The idea of legalizing sports betting has been floated for years with no imminent change in sight, but NBA commissioner Adam Silver remains optimistic of a change that would make betting legal in the not-so-distant future.

According to John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal, Silver says he senses that it could happen “in the next few years” in the United States.

“People want to bet throughout the game,” Silver added. “It results in enormous additional engagement with the fans.”

Although this may sound like groundbreaking news in terms of a push to legalize sports betting, Silver has long been an advocate of doing so.

He famously authored a New York Times story that discussed an approach to legalizing sports betting in the U.S. that was published one day before the NBA came to terms on an equity deal with daily fantasy operator FanDuel.

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