And-One: Europa League, Morant, FIBA ​​Hall Of Fame, Lewis |Stories Circles

The NBA and FIBA ​​​​​​are to begin discussions with potential teams next month for a new league in Europe.

According to Aris Barkas of Eurohoops, the NBA and FIBA ​​will begin negotiations with a potential team and ownership group in January, which will be the next step towards the creation of a new European basketball league.The groups issued a press release announcing their intentions on Monday morning.

In addition to a permanent spot in the league, teams are promised "a merit-based pathway" to qualification on an annual basis, either through FIBA's Basketball Champions League or an end-of-season qualifying tournament.The league plans to align its schedule with the schedule of local leagues and national teams, so that players can attend international tournaments without conflict.

The statement also promises that the NBA and FIBA ​​will provide financial support for the development of the "European basketball ecosystem".These include domestic leagues, club team academies, and existing programs run by the NBA and FIBA ​​to develop players, coaches, and game officials.

"Our conversations with various stakeholders in Europe have strengthened our belief that there is a huge opportunity to create a new league on the continent," said NBA Commissioner ADam Silver.

Here are more curiosities from the world of basketball:

- According to Sportando's Michelle Nespoli, Grizzlies guard Ja Morant is investing in European basketball through his Catch 12 company.Morant bought shares in EuroStep Ventures, the holding company that controls Levallois Metropolitans.The French team made a big international splash with Victor Vembanyama before he entered the NBA draft.

- Mavericks legend Dirk Nowitzki was inducted into the FIBA ​​​​​​Hall of Fame Class of 2026, which includes seven players and one coach, Eurohoops relay.Hedo Turkoglu and Wang Zhijie are other members of the class with NBA ties, while Sue Bird is a WNBA star.The induction ceremony will take place on April 21 in Berlin, Germany.

- Referee Eric Lewis was restored this week as Alliance G, possibly preparing his way back to the NBA, Marc J. Spears of ESPN writes.Lewis suddenly retired in 2023 after breaking the NBA social media policy by having a Twitter account to burn.The account, which has been deleted, often responded to negative messages about Lewis and other officers.Get people's trust, return to work and play.What was the plan always when this happened was to try to return to the NBA. "