The East Asia Super League (EASL) has secured funding from the financial advisory firm the Raine Group and former National Basketball Association (NBA) players, pushing its valuation to US$100 million ahead of its October 2022 tip-off.
So far, EASL’s parent company Asia League Holdings has raised US$13 million from investors.
The investing NBA players were Baron Davis, Metta World Peace, and Shane Battier.
NBA agent Bill Duffy also invested.
The EASL will feature eight teams from leagues across the region, including the champions and runners-up from the Korean Basketball League, Japan’s B.League, and the Philippines Basketball Association.
The newly formed Bay Area Chun Yu Phoenixes and the championship team from Chinese Taipei’s P.League+ will represent Greater China.
The teams will have a 12-man roster, including two foreign players and an additional Asian player.
EASL confirmed that the hosts would be East Asia’s premier cities rotating on an annual basis.
Last year, the EASL signed a 10-year agreement with the International Basketball Federation or FIBA to run an annual pan-regional league for top teams in the area.
