The 15-year-old minor league to the National Basketball Association, commonly known as the NBA Development League or D-League, has joined in on the Association’s newfound branding initiative. Marking the first time in American sports history that a professional league has named an entitlement partner, the D-League will be renamed to the Gatorade League, or G-League, as part of a multiyear expanded partnership.
The NBA G-League has been an integral part of the NBA family: 40 percent of current NBA players have spent time in the Development League, while four current NBA head coaches started as coaches on D-League benches. The Association has strengthened that tie through a number of initiatives in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, including allowing NBA teams to have up to two “two-way players” on their rosters beginning next season. Two-way players will gain experience in the NBA, but will primarily play in the NBA G-League during the season.
Source: SB Nation