Sources - NBA commissioner Adam Silver finalizing extension - ESPN

NBA commissioner Adam Silver is finalizing a contract extension that is expected to take him through the end of the decade, sources told ESPN on Saturday.

The completion of formal negotiations with the board of governors on a new deal keeps Silver — nearing his 10th anniversary as commissioner — on course to pursue the NBA's next set of major objectives: a new media rights deal and league expansion.

Largely different than his predecessor David Stern, Silver has built a reputation of pursuing more consensus and partnership with ownership, management and players. He has been able to maintain respect — and even popularity — among those constituencies despite difficult decisions and negotiations.

Silver, 61, has driven some dramatic initiatives, including the introduction of the play-in and in-season tournaments, player participation legislation, draft lottery reform that has disincentivized teams racing to bottom for top draft picks and steadily-rising franchise financial valuations. The implementation of the league's freedom of movement emphasis in 2019-2020 has increasingly gassed up the league's scoring, including a 2023-2024 season that so far includes four of the top 10 offensive teams in NBA history.

Silver completed a new collective bargaining deal with the Players Association in March that assures labor peace through at least 2029 and a reshaped salary cap system that is expected to deliver small and mid-size market organizations a better chance to compete with big market franchises. The league had been pursuing an economic structure that would help spread talent around to more teams — and that appears to be happening now.

Silver has shown an ability to navigate crises — most notably by suspending the NBA season