A Global Game in India will happen soon, reveals NBA COO Mark Tatum
NBA’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) and deputy commissioner Mark Tatum revealed that a Global Game which would involve two top NBA teams would soon be held in India. He also stated that the venue would either be Delhi or Mumbai and was confident that NBA game would be well received in India.
Given the global recognition of NBA, capturing the market of India has been on the list for quite some time now. NBA has had a steady growth over the past couple of years in India. The partnership with Sony Pictures Network India has been a huge boost to the game as well as it helped the sport reach to the different regions of the country.
And to further cater to the ever-burgeoning Indian NBA market, NBA’s COO Mark Tatum has revealed that India would soon be hosting a Global Game between two of the top teams of NBA. He even revealed that the venues of the game would be Delhi or Mumbai and insisted that the game would be well received in India.
“I would say it (Global Game in India) will happen soon,” Tatum said as quoted by TOI on the sidelines of the recently-concluded 2018 NBA Finals, which Golden State Warriors won by brushing aside Cleveland Cavaliers 4-0.
“India for us is such an important market. It is also one of those markets we are looking to get the Games
The Global Games have been a part of NBA’s strategy to attract more audiences to the league by having teams play in countries other than USA and Canada. In India, the league has made considerable progress in the last two years. It already has the NBA Academy, which was inaugurated in 2017, in Greater Noida and the Junior NBA Program, which was implemented in 2013 and has reached 75 lakh youngsters in the country.
“We have the NBA Academy in India and we have the Junior NBA program. But part of getting a country excited about something is for them to see the product. I have been to India a couple of times now and have attended cricket (Indian Premier League) games and it’s exciting.
“Even the entertainment there on offer – the cheerleaders and other things – is
Each season, at least 350 games are broadcasted live in India. This season, all the games were also broadcasted in Hindi. However, Tatum, who came to India for the inauguration of the NBA Academy last year, acknowledged that infrastructure related to the sport was the association’s biggest obstacle in getting the Games to India.
“One of the challenges for us is the basketball facilities. There aren’t that many basketball facilities (in India), which can host an NBA game. So, we are just trying to figure out the logistics of where we would play, be it Mumbai or New Delhi. We are looking at different options, but it’s definitely one of those things that we feel we have to do if we are going to get India activated in a different way around the NBA,” stated Tatum.