College Basketball

College basketball is a very popular sport in certain areas of the United States. It also has one of the most popular tournaments in sports. The championship tournament is nicknamed March Madness.

Major Conferences

Most college basketball teams are part of a conference. Some of the top all time college basketball conferences include the ACC and the Big East. Teams like Duke, North Carolina, Georgetown, and the University of Connecticut have made these conferences powerhouses over the years. There are several major conferences in college basketball. Here is a list of some of them:

• Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC)
• Big 12 Conference
• Big East Conference
• Big Ten Conference
• Conference USA
• Mid-American Conference
• Mountain West Conference
• Pacific 10 Conference (Pac-10)
• Southeastern Conference (SEC)
• Western Athletic Conference (WAC)

March Madness

The most popular part of the college basketball season is the post-season tournament. It's every team's goal to get to the tournament and then, hopefully, advance to the championship. Currently 68 teams get into the tournament. This may seem like a lot, but even with that many teams getting in, there are still many disappointed teams who felt like they deserved a chance.

Selecting the Teams

Teams can get into the tournament in two ways. First they can be the championship of their conference and get in automatically. All conferences, even the smallest, get their champion into the tournament. This is part of what makes it madness in that even small schools can get in. The other way to qualify is to be selected. There are several at large bids which a committee then uses to select the remaining top schools. Every year there is some sort of controversy about who got in and who didn't.

The Tournament

The tournament is held in March, hence the name March Madness. It is single elimination; if you win, you move on; if you lose, you go home. Teams are seeded so that the best teams play the worst at the start. However, there are always some upsets which is where the name Madness came from.

Final Four, Sweet Sixteen

As teams move on and the number of teams gets reduced, there are names for how far a team has gone. Getting to the final sixteen teams, is called the Sweet Sixteen, the final eight is called the Elite Eight, and the final four is called, well, the Final Four. Making it to the Final Four is a big deal. Coaches can make careers out of one trip to the Final Four. Again, this is why the tournament got the nickname, March Madness.

List of NBA Teams

How many players are on an NBA team?

Each NBA team has fifteen players. Twelve players are considered part of the active roster and can dress out to play in a game. The other three are inactive or in reserve. Five players play per team at a time. There aren't any special positions by rule in the NBA. Positions are more through different roles played on the court as set up by the coach.

How many NBA teams are there?

There are currently 30 teams in the NBA. The league is divided up into two conferences, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. The Eastern conference has three divisions called Atlantic, Central, and Southeast. The Western conference also has three divisions, which are the Northwest, Pacific, and Southwest. Each division has 5 teams.

Eastern Conference

Atlantic

• Boston Celtics
• New Jersey Nets
• New York Knicks
• Philadelphia 76ers
• Toronto Raptors

Central

• Chicago Bulls
• Cleveland Cavaliers
• Detroit Pistons
• Indiana Pacers
• Milwaukee Bucks

Southeast

• Atlanta Hawks
• Charlotte Bobcats
• Miami Heat
• Orlando Magic
• Washington Wizards

Western Conference

Northwest

• Denver Nuggets
• Minnesota Timberwolves
• Oklahoma City Thunder
• Portland Trail Blazers
• Utah Jazz

Pacific

• Golden State Warriors
• Los Angeles Clippers
• Los Angeles Lakers
• Phoenix Suns
• Sacramento Kings

Southwest

• Dallas Mavericks
• Houston Rockets
• Memphis Grizzlies
• New Orleans Hornets
• San Antonio Spurs

Fun Facts about NBA Teams

• The most championships by an NBA team is 17 by the Boston Celtics (as of 2010).
• Los Angeles has two NBA teams and no NFL teams.
• The Chicago Bulls have won all 6 of the NBA championships they have played.
• The Lakers' teams with Magic Johnson were called "show time".
• The Los Angeles Lakers have the best all time winning percentage followed by the Celtics and the Spurs. Of the current teams, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Charlotte Bobcats, and the Los Angeles Clippers have the worst records.
• The most points scored by a team in a game was 186 by the Detroit Pistons. The fewest points was 49 by the Chicago Bulls.
• The best record ever by a NBA team was 72-10 by the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls.

(NBA)

History of the NBA

In 1946 the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed and the first game was played in Toronto, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and the New York Knickerbockers. In 1949 the BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) and became the National Basketball Association.

The original NBA had 17 teams, but this was thought to be too many. So they merged teams over the next few years until they were down to as few as eight teams in 1953-1954. In 1954 they also introduced the shot clock of 24 seconds to speed up the game and to get teams to shoot more. Another major change came in the 1979-80 season when the three point shot was introduced.

Since then the league has grown to thirty teams throughout the United States with one team in Canada. Many superstar players have gained international stardom such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James.

NBA Teams

There are currently (2011) 30 teams in the NBA. They are divided into two major conferences, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. Each conference has three divisions of 5 teams.

For a list of NBA teams see NBA Teams.

NBA Season and Playoffs

Each team in the NBA plays 82 regular season games. They play 41 games at home and 41 away. Every team in the NBA plays every other team at least once during the season.

The top eight teams in each conference go to the playoffs. Teams are seeded according to their records and whether they won their division. The best team plays the worst team (1 vs. 8) and so on. The teams play a best of seven series where the first team with four wins takes the series and moves on in the playoffs. The team with the best record gets the home court advantage where they play one more game at home.

WNBA

The Woman's National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league for women players. It was started in 1997. It was originally owned and funded by the NBA, but now several teams have independent owners. There are currently 12 teams in the WNBA. Some of the WNBA star players over the years include Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, and Lauren Jackson.

Fun Facts about the NBA

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the top professional basketball league in the United States. It has also become very popular internationally with many players from several countries becoming major stars in the league such as Yao Ming from China, Pau Gasol from Spain, Tony Parker from France, Manu Ginobili from Argentina, and Dirk Nowitski from Germany.

• One time NBA player Manute Bol killed a lion with a spear when he was fifteen years old in Africa.
• Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points, the most ever, in a single game.
• NBA All-star Dennis Rodman didn't play high school basketball. He grew 8 inches between the time he graduated high school and when he turned 20!
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored 38,387 points, the most in an NBA career.
• Michael Jordan, arguably the best basketball player ever, was drafted third in the 1984 draft.
• The most three point shots made in a game is 12 by Kobe Bryant.

National Basketball Associatio

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is the top professional basketball league in the United States. It has also become very popular internationally with many players from several countries becoming major stars in the league such as Yao Ming from China, Pau Gasol from Spain, Tony Parker from France, Manu Ginobili from Argentina, and Dirk Nowitski from Germany. 

History of the NBA 

In 1946 the Basketball Association of America (BAA) was formed and the first game was played in Toronto, Canada between the Toronto Huskies and the New York Knickerbockers. In 1949 the BAA merged with the National Basketball League (NBL) and became the National Basketball Association. 

The original NBA had 17 teams, but this was thought to be too many. So they merged teams over the next few years until they were down to as few as eight teams in 1953-1954. In 1954 they also introduced the shot clock of 24 seconds to speed up the game and to get teams to shoot more. Another major change came in the 1979-80 season when the three point shot was introduced. 

Since then the league has grown to thirty teams throughout the United States with one team in Canada. Many superstar players have gained international stardom such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James. 

NBA Teams 

There are currently (2011) 30 teams in the NBA. They are divided into two major conferences, the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference. Each conference has three divisions of 5 teams. 

For a list of NBA teams see NBA Teams. 

NBA Season and Playoffs 

Each team in the NBA plays 82 regular season games. They play 41 games at home and 41 away. Every team in the NBA plays every other team at least once during the season. 

The top eight teams in each conference go to the playoffs. Teams are seeded according to their records and whether they won their division. The best team plays the worst team (1 vs. 8) and so on. The teams play a best of seven series where the first team with four wins takes the series and moves on in the playoffs. The team with the best record gets the home court advantage where they play one more game at home. 

WNBA 

The Woman's National Basketball Association is a professional basketball league for women players. It was started in 1997. It was originally owned and funded by the NBA, but now several teams have independent owners. There are currently 12 teams in the WNBA. Some of the WNBA star players over the years include Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, and Lauren Jackson. 

Fun Facts about the NBA

• One time NBA player Manute Bol killed a lion with a spear when he was fifteen years old in Africa.
• Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points, the most ever, in a single game.
• NBA All-star Dennis Rodman didn't play high school basketball. He grew 8 inches between the time he graduated high school and when he turned 20!
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar scored 38,387 points, the most in an NBA career.
• Michael Jordan, arguably the best basketball player ever, was drafted third in the 1984 draft.
• The most three point shots made in a game is 12 by Kobe Bryant.