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Europe's top basketball clubs have turned down a proposal from the National Basketball Association to merge competitions as part of a planned NBA Europe project, though they have signaled they remain open to further negotiations, according to media reports on Tuesday.
The rejection emerged from a three-hour meeting of EuroLeague club owners held at Villa d'Este in Cernobbio, Italy, Italian sports daily La Gazzetta dello Sport reported.
The gathering brought together representatives of the competition's 13 shareholder clubs to weigh the American league's offer.
The NBA's proposal, submitted two weeks before Tuesday's meeting, had been set to expire the same day.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, the clubs found the financial terms of the offer insufficient, a judgment that appears to have driven the decision to reject it in its current form.
The NBA is reportedly planning to launch its own 16-team European competition, which would include 12 permanent members, as part of its broader push to establish a foothold in European club basketball through the NBA Europe project.
Separately, EuroLeague confirmed Tuesday that its 13 shareholder clubs will be converted into franchises.
The move marks a structural shift for the competition, which has operated since 2000 as Europe's premier top-tier professional basketball tournament, bringing together leading clubs from multiple countries in a continent-wide format distinct from domestic national leagues.
No formal decision was reached, however, on separate proposals to expand EuroLeague from its current 20 teams to 24, leaving that question unresolved for now.
Despite the rejection, both sides are expected to continue discussions as they attempt to reconcile their competing visions for the future of European club basketball.
The outcome of those talks could determine whether the NBA's European ambitions proceed in direct competition with EuroLeague or through some form of collaboration with it.
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