NBA names MGM Resorts as 1st official gaming partner

Calling it a "historic announcement," NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Tuesday that the league has entered a commercial gaming partnership with MGM Resorts International.

As part of the partnership, MGM will use official NBA and WNBA data and branding, non-exclusively, across MGM Resorts' brick-and-mortar and digital sports betting offerings throughout the United States.

It's the first partnership of its kind in the U.S. in the wake of May's Supreme Court ruling that gave the green light to legalize sports betting on a state-by-state basis.

"Our collaboration will result in the best possible gaming and entertainment experience for consumers through the use of accurate, real-time NBA and WNBA data, and our collective efforts to maintain and enhance the integrity of our games," Silver said. "We're very focused on integrity provisions."

It's a three-year deal worth at least $25 million, industry sources told ESPN's Darren Rovell and David Purdum. It reportedly does not allow MGM to stream live NBA games on its mobile platform, which would permit gamblers to bet on the app at the same time.

Silver has long embraced the movement toward legalized sports betting, saying in April the NBA wanted a cut of bets placed.

Both Silver and MGM CEO Jim Murren said that they are not sure where the deal will lead, as the landscape is still taking shape. Mississippi will legalize sports gambling effective Wednesday, becoming just the fourth state to do so.

"This is a new frontier," Murren said. "We have to figure this out together."

MGM Resorts already has a working relationship with the league as the owner of the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces and title sponsor of Las Vegas Summer League.