OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The NBA's talks with FIBA and other entities about the process of adding a new league in Europe are continuing, Commissioner Adam Silver said, though he noted that it may take at least a couple more years to turn the ideas into reality.
Silver spoke at a league event to unveil a refurbished Boys & Girls Club in Oklahoma City on Friday — an off day for the NBA Finals — and said it's difficult to put a specific timeline on the Europe plans.
“I will say it’s measured in years, not months,” Silver said. “So, we’re at least a couple years away from launching. It would be an enormous undertaking. And while we want to move forward at a deliberate pace, we also want to make sure that we’re consulting with all the appropriate stakeholders, meaning the existing league, its teams, European players, media companies, marketing partners. There's a lot of work to be done.”
Silver and FIBA secretary general Andreas Zagklis announced in March that the league and the game's governing body are finally taking long-awaited steps to form a new league, with an initial target of 16 teams. It had been talked about for years, and decades even on some levels. And since the NBA and FIBA went public with their idea to move forward, talks have gotten more constructive, Silver said.
Silver said the NBA has been talking directly with the EuroLeague and with some member clubs about a partnership. It's his preference that the NBA work with the existing league on some level, though it's still too early to say exactly what that means.
“Either way, we continue to feel there are an enormous number of underserved basketball fans in Europe and that there’s a strong opportunity to have another league styled after the NBA,” Silver said.
About one in every six current NBA players hails from Europe, including Denver’s Nikola Jokic (Serbia) and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece) — who have combined for five of the last seven MVP awards — along with the Los Angeles Lakers’ Luka Doncic (Slovenia) and San Antonio’s Victor Wembanyama (France).
The NBA's board of governors will talk more about next steps with the European plans in July at their scheduled meeting in Las Vegas, Silver said. It's possible that the European venture could be unveiled in some way — or possibly start — around the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, just given how much attention will be on international basketball at that time.
“That might be a good launching pad for an announcement around a new competition,” Silver said.
Some of the cities that are expected to have interest in being part of the new venture include London, Manchester, Rome and Munich. There will be others, of course.
“We haven’t had direct conversations yet,” Silver said. "But there have been several organizations that have come forward and said they would be interested and potential owners in operating in those major markets in Europe.”
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NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks during a press conference before Game 1 of the NBA Finals basketball series between the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)
NBA commissioner Adam Silver speaks during a press conference before Game 1 of the NBA Finals basketball series between the Indiana Pacers and the Oklahoma City Thunder Thursday, June 5, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Smithsonian Institution gave the White House new documents on its planned exhibits Tuesday in response to a demand to share precise details of what its museums and other programs are doing for America’s 250th birthday.
For months, President Donald Trump has been pressing the Smithsonian to back off “divisive narratives” and tell an upbeat story on the country’s history and culture, with the threat of holding back federal money if it doesn’t. The institution is a cornerstone of American culture, operating 21 museums and a zoo that are among the most popular tourist destinations in Washington.
By Tuesday, the Smithsonian was supposed to provide lists of all displays, objects, wall text and other material dedicated to this year’s anniversary and other purposes. Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III told staff, in an email obtained by The New York Times and The Washington Post, that “we transmitted more information in response to that request.”
The White House did not respond to a request for comment, leaving it unclear whether it was satisfied with the material it received. Bunch indicated there was more to come, saying the institution will continue to engage in providing “relevant and appropriate materials.”
The Trump administration’s intent is to ensure Americans get an positive accounting of the country’s history, not one weighted by complexities or shameful episodes of the past.
The ultimatum was laid out in a Dec. 18 letter to Bunch from the White House budget director, Russell Vought, and the domestic policy director, Vince Haley.
“We wish to be assured that none of the leadership of the Smithsonian museums is confused about the fact that the United States has been among the greatest forces for good in the history of the world,” the letter said.
Americans “will have no patience for any museum that is diffident about America’s founding or otherwise uncomfortable conveying a positive view of American history, one which is justifiably proud of our country’s accomplishments and record.”
The Smithsonian is not a federal entity but receives a majority of its money from Congress.
The White House initially asked for all relevant materials in September but said documents turned over by the Smithsonian fell far short of what it requested.
In his March executive order, Trump claimed there had been a “concerted and widespread” effort over the past decade to rewrite American history by replacing “objective facts” with a “distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth.”
As part of that, Trump tasked Vice President JD Vance with overseeing efforts to “remove improper ideology” from all areas of the institution. Like other vice presidents, Vance serves on the Smithsonian’s board.
The Smithsonian and the White House did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday afternoon.
The prospect of polishing the historical record to satisfy a president is concerning to many who study the past.
“History is about evidence," said Matthew Delmont, a history professor at Dartmouth College. “It's about welcoming complexity and nuance. It’s not about crafting a single story that needs to make everyone feel happy.”
Jim McSweeney, a retired archivist from the National Archives, said: “Here’s our history. Here’s our shared experience. We have to learn from it and never go back and try to whitewash or change anything based upon your political leanings.”
In the months leading up to Trump’s order in August for an official review of all Smithsonian exhibits, Trump fired the head archivist of the National Archives and said he was firing the National Portrait Gallery’s director, Kim Sajet, who maintained the backing of the Smithsonian’s governing board, but ultimately resigned.
Already, references to Trump’s two impeachments have been removed from his photo portrait display at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in its “American Presidents” exhibition, though the text was available online.
Administration officials have couched the accounting as work needed before the nation celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, which the letter calls “a singular opportunity to justify confidence in the operations of America’s leading cultural institutions.”
The Smithsonian review is just one part of Trump's broadside against a culture he deems too liberal.
Trump fired the board of the Kennedy Center, one of the nation’s premier cultural institutions, handpicking a new one that voted to add his name to the storied complex’s exterior. In the months since, a number of artists have withdrawn from performances at the venue, some citing the name change and Trump’s involvement.
At the White House, Trump designed a partisan and subjective “Presidential Walk of Fame” featuring gilded photographs of himself and predecessors, with plaques on what they did. He excludes Democrat Joe Biden, who is represented instead by an autopen to symbolize what Trump has described as a presidency in absentia.
At the time, the White House said Trump was a primary author of the plaques, which praised him as a historically successful figure and described Biden as the worst president in history and one who brought the U.S. to "the brink of destruction.”
This story was first published on Jan. 13, 2026. It was published again on Jan. 14, 2026, to correct that Vice President JD Vance was already on the Smithsonian Board of Regents when President Donald Trump directed him to oversee the removal of “improper ideology” from the institution. Vance was not placed on the board to oversee that effort.
FILE - A new sign at the presidential impeachment exhibit in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, on Aug. 26, 2025, describes the counts against President Donald Trump in his second impeachment trial. The Senate acquitted him in both trials. (AP Photo/Calvin Woodward, File)
FILE - A display in the "Great Debate" section of a democracy exhibit at the National Museum of American History, seen Aug. 26, 2025, in Washington, reflects some of the issues the nation grapples with. (AP Photo/Calvin Woodward, File)
People react to a photograph of President Donald Trump on display at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery's "American Presidents" exhibit on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
A visitor stops to look at a photograph of President Donald Trump and a short plaque next to it are on display at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery's "American Presidents" exhibit on Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
