Basketball is a fast-paced, physically demanding sport played by teams of five players each. Each game is split into four quarters lasting 12 minutes each, and if no team can win by the end of the fourth quarter, it goes into overtime which lasts five minutes. Teams can swap players in and out at stoppages in play, allowing them to rest and change up their strategies. The objective of any NBA team is to score more points than their opponents do before the clock runs out.
The NBA is a professional league that organises all the basketball teams in North America, ensuring they are all connected and have the same rules. This allows them to compete against each other and ensures that every team is held to a certain level of integrity. It also helps them plan games each year and gives the league an overall structure that it’s members can be proud of.
There are currently 30 NBA teams, organised into two large groups called Conferences. These then further divide into smaller regional groups called Divisions. Each year, the top eight teams in each conference (and in some cases the top two teams from the Western Conference) qualify for the playoffs. The winners of each series then go on to face each other in the NBA Finals, which are normally played in June. The winners of the Finals are awarded the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy, and all the players and major contributors on that winning team receive a championship ring.
There is a lot to learn about the nba, but you can start by familiarising yourself with the basic rules of the game. For instance, there is a rule that states you cannot throw a punch at another player during the game. The reason for this is that it would cause the referee to eject that player and suspend them for at least one game.
Another key rule is the fact that there are only 24 seconds to shoot a basket, known as the shot clock. This is why players can often be heard screaming “HOLD THE CLOCK!” during a game, as they desperately try to beat the clock.
Lastly, there is the Draft, which is a once-a-year event where all 30 teams select their preferred rookie talents. This is the primary way that teams can bring new players into the NBA, although some also sign free agents and steal talented players from competitors. This process is made public to the world on live TV in a special ceremony that’s become synonymous with the sport. There are many myths and legends surrounding the Draft, with the most popular being that sealed envelopes representing the worst teams in the league were mixed into a tumbler to determine their draft order. This is a far cry from the modern day lottery, where computer programs are used to make the decision instead of human beings. The results are then announced to the world on live TV.