The NBA’s expansion ambitions are starting to cost people their jobs. The league confirmed Wednesday that dozens of staffers across multiple business departments and support roles had been let go, a direct consequence of Commissioner Adam Silver’s ongoing push to reshape the league office around where he thinks the money is headed, not where it’s been.

Sports Business Journal broke the news first, reporting that an internal memo landed in employees’ inboxes on July 1. The league is actively freeing up resources for “perceived growth areas” such as NBA Europe and local TV networks. 

It’s not a sudden pivot. Back in September 2025, the NBA folded its data and marketing operations into a single Global Partnership & Media department. Silver’s latest memo frames these layoffs as the next logical step off that same playbook.

“The changes today are a continuation of the strategy we announced in September which will enable us to invest further — including in new positions and hiring — in key growth areas such as local media, programming and technology, the WNBA and the creation of a new league in Europe,” Silver wrote in the internal memo.

Affected employees will receive severance, health benefits, and outplacement support, he added.

The move revealed the NBA is clearing additional overhead to aggressively finance its most ambitious upcoming projects. By clearing out redundant roles, the NBA has positioned itself to make heavy, targeted hires in sectors that require immediate, specialized attention for the European expansion and media ventures.

The league’s not only expanding its global footprint. In recent years, it has struggled with TV ratings, leading up to a $72 billion media rights deal that includes streaming giant Amazon Prime. This could be seen as an aggressive campaign to solve its domestic broadcasting crisis.

European expansion and domestic media overhaul NBA’s priorities

The restructure comes as the NBA faces two major offseason projects on a tight timeline. A collapse of regional sports networks is going on in parallel with the launch of a highly anticipated European league.

Just one day before the layoffs, the NBA received its final round of bids for permanent franchises in the new NBA and FIBA-backed European league. The sister league is expected to launch in October 2027. Adam Silver has already drawn massive interest from top investor groups.

Domestically, the NBA is in cleanup mode after Main Street Sports Group’s financial collapse blew a hole in the local television landscape. With training camps fewer than three months out, 11 former Main Street teams still don’t have local TV deals for the coming season. That’s not a small problem.

To get the European league off the ground, Silver will need to deploy newly freed capital to hire a CEO, negotiate European television broadcast deals, market the new venture, and place extensive personnel on the ground overseas.

To attack it, the league hired Matt Volk as General Manager of Local Media, a role that didn’t exist before, less than two weeks before Wednesday’s cuts. His team is being built from scratch, with a mandate to help franchises get their games on air through over-the-air channels or streaming, with NBA League Pass playing a central role.

Throw in the WNBA’s growing programming footprint, and the league’s personnel math starts to make sense, even if it’s cold comfort for the people who just lost their jobs. The NBA isn’t shrinking. It’s just decided which parts of itself are worth paying for.