Why reducing the term of basketball decision-makers might be a good idea / News - Basketnews.com

From the NBA to FIBA and the EuroLeague, basketball executives seem to stay in office for too long. In the latest BasketNews+ article, Giorgos Kyriakidis argues that this tendency needs to change for the good of the game.

Credit: FIBA, EuroLeague Credit FIBA, EuroLeague

In many countries worldwide, the constitution prevents any person from being elected to the office of the President or the Prime Minister more than twice.

It's a practice that holds sway for decades and a rule enacted to prevent an individual from being in power for so long that the agenda shifts from national to personal. There's a general belief that if a person stays in power for too long, power will only lead to corruption.

However, that's not the case in basketball - at least regarding the NBA commissioners and FIBA Secretary Generals. In those cases, the term looks like a lifetime appointment. David Stern ruled the NBA for almost three decades. Borislav Stankovic did the same with the world federation for 27 years.

In 1976, Stankovic succeeded William Jones in becoming FIBA's second Secretary General. During his time at the helm, he's credited with countless achievements.

Credit Imago images – Scanpix

The most significant is perhaps continually working towards building bridges between East and West during the Cold War and bringing world basketball into the modern era in 1992 when professionals and NBA players took part in top-level international competition for the first time at the Barcelona Olympics.

Stankovic's successor, Patrick Baumann, was appointed in 2003. His first contract was until 2022, equal to 19 years. Unfortunately, his term was cut short due to a fatal heart attack while attending the Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires in October 2018.

That happened only two months after theInternational Basketball Federation had renewed its confidence in the late Swiss basketball executive, extending his term until 2031.

Ironically, the man who filled in for Baumann and currently holds the position of Secretary General, Andreas Zagklis, recently received a nine-year contract extension by FIBA's Central Board that runs through 2031. By then, Zagklis will be holding the position for 13 years.

It's worth noting that since its inception, FIBA has had only three Secretary Generals: Renato Williams Jones (1932-1976), Borislav Stankovic (1976-2003), and Patrick Bauman (2003-2018).

A whole century (1932-2031) with four men in office says everything you want to know about the longevity of FIBA management.

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