• by John Rowady , Op-Ed Contributor, November 5, 2013

The commissioner of any sports league is tasked with the incredibly difficult responsibility of taking a big-picture view of the entire sport and then deciding the best course of action moving forward. Bud Selig, Roger Goodell and Gary Bettman are all icons in their own right, but the legend that the NBA’s David Stern has become is remarkable, from both a sport and business perspective. This February, Stern will step down as commissioner of the NBA, a league and game he has transformed since 1984. He had a singular, grand vision from the start, and focused on it every day – proliferation of American Basketball throughout the world.  As he steps down, Stern delivers the NBA in a nicely wrapped package to a highly qualified successor in the NBA’s Deputy Commissioner, Adam Silver, who will lead the next level of transition for the NBA.

Stern was at the helm as the NBA exploded in popularity, both in the states and internationally. Today, games are shown in 215 countries and territories, and since 1988, the NBA has played 114 games in 32 international cities. At the start of the 2012-13 season, 84 foreign-born players in the NBA, represented 37 countries and territories. In comparison, the league only featured 45 international players at the start of 2000-01. Stern’s vision began with the influence players have on fans. International fans have picked up the game in an authentic way through their favorite international players.  Like soccer, basketball today is part of “being a kid” in many parts of the world.

Stern’s many accomplishments have prepared the league for a very successful future. When Stern took over the league in 1984, the average NBA team was worth between a mere $11 million and $19 million. The average NBA team is now worth around $400 million. Stern also was at the helm for seven expansion teams, two of which were located in Canada, only helping the NBA’s international vision. 

Stern established and attracted some of the largest TV media rights deals in history (and next year I predict the NBA will set a new benchmark again). He created NBA properties and set a blueprint for how to amass corporate sponsorship rights and licensed products that other leagues and rights holders copy today. He established the WNBA that showcases a sustainable women’s professional league, and a developmental league for creating a ladder system of talent through the NBA D-League. 

Visionaries do have bumps in the road, and Stern helped navigate the league through two lockouts during his tenure.  In 2011, Stern established a new collective bargaining agreement that ensured numerous teams will stay competitive in the future, crucial for maintaining a national audience. The league’s popularity has been heading to new heights, a phenomenon that took some time since the 90s when players, mainly Michael Jordan, ruled as superstars. Last season’s dramatic NBA Finals, featuring superstar LeBron James, was a ratings victory – up 5% from 2012 – and the seventh game posted a 17.7 rating, making it ABC’s second highest NBA game (the highest being game seven in 2010 between the Lakers and Celtics). 

The list of accomplishments doesn’t stop there. In the late 1980s, Stern worked with the international basketball federation, FIBA, in allowing the U.S. Olympic basketball team to field professional players, thus creating the 1992 “Dream Team.” This legendary team featured superstars Michael Jordan, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, and planted the roots of the game of basketball, and its top talent, for an international audience. 

The growing popularity of the NBA has been in tandem with its brand partners.  We don’t think about the NBA without thinking about Gatorade and Nike. And its marketing influence has attracted other partners, such as Korean auto brand KIA, which has been an official sponsor of the NBA since 2008, and recently saw its brand value increase by 15%. Most recently, Samsung inked a $100 million deal with the league, becoming the official technology partner of the NBA, WNBA and NBA D-League. 

Samsung came to the league after using, who else, but LeBron James for a campaign that ran last summer. The list of NBA spokesmen is long, and this speaks to the number of marketable stars in the league. The NBA players proudly wear their personality on their sleeve, tattooed or not, and fans have responded in droves. 

All signs point towards a watershed NBA season, even with David Stern leaving. Basketball fans can’t help but feel good about watching the success that is the NBA. David Stern has left his mark on the NBA in a way that will impact fans, players, coaches and owners for years from now, the true mark of a legend.