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

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

and the

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

(NBA) of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The series started in 2017 for each league's 2017–18 season, and each season includes between two and seven games. The games have always been held in the U.S. and Canada, 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 (NBL) based in Brisbane, Queensland. They competed from 1979 to 2008, and returned to the league in 2016. Brisbane were one of ten NBL ...

, Melbourne United and the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and play their home games at Qudos Ba ...

would compete in games against three

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

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 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 (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

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 (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Convention Centre, known colloquially as "The S ...

and Illawarra Hawks. The

Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers 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 the state's capital of Adela ...

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

, Melbourne United and the

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Bank of New Zealand, BNZ Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers are the only non-Australian side currently competing in Austral ...

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 Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

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 Southwest Division of the ...

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 Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

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

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 Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Confere ...

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 Melbourne United 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 Melbourne United 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 and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, it was announced that the

would take on the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA), We ...

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.

2023–24 season

In August 2023, it was announced that the

and

will compete in the series in October 2023. The Taipans took on the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

and the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

in their NBLxNBA series debut, while the Breakers played the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

and

2024–25 season

On 10 July 2024, the

announced their series of NBLxNBA games against the

and the

. A third game against the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

was later added on 23 September.

2025–26 season

On 11 March 2025, the

, National Basketball League and the

Victoria State Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

announced that the New Orleans Pelicans would play two exhibition games at

Rod Laver Arena Rod Laver Arena is a multipurpose arena located within Melbourne Park, in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The arena is the main venue for the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam (tennis), Grand Slam tennis tournament of ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria,

against Melbourne United and the South East Melbourne Phoenix as part of the NBA x NBL: Melbourne Series. This will mark the first time an NBA team has played in Australia, and the first time that the South East Melbourne Phoenix have played against an NBA team.

References

External links

Official NBL website
{{National Basketball League (Australia) 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

2023–24 season

2024–25 season

2025–26 season

See also

References

External links