Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop (a basket 18 inches in diameter mounted 10 feet high to a backboard at each end of the court, while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play is mandated.
The EuroLeague, known as the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague for sponsorship reasons, is a European professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier league in Europe. The league consists of 18 teams, of which 16 are given long-term licences and wild cards, making the league a semi-closed league. The league was first organized by FIBA in 1958, and by Euroleague Basketball after its formation in 2000.
Women's basketball is the team sport of basketball played by women. It began being played in 1892, one year after men's basketball, at Smith College in Massachusetts. It spread across the United States, in large part via women's college competitions, and has since spread globally. As of 2020, basketball is one of the most popular and fastest growing sports in the world.
Suzanne Brigit Bird is an American professional basketball player of the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) Bird was drafted by the Storm first overall in the 2002 WNBA draft and is considered to be one of the greatest players in WNBA history. As of 2021, Bird is the only WNBA player to win titles in three different decades. She held a front office position for the NBA's Denver Nuggets as their Basketball Operations Associate. She has also played for three teams in Russia. She holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship.
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). Each of these various organizations is subdivided into one to three divisions, based on the number and level of scholarships that may be provided to the athletes.
Nancy Elizabeth Lieberman, nicknamed "Lady Magic", is an American former professional basketball player and coach in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) who is currently a broadcaster for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA) as well as the head coach of Power, a team in the BIG3 which she led to its 2018 Championship. Lieberman is regarded as one of the greatest figures in American women's basketball.
The Basketball Super League, also known as the ING Basketbol Süper Ligi for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional basketball division of the Turkish basketball league system. It replaced the former Turkish Basketball Championship (1946–1967) to become the Turkish Basketball League (TBL) until 2015 when it adopted its current name while the TBL name became exclusive to the second-tier and third-tier divisions.
The Women's Basketball Super League, also known as the Herbalife Nutrition Women's Basketball Super League for sponsorship reasons, is the top women's professional basketball division of the Turkish women's basketball league system. The league was established in 1980 and is organized by the Turkish Basketball Federation. There is also a Turkish Women’s Basketball League (TKBL), the second level in the Turkish women's basketball league system.
The Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) is the pre-eminent professional women's basketball league in Australia. It is currently composed of eight teams. The league was founded in 1981 and is the women's counterpart to the National Basketball League (NBL). Several WNBL teams have NBL counterparts. The Adelaide Lightning, Melbourne Boomers, Perth Lynx, Southside Flyers and Sydney Uni Flames are the current WNBL teams sharing a market with an NBL team. The current league champions are the Melbourne Boomers, who won their second title in 2022.
The Big V is a semi-professional basketball league in Victoria, Australia. The league comprises 12 competitions, with its two main ones being the men's (SCM) and women's (SCW) State Championship divisions. Below the SCM and SCW is: Division One Men (D1M), Division One Women (D1W), Division Two Men (D2M), and Division Two Women (D2W). The remaining six competitions are youth divisions, with those being: Victorian Youth Championship Men (VYCM), Victorian Youth Championship Women (VYCW), Youth League One Men (YL1M), Youth League One Women (YL1W), Youth League Two Men (YL2M), and Youth League Two Women (YL2W).
The EuroLeague Women is the highest professional basketball league in Europe for women's basketball clubs.
The Basketball Federation of India (BFI) is the governing and controlling body of basketball in India. It is responsible for the development and promotion of the sports authority of India at all levels. BFI manages all the national-level basketball operations in India and sports authority of India is also undertaking basketball federation of India. It is involved in organizing training camps and national tournaments, and in preparing Indian teams for both men's and women's international competitions in various age categories. The national team of India is also known as the ′Young Cagers′.
The International Basketball Federation is an association of national organizations which governs the sport of basketball worldwide. Originally known as the Fédération internationale de basket-ball amateur, in 1989 it dropped the word amateur from its name but retained the acronym.
The Hellenic Basketball Federation is the main basketball governing body for the sport in Greece. It directs and oversees all of the national basketball teams of Greece, including both the junior and senior national teams, of both men and women. From 1969 to 1992, the E.O.K. also solely oversaw the top-tier level men's Greek National Basketball League, before its basic operation was taken over by HEBA, starting with the 1992–93 basketball season.
Breanna Mackenzie Stewart is an American professional basketball player for the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Lauren Elizabeth Jackson is an Australian professional basketball player. The daughter of two national basketball team players, Jackson was awarded a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 1997, when she was 16. In 1998, she led the AIS team that won the Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) championship. Jackson joined the Canberra Capitals for the 1999 season when she turned 18 and played with the team off and on until 2006, winning four more WNBL championships. From 2010 to 2016, Jackson played with the Canberra Capitals, which she did during the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) offseason during the time she continued WNBA play.
The FIBA Europe Cup (FEC) is an annual professional club basketball competition organised by FIBA for eligible European clubs. It is FIBA's European-wide second level, while it is also considered the continent's fourth level when taking into account EuroLeague Basketball competitions. Clubs mainly qualify for the competition based on their performance in national leagues and cup competitions, although this is not the sole deciding factor.
The Women's British Basketball League (WBBL) is the top-level women's basketball league in Great Britain, founded on 5 June 2014 as the women's counterpart to the British Basketball League (BBL). The league's headquarters are in Leicester alongside the offices of the men's BBL.
The Basketball Champions League (BCL) is an annual professional basketball competition for European clubs, organised by FIBA. It is the top-level competition organised by FIBA Europe, therefore the champion participates in the FIBA Intercontinental Cup.
2020–21 Baltic Women's Basketball League 
Belarus 
Estonia 
Lithuania 
Poland 
Russia 
Ukraine 
