The NBA (National Basketball Association) is the professional National Basketball League in North America. It consists of 30 teams, one of which is in Canada and 29 in the USA.
Teams are divided according to geographic criteria into Western and Eastern conferences. Regular NBA season: October-April. The playoff tournament continues until June.
Each NBA team traditionally plays 82 games, based on the results of which teams are selected for the playoffs. In the playoffs, basketball clubs participate in tournaments according to the Olympic Games system – up to four victories in the conference. The final match between the two conference champions then takes place to determine the NBA title.
- In 1976, the NBA merged with the ABA, resulting in four franchises.
- According to statistics, NBA basketball players (as of 2023) are the world’s highest paid athletes based on the average annual salary per player.
- The NBA is part of the United States Basketball Association (USAB), which is the main governing body of all basketball clubs in America.
- The league’s teams are managed from an office located in the central district of Manhattan.
- NBA TV and NBA Entertainment studios are managed from offices located in Secaucus, New Jersey.
- The NBA ranks jointly with the NFL and MLB among the richest American sports associations, and is also one of the four highest-paid basketball leagues in the world.
- The largest number of awards among NBA clubs is 17. The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics have them.
- The current NBA champion is the Denver Nuggets, who won the match with the Miami Heat in the 2023 final tournament.
1946-1956
The US Basketball Association, BAA, was founded in 1946 by the Canadian and American owners of the largest hockey arenas and their president, Maurice Podolof. The league’s priority was to move the sport of basketball from small venues to large venues in America.
In 1946, on November 1, the very first game in NBA history took place at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens between the Toronto Huskies and the New York Knickerbockers. In this match, the first basket was scored by Knickerbockers player Ossie Schectman.
Early in his career, his match performance in the BAA league was lower than that of individual teams or other leagues. For example, the Minneapolis Lakers team, which moved to the BAA, received the title of champion of this league only in 1949.
Before the start of the 1948/1949 season, four NBL clubs joined the BAA, giving it a high priority status among basketball players wishing to turn professional.
On August 3, 1949, the remaining NBL clubs—Waterloo, Denver, Sheboygan, Tri-Cities, Anderson and Syracuse—merged to form the BAA.
To eliminate legal problems, the league was subsequently renamed the NBA. However, the BAA organization remained as its leadership, and Maurice Podolof remained as its president.
To this day, the NBA considers the history of the creation of the BAA its own, and the inclusion of NBL clubs in its composition as an expansion, not a merger. At the same time, he does not recognize NBL statistics and titles at all.
- The formed league consisted of 17 franchises, which were located in both small and large cities. It owned small gyms and huge arenas.
- In 1950, the number of NBA franchises was 11.
- In 1954/55 the league had the lowest number of franchises. It consisted of only 8 clubs.
- During the period when the NBA franchise was shrinking, teams from the provinces began to move to big cities.
- During the period 1950-1954. The Minneapolis Lakers team won 5 NBA tournaments under the leadership of George Mikan and received the status of the best dynasty in the league.
1956-1979
In 1957, center Bill Russell joined the Boston Celtics. It already featured leaders like Red Auerbach (coach) and Bob Cousy (quarterback). The addition of Bill Russell follows the club’s 11 NBA honors in 13 seasons.
At the same time, Chamberlain and Russell became the main rivals. The confrontation between them was the greatest in the history of team sports in the United States.
In the 60s, the leader of the NBA league was the Celtics.
From 1959 to 1966 The Boston team won 8 NBA tournaments. After losing the title in the 1966/1967 seasonal games, she regained it in the 1967/1968 seasonal matches. and 1968/1969
During this period, intensive development of the NBA took place:
- The Minneapolis Lakers team has moved to Los Angeles.
- Philadelphia Warriors moved to San Francisco.
- The Syracuse Nationals moved to the Philadelphia team, as a result of which it received a new name, the Philadelphia 76ers.
- The St. Louis Hawks moved to Atlanta.
- In 1961, the ninth NBA club was the Chicago Pokers (today the Washington Wizards).
- In the period 1966-1968. NBA expanded from 9 clubs to 14.
- In 1967, the American Basketball Association ABA was formed, posing a certain danger to the NBA.
- A struggle has begun between both leagues to obtain tenders.
The NBA has added the most famous sports star of the time, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Lew Alcindor), to its roster. But at the same time, leading scorer Rick Barry left the NBA and moved to the ABA league. Also, four old referees moved there with him – Joe Gushue, John Vanak, Earl Strom and Norm Drucker.
This symbol became the official logo of the NBA in 1971. In 2017, the letter font was changed. Today it is a well-known brand of the NBA league.
In the 70s, the ABA league managed to introduce famous stars to its roster. In particular, Julius Erving from the Virginia Squires club.
During this time, the NBA was expanding rapidly. In the period 1966-1974. the number of teams in the NBA league increased from 9 to 18.
Following the results of the 1976 season games, the NBA and ABA came to a mutual agreement. It consisted of joining the NBA with 4 ABA league franchises. As a result, the number of NBA franchises during that period was 22.
But the end of 1979 was marked by low attendance at matches, declining television ratings and discord among players within the teams. These factors were a serious threat to the collapse of the league.
1979-1998
Johnson led the Lakers to five awards in 10 season games, and Bird led the Celtics to three awards.
In 1980, the NBA expanded with the addition of the Dallas Mavericks. As a result, the number of NBA franchises was 23.
David Stern was elected president of the NBA league in February 1984. He has earned high recognition throughout his career and has played a major role in the advancement of the NBA.
In 1988 and 1989, four newcomers joined the league roster: the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Orlando Magic, the Miami Heat and the Charlotte Hornets. As a result, the number of franchises reached 27.
The 1992 Olympic basketball club consisted of dozens of today’s NBA stars. He was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In addition, 11 players and three head coaches were awarded “individuals” titles.
In the 1997/98 season. The Chicago Bulls won the championship title.
1998-2004
2001/2002 – the Los Angeles Lakers club confidently won the playoffs. He won 15 out of 16 tournaments.
2003/2004 – the Detroit Pistons won the championship title (for the third time).
In 2004, the NBA had 30 teams.
2007/2008 – the Los Angeles Lakers team becomes the champion. Starting this season, video replay of the game by referees was introduced in certain situations.
In 2009, on October 1, alternate referees were used for the first time since 1996, due to the expiration of the contract between the NBA and the main referees.
In 2010, the Cowboys Stadium hosted the NBA All-Star Tournament. At the same time, the largest number of fans in the history of basketball was present – 108,713 people.
- In 2011-2012 a new agreement between club players and the NBA league was ratified.
- 2013 – the Miami Heat club won the match against the San Antonio Spurs.
- In February 2014, Adam Silver became president of the NBA, replacing David Stern, who resigned.
- The 2015 Cup was won by the Golden State Warriors.
- 2019 – Finalist of the Year: Toronto Raptors (first time).
- 2020 – the championship title went to the Los Angeles Lakers.
- 2021/2022 – champion: Golden State Warriors.
2022-2023 (season 77)
Basketball players Jose Juan Barea, Jodie Meeks and LaMarcus Aldridge retired this season.
NBA awards for 2022/23:
- Jaren Jacksock – Defensive Player of the Year.
- Joel Embiid – in the category “Best Player of the Year.”
- Paolo Banchero – in the category “New Player of the Year”.
- De’Aaron Fox – Leading Clutch Player.
- Lauri Markkanen – in the Most Dominant Player category.
- Mike Brown – Head Coach of the Year.
- Monte Mannair – in the category “Best Manager of the Year”.
- Jrue Holiday – in the category “Best Teammate.”
- Nikola Jokic – in the category “Dominant of the Western Conference Finals.”
- Jimmy Butler – in the category “Dominant of the Eastern Conference Finals.”
- Mike Conle – title “For Sportsmanship.”
- Stephen Curry – title of “Champion of Social Justice named after. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.”
- The title of “Best Player of the Final” was given to Nikola Jočić.
2022
Replacement of head coaches in many teams in the league.
Approval by the NBA to regularly host a play-in game every year.
A resolution by the NBA Council to retire the number 6 designation from the league following the death of eleven-time champion Bill Russell, who played under it. At the same time, players of teams with number “6” are given the right to decide for themselves whether to voluntarily replace it or use it for the rest of their career. In addition, in honor of Bill Russell, a shamrock with a 6 was depicted on the floor near the judges’ table.
Approval by NBA management and teams of a special program to allocate a certain amount to provide financial assistance to players of various league clubs who were denied a pension. This list includes almost 120 former league players.
Approval of instructions for receiving a personal transit foul (remarks for non-compliance with the provided instructions by a player moving to an attacking position from a defensive position or a defensive player not making attempts to score points through an operational break).
For the first time in the entire history of the NBA, two opposing teams scored only 5 points in overtime. The tournament took place in Washington on November 18. It ended with a score of 3:2. The main period ended with the score 104:104. This happened in the Miami Heat/Washington Wizards tournament.
Luka Doncic becomes the first NBA player to record a triple-double with 20 rebounds and 60 points in an overtime contest.
LeBron James was able to complete 11 assists and take 6th place on the list of NBA playmakers with 10,144 career assists.
2023
Donovan Mitchell made 11 assists and earned 71 points in the overtime match. He became the 7th player in NBA history to score more than 70 points in a single tournament.
For the first time in NBA history, the Miami Heat won the title of the club whose players were able to make 40 free throws on their first try.
Basketball player LeBron James became the second player in history to score 38,000 points in his career.
A record was set for the number of fans present at one regular season tournament. This event took place on January 13 at the Alamodome stadium (San Antonio).
In a match against the New York Knicks, LeBron James managed to complete eleven assists and took 4th place among NBA playmakers with 10,338 assists.
Chris Paul made 4 steals in the tournament against the Los Angeles Clippers and moved into 3rd place on the list of players with 2,515 steals.
The match between the Socramento Kings and the Los Angeles Clippers ended in a victory for the visiting club in the 2nd overtime with a score of 176:175. This tournament is the most productive in the entire history of the NBA.
Damian Lillard had 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 71 points. He is the eighth oldest player in NBA history to score more than 70 points in a single tournament.
In 2023, the NBA league team union approved a new contract, valid from July 1, 2023 until the end of the 2029/30 season.
Unlike the previous agreement, the following adjustments were made to it:
Intra-season tournament – from 2023, 6 groups of 5 clubs will participate in the preliminary playing round. In the playoffs, group leaders will be selected and two clubs will receive a wild card. Groups and clubs that reach the quarter-finals will take part in the semi-finals, after which the champions will be determined. Intraseason games, with the exception of the finals, are expected to be played in the context of regular season NBA matches. Prize money is provided for all tournament players.
Contract agreements – veteran players will have the opportunity to extend their agreement with a salary increase of at least 40%.
For new players, a contract extension is provided for a period of 5 years, regardless of the type of contract. Clubs have the right to negotiate with free agents one day after the end of the final matches of the NBA league. Teams will be able to make two-way agreements with up to three players. For clubs exceeding the luxury tax cap, there is an amount that excludes the mid-level taxpayer. Its amount is 5 million dollars. This amount is allowed to be applied to contracts with a period of no more than 2 years.
Prizes – to receive a reward, a player must become a participant in at least 65 tournaments and be in the game for at least 15 minutes in two of them. When a player is injured in the season finale, he must play 62 matches to be eligible to receive the prize. The exception to this position is recruiting players for an NBA all-star team.
Salary threshold – it will increase no more than 10% throughout the year. The tax rate will also increase according to the growth rate of the salary threshold. The exception is the subscription of players selected from the 20th round of the NBA league. Teams will be able to enter into contracts with them for a minimum period not exceeding a four-year period.
Player Draft – A player invited to the draft combine who subsequently refuses to participate without providing serious reasons will not be selected for the draft. In this case, the rules are provided according to which he will have the opportunity to make this choice only for the next season with mandatory preliminary participation in the draft combine. These instructions are excluded in relation to players who competed in foreign tournaments during this period, resolved family issues or were injured. Basketball players attending draft combines are required to give media interviews with the team.
Investment and Advertising – Players are allowed to invest in and advertise sports betting firms.
2023-2024 (season 78)
The regular season runs from October 4, 2023 to April 14, 2024.
- Play-in period is scheduled from April 16 to April 19, 2024
- Playoff matches will take place from April 20 to June 18, 2024
Fans are looking forward to season 78. After all, experts predict good results in matches for teams with an emphasis on attacking play and powerful defensive lines.
In addition, clubs with the best managers and coaches who can adapt players to any conditions and manage them effectively have a good chance of winning the final championships.
