The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams and is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. It is the premier men's professional basketball league in the world.
The National Basketball League (NBL) was a professional basketball league in the United States established in 1937. After the 1948–49 season, its twelfth, it merged with the Basketball Association of America (BAA) to create the National Basketball Association (NBA). Five current NBA teams trace their history back to the NBL: the Atlanta Hawks, the Detroit Pistons, the Los Angeles Lakers, the Philadelphia 76ers, and the Sacramento Kings.
The National Basketball League (NBL) is a men's professional basketball league in Oceania, currently composed of 10 teams: 9 in Australia and 1 in New Zealand. It is the premier professional men's basketball league in Australia and New Zealand.
The Halifax Rainmen were a professional basketball team based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. They played in the Atlantic Division of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL) and their home games took place at the Scotiabank Centre, formerly known as the Halifax Metro Centre. Andre Levingston was the owner of the Rainmen since he helped establish the team in 2006. The team played their first season in the American Basketball Association (ABA). However, after becoming unhappy with the ABA, they moved to the Premier Basketball League (PBL) for the next three seasons. In 2011, they joined the NBL Canada as one of the original seven teams. Despite showing success in the four seasons they spent in the Canadian league, making two Finals appearances, the Rainmen filed for bankruptcy in July 2015. The team was coming off a controversial loss in the 2015 NBL Canada Finals against the Windsor Express and forfeited Game 7 after taking part in a pre-game brawl. The Halifax Hurricanes, with a larger ownership group than the Rainmen's single owner, replaced the Rainmen in NBL Canada for the 2015–16 season.
The Oshkosh All-Stars were a professional basketball team based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Founded in 1929 by Lonnie Darling, the team was a member of the National Basketball League, a forerunner to the NBA, from 1937 until 1949.
The National Basketball League of Canada is a Canadian professional men's basketball league. The NBL was founded in 2011, when three teams formerly of the Premier Basketball League joined with four new franchises to form the NBL's "Original Seven". The league has changed in size multiple times and currently has seven teams; three located in the Atlantic provinces and four in Ontario. The league's season typically begins in November and ends in April of the following year. The most recent champions are the Moncton Magic, having defeated the St. John's Edge 4–0 in the 2019 NBL Finals.
The Mississauga Power were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Mississauga, Ontario, that competed in the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). Established in 2011 as the Oshawa Power, they played in the Central Division. The Oshawa team began play in the inaugural NBL Canada season, along with the London Lightning, Moncton Miracles, and Summerside Storm and three Premier Basketball League (PBL) teams.
The 2012–13 NBL Canada season was the second season of the National Basketball League of Canada. The regular season began on Friday, November 2, 2012, when the Summerside Storm hosted the Saint John Mill Rats. The regular season ended on Saturday, March 16, 2013. The playoffs started on March 19 and ended on April 12 when the London Lightning defeated the Summerside Storm in Game 4 of their series, 87–80, winning the Finals, 3–1 and to capture the franchise's second NBL Canada title. Marvin Phillips was named the Finals MVP.
Clifford "Cliff" Clinkscales is an American professional basketball player for the Halifax Hurricanes of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). A 6-foot-1-inch, 185-pound (84 kg) point guard, Clinkscales has been playing professionally since 2008, appearing in the NBA D-League, American Basketball League, and NBL Canada. Before joining the Hurricanes, he played for the Erie BayHawks, Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Panama City Breeze, and Halifax Rainmen. He was an NBL Canada All-Star in 2014, and subsequently won the league championship in 2016.
Anthony Nathaniel Anderson, also known by his initials as Double A, is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Moncton Magic of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). Standing 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m), he plays the point guard position. Anderson has played in the NBL Canada with the Riptide and Mill Rats for nearly six seasons. As of February 2016, he is the league's all-time leading scorer and is known as one of its most prominent players. Anderson also played for Saint John and their previous incarnation, the Manchester Millrats, in the Premier Basketball League (PBL) and the American Basketball Association (ABA).
Nick Okorie is an American professional basketball player for Horse Owners Club in Alexandria, Egypt. He played college basketball for South Plains College and Texas Tech.
The 2015–16 NBL Canada season was the fifth season of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC). The regular season began on December 26, 2015 and concluded on April 30, 2016. There were 40 total games played by each team, eight more than the previous year. The new expansion Niagara River Lions team are competing in their first season. The Halifax Hurricanes also began play, replacing the defunct Halifax Rainmen. During the offseason, the Mississauga Power folded to make way for Raptors 905 of the NBA Development League. Prior to the season, the league also enforced new policies to help improve its standard, including rules regarding sportsmanship, addressing the brawl that ended the 2015 NBL Canada Finals. The first regular season game featured the Island Storm and the Saint John Mill Rats.
Kenneth Terrell Jones is an American professional basketball player who formerly played for Hindú Club de Resistencia Chaco of the Torneo Nacional de Ascenso (TNA), the second-best league in Argentina.
Kwadwo Antwi Atuahene is a Ghanaian-Canadian professional basketball player who last played for the Island Storm of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). He was a reserve at the 2013 NBL Canada All-Star Game, in which he represented the Central Division. Atuahene played college basketball with Arizona State after spending a season at Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, Texas. As a professional, he has previously competed with teams in Mexico, the United States, and Canada.
Adrian Moss is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Windsor Express of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). Born in Centralia, Illinois, he played high school basketball for Franklin Community High School. Following his graduation, he committed to IUPUI to play college basketball. After his sophomore season at IUPUI he transferred to the University of Indianapolis, where he played for two more seasons.
Papa Kwaku Oppong is a Canadian former professional basketball player in the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). He is currently a student at the teacher's college of the University of Windsor. Oppong competed with three different college basketball teams from 2006 to 2010. He played with Coffeyville Community College as a freshman, Panola Junior College as a sophomore, and Eastern Kentucky of the NCAA Division I as a junior and senior.
Shawn Vincent Vanzant is an American college basketball coach and former professional basketball player who last played for the Moncton Miracles of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). He played college basketball for Butler University before playing professionally in Finland, Canada, Ireland, and the NBA Development League.
The 2015 NBL Canada Finals brawl was an altercation that occurred prior to Game 7 of the year's National Basketball League of Canada (NBL) Finals, between the Windsor Express and Halifax Rainmen on April 30, 2015. It led to the Rainmen's forfeit of the deciding game and allowed the Express to win the championship by default. Windsor's guard Tony Bennett, who participated in the brawl, said, "It's a black eye not just for the league, but for basketball."
The Cape Breton Highlanders were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Sydney, Nova Scotia. They were on hiatus from the National Basketball League of Canada for the 2019–20 season, but have since folded outright.
