London Lions CEO: We’d love to be in NBA Europe but we have a reason to exist anyway
London Lions CEO Lenz Balan on the club’s NBA Europe ambitions and the challenges of making British basketball financially sustainable.
“I’m, like, an irrational optimist,” says London Lions CEO Lenz Balan as he explains why he views the impending arrival of an NBA Europe team on his patch as an opportunity, not a threat.
The world’s biggest basketball league is accelerating plans to launch a competition on this side of the Atlantic which will see deep-pocketed investors run a new team based in London in just 18 months’ time.
On the face of it, the NBA and its investors are coming for his lunch but Balan, who emerged from the wreckage of 777 Partners’ doomed stewardship of both British basketball and the Lions to helm the club’s revival under the owners of Nord VPN is not throwing in the towel yet.
“We think we have a reason to exist, irrespective of if there’s another team in the marketplace,” the American tells CityAM.
“I also tend to think that more capital coming in is a good thing for anybody who is currently operating in the marketplace. You know, the best place to put a McDonald’s is next to a Wendy’s. And I think that probably works in this opportunity.
“I think a lot of people look at basketball in London and say, ‘you’re cannibalising each other’. I actually don’t think that cannibalisation is going to happen.
“I think that the potential market opportunity is so large for British basketball and London in particular that you need at least one or two clubs spending time, money and resources, building out the ecosystem in their respective locations in London. And that will unlock the broader opportunity.”
Two London teams in NBA Europe makes sense
Balan is coy on whether the Lions’ owner, Tesonet, has bid for the London NBA licence. Secrecy around the bidding has been strict, though Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund is thought to be in the running for the capital’s team.
“The only thing I can say is that we’d love to be in NBA Europe. Our objective doesn’t change, whether we’re the NBA Europe franchise or somebody else is. We want to build a globally recognised basketball brand that’s at the top of European basketball.”
London Lions may have to earn a spot in NBA Europe on merit, with some slots in the competition to be reserved for qualifiers. Balan is heartened by news that the NBA and EuroLeague have resumed talks that should bring clarity to those plans.
“I think it would make a ton of sense for the NBA to have two clubs in London,” he says. “But I tend to not spend too much time focusing on things that I can’t control. I can’t control what the NBA is doing. I can’t control what EuroLeague is doing.”
Lions aim to complete domestic quadruple
On the court, the Lions have enjoyed a stellar season despite a disappointing European campaign. They are gunning for a domestic quadruple, with victory in next month’s playoffs needed to add to topping Super League Basketball and winning two cups.
Off court, finances still cast a shadow. The Lions owe more than £5m to their owners, and both club and league are loss-making. Winning trophies won’t move the needle, which explains why they are pushing ahead with plans to build a first purpose-built basketball arena in London.
“I think the biggest reason why basketball has failed in this country is the fact that clubs have to rent out venues. Having control of the venue is the fastest path to financial sustainability,” says Balan, who adds that they are on “phase two” of the project and news may arrive by summer.
British basketball as a whole has suffered from the collapse into liquidation last year of governing body the BBF, following a bitter and costly legal row with SLB and its clubs. Balan says the BBF’s successor should delegate player development to the teams.
“I think clubs that are well capitalised and have the right ambition are the best places to deploy scarce resources to grow participation. If we have a governing body that is aligned towards that and holds clubs accountable, I think we’ll have more and more success.”
SLB expansion to 10 teams ‘right’ move
The league is hoping to replenish its finances following the legal saga by selling an expanding SLB beyond its current nine teams. Liverpool is thought the most likely destination for a new franchise, having seen traditional sporting rival Manchester make strides in SLB.
“I think it’s really important for the league to add new teams. I think that’s the right place to grow the ecosystem, especially if those clubs have a set of ambitions that really add to it,” Balan says.
“Now, not everybody has to have the same ambitions that London and Manchester have – there are lots of ways to do it. I think the important thing is that we’re really thoughtful about who those new club owners are, that they have really clear business models, and that they share the overall ambition of the league growing.”