NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday that while there was no specific discussion of the impending arbitration between Ben Simmons and the Philadelphia 76ers, he said his bigger concern moving forward is a trend of star players not participating in a full complement of games.
The Board of Governors met for two days this week, and Silver said at a press conference that he wasn't standing here saying he had a great solution. One of the things we have focused on at the league office is sharing information and resources around the league to improve best practices.
Creating other incentives is one way we can get at it. I thought the Play-In Tournament was the beginning of renewed incentives for teams to remain competitive and be in the playoffs. It may be through in-season tournaments and changes in format.
There is a chance that the schedule could be changed. He said Wednesday that he was happy with the way the play-in tournament has played out over the past two years, and that he wanted an in-season tournament.
I have said in the past that if we have too many games, we should look at it. There was no banging of the table. From my discussions with players, it is an issue. The impact on their bodies has changed as a result of the style of the game. I think we have to constantly assess and look at a marketplace and say, what is the best way to present our product and how long a season is?
Simmons has filed a grievance to challenge the nearly $20 million of salary he was not paid by the 76ers this season.
The issue of mental health and NBA contracts could have larger league implications if the grievance goes to an arbitration process.
Silver said that the league would not be involved in such litigation.
Other topics were touched on by Silver.
The NBA doesn't anticipate moving the All-Star Game next year because of anti-LBGTQ legislation being passed in Utah.
The decision to move the Charlotte All-Star Game a few years ago over a similar bill was different, according to Silver. We were working with the team in North Carolina. It seemed to us that there was an opportunity to have a direct impact on that law, working with the larger business community.
He said that they don't want to be in a position where they are chased from state to state around the country. There are different issues going on in the country than there were last year. I do not like the trend. We look for opportunities to unite people rather than divide them.
I have a lot of respect for Ryan Smith. I believe he stood up against the bill. We joined him in opposing the bill. We want to be realistic about the impact we can have. I think it was our collective view that we could have an impact on the legislation in North Carolina. I think that bill is established in Utah right now.
When asked if there was an update into the investigation into the conduct of Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver, Silver said there was not one, and would not give a timetable for when it would be done.
The investigation is ongoing, Silver said. You want to make sure that you gather all of the facts and that you protect the rights of the accused. We want to make sure that we are very complete. We are closer to the end than the beginning, but it is hard to say when it will end.
He gave the same answer when asked about the league involvement in the lawsuit.
Our only involvement right now is to watch the situation. He said that for the most part, the teams leave the league office to oversee investigations.
The play-in tournament will remain part of the league moving forward, though Silver did say it could have some tweaking done to it.
The idea of eliminating the take four foul, a foul given to intentionally stop fast breaks before they get started, could happen as soon as next season, though there are hurdles that remain before it could be changed.
The take foul is something that we are very focused on and considering making a change for next season, Silver said. We will be meeting with the board again in July, which could be a good time to change that rule. We don't think it's a great part of our game as we're seeing a pretty dramatic increase in take fouls. International basketball has another way of getting at it, but we would like to change that.
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