The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America and is universally regarded as the most prestigious in the world.
The competition consists of 30 clubs, 29 from the US and one from Canada competing in an 82-game regular season.
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NBA teams are divided into two conferences, East and West. Conferences are further split into three divisions comprising five teams each.
The season culminates in the playoffs, followed by the NBA Finals series.
All matches in the playoffs and The Finals are best-of-seven game knockout series. The top eight teams in each conference qualify, with conference quarterfinals, conference semi-finals and conference finals being played to determine who qualifies for the NBA finals.
The most recent NBA champions are the Milwaukee Bucks, who defeated the Phoenix Suns 4-2 to claim their second NBA title.
The NBA, originally the Basketball Association of America (BAA), was founded in 1946. In 1949, after merging with the rival National Basketball League (NBL), the NBA was established under its current moniker.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the league’s leading point scorer of all time (38,387), Wilt Chamberlain has the most rebounds (23,924) and John Stockton has the most assists ever recorded (15,806).
Eastern Conference |
||
---|---|---|
Team | Location | Championships (last title) |
Atlantic Division | ||
Boston Celtics | Boston, Massachussetts | 17 (2008) |
Brooklyn Nets | Brooklyn, New York | 0 |
New York Knicks | Manhattan, New York | 2 (1973) |
Philadelphia 76ers | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 3 (1983) |
Toronto Raptors | Toronto, Ontario (Canada) | 1 (2019) |
Central Division | ||
Chicago Bulls | Chicago, Illinois | 6 (1998) |
Cleveland Cavaliers | Cleveland, Ohio | 1 (2016) |
Detroit Pistons | Detroit, Michigan | 3 (2004) |
Indiana Pacers | Indianapolis, Indiana | 0 |
Milwaukee Bucks | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | 2 (2021) |
Southeast Division | ||
Atlanta Hawks | Atlanta, Georgia | 1 (1958) |
Charlotte Hornets | Charlotte, North Carolina | 0 |
Miami Heat | Miami, Florida | 3 (2013) |
Orlando Magic | Orlando, Florida | 0 |
Washington Wizards | Washington, D.C. | 1 (1978) |
Western Conference |
||
Team | Location | Championships (last title) |
Northwest Division | ||
Denver Nuggets | Denver, Colorado | 0 |
Minnesota Timberwolves | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 0 |
Oklahoma City Thunder | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | 1 (1979) |
Portland Trail Blazers | Portland, Oregon | 1 (1977) |
Utah Jazz | Salt Lake City, Utah | 0 |
Pacific Division | ||
Golden State Warriors | Oakland, California | 6 (2018) |
Los Angeles Clippers | Los Angeles, California | 0 |
Los Angeles Lakers | Los Angeles, California | 17 (2020) |
Phoenix Suns | Phoenix, Arizona | 0 |
Sacramento Kings | Sacramento, California | 1 (1951) |
Southwest Division | ||
Dallas Mavericks | Dallas, Texas | 1 (2011) |
Houston Rockets | Houston, Texas | 2 (1995) |
Memphis Grizzlies | Memphis, Tennessee | 0 |
New Orleans Pelicans | New Orleans, Louisiana | 0 |
San Antonio Spurs | San Antonio, Texas | 5 (2014) |