Suns’ president excited to ‘put a footprint down’ in Mexico
Jul 21, 2016, 2:00 PM
(AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
The Phoenix Suns will have two “home” games next season that will be played at the Mexico City Arena in Mexico City.
The Suns will play the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 12 and the San Antonio Spurs on Jan. 14.
Suns president Jason Rowley talked about his excitement about the pair of games across the border on Doug and Wolf Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Thursday.
“We’ve been talking with the league about it for a couple of years. The big focal point is not going down and playing one game, it’s really the idea of having a team go down there for an extended period of time,” Rowley said. “In an NBA season, with all the traveling that goes on, we are going to be in the market there for five days. To be able to have a team put a footprint down and really extend the brand is something we are really excited about.”
The Suns understand that the loss of gate revenue for two games in Phoenix will pay dividends in the future due to their help in incorporating the game on a larger global scale, which will also help their fan base grow.
“We are targeting the entire market, but the participation as a youth translates into fandom as an adult. We are trying to convert everybody and be authentic about it,” he said. “That’s one of the things why we are excited to be down there for a longer period of time because we can really do some meaningful things.”
It is the first time in NBA history that there will be multiple games played in Mexico in the same season.
Following the Suns’ two contests this year, the NBA will have hosted 24 games in Mexico since 1992, which is the most of any country outside of the United States and Canada.