Chus Bueno on NBA Europe: “If we’re both all in to get a deal, we need to figure it out”

By Aris Barkas/ barkas@eurohoops.net

The first part of the conversation with Chus Bueno was more EuroLeague-centric.

However, the reality in European basketball is that the NBA, together with FIBA, is about to become a major shareholder in club competitions with the NBA Europe project.

Chus Bueno confirmed that on the 10th of June, a new meeting between the NBA, FIBA, and the EuroLeague will be held, and hopefully, a deal between all involved sides can be made.

However, this is not going to be an easy negotiation.

At the moment, the landscape remains unclear, and that’s why the new team in Rome, in which Luca Doncic is involved, has also approached the EuroLeague asking for a EuroCup wildcard in the 2026-27 season.

The EuroLeague, like the NBA, is ready to proceed with its own plans if there’s no deal, which also includes an effort to find a solution with FIBA on the matter of the national team “windows”, and also the EuroLeague’s wish to get involved in women’s competition.

The NBA, in partnership with FIBA, wants to create something very, very similar to what you are describing with the EuroCup and the Euroleague. Mark Tatum and Adam Silver confirmed that there are ongoing discussions with the EuroLeague, and probably in the next couple of weeks, there will be a meeting. Is there any progress in those talks? They’re ongoing, but so far, at least publicly, we don’t know if there is any hope for a deal.

“Here’s where we are. As you know, I have a close relationship with many of them. I’m going to speak with George (Aivazoglou, NBA Europe managing director) this week. We have a meeting on the 9th with our board, and then we have a meeting with the NBA and FIBA on the 10th of June. First, we need to clarify their position and bring it to the EuroLeague board. What is the framework? What should we put on the table? What do we want to discuss? Then get a reaction from the board, and take it to the meeting on the 10th, and see if we can advance in some conversations. So I’m waiting to see how we move forward. And as you know, the NBA said that they are on track for 2027, and they want to make a deal. We both know that fragmentation and friction are not good news. We both say it. They also said that they are ready to go ahead with or without the EuroLeague. We understand that. We also said this from the beginning. We have the plan with the NBA and without it. So if there is no deal, we have our plans too. I think that we both are doing what we have to do, and we are exploring both avenues in parallel”.

The NBA has also repeated that the only way for any club to join their project is to make a successful bid. This can be a red line for the Euroleague, or is this a main part of the friction in the negotiation?

Because, as I understand, the Euroleague represents all the shareholders, and the whole idea for the shareholders is that they want to join the new project without making a bid by themselves. They want a unified negotiation, and I have also seen some reports, like in the case of Real Madrid, which, of course, are not an official statement from the club, but insisted that if a club like Real wants to join the new project, then the NBA should pay the club and not the opposite…

“Well, I tend to agree with that comment, but what I would say is that we all understand that if an investor wants to participate in whatever league, not just in the NBA, in every single league, an investor has to invest money because that’s what they do, right? But for a team, it’s different. A team like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern, or Olympiacos is bringing the IP, the fan base, the 100 years of history, the tradition, and the city. They already “own” their cities, and that needs to be taken into account. To me, it’s really hard to see something successful without having the clubs, and we’re talking about having all the clubs in the league. We don’t want to create more fragmentation. We still need to see, like, this is the plan, let’s try to do this, and this is how it’s going to work. I’m still waiting to see that, but I will agree with that position”.

Do you feel that some kind of compromise and a deal must be made, no matter what? Because, as you said, fragmentation hurts the sport in the end. Or is it something that, if you feel that simply doesn’t apply to the needs of the Euroleague club owners, must be dismissed? Is there a “sacrifice” that the Euroleague is willing to make just to accommodate things and wishes?

“Well, let me start by saying that, as I was telling you in the beginning, the Euroleague shareholders, they feel comfortable with the plan we have on the table. They feel comfortable with the growth and with what we want to build, and they are all together and aligned with this plan. If the NBA comes, because we still don’t know, as they are still in the final bidding process, we will see. We want to be respectful to their process, which we understand ends in late June. They need to go back to their board with the binding offers. And then let’s see what they will do.  We are comfortable with what we have and with our plans. So if they are finally coming, we want to maximise the opportunity. I keep saying the same thing from day one. And we want to see what they will do, so it can be better, and then how we can partner to make it even better. And if that makes sense, of course, we will be open to doing it, but it has to make sense for us. And that is what we need to find out. But our position is that we are a reality. We already exist, we already have the league, we already have teams. We’re doing well, we’re going to do better. So there’s no risk in the EuroLeague. At the same time, we also want to be open. And they know we are open. But it has to make sense. I always insist it has to make sense, and I want to be very clear on this. It’s not only about the deal. Some people can raise the money, get a deal, but then what?”

“People have to put a lot of money, there’s a lot of risk, and they want to get their money back. And to me, the execution is critical. If you fragment all of this, the market will not respond to that. And the market is going to determine the final winner or loser here, in whatever idea we present. The market is the market; you don’t own the market. “

The discussions with FIBA and the idea for a women’s competition

Since you are coming from an NBA background and you have been instrumental in projects like NBA Junior, do you intend to create something like this also in the Euroleague, a junior program, or something for women?

“Yes, it’s super interesting. We want to take a look at everything around the ecosystem, right? Every time I have internal meetings with other people, there’s always someone who is asking me,” When are we going to do the women’s league?” Fair question. Women’s sports are growing. The Euroleague women’s competition is already done by FIBA. But if we can help or we can take a fresh look at this, why not? I think that is something that the Euroleague should also be thinking about, women’s competition. And the same with our academies, grassroots, or schools. I think that growing the game is something that is a responsibility of every single basketball stakeholder. And if we can just create something that brings the kids to play basketball, around the Euroleague brand, it is something that we definitely need to explore. We have already designated a team that is going to start thinking about academies and schools and all of that, and we’re gonna do it for sure”.

“For women, we are still exploring. And at the same time, we had the opportunity to talk with Project B, because they were also doing this with women. And before the Euroleague, I was advising an investment fund, and I was thinking about investing in Project B. And you can see how women’s sport is growing. It’s clearly an opportunity that we should definitely explore”.

Have you mentioned this to FIBA yet?

“No. What we discussed with FIBA was the calendar. They were thinking about the windows, and we’re trying to find a solution for the windows, and I think that we are helping them to do that. We spoke about meritocracy. They were asking us to do some things as a first step. So I think that we will give them some sort of a version of the two things that they were asking us to do, access to domestic competitions in the EuroCup, and also try to figure out the Windows for the next three years. Maybe we will get a complete no, but we’ll be working on that, and the board will see some ideas. But, no, we have not had discussions on the women’s competition”.

Rome and Doncic in the EuroCup

There’s one more thing tied to the NBA. A few hours ago, speaking about Luka Doncic as a team owner, Adam Silver said that it’s still unclear if an active player can also be a franchise owner in the European league. There were also reports about the team in Rome related to Doncic contacting you about the EuroCup. Is this true? Have they expressed interest in playing in the EuroLeague or in the EuroCup?

“The first part of the question is more for the NBA. I know that there are bidders interested in Rome, not only this one club, but there are a couple more. So I don’t know which one is the one that is going to be the winning bid for the Rome franchise. I have no idea about that.

Specifically about Rome, with the project where Rimantas Kaukenas is an advisor. Yes, we spoke to them. They asked us to be in the EuroCup next year. We want to help them. There are some nice projects that you want to protect and help. That would be a good way for them to start speeding up. And, yes, they also mentioned that they will be interested in the EuroLeague in the future, but they are starting, and we need to see how things develop. Where are they gonna play first, right? In which arena? I think that is one of these clubs or cities that is super interesting if we can put basketball there. It’s not easy because they have two very strong football teams, but I think that we should support them in cities like that”.

Since a name like Doncic is involved, do you believe that they can also have a 3 + 2 contract in the EuroCup?

“I think that they first need to have an arena, because the requirement to give you a 3+2 license is a 5.000 seat arena. And we still don’t know where they’re going to play. So that’s what I think, maybe you can have this 3+2 deal next year, but not this season. There are a lot of people interested, and they have to meet some requirements. But I could see them in the future because, again, there are people and projects that you want to help and protect because you see that there’s room for improvement. And to be clear, they have a very nice project”.

In Athens, you told us that the secret to happiness is to have a bad memory…

“Health and bad memory, yeah”.

Do you think that in the upcoming meetings with the NBA and FIBA, all sides can have a bad memory, forget everything, and start from scratch? Because, as I understand now, there are obvious conflicts between the plans of the two sides.

“I think that I don’t have a lot, if any, bad memories. I mean, I was on the other side in the past, so I don’t feel that there are any conflicts. I have a very good relationship with both, so I don’t have any bad feelings or bad memories for anyone. On the contrary. So for me, sitting at the table with them, I will be excited and very open to see what we can do together. We have proven that with FIBA, we exchanged a couple of goodwill gestures. They are going to get what they were asking for, access through domestic competitions and the windows.

I don’t have to say anything about my relationship with the NBA because we have a very direct relationship. We just need to find out what makes sense for everyone, you know? And if we want to do a deal, that’s a good thing. Maybe we have to compete in some other stuff until we’ll get a deal. But if we’re both all in to get a deal, we need to figure it out.”