Adam Silver reportedly near contract extension to remain as NBA Commissioner
Adam Silver is so highly thought of as a CEO that when the Walt Disney Corporation was creating a short list of people to potentially take over for its CEO Bob Iger, Silver was on the list. Silver also shot that idea down saying he wasn't going anywhere.
That is about to be official — Silver reportedly is nearing an agreement to sign an extension and remain as NBA Commissioner, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. He notes that this signing projects stability for the league as it tries to negotiate a massive new broadcast television deal.
The completion of formal negotiations with the Board of Governors on a new deal keeps Silver — nearing his 10th anniversary as commissioner — on course to pursue the NBA's next set of major objectives: a new media rights deal and league expansion.
Silver has been able to walk a fine line as commissioner that his predecessor — David Stern — largely ignored and stomped all over. Silver works for the NBA owners (who could fire him at any point with a vote) and has to keep them happy by making them money, but he has also remained broadly popular with the players. Silver is a consensus builder by nature and can convince the players and owners that they all make more money when they pull the rope in the same direction.
That's how he gets things such as the Play-In Tournament, the In-Season Tournament and the player participation policy through — he has built up enough political capital he can spend it, selling things he will say is ultimately good for the bottom line. And they largely have been.
Silver has had to make hard calls — helping push owners Donald Sterling and Robert Sarver out of the league, for example — but has also presided over labor peace and a growing business, particularly internationally. The new television rights deal the league is negotiating is expected to be at least double what the last one was, which speaks to the growth of the league (and the changing media landscape).
There is nobody better to do the job, the NBA owners are keeping the best guy in the right role.
