NBLxNBA is a series involving clubs from the National Basketball League (NBL) of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. The series started in 2017 for each league's 2017–18 season, and each season includes between two and seven games. The games have previously always been held in United States of America and

, and typically are held during September and early October.

Seasons

2017–18 season

In 2017 the NBL announced that the

Brisbane Bullets The Brisbane Bullets are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) based in Brisbane, Brisbane, Queensland. They competed from 1979 to 2008, and returned to th ...

Melbourne United Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at John Cain Arena. The team made their debut in the NBL in 1984 as ...

and the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...

would compete in games against three

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

teams in the inaugural NBLxNBA series. Despite losing all three games (including a one point thriller), the series was marked as a success for the NBL as it brought in much higher television ratings than the teams were used to, and it showed how competitive the league is. The series also drew the attention of multiple high profile NBA players, including Australian

Ben Simmons Benjamin David Simmons (born 20 July 1996) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for one season with the LSU Tigers, after which he was ...

who expressed his interest in competing in a future NBLxNBA game.

2018–19 season

The NBL announced a second series on 27 June 2018, with five of their eight clubs travelling to the

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

to complete in seven games. The clubs which didn't complete were the

Cairns Taipans The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Taipans compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Conventio ...

and

Illawarra Hawks The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) is an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games ...

. The

Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...

reached the highest score by the NBL teams and fell one point short of the elusive 100 points milestone, but the NBL teams failed to record a victory for a second year in a row.

2019–20 season

On July 4, 2019 it was announced that the

and the

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Sky Sport Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at ...

would play the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

and

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

in the 2019 edition of NBLxNBA. The series was pushed closer towards the start of the NBA season, which meant the

and

missed the beginning of the NBL season, and

missed a fortnight of the early rounds of the season. Despite the NBL losing streak continuing, this series marked the first time an NBL team reached the 100 point mark against an NBA team. This happened in both

games against the

and

2022–23 season

After a 3-year hiatus 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 ...

, it was announced that the

would take on the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

and

in October 2022. The series saw the first NBL win over an NBA team, with the 36ers beating the Suns 134-124 in Arizona on 3 October 2022.

References

External links

Official NBL website
{{National Basketball Association National Basketball Association National Basketball League (Australia) Recurring sporting events established in 2017 2017 establishments in Australia

Seasons

2017–18 season

2018–19 season

2019–20 season

2022–23 season

See also

References

External links