It was formed in 1978, playing a winter season (April-September). In 1998 the competition was shifted to a summer competition between October and April, mainly to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes.
There are currently twelve teams in the league, with teams in all capital cities (except Hobart) and provincial centres Cairns, Newcastle, Townsville and Wollongong. For the 2003/4 season, there will also be a team from New Zealand.
The league's best years were in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but it has struggled recently and many of the teams have shifted to smaller venues to cut costs.
The standard of the league is well below that of the American NBA, and a touch below that of the best European leagues.
Most teams have historically featured at least one and sometimes two American imports. Some of these players have moved to Australia permanently and become Australian citizens; a few have even played for the Australian national team (under a rule that allowed one naturalized player to compete for a national team).
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2 Notable Figures in the NBL 3 NBL Title Winners 4 External Links |
The current teams in the NBL are:
Teams
There are a number of teams that are either defunct, merged, or relocated over the league's history.Notable Figures in the NBL
NBL Title Winners