While Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadive is doing what he can to make basketball the most popular sport in India, for now China is the NBA’s biggest overseas market.
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The league has previously played games in China and will continue that trend this season as the above mentioned Kings will take on the Brooklyn Nets on two separate occasions during training camp. That might not be the only way the NBA is looking to appease fan bases abroad either as according to the Sun Sentenial, commissioner Adam Silver is exploring the idea of having ‘morning’ game times.
“Maybe when the audience gets big enough in China and you’re reaching 100 million people in China, to say, ‘So maybe once in a while a team will play at 10:00 on Saturday morning,’ stated Silver. ” “We’re not there yet. But, you know, I am watching the market closely.”
Currently the NBA doesn’t begin their weekend schedule until noon (EST) so moving the tip up two hours doesn’t seem like that big of a difference. It would also allow the NBA to potentially add another contest onto the national schedule considering the earlier start time.
Of course, moving the game time up will create a bit of an issue on the West Coast as it’s possible the tip would occur at 7:00 AM while most are either still sleeping or at least just beginning their daily tasks. Still, China is a far bigger priority than the schedule of those on America’s left side and it seems like a great way for the league to expand their interest not only in China but across the globe as well.