Being drafted into the National Basketball Association is the dream of every professional and aspiring professional basketball player. It first started as the National Basketball League in 1937 before a rival league, the BAA, came up in 1946. The Basketball Association of America was formed to rival the NBL, but it could only do that for three seasons. Three years later, in 1949, the BAA merged with the NBL to form the National Basketball Association.
The formation and gaming schedule was an advantage to the NBL because the BAA was already successful, although it achieved greater success through the merger. The NBA started with seventeen teams but dropped to eight later in 1955 for lack of revenue. Between the late 50s and 60s, the league started achieving global recognition, but the game only revived in the 1979/1980 season.
NBA Betting Predictions That Will Help You Win Today!
The NBA: The Story behind Its Popularity and Success
During the first season of the BAA, Henry Biasatti was the All-Star player; he played for the Toronto Huskies. He remained a household name, the only one, for seventeen years when Thomas Meschery came into the limelight in 1963. These two were the first two international players to make an All-Star game. Today, several players have been named in All-Star games, four of which were not Americans.
EIGHT NBA players feature in the top 10 most influential sports stars in the world https://t.co/CWtiqVybpA
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) July 30, 2022
The NBA became an international league where the U.S. is not the only nation to participate and win. Meanwhile, the person responsible for this international reach was the 1984 commissioner, David Stern, who prioritized extending the NBA’s reach. This was a good move as we can see today because the league became very popular, especially outside the U.S. As of 2020, the highest-paid athletes in the world by average annual salary per player are NBA players.
The NBA belongs to the USA Basketball (USAB) recognized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA). The FIBA is the national governing body for US basketball games. The NBA is the third wealthiest professional league in North America and among the world’s top four with the expansion of several platforms and the introduction of different new sportsbook bonuses.
Must Read: The Greatest Basketball Players of All Time
NBA Teams:
The NBA started with eleven teams which increased to seventeen when the BAA and NBL merged. However, due to a lack of funding, the number of teams dropped to eight a short while later. Today, the professional basketball league is made up of thirty teams, with twenty-nine in the US and one in Canada. The thirty teams are divided into two conferences, each conference holding three divisions and five teams in a division.
Rank these NBA Teams pic.twitter.com/UbPQtJQRVw
— Mekhi✞ (@Steelersbetter) September 5, 2022
The team division reflects the population of Canada and the United States as a whole. There are thirteen teams in the Eastern Time Zone, five in the Pacific, nine in the Central, and three in the Mountain. In no particular order, the thirty teams in the National Basketball Association are as follows:
- Boston Celtics
- Brooklyn Nets
- New York Knicks
- Chicago Bulls
- Indiana Pacers
- Milwaukee Bucks
- Washington Wizards
- Utah Jazz
- Philadelphia 76ers
- Cleveland Cavaliers
- Toronto Raptors
- Detroit Pistons
- Charlotte Hornets
- Atlanta Hawks
- Miami Heat
- Orlando Magic
- Portland Trail Blazers
- Denver Nuggets
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Phoenix Suns
- Golden State Warriors
- Sab Antonio Spurs
- Memphis Grizzlies
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Sacrament Kings
- Houston Rockets
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Houston Rockets
How the NBA’s Regular Season and Playoffs Looks Like
The regular season of the NBA starts in late October, in the last week, with eighty-two games for each team. Each team will play forty-one home and away games and face opponents in its division four times annually, totaling sixteen games. Then, each team will play six teams from the other two divisions four times and the remaining four three times. That is twenty-four games and twelve games played respectively.
Also Read: Top 20 Most Marketable Players in the NBA
To end the season, each team will play the teams in the other conference in thirty games – that is twice each. Only the NBA schedules game on Christmas day, and it has been this way as far back as 1947. Moreover, Christmas Day is a memorable day for the NBA; it aired its games for the first time on television. Playing on a holiday also means more viewership for NBA games as some of the league’s highest-rated games were held on this day.
Meanwhile, the NBA playoffs begin at the end of the regular season in April. In the playoffs, the top eight teams in each conference will compete for the NBA championship title. These games are like a tournament where each team plays in a best-of-seven series against an opponent.
The team that wins four games first advances to the next round and the other team is eliminated. The cycle will continue this way until all but one has been eliminated. The last team standing gets the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy until the next playoffs. The teams with the most NBA championships so far are the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers, with seventeen championships each.
Conclusion
NBA games are undoubtedly some of the most popular in the sports industry. Although the league’s TV viewership has dropped, its popularity is still in full force. Many talents have graced and are still in the league that fans can never get tired of watching.
Leave a Reply