Nigerian Premier League (basketball)

The Nigerian Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the NPL, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Nigeria. The league consists of sixteen teams who are categorized into two conferences based on the geographical location. These conferences are Savannah and the Atlantic. The league was sponsored by the DSTV until 2017, who had both title and TV rights through the contract agreement. The league was then referred to as the DSTV Premier Basketball League.

Nigerian Premier League
Organising bodyNigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF)
CountryNigeria
ConfederationFIBA Africa
Divisions2
Number of teams16
Relegation toNBBF National Division One
International cup(s)Basketball Africa League
Current championsKwara Falcons (1st title)
(2022)
Most championshipsKano Pillars (6 titles)
Current season

Format

The league usually spans from March till mid year. Each team plays a total of 14 games in a regular season after which the top four teams qualify for the Final Eight Playoffs which usually takes place at the National Stadium Surulere Lagos. The team at the bottom of the table in each conference is relegated from the league. Towards the end of the year, the Division 1 Championship is held to determine who will be promoted to the DSTV League for the new season. In the 2014 season, Royal Hoopers of Rivers State and Niger Potter of Nigers State were both relegated from the Atlantic and Savannah Conference respectively. Accordingly, the Delta Force and FCT Rocks were promoted to the league having won the Division 1 Championship in November 2014.

Amendments were made to the schedule of events this season. At the end of the season, the top six teams from each conference will play conference playoffs to determine the winner of each conference before the top four of each conference will play the Final Eight Playoffs to determine the league winner. This is to increase the number of games played by each team in a particular season.

History

In 2017, Nigeria Basketball Federation reached an agreement with Kwese Sports for the title rights of the league. The deal runs till 2021, and it was worth $12 million.[1]

Since 2021, the champions of the Premier League qualify directly for the regular season of the Basketball Africa League (BAL), Africa's new first-tier created as a joint venture by the NBA and FIBA.

In the 2021 season, the league was organised by the Nigerian Ministry of Youth and Sports , after they earlier dissolved the caretaker committee of the NBBF.[2] FIBA rules prohibit governments from intervening in federations, which is why the championship was ruled illegitimate. As a result, the 2021 champions Rivers Hoopers were excluded from participation in the 2022 BAL season.[3]

List of winners
Season Champions Runner-up Ref.
2022 Kwara Falcons Nigerian Customs [4]
20211 Rivers Hoopers Gombe Bulls [5]
2020 Not held
2019 Rivers Hoopers Raptors [6]
2018 Gombe Bulls Kwara Falcons [7]
2017 Kano Pillars Gombe Bulls [8]
2016 Kano Pillars Nigerian Customs [9]
2015 Mark Mentors Kano Pillars [10]
2014 Kano Pillars Mark Mentors [11]
2013 Kano Pillars Union Bank [12]
2012 Royal Hoopers Kano Pillars [13]
2011 Royal Hoopers Kano Pillars [13]
2010 Kano Pillars Union Bank [14]
2009 Kano Pillars Lagos Islanders [12]
2007 Ebun Comets [15]
2005 Ebun Comets [16]
2003 Ebun Comets [17]
2001 Lagos Islanders
2000 Lagos Islanders
1999 Lagos Islanders
1998 Lagos Islanders
1997 Lagos Islanders

1 The 2021 season was not organised by the NBBF, but by the Nigerian Ministry of Youth and Sports in a response to the lack of . FIBA did not recognise Rivers Hoopers as champions, which caused them to lose their place in the 2022 BAL season.

Titles by club
Club Champions Runners-up Years won
Kano Pillars 6 2 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017
Lagos Islanders 5 0 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
Rivers Hoopers 4 0 2011, 2012, 2019, 2021
Ebun Comets 3 0 2003, 2005, 2007
Gombe Bulls 1 2 2018
Kwara Falcons 1 1 2022


Clubs

Savannah Conference
Club City
Mark MentorsAbuja
Bauchi NetsBauchi
Kano PillarsKano
Civil DefendersAbuja
Plateau PeaksJos
Gombe BullsGombe
Niger PottersMinna
Kada StarsKaduna

Atlantic Conference
Club City
Oluyole WarriorsIbadan
Delta ForceAsaba
Hoops And ReadLagos
Nigeria CustomsLagos
NAF RocketsLagos
Police BatonLagos
CAMACBayelsa
Kwara FalconsIlorin
Rivers HoopersPort-Harcourt

In the Basketball Africa League

The champions of the Nigerian Premier League qualify directly to the Basketball Africa League (BAL). Two teams, namely Rivers Hoopers and Kwara Falcons, have represented the country in the BAL thus far.

Season Representative Road to BAL Main competition
W L Result Qualified W L Result
2021 Rivers Hoopers Directly qualified 1 2 3rd in Group Phase
2022 Rivers Hoopers Directly qualified Disqualified
2023 Kwara Falcons Directly qualified 0 5 6th in Sahara Conference
Total – – 1 7

References
  1. Joshua, Odeyemi (April 9, 2017). "NBBF unveils Kwese Sports as new league sponsor". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2017-09-21.
  2. "Sports ministry dissolves NBBF caretaker committee". TheCable. 2021-10-27. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  3. "Why did Nigeria's Rivers Hoopers get booted out of the BAL?". ESPN.com. 2022-02-15. Retrieved 2022-06-28.
  4. Omoniyi, Oluwaferanmi (2022-11-13). "NBBF Final 8: Kwara Falcons wins first title as High school student emereges MVP". Premium Times Nigeria. Retrieved 2022-11-15.
  5. Saliu, Mohammed (18 November 2021). "Rivers Hoopers Knock Bulls to Claim Championship, BAL TIcket". Brila.net. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  6. "River Hoopers win 2019 NBBF President's Cup, qualify for Basketball Africa League". 18 November 2019.
  7. "Gombe Bulls win 2018 Kwese Basketball League, get N20m prize". Daily Trust. 9 October 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
  8. "Basketball: Kano Pillars Clinch Kwese League title". September 9, 2017. Retrieved 2017-09-12.
  9. "Kano Pillars Crowned Champions Of The 2016 DSTV Premier Basketball League". Eagle Online. June 28, 2016. Retrieved 2017-09-12.
  10. "Mark Mentors Win DSTV Basketball League". Channels Television. Retrieved 2017-09-13.
  11. "Mark Mentors Win DSTV Basketball League". August 15, 2015. Retrieved 2017-09-12.
  12. "Basketball: Kano Pillars Emerge Champions of DSTV PBL". Information Nigeria. September 8, 2013. Retrieved 2017-09-13.
  13. "Royal Hoopers Retain DStv Men's Basketball League Title". Tide News. August 1, 2012. Retrieved 2017-09-13.
  14. "Kano Pillars Wins 2013 DSTV Basketball League". Retrieved 2017-09-13.
  15. "Nigeria - Comets Win Premier League, Qualify for African Cup". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2022-08-12.
  16. "NGR - Comets, Customs in VMobile Premier League opener". FIBA.basketball. Retrieved 2022-08-12.
  17. "Ebun Comets Lagos". Eurobasket LLC. Retrieved 2022-08-12.



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