NBA Europe Live Tour (2006-2012)

The NBA Europe Live Tour (also known as NBA Europe Live) was a series of annual basketball exhibition tours that featured teams from the NBA and teams from Europe's top professional leagues on European soil. It was launched by the National Basketball Association and the Euroleague Basketball and it would take place during the NBA's pre-season in September of October and lasted from 2006 until 2012.

Most of the European teams were playing in the ULEB-inititated EuroLeague and Europe's 2nd-tier level EuroCup. The games of the NBA Europe Live Tour Tour were played by the NBA rules. Many legendary players like Kevin Garnett, Carmelo Anthony, Paul Pierce, Allen Iverson, Tony Parker, Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili have featured in the series from 2006 until 2012.

History

Kevin Garnett participated with the Boston Celtics in the 2007 edition.

On June 14, 2005, NBA and Euroleague Basketball announced the launch of the NBA Europe Tour as part of a 2-year partnership agreement with Electronic Arts.[1] The series' website (as www.nba.com/europelive) went live in December 2005.

In October 2006, four NBA teams travelled to different European countries to conduct their first week of training camp overseas: the Philadelphia 76ers in Barcelona, Spain; the Los Angeles Clippers in Moscow, Russia; the San Antonio Spurs in France; and the Phoenix Suns in Treviso, Italy. The 76ers and the Suns also participated in the Cologne tournament which was on by the Philadelphia 76ers. It was the first time since the last McDonald's Championship in 1999 that NBA teams faced top European clubs in a tournament. The final game of the Tour in Barcelona attracted 16,236 fans which was the edition's record (Philadelphia 76ers against Barcelona).[2]

The 2008 edition featured only four NBA teams playing against each other in European cities. In 2009 the EuroLeague American Tour started alongside the NBA Europe Live with Euroleague teams touring the USA to face NBA teams.

There was no tour in 2011 due to the NBA lock-out[3][4] and the series resumed in 2012 for its final edition.[5]

Editions

Year Host countries Team with best record Record
2006Germany, Russia, France, Italy, and SpainUnited States San Antonio Spurs
Russia PBC CSKA Moscow		2-0
2007England, Italy, Spain and TurkeyUnited States Boston Celtics2-0
2008England, France, Germany and SpainUnited States New Jersey Nets
United States New Orleans Hornets		2-0
2009England, and SpainUnited States Indiana Pacers
United States Phoenix Suns
United States Philadelphia 76ers		2-0
2010England, France, and SpainUnited States Minnesota Timberwolves2-0
2012Germany, Turkey, Italy, and SpainUnited States Boston Celtics2-0

Topscorers

Year Player Points Games Team
2006United States Allen Iverson573Philadelphia 76ers
2007 Italy Andrea Bargnani493Toronto Raptors
2008United States Dwyane Wade392Miami Heat
2009United States Carmelo Anthony622Denver Nuggets
2010United States Israel Amar'e Stoudemire432New York Knicks
2012 United States Jeff Green332Boston Celtics

Teams with most participations

Club Participations Editions
Spain FC Barcelona Regal32006, 2011, 2012
United States San Antonio Spurs22009, 2012
United States Phoenix Suns22006, 2009
United States Memphis Grizzlies22010, 2012
United States Philadelphia 76ers 22006, 2009
United States Boston Celtics22007, 2012
United States Los Angeles Clippers22006, 2009
United States Minnesota Timberwolves22007, 2010
United States New York Knicks22009, 2010
Italy Olimpia Milano22010, 2012
Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv 22006, 2009
Italy Lottomatica Roma22006, 2007
Spain Real Madrid22007. 2009

See also

References

  1. ↑ NBA AND EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL ANNOUNCE NBA EUROPE LIVE PRESENTED BY EA SPORTS (2005) - gamesindustry.biz
  2. ↑ Final Attendance From NBA Europe Live Tour Games - sportsbusinessjournal.com
  3. ↑ "NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement Ratified and Signed". NBA. July 30, 2005. Archived from the original on December 2, 2010.
  4. ↑ "N.B.A. and Union cannot Agree on Exactly What's at Issue". The New York Times. June 16, 2005. Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  5. ↑ (2012) NBA Europe Live 2012 schedule announced - nba.com

Sources

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