New Delhi, July 16 -- The NBA may finally be one step closer on the long road to expansion.

Saying owners have a "curiosity" about the notion, Commissioner Adam Silver said Tuesday that the league will now study the issue more formally as part of an in-depth analysis, which would be the first official move in a long process toward adding franchises.

There's no timetable for how long the process will take, nor have any decisions been made on what the expansion fee will be, when the new teams will start play - or even if expansion is going to actually happen.

"A lot of analysis still needs to be done and nothing has been predetermined," Silver said after the end of the league's board of governors meeting in Las Vegas.

The league isn't c...