In this March 12, 2020 photo, an NBA logo is shown at the 5th Avenue NBA store in New York City. (Jeenah Moon / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)

The rise of European NBA players like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic has led to significant viewership growth in major markets on the continent this season, league officials said this week.

The growth in Europe is being fuelled by a 15 percent increase in NBA League Pass subscriptions internationally, which makes games available to fans in more than 200 countries. A multi-year partnership with smart TV platform VIDAA has also boosted viewership.

The growth in Europe is being fuelled by a 15 percent increase in NBA League Pass subscriptions internationally, which makes games available to fans in more than 200 countries

“We’re really excited about what we’re seeing in Europe,” Matt Brabants, the NBA’s senior vice president of global content and media distribution, told Reuters.

“To see an across the board increase in viewership and League Pass consumption in all markets and in major markets such as Spain, Italy and the UK really speaks to the health of the game.”

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Fascination with players like two-time league MVP and “Greek Freak” Antetokounmpo, sharpshooting Slovenian Doncic and Serbian sensation Jokic have led to viewership increases in United Kingdom (+72 percent), Italy (+32 percent) and Spain (+17 percent), Brabants said.

Denver Nugget’s centre Jokic’s development into one of the league’s best big men has driven a 200 percent jump in viewership in his home country.

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The increases are also boosted by the league starting select games earlier in the United States to accommodate fans in Europe, Brabants said.

“Last year in particular we really started to see the initiative bear fruit when we saw a 23 percent increase year-over-year in viewership associated with those primetime games on Saturday and Sunday,” he said.