NBA is one of the most popular sports in the world. The league has a lot to offer fans, including star players and exciting games. The sport has been around for over a century, and has become a major part of American culture. Despite its popularity, the league has struggled in recent years with declining TV ratings and player issues. It has also faced competition from other sports such as football and mixed martial arts.
The league currently has 30 teams across the United States and Canada. Each team plays 82 regular season games, 41 at home and 41 away. The season starts in mid-October and ends in early April. There is a two-week break in February to celebrate the NBA All-Star Game. The top players from each conference vote to select their own All-Star team, and the coaches choose the rest of the starters. The team with the best record in each division is awarded a first-round bye in the playoffs.
NBA teams are governed by a collective bargaining agreement that sets the minimum salary for each player. This allows teams to build rosters around the players they believe will help them win championships. Despite the limit on salaries, teams are free to trade players and sign new ones. This helps prevent superstars from being locked up by one team, and encourages the formation of rivalries within the league.
Each NBA team has a maximum of 15 active players on their roster at any given time. The rest of the roster is made up of role players who can be activated for a game in the event of an injury or illness. Some of these players have specialized skills and are known as specialists, while others can play multiple positions. The role players can also act as sparkplugs for the team, providing a different style of play than the team’s stars.
Over the course of a typical NBA season, players will experience over 1,500 injuries. This number includes both serious and non-serious injuries. A recent study analyzed the injury histories of 14,594 professional basketball players over 17 years. The most common injuries included lateral ankle sprains, patellofemoral inflammation, and lumbar strains. The most games missed were due to knee, ankle, and foot injuries. No significant differences were found between injury rate and player demographics such as height, weight, or years of NBA experience.
The NBA has seen some of the greatest athletes in history play for its franchises. The biggest names in the history of the league include Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, and Dwyane Wade. The most recent champion was the Miami Heat, led by James and Wade. However, the Heat are not without their fair share of controversy and drama, as they have been known to clash with management, other teammates, and the media. This has tarnished the image of the franchise, and some have even called for a boycott of the All-Star game in protest.