Adam Silver, '88: Given SportTechie Award for Outstanding Executive
Adam Silver Wins the 2018 SportTechie Award for Outstanding Executive
Lead by commissioner Adam Silver, the NBA has been at the forefront of the world of sports technology for the last four years. Under Silver, the league has embraced data, social media, esports, and now sports betting.
Over just the last 12 months, the league formed a partnership with Intel’s venture capital arm called the “NBA + Intel Capital Emerging Technology Initiative” and expanded options through its League Pass service to include nightly virtual reality content and the ability to watch just the fourth quarter of NBA games. The NBA has entered into sports betting data partnerships with MGM Resorts in the U.S., and with Genius Sports and Sportradar globally.
The NBA also launched its fourth U.S. league, an esports affiliate. The NBA 2K League joins the NBA (1946), WNBA (1996), and G League (2001), and Silver has promised to support its growth. “We view this in the same way as those other leagues as something that we’re going to develop over a very long time,” Silver said at the NBA 2K’s inaugural draft in April.
Adam Silver graduated from Duke University in 1984, and received his law degree from the University of Chicago in 1988. Four years later, he joined the NBA as a special assistant to commissioner David Stern. By 2006, he had risen to the position of deputy commissioner, working just below Stern. In February 2014, Stern retired after exactly 30 years leading the league, and Silver was promoted to the top job.
Silver was tested almost immediately. In April 2014, recordings of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling making racist comments were made public. In response, Silver banned Sterling from the NBA for life and urged the other 29 team owners to force Sterling to sell the team. By August, Steve Ballmer, the former CEO of Microsoft, had taken control of the Clippers. In December 2014, less than 12 months into his tenure, Sports Illustrated named Silver its Executive of the Year.
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