The
NBA or
National Basketball Association is a standout professional basketball league in North America and the world. It is composed of 30 franchise member clubs with 29 in the United States and one in Canada. It is one of four major professional
sports groups of North America, and is an active member of USA Basketball, which is basketball’s national governing body in the U.S.
Beginnings and early years:
The NBA started as the Basketball Association of America (BAA), which was founded in New York in June 1946 by sportsmen Walter Brown and Al Sutphin, owners of major ice hockey skating tracks. The BAA held its first game in Ontario, Canada between the New York Knickerbockers and the Toronto Huskies. Not shortly after, other professional basketball leagues formed to include the American Basketball League (ABL) and the National Basketball League (NBL). This gave rise to the formation of independent clubs such as the Baltimore Bullets, Harlem Globetrotters, and the Minneapolis Lakers. August 1949 saw the merging of the BAA and NBL into the new NBA that would have 17 franchises in both large and small cities and gymnasiums. In 1950, the NBA consolidated into 11 franchises but to only eight in 1954 with the Celtics, Knicks, Lakers, Nationals/76ers, Royals/Kings, Hawks and the Pistons.
ABA formation:
The American Basketball Association posed an external threat to the NBA upon its formation in 1967. This resulted in the two leagues going into a bidding war if only to get the best players around. After signing in college star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA, however, lost its leading scorer Rick Barry and 4 veteran referees who jumped to ABA. In addition to these defections, major players including Julius Erving of the Virginia Squires were also signed in by ABA. The situation forced the NBA to expand in order to tie up the most viable cities. From nine franchises in 1966, it grew to 18 in 1974. It added one more expansion franchise from the Dallas Mavericks in the 1980s when the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, for the first time, played against each other.
Olympic Dream Team, expansion to Canada:
The Dream Team for the Olympics was formed in 1992, using top NBA stars led by Michael Jordan as anchor. The other member were Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, David Robinson, Patrick Ewing, Scottie Pippen, Clyde Drexter, Karl Malone, John Stockton, Chris Mullin, Charles Barkley and Christian Laettner. Four years later, the league expanded to Canada in about the same time when it created the women’s league Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Western Conference, Olympic Redeem Team, All-Star Game:
Since 1998 when the Chicago Bulls broke up, the Western Conference dominated the limelight, with the LA Lakers and the San Antonio Spurs alternating to win the championship title in 9 years in a span of 13 year. In 2008, the NBA again formed an Olympic basketball team named Redeem Team featuring top players led by Kobe Bryant and Lebron James. In 2010, the All-Star Game was held at the Cowboys Stadium, attracting a record crowd as the Boston Celtics and the LA Lakers were set to renew their rivalry in the finals and meet for a record 12th time in the league’s history.
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