By Alexander Moussafiris, Antony Dendis, Andrew Tzolas & Alexander Tsapkounis
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a men’s professional basketball league in North America; composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). It is widely considered to be the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world.
The current league organization divides thirty teams into two conferences of three divisions with five teams each. The current divisional alignment was introduced in the 2004–05 season. Reflecting the population distribution of the United States and Canada as a whole, most teams are in the eastern half of the country: thirteen teams are in the Eastern Time Zone, nine in the Central, three in the Mountain, and five in the Pacific.
Atlantic | Boston Celtics | Boston, Massachusetts | TD Garden |
Brooklyn Nets | New York City, New York | Barclays Center | |
New York Knicks | New York City, New York | Madison Square Garden | |
Philadelphia 76ers | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Wells Fargo Center | |
Toronto Raptors | Toronto, Ontario | Scotiabank Arena | |
Central | Chicago Bulls | Chicago, Illinois | United Center |
Cleveland Cavaliers | Cleveland, Ohio | Quicken Loans Arena | |
Detroit Pistons | Detroit, Michigan | Little Caesars Arena | |
Indiana Pacers | Indianapolis, Indiana | Bankers Life Fieldhouse | |
Milwaukee Bucks | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Fiserv Forum | |
Southeast | Atlanta Hawks | Atlanta, Georgia | State Farm Arena |
Charlotte Hornets | Charlotte, North Carolina | Spectrum Center | |
Miami Heat | Miami, Florida | American Airlines Arena | |
Orlando Magic | Orlando, Florida | Amway Center | |
Washington Wizards | Washington, D.C. | Capital One Arena | |
Northwest | Denver Nuggets | Denver, Colorado | Pepsi Center |
Minnesota Timberwolves | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Target Center | |
Oklahoma City Thunder | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | Chesapeake Energy Arena | |
Portland Trail Blazers | Portland, Oregon | Moda Center | |
Utah Jazz | Salt Lake City, Utah | Vivint Smart Home Arena | |
Pacific | Golden State Warriors | Oakland, California | Oracle Arena |
Los Angeles Clippers | Los Angeles, California | Staples Center | |
Los Angeles Lakers | Los Angeles, California | Staples Center | |
Phoenix Suns | Phoenix, Arizona | Talking Stick Resort Arena | |
Sacramento Kings | Sacramento, California | Golden 1 Center | |
Southwest | Dallas Mavericks | Dallas, Texas | American Airlines Center |
Houston Rockets | Houston, Texas | Toyota Center | |
Memphis Grizzlies | Memphis, Tennessee | FedEx Forum | |
New Orleans Pelicans | New Orleans, Louisiana | Smoothie King Center | |
San Antonio Spurs | San Antonio, Texas | AT&T Center |
Following the summer break, teams begin training camps in late September. Training camps allow the coaching staff to evaluate players (especially rookies), scout the team’s strengths and weaknesses, prepare the players for the rigorous regular season, and determine the 12-man active roster (and a 3-man inactive list) with which they will begin the regular season. During the regular season, each team plays 82 games, 41 each home and away.
The Boston Celtics have won the most championships with 17 NBA Finals wins. The second most successful franchise is the Los Angeles Lakers, who have 16 overall championships (11 in Los Angeles, 5 in Minneapolis). Following the Lakers, are the Chicago Bulls and Golden State Warriors (2 in Philadelphia, 4 in Oakland) with six championships each. The San Antonio Spurs have five championships, all since 1999.