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Adam Silver States That NBA Commissioner Cannot Veto Trades, Clearing Up Confusion

Originally posted on BroBible | By Garrett Carr | Last updated Feb 13, 2025 12:29 AM ET

The NBA ecosphere is still reacting to the blockbuster, historic trade that sent former Mavericks star Luka Doncic to the Lakers in exchange for a package that centered around Anthony Davis. It is one of, if not the bigggest, trade in NBA history.

After the trade was made public, many fans were wondering if NBA Commissioner Adam Silver would or could veto the trade, hearkening back to the days when David Stern stopped a trade that would’ve sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2011. But, on an appearance on popular sports podcast Pardon My Take, Adam Silver clarified that Stern was not acting as commissioner when that happened.

There are definitely a lot of Dallas Mavericks fans that wish that Adam Silver would’ve vetoed the trade. Anthony Davis immediately reaggravated an abdomen injury, though many were treating him like chopped liver in terms of trade value. Meanwhile, Doncic has made First-Team All-NBA five years in a row, as he’s only missed out on that honor as a rookie.

Back in 2011, David Stern famously “vetoed” a trade that would’ve sent Chris Paul to the Los Angeles Lakers in a three-team trade that would’ve landed Pau Gasol in Houston, and various assets in New Orleans. So, why couldn’t Adam Silver “veto” this trade? As it turns out, Stern didn’t veto that trade as a commissioner, either.

Silver explains that when David Stern “vetoed” that trade, he was doing so as the acting owner of the New Orleans Hornets, who were under the league’s control at the time due to financial difficulties with the franchise. When the GM of the Hornets brought him the offer to approve as acting owner, he declined to approve it. He thought the return wasn’t good enough.

Not long after, he was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers for, on paper, a better return.

Silver went on to explain that the only role the commissioner’s office plays in trades is to make sure they fall under the rules of the league on things like roster size, salary cap and financial rules, and so on and so forth.

This should clear up some confusion the next time that there’s a big trade and someone asks why Adam Silver isn’t vetoing it.

This article first appeared on BroBible and was syndicated with permission.

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