| Basketball in Australia | |
|---|---|
 Ten-time NBL champions, the Perth Wildcats | |
| Country | Australia |
| Governing body | Basketball Australia |
| National team(s) | Basketball |
| Nickname(s) | Boomers (Men) Opals (Women) |
| First played | 23 February 1897, Adelaide, South Australia |
| Clubs | 93 (Men) 90 (Women) 183 (Total) |
National competitions | |
Club competitions | |
List
| |
Audience records | |
| Single match | 17,514 (2019) NBL: Sydney Kings v. Illawarra Hawks (Qudos Bank Arena) |
| Season | 896,408 - 2019–20 NBL season |
Basketball is a sport played both indoors and outdoors in Australia. Basketball is the number two sport globally with over 200 countries participating and over 450 million players. According to research by Sweeney Sports, one in three Australians has an interest in basketball. Furthermore, basketball is played by approximately one million men, women, boys, and girls throughout Australia. According to Basketball Australia, as of March 2014, basketball is the second highest team participation sport in Australia.[1]
Basketball in Australia experienced a golden age in the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, during which the National Basketball League saw its halcyon days. However, its popularity, media attention, attendance, and corporate support deteriorated during the 2000s. From the mid-2010s, the sport saw renewed interest following a record number of Australians playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the United States.[2]
- ^ "Basketball Australia: Key Facts". SportsTG.com. Retrieved 11 June 2017.
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