Bill Simmons isn’t a reporter in the traditional sense.
But when it comes to “rich guy circles,” the Sports Guy is plenty plugged in.
So it’s hardly a surprise that Simmons has plenty of intel on the reported international basketball league that will attempt to rival the NBA. And on the latest episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Ringer founder dropped a couple of bombshells, including the league’s claim that it already has commitments from high profile NBA stars.
“What they’re telling people is that they have a couple major stars that are gonna be joining that are gonna be jaw-dropping,” Simmons told Chuck Klosterman. “It’s pretty clear, ’cause Maverick Carter is running this or is one of the people involved in pushing it, that he’s dangling [that] LeBron [James] is gonna be one of the people that do it. Could it be Kevin Durant?
“My guess is it’s probably older famous superstars nearing the end of their career who are just gonna do it, where they would get a bunch of money, probably equity in the league. And it’s a financial play and you try to build something.”
Simmons also had some insight on what such a league might look like, revealing that he’s heard that it would be heavily influenced by the traveling nature of Formula One racing.
“They basically want it to be like F1 and it’s this international league. They play less games and they go to different spots all over the world.” Simmons said. “So they go to like Singapore, they go to Monaco, wherever the hell it is, almost operating like F1. And they go there and they’re there for like, I don’t know, 10 days. And they’re playing multiple games in the same spot. And then they have all this other stuff that happens. Like there’s like concerts and it’s like an event. It’s like almost like a takeover the same way F1 does it. And you move from spot to spot and maybe it’s like a 30-35 game season.”
While Simmons also stated he’s not totally convinced that the league will ultimately come to fruition, this isn’t the first time he’s called attention to its potential impact. During a podcast episode in March, the ex-ESPN columnist revealed that NBA owners are concerned about the Saudi Arabia-backed league, which could effectively become basketball’s version of LIV Golf.
Although the league hasn’t even officially announced itself yet, if Simmons’ intel is correct, then it’s clearly planning some major moves. Even if it primarily targets older superstars such as James and Durant, those are still some of the NBA’s most famous current players, who also happen to possess the type of massive individual followings that such a league would need to attract if it’s to going to have a shot at sustaining.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.