The National Basketball Association is the premier professional men’s basketball league in the world. It consists of 30 teams in the United States and Canada. The league features the best players in the world. The competition is fierce, with fans from across the world tuning in to watch their favorite team. In addition to the games themselves, the NBA also hosts events such as the All-Star Weekend and the All-Star Classic.
The league’s current organizational structure divides its 30 teams into two conferences and three divisions. This was introduced for the 2004-05 season. While most teams are located in the eastern half of the United States, the league also includes teams from the Central and Mountain Time Zones. The Pacific Time Zone has five teams.
The NBA began as a way for NHL owners to earn money when their teams weren’t playing. The league’s first teams played in NHL cities. As time went on, the league expanded to include more teams. Several teams were formed in 1950, and more were added throughout the decade. In 1954-55, the league consolidated to eight teams. Eight of those teams are still in the NBA today. However, six teams relocated to larger cities. The Hawks franchise moved from the Tri-Cities to Milwaukee and later to St. Louis.
The NBA is trying to reach out to international markets and capitalize on its growing popularity. Revenue sharing deals are in place to help smaller teams compete with big market teams. However, revenue sharing has some drawbacks. It increases the salary cap of the top teams and increases the financial burden on small market teams. It is important to keep in mind that revenue sharing is only part of the total NBA revenue.
The regular season is set to begin in mid-October. The season will feature eight games in each conference. These games will determine the playoff seeding. After the regular season, the No. 8 seed from either conference will enter a play-in tournament. The play-in will take place only if the No. 9 seed is more than four games behind. Having a good record will help a team secure its spot in the playoffs.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league based in the United States and Canada. It is regarded as one of the world’s top leagues. Famous players in the NBA include LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Stephen Curry. The league is also popular throughout Asia and Europe. Many people credit Michael Jordan with globalizing the sport.
Last year’s Super Bowl had 103.4 million viewers. This was an increase of 245% over the previous deal. It also led to an increase in sales of basketball shoes. As a result, many NBA players signed lucrative endorsement deals with Nike.