The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, abbreviated as BSN, is the first-tier-level professional men's basketball league in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1929 and is organized by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation.
Peter John Ramos Fuentes, nicknamed as Mr. Beast, is a Puerto Rican former professional basketball player and professional wrestler. He is the sixth athlete from Puerto Rico to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the third drafted, gathering success in the NBA Development League (NBDL), where he was an All Star during the 2006–07 season. Ramos has also played in Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was a member of the Puerto Rico national basketball team from 2004 to 2016, making his Olympic debut in the game where Puerto Rico defeated the United States at Athens.
Atléticos de San Germán is a basketball club of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) based in San Germán, Puerto Rico.
Guayama, officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama, is a city and municipality on the Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 36,614. It is the center of the Guayama metropolitan area with a population of 68,442 in 2020.
Félix Javier Pérez Rivera was a Puerto Rican professional basketball player. In 15 seasons in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), Pérez played for the Mets de Guaynabo, Atléticos de San Germán, Piratas de Quebradillas, Leones de Ponce, and Capitanes de Arecibo. In 1995, he led the league in rebounds with an average of 10.3 per game.
Renaldo Miguel Balkman is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for Mets de Guaynabo of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for the University of South Carolina before being selected with the 20th overall pick of the 2006 NBA draft by the New York Knicks. After spending six seasons with the New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets in the National Basketball Association (NBA), since the 2012–13 season, he has been playing internationally. He has represented the Puerto Rican national team.
Alejandro "Bimbo" Carmona was a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for the Gigantes de Carolina of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN After going undrafted in the 2005 NBA draft, Carmona participated in 2005 pre-season training camp of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association, and then played with the Fort Worth Flyers of the NBA Development League. Since then, he has been playing in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional with Gigantes de Carolina, Vaqueros de Bayamón, Indios de Mayagüez, Brujos de Guayama and Piratas de Quebradillas. Carmona was a member of the Puerto Rico national basketball team since 2006.
Orlando Meléndez Gilbert, a.k.a. "El Gato", is a Puerto Rican basketball player. He is the first Puerto Rico-born basketball player to play for the Harlem Globetrotters.
Caciques de Humacao was a professional basketball team based in Humacao, Puerto Rico. The club competed in the National Superior Basketball.
James Raymond Carter Gaudino is a retired Puerto Rican basketball player. Carter spent most of his career as a point guard for the Brujos de Guayama of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). Carter is currently the all-time assists leader of the league. During his 20-year career, he also played for the Indios de Mayagüez, Criollos de Caguas, Maratonistas de Coamo, and Capitanes de Arecibo. Carter also played since 1992 to the year 2000 for the Explosivos de Moca of the Liga de Baloncesto Puertorriqueña.
Roberto "Bobby" Ríos Osorio is a retired Puerto Rican basketball player. Ríos played as a point guard and shooting guard for five different teams during his career, and won three championships. He is currently 5th in assists and 7th in scoring of all-time in the league.
Linked to the popularity of basketball in Puerto Rico, the recurrence of streetball has become intertwined with the practice of the sport in all of its levels. Taking influence from the grassroots connection of Nuyorican streetballers to the Baloncesto Superior Nacional, the practice is widespread in Puerto Rico, with impromptu games being a highly common occurrence for decades. Organized streetball gained momentum in the early 2000s and soon became involved with the local urban culture, especially the hip hop and reggaeton industries, giving origin to teams like Puerto Rico Streetball and the Puerto Rico Streetballers. Organizations based in Puerto Rico have played against foreign competition, with the results including the first win of an international team over the prominent AND1 Live Tour Team. Teams native to the archipelago are affiliated to the Street Basketball Association and FIBA's 3x3 basketball program.
Jose Alicea Mirabal is a Puerto Rican former professional basketball player. He played eleven seasons on the Baloncesto Superior Nacional league, from 1979 to 1993, excluding the 1984, 1985, 1988 and 1991 seasons.
Kleon Penn is a British Virgin Islander-Puerto Rican professional basketball player for the Osos de Manatí of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He is currently the league’s all-time leader in blocks. He played college basketball for H. Lavity Stoutt Community College and McNeese State.
The Osos de Manatí are a professional basketball team based in Manatí, Puerto Rico, that competes in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), the top division of basketball in Puerto Rico. Prior to 2017 the team was named Atenienses de Manatí. In October 2022 they returned from hiatus, when local Puerto Rican singer Ozuna purchased the Brujos de Guayama, and relocated the team to Manatí. The team reached its first ever BSN finals in 2024.
Wilfredo "Willie" Melendez Velez is an American-Puerto Rican former professional basketball player who played in the BSN league from 1974 to 1992. He is also a school teacher, having taught at his adoptive city Cayey's Benigno Fernandez Garcia Middle School during his heyday as a professional basketball player.
Ethan Ivan Thompson is a Puerto Rican-American professional basketball player for the Osos de Manatí of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for the Oregon State Beavers and represents the Puerto Rican national team.
Jordan Isaiah Howard is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for the Osos de Manatí of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for Central Arkansas. He represents Puerto Rico on the men's national basketball team.
Isaac Sosa Carrion is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for Osos de Manatí of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played collegiate basketball at UCF and Canisius University, and his professional career includes stops in Greece, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Poland, and Puerto Rico. He represents Puerto Rico internationally.
Ángel "Cachorro" Santiago del Valle is a Puerto Rican former professional basketball player who played for 24 seasons in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN), competing for various teams, including the Cangrejeros de Santurce, the Guaynabo Mets, the Cardenales de Río Piedras, the Leones de Ponce, the Polluelos de Aibonito, the Brujos de Guayama, and the Capitanes de Arecibo. He won one BSN championship, in 1986, and competed at various international tournaments with the Puerto Rico men's national basketball team, earning medals at some of those tournaments. Santiago won a silver medal at the 1979 Pan American Games, held in San Juan, Puerto Rico, with the Puerto Rican men's national basketball squad. He also won a bronze medal at the Pan American Games' 1987 edition.
