Brescia is in shock, but a club facing serious difficulties could help it get back on its feet
In Brescia, the shock is immense—and it couldn’t be otherwise—but people are trying to look to the future. While the realistic chances in Serie A2 remain limited, difficult club situations continue to emerge in Serie B Nazionale, with some teams having already withdrawn or likely to do so soon.
With the registration deadline set for July 7, Academy Basket Jesi officially announced on June 20 that it will not participate in the upcoming Serie B Nazionale season. The club from the Marche region is, in fact, going through a delicate financial crisis, marked by heavy debt. Already during the season that just ended, the club had tried to alleviate the situation by trading its most talented players. However, anyone interested in acquiring the team’s franchise would have to assume not only the normal operating costs but also the debt accumulated by the club.
The shock in Brescia stems from an event that has shaken the entire Italian basketball community: the transfer of Germani Brescia’s franchise to Rome, into the hands of California-based entrepreneur Paul Matiasic, has definitively brought an end to seventeen years of the “Leonessa’s” history. Confirmation had already come before the extraordinary Federal Council meeting held on Friday, June 26: the ECA had published the list of teams registered for the upcoming EuroCup, which includes Matiasic’s Maxima Roma, admitted via a wild card after FIBA had denied it access to the Champions League.
The Italian Basketball Federation sought to clarify its position in an official statement, emphasizing that it had “always acted in synergy with the LBA, in compliance with current regulations” and noting that “respect for the fans’ sentiments can never be compromised, as it is the cornerstone of all sporting activities.” However, this stance has not quelled the controversy, which has been further fueled by statements from Federation President Gianni Petrucci, who reiterated that “current laws allow it; there is freedom to invest,” adding a remark bound to spark debate: “Everything suggests that the team that ultimately ends up without NBA Europe will eventually give up.”
The new Rome-based team led by Matiasic will, in fact, be operating in the same city as Roma Basketball Club SPQR, the project by the Nelson-Doncic consortium officially presented at the Campidoglio in the presence of Luka Doncic, NBA star of the Los Angeles Lakers. Doncic has already taken his first concrete steps in the transfer market, announcing the signing of Nico Mannion, a point guard born in 2001 who is coming off two seasons with Olimpia Milano.
