In the midst of Woj-bomb season and an NBA offseason that has been more entertaining than the 2017 playoffs, the NBA officially made its minor league switch from “D” to “G”.
The NBA and Gatorade announced that as of Wednesday, the NBA Development League (D-League) has officially become the G League.
It was only natural for the NBA’s feeder system into the pros – a league that has more than tripled in size since its inauguration season in 2001-02 – to progress to the point of having its main sponsor be the face of the league.
Gatorade was a founding partner of the league in 2001-02, and although the switch in name seems to signal a shift in authority, the league will be referred to as the G League (not the Gatorade League) in all context.
It's official! #NBAGLeague Learn more about our new era: https://t.co/YEMoD5r1Go pic.twitter.com/kD3Pd9SwEg
— NBA G League (@nbagleague) June 20, 2017
“This is a pivotal moment for the NBA G League,” said NBA G League President Malcolm Turner in a news release. “The league is experiencing unprecedented success both on and off the court, and our partnership with Gatorade is helping to drive momentum and create exciting opportunities for innovation, sports performance and player development.”
The NBA salary cap will reportedly jump from $94.1 million this season to $101 million in 2017-18, and according to Forbes, the NBA’s 30 teams generated $5.9 billion in revenue last season, up 13 percent from the previous year’s valuations and another record high for the league, thanks in large part to a hefty $24 billion television deal with ESPN and TNT.
Disregarding the insane amounts of money being thrown around and discussed, the NBA is becoming more and more popular by the day.
Golden State’s five-game series victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers garnered the league its highest average television rating per game since the 1998 NBA Finals.
With its transformation as a year-round off-court spectacle, the NBA is truly made for the new media of today as a part of the smartphone generation.
The G League is ready to reap the benefits.
Twenty-two of the 26 G League teams beginning next season will be owned and operated by NBA franchises; Expect that number to reach 30 teams for all 30 franchises sooner rather than later.
"We've grown a lot, very quickly," Turner told USA Today. "But at the same time, we're a work in progress. We have a very bright and exciting future. We're well on our way with a record 26 teams on the floor. And once we realize our vision of having each of our teams align 1-to-1 with an NBA team, that's when it can get really interesting for us."
NBA teams – as they’ve become smarter (well, most of have become smarter) with the advancement of statistics and technology – have also started utilizing their farm teams for more than just the occasional assignment.
According to the news release, 44 percent of players on 2016-17 end-of-season NBA rosters had NBA G League experience, while 65 percent of players selected in the 2016 NBA Draft spent time in the G League last season, including more than half of the first-round picks.
The Boston Celtics were one of those teams who took advantage of the offerings in the G League.
Jordan Mickey (33rd overall pick in 2015) and Demetrius Jackson (45th overall pick in 2016) spent considerable time with the Celtics’ G League affiliate last season, the Maine Red Claws, which included a positive five-game run in the playoffs (league playoff series run as best of three, so five games constitutes as a trip to the conference finals).
Celtics fans were also treated to a sneak peek late in the regular season and into the G League playoffs with the acquisition of Guerschon Yabusele, who was stashed most of last season overseas in China in the CBA, before coming over to Maine to get more run on the court.
In a move that has still yet to be embraced by all teams in the NBA, the Celtics drafted Abdel Nader with the 58th pick in the 2016 draft, with no roster space – and no intention of signing Nader to an NBA contract for that season.
Instead, the team and Nader agreed beforehand that the 6’8 swingman out of Iowa State would bypass offers from other NBA teams (as well as much larger salaried offers from teams overseas) to stay within the Celtics’ reach and next to Red Claws head coach Scott Morrison.
(Morrison, who compiled a 95-55 record in three seasons in Maine, represents another way NBA clubs can further add to their organization – through the development of coaching. Morrison will begin next season on the bench in Boston as an assistant to Brad Stevens.)
The results for Nader were profound, as he went from averaging 12.9 points per game his senior season at Iowa State in a 3-D type of role, to a reliance on him as a go-to shot-maker and shot-creator at the next level.
Nader aced his rookie season with a team-high average of 21.3 points, to go along with 6.2 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game, and was also named the G League’s Rookie of the Year for his efforts.
Nader – like all of his G League contemporaries last season – earned less than $26,000 (an unfathomably low amount). The G League’s main deterrent in seeing the best talent consistently land overseas has always been about the money.
With an eye towards improving this matter, the NBA has created two additional roster spots for NBA clubs (designated as “two-way contracts”) where players will be guaranteed $75,000, and can earn as much as $275,000, depending the amount of time they spend with an NBA team.
The move creates as many as 60 new jobs in the NBA – and also entices players hesitant about earning so little in the G League – a reason to commit.
Last season, nearly 1.5 million fans attended games, marking the eighth straight year the league has surpassed 1 million fans.
The NBA has long needed a developmental launching pad into the big leagues. After 16 seasons and a steady increase in exposure and talent the G League is ready for takeoff.
.@Sam_Vecenie on @MarkelleF prospects in the #NBA #76ers #Lakers #Celtics https://t.co/RddgIXLbyh pic.twitter.com/6HB2NB7XiK
— Celtics Beat w/ LHR (@CelticsBeatNBA) June 18, 2017
