By Alan Snel
LVSportsBiz.com
Adam Silver is no stranger to Las Vegas.
The NBA commissioner comes to the big CSE electronics show every January to chat about the NBA’s social media and technology gains. And you can count on Silver as an annual visitor at the NBA Summer League, now in its 15th year of serving as the Burning Man of professional basketball and ready to roll for an 11-day run starting Friday in Las Vegas.
Silver typically calms rumors about a new NBA team in Las Vegas, though you can usually snag a photo opp of the NBA commissioner talking with MGM Resorts International CEO Jim Murren who would enjoy nothing more than seeing an NBA franchise as a co-tenant at T-Mobile Arena to join the NHL Vegas Golden Knights and UFC.
But who needs an NBA team when you have the NBA Summer League, when all 30 NBA teams come to Las Vegas for 83 games at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center and enjoining Cox Pavilion through July 15. It all starts Friday with more than 17,000 tickets sold for the first day and another sellout for Day 2 on Saturday.
NBA Summer League organizers Warren LeGarie and Albert Hall were seen chatting with people at Thomas & Mack Center Thursday as crews prepared the two gyms for the slew of NBA games that feature the teams’ young players amid a relaxed, laid-back atmosphere that is akin to MLB spring training.
I would not be surprised if this year’s attendance breaks last year’s mark and draws more than 140,000 to the two gyms, where the NBA Summer League logo was installed on the courts and on signs along walls. Take a look at Cox Pavilion today.
The Chinese and Croatian national teams will be joining the NBA’s 30 clubs. The debut of Zion Williamson, the much-heralded rookie from Duke drafted first overall by the New Orleans Pelicans has created a big stir, too.
The NBA also likes to use the Summer League to experiment with new technology, like overhead skycam cameras and vertical game broadcast feeds for cell phones.
LVSportsBiz.com will be reporting from the NBA Summer League Friday, so look for our original content.
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