The 2020–21 Dutch Basketball League (DBL) was the 61st season of the

Dutch Basketball League The Dutch Basketball League (DBL), formerly the Eredivisie, was the highest professional basketball league in the Netherlands, run by the Federatie Eredivisie Basketball (FEB). Since 2021, the league has been replaced by the Belgian-Dutch BNXT Le ...

, the highest professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

league in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The season started on 3 October 2020 and ended on 27 May 2021. It was the first season after the 2019–20 season was ended prematurely due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. The league expanded to 12 teams with the addition of

Yoast United Yoast United is a Dutch basketball club based in Bemmel, Gelderland. Established in 2020, the team plays in the BNXT League, the highest level of basketball in the Netherlands. Home games are played at De Kooi, which has a capacity of 650 people. ...

Almere Sailors Almere Sailors was a Dutch basketball club based in Almere. Established in 2020, the team played one season in the Dutch Basketball League (DBL), the highest level of basketball in the Netherlands. Home games are played in the Topsportcentrum Alm ...

and

The Hague Royals The The Hague Royals are a Dutch basketball club based in The Hague. Established in 2020, the team played in the highest level of basketball in the Netherlands for two seasons. Home games are played in the Sportcampus Zuiderpark, which has a cap ...

. This marked the highest number of teams since the 2007–08 season.

ZZ Leiden ZZ Leiden Basketball, also known as Zorg en Zekerheid Leiden, is a basketball club based in Leiden, Netherlands. The club plays in the BNXT League, the domestic first tier league. Their home games are played at Vijf Meihal, which has 2,000 seats. ...

won its fourth national title after defeating

Heroes Den Bosch Heroes Den Bosch is a Dutch professional basketball club based in 's-Hertogenbosch. The club plays in the BNXT League since 2021 and in the top basketball division in the Netherlands since 1972. Founded as EBBC in 1951, the club had several spons ...

in the

Finals Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

. On 15 October 2020, the season was suspended for at least four weeks due to government regulations regarding the pandemic. On 19 December 2020, it was announced the competition would restart in January 2021 with a new format.

Teams

After falling sponsorship revenue due to the

, the DBL lowered the minimum budget for teams from €300,000 to €150,000 . On 1 May 2020,

Apollo Amsterdam Apollo Amsterdam is a professional basketball team based in Amsterdam. The club plays its games in the BNXT League, the Dutch top league. The club was founded in 2011 and has been playing in the highest national level for years. The amateur sectio ...

announced it will not play in the DBL season because of uncertainty due to the pandemic. The DBL announced the remaining eight teams will return for the 2020–21 season. On 5 August, it was announced Basketball Community Gelderland has obtained a licence. On 20 August, it was announced Apollo Amsterdam has obtained a license. On 27 August, the DBL announced the entrance of

and

. BC Gelderland later revealed Yoast United as their new club name.

Stadiums and locations

:''Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.''

Personnel and kits

Managerial changes

Regular season

Table

Results

Elite A

Table and Results

Teams carry the results from the regular season with them and play each other twice. All six teams are already qualified for the play-offs.

Elite B

Table and Results

Teams carry the results from the regular season with them and play each other twice. The two highest ranked teams qualify for the playoffs as seventh and eight seed.

Playoffs

The format of the playoffs was changed due to the compressed schedule. Quarterfinals were played as two-legged series, the semifinals as a best-of-three series and the finals as a best-of-five series.

Bracket

Quarterfinals

The quarterfinals were played in a two-legged format and were played on 8 May and 11 May 2021.

Semifinals

The semifinals were played in a best of three series and were played on 15 May, 18 May and 20 May.

Finals

ZZ Leiden reached the finals for the first time since 3 years, Heroes Den Bosch for the first time since 6 years. It is the sixth time the teams met each other in the finals, the last time being in

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

Statistics

Individual statistic leaders

Individual game highs

Final standings

BAL Bal may refer to: * Bal (surname), a Dutch, Indian, and Turkish surname * Bal, Iran (disambiguation) * Bal, Zira, a village in Punjab, India * ''Bal'' (film), a 2010 Turkish film * Bäl, a settlement on the Swedish island of Gotland * 8678 Bä ...

, winners of the DBL Cup, refused to apply for the

FIBA Europe Cup 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. Clubs mainly qualify for the competition based on their performance in nation ...

Dutch clubs in European competitions

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2020-21 Dutch Basketball League Dutch Basketball League seasons 1

Basketball events postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Teams

Stadiums and locations

Sponsored club names

Personnel and kits

Managerial changes

Regular season

Table

Results

Elite A

Table and Results

Elite B

Table and Results

Playoffs

Bracket

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Finals

Statistics

Individual statistic leaders

Individual game highs

Final standings

Dutch clubs in European competitions

References