking over the Bulls' front office in 2020. 

The NBA Board of Governors is scheduled to review a second round of bids from prospective NBA Europe owners Tuesday. Sources said the league and FIBA are making significant progress toward an October 2027 launch, with additional action possible during the board's summer meetings in Las Vegas this week.

Gonzaga starting point guard Mario Saint-Supery is departing the program to sign with EuroLeague club Valencia. The Spanish squad announced the long-term deal Saturday.

Saint-Supery earned all-West Coast Conference freshman honors last season, averaging 8.6 points per game in his lone year with the Bulldogs. Before arriving at Gonzaga, he had built a reputation in Spain's Liga ACB, earning the nickname "El Principito," or "The Little Prince."

Valencia referenced that nickname in its announcement.

"The Little Prince will make the Roig Arena his new palace," Valencia said in a release, adding that Saint-Supery would "continue his development at a high competitive level."

The departure comes at a difficult time for coach Mark Few's roster, which is set to compete in the new Pac-12 during the 2026-27 season. With the transfer portal closed, Gonzaga has limited options to replace a starting point guard in July.

Saint-Supery, a 6-foot-4 guard, shot 40 percent from three-point range last season and started Gonzaga's final eight games. That stretch included a 21-point performance against Santa Clara in the WCC tournament championship game, along with 13 assists and four turnovers across two NCAA tournament appearances.

Saint-Supery had been expected to serve as Gonzaga's point guard alongside returning players Braden Huff and Davis Fogle and Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop as the Bulldogs prepare to compete outside the WCC for the first time since 1979.

The move also reflects a broader shift in how international prospects approach college basketball. The NCAA's 5-for-5 rule now starts a player's academic clock upon enrollment or the academic year after turning 19, whichever comes first, reducing the window for older international players to compete at the Division I level.

Project B, a startup basketball league launching next winter, has hired Landry Fields to lead its men's basketball division, according to a league announcement.

Fields, 38, previously served as general manager of the Atlanta Hawks from 2022 through 2025. The former New York Knicks player has worked as president of league operations for Overtime Elite, a league for players ages 16 to 20, since January 2026.

"What drew me to Project B was the ambition," said Fields.

Fields represents the most prominent hire on the men's side of the league so far. Project B, backed by venture capital funding and founded by several Silicon Valley executives, is scheduled to begin play in January.

The league has already secured commitments from several prominent WNBA players for its women's division. Nneka Ogwumike, an 11-time All-Star and WNBPA president, became the first player to sign on.

Additional signees include 2026 No. 1 pick Azzi Fudd, Jewell Loyd, Alyssa Thomas and Jonquel Jones. Former WNBA star Alana Beard serves as the league's chief basketball officer.

No men's players have signed yet, though the league is working with Maverick Carter, a longtime business partner of LeBron James, who has advised Project B since last year. The league has expressed interest in recruiting talent from both the NBA and European leagues.

Co-founder Grady Burnett said the league plans to apply the same recruiting approach used on the women's side to build its men's division.

"We have a blueprint that we followed on the women's side that brought us those top players," said Burnett. "We're applying the same blueprint on the men's side that focuses on developing the best young talent in the world and extending the careers of established players."

Project B plans to host games internationally, touring cities across Asia and Europe in two-week stretches. Players who have signed thus far have received equity stakes in the league alongside their salaries.

Guerschon Yabusele has agreed to a three-year deal with Panathinaikos in Greece.

Yabusele will be one of the three highest-paid players in Europe on the contract.

Yabusele appeared in 67 games with the Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks last season, averaging 5.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 15.0 minutes. In the previous season with the Philadelphia 76ers, Yabusele averaged 11.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 27.1 minutes. 

Yabusele previously played for Real Madrid for three seasons after leaving the NBA earlier in his career.

Veteran wing Mario Hezonja is making an aggressive push to return to the NBA this offseason. Hezonja is on a long-term contract with Real Madrid in Spain, but has an NBA out until July 20 of this year. The buyout for Hezonja's contract with Real Madrid is expected to be around $850,000.

Hezonja hasn't played in the NBA since the 2019-20 season with the Portland Trail Blazers. Since then, the now 31-year-old wing has spent one season apiece in Greece and Russia, before playing the last four seasons with Real Madrid.

In 80 games across all competitions last season, Hezonja averaged 15.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. The 6-foot-8 wing also shot 44.4% from the field.

Over 20 groups placed bids to participate in NBA Europe, with multiple bids topping $1 billion in select markets, sources told Ben Golliver of ESPN. 

NBA Europe plans to launch in 2027 in 12 markets including London, Paris, Madrid, Berlin, Munich, Milan, Rome and Istanbul.

"We're extremely encouraged by the final bids we received for permanent franchises in a new NBA and FIBA-backed league in Europe, which reflect the tremendous interest and momentum around this project," NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum said in a statement Tuesday. "This will be the biggest influx of capital European basketball has ever seen, and we have clear frontrunners in each of our 12 target cities."

NBA Europe plans to have 12 permanent teams and four open spots filled by a promotion system.

Several existing EuroLeague teams also reportedly put forth bids

Veteran guard Lonnie Walker is looking for a return to the NBA. Walker has an out in his contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv in Israel.

The 6-foot-4 guard averaged 15.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 45 games across all competitions for Maccabi Tel Aviv last season.

Walker spent the first seven season of his professional career in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers. He also spent part of the 2024-25 season with Zalgiris in Lithuania.

The NBA's creation of a new league in Europe is right on track. The NBA plans to name the winning bidders for the 12 permanent franchise members of the new league in the next 60 to 90 days. Those teams will be located in the following cities:

• Rome, Italy
• Milan, Italy
• London, England
• Manchester, England
• Paris, France
• Lyon, France
• Madrid, Spain
• Barcelona, Spain
• Berlin, Germany
• Munich, Germany
• Athens, Greece
• Istanbul, Turkey

NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum has been heading the project on the league's behalf. Tatum said the league remains on track to debut in October, 2027.

"We’re on a very, very quick timeline here," Tatum said. "We’re going to identify the right partners in the right cities, and we’re going to take as much time as we need in order to identify those right partners. We’re talking not only existing basketball teams in the ecosystem, but we’re talking to soccer teams that currently don’t have basketball teams that are interested, and we’re also talking to individuals and other entities who don’t have a basketball team but want to invest in a basketball team."

Tatum said that the European teams could eventually play NBA teams in preseason games. Eventually, Tatum said that the two leagues could combine and play against each other in the Emirates NBA Cup. Tatum also said that league is working with streaming partners for the broadcast component for the new league.

"There has been an incredible amount of inbound interest on taking those games and distributing them not only throughout Europe but globally," Tatum said. "We have no doubt that it will create some global interest, and therefore media partners are very interested in carrying that content."

Cleveland Cavaliers two-way wing Riley Minix is reportedly close to signing with ASVEL in France. Minix is technically under contract with the Cavs though next season on a two-way contract, but Cleveland is likely open to release Minix to pursue opportunities overseas.

Minix has only played limited minutes in two NBA seasons with the Cavaliers and San Antonio Spurs. In two G League seasons, the 6-foot-7 wing has stood out. Minix has averaged 18.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals across 54 total G League games. He's also put up 52/42/82 shooting splits during that time.