PSG bring in Kevin Durant to help “potential plans” to expand into basketball

It’s been a historic year for Paris Saint-Germain, ending the moneyed club’s long wait for a first Champions League triumph. However their plans for sporting domination do not end there.

The Athletic reports that PSG have brought in NBA veteran Kevin Durant to help work on “potential plans” to expand into basketball. Durant is now a direct investor in the French club and has bolstered his relationship with the owning Qatar Sports Investment (QSI) group.

This is not the first time that the perennial French champions have been linked with basketball. In recent years the club has released a series of jerseys in collaboration with Michael Jordan’s ‘Jumpman’ brand, alongside a sprawling range of leisurewear and sneakers.

PSG have been on a monumental effort to push their brand far beyond France and compete with the likes of Real Madrid and Manchester United in terms of global reach.

Earlier this year it was reported that PSG had been tapped by the NBA in relation to plans for a new professional basketball league in Europe. Paris is a major hotbed of basketball in Europe and there would undoubtedly be huge interest in a new league, particularly one with ties to the NBA.

Paris already has a basketball team in EuroLeague competition but the NBA appears eager to create a new division that functions as the continent’s top tier. For QSI, a Parisian basketball team would offer further potential to expand their sporting investments.

At this point, exactly what Durant will be doing with PSG is not clear. Now 36 years old his playing career is reaching an end, despite rumors of an impending trade, and he has shown a keen interest in pursuing business opportunities. If he is on-board with a new professional basketball team in Paris he would serve as a key stakeholder in the proposed league.

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