As the SportsPro Podcast goes weekly for the first time, editor-at-large Eoin Connolly and print editor Michael Long consider the sports industry events of recent days and look ahead to a new season in the NBA, perhaps the world's most forward-thinking league. 

On the agenda are potential franchise relocations and additions; the move of basketball's biggest star, LeBron James, to the Los Angeles Lakers and the commercial activities of the players and their union; the microtransaction revolution in watching the NBA; and an interview with NBA deputy commissioner and chief operating officer Mark Tatum.

There's also the sad duty of reflecting on the contributions of two recently departed major figures in the sport: Portland Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen and Fiba  general secretary Patrick Baumann.