National Basketball Association

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada and is considered the premier professional basketball league in the world. The league is headquartered in New York City and Secaucus, New Jersey.

The NBA was created on August 3, 1949, with the merger of the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL). The league later adopted the BAA's history and considers its founding on June 6, 1946, as its own. In 1976, the NBA and the American Basketball Association (ABA) merged, adding four franchises to the NBA. The NBA's regular season runs from October to April, with each team playing 82 games. The league's playoff tournament extends into June, culminating with the NBA Finals championship series.

The NBA is a member of USA Basketball (USAB), which is recognized by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) as the governing body for basketball in the United States. The NBA is the second-wealthiest professional sports league in the world by revenue after the National Football League (NFL). , NBA players are the world's highest paid athletes by average annual salary per player. In 1996, the NBA created a women's league, the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The NBA also operates the NBA G League, NBA 2K League, and the Basketball Africa League.

The Boston Celtics have the most NBA championships with 18, winning most recently in 2024. The Oklahoma City Thunder are the reigning league champions, having defeated the Indiana Pacers in the 2025 NBA Finals. Provided by Wikipedia