NBA Quiz
Shot clocks, dynasties, 100-point nights and the 2026 champions: 15 questions on the NBA.
How many teams compete in the NBA?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
30
The NBA has 30 franchises, 29 in the United States and one in Canada, split evenly into the Eastern and Western Conferences. The league has stood at 30 teams since the Charlotte Bobcats joined in 2004.
The Toronto Raptors are the only team based outside the United States after the Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis in 2001.
How many seconds does an NBA team have to attempt a shot before the shot clock expires?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
24
The 24-second shot clock was introduced in 1954 to stop teams stalling with the ball. A shot must hit the rim before the clock runs out or possession goes to the other team.
Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone is credited with the idea, dividing 2,880 seconds in a game by about 120 shots to get 24.
How many personal fouls cause a player to foul out of an NBA game?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
6
An NBA player is disqualified after committing six personal fouls in a game. That is one more than college basketball and FIBA, where five fouls send a player to the bench for good.
Technical fouls count separately: two technicals in one game bring an automatic ejection regardless of personal fouls.
Which trophy has been presented to the NBA champion since 1984?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Larry O'Brien Trophy
The Larry O'Brien Trophy, named after the commissioner who ran the league from 1975 to 1984, replaced the Walter A. Brown Trophy. It is made of sterling silver with 24-karat gold overlay.
The Maurice Podoloff Trophy was the long-standing name of the regular season MVP award, honoring the NBA's first commissioner.
Which team won the 2026 NBA Finals?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
New York Knicks
The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 4 games to 1, clinching with a 94 to 90 road win in Game 5 on June 13, 2026. It was the franchise's first championship since 1973.
Jalen Brunson scored 45 points in the clincher, the most ever by a Knick in a Finals game, and was named Finals MVP.
Who scored 100 points in a single NBA game in 1962?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Wilt Chamberlain
Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks on March 2, 1962, in Hershey, Pennsylvania. No other player has reached 90 in an NBA game.
No television cameras recorded the game, so the famous photo of Chamberlain holding a sheet of paper reading 100 is the main visual record.
Which franchise won eight consecutive NBA championships from 1959 to 1966?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Boston Celtics
Bill Russell's Boston Celtics won eight titles in a row under coach Red Auerbach, a run no team in any major North American league has matched. Boston won 11 championships in 13 seasons overall.
Russell took over as player-coach in 1966, becoming the first Black head coach in major American pro sports, and won two more titles.
Which team won the 2025 NBA Finals?
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Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in seven games in June 2025, the franchise's first title since moving from Seattle in 2008. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named Finals MVP.
The SuperSonics won the 1979 title in Seattle, so the franchise's championship count stands at two across its two cities.
In which season did the NBA introduce the three-point line?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
1979/80
The NBA adopted the three-point shot for the 1979/80 season, borrowing it from the ABA, which had used the line since 1967. Chris Ford of the Celtics made the first NBA three-pointer.
The line was shortened to a uniform 22 feet (6.7 m) from 1994 to 1997 to boost scoring, then moved back to 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m).
In which year did the BAA and the NBL merge to form the NBA?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
1949
The Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League merged on August 3, 1949, creating the National Basketball Association. The NBA counts BAA history from 1946 as its own.
The merged league started with 17 teams, including small-market clubs such as the Sheboygan Red Skins and Waterloo Hawks that soon folded.
Which player holds the record for the most regular season MVP awards, with six?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won six MVP awards between 1971 and 1980, three with Milwaukee and three with the Lakers. Jordan and Russell each won five, and LeBron James has four.
Abdul-Jabbar won his first MVP in just his second season, when he led the Bucks to the 1971 championship.
Which team won the 2019 NBA Finals?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors beat the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors in six games, becoming the first team based outside the United States to win the NBA title. Kawhi Leonard was named Finals MVP.
Leonard had been in Toronto for just one season after a trade from San Antonio, and left for the Clippers weeks after the parade.
Who was the first player to average a triple-double over a full NBA season?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Oscar Robertson
Oscar Robertson averaged 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists for the Cincinnati Royals in 1961/62. Nobody matched the feat until Russell Westbrook did it 55 years later in 2016/17.
Robertson actually averaged a triple-double across his first five seasons combined, a stretch of 1961 to 1965 that few fans realize.
Which team won the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament in December 2023?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers 123 to 109 in the first In-Season Tournament final at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. LeBron James was named the tournament's MVP.
The competition was renamed the NBA Cup in 2024, and the final does not count toward regular season records.
Which legend's name was added to the NBA Finals MVP award in 2009?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Bill Russell
The award became the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award on February 14, 2009, honoring the 11-time champion. Russell himself never won it, as it was first given in 1969, his final season.
Jerry West, the first Finals MVP in 1969, remains the only player to win the award while playing for the losing team.
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All Sports quizzes →About the NBA Quiz
The NBA began life as the Basketball Association of America in 1946 and became the league we know after a merger in 1949. Since then it has given us a 100-point game, a 33-game winning streak, eight straight Boston titles and, in 2026, a New York Knicks championship that ended a 53-year wait.
These 15 questions cover the rules every fan should know, the league's structure, its most famous records and its champions old and new. The opening questions are gentle, the later ones reward people who read box scores for fun. Suits casual viewers and hardcore hoops heads alike.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Medium. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
How many teams are in the NBA?
There are 30 teams, 29 based in the United States and one, the Toronto Raptors, in Canada. They are split into Eastern and Western Conferences of 15 teams each.
Who has the most NBA championships?
The Boston Celtics lead with 18 titles after their 2024 win, one ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers on 17. The Golden State Warriors and Chicago Bulls follow with seven and six.
Who won the 2026 NBA Finals?
The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 4 games to 1 in June 2026, their first championship since 1973. Jalen Brunson was named Finals MVP.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- How many teams compete in the NBA?
30 The NBA has 30 franchises, 29 in the United States and one in Canada, split evenly into the Eastern and Western Conferences. The league has stood at 30 teams since the Charlotte Bobcats joined in 2004. The Toronto Raptors are the only team based outside the United States after the Vancouver Grizzlies moved to Memphis in 2001. - How many seconds does an NBA team have to attempt a shot before the shot clock expires?
24 The 24-second shot clock was introduced in 1954 to stop teams stalling with the ball. A shot must hit the rim before the clock runs out or possession goes to the other team. Syracuse Nationals owner Danny Biasone is credited with the idea, dividing 2,880 seconds in a game by about 120 shots to get 24. - How many personal fouls cause a player to foul out of an NBA game?
6 An NBA player is disqualified after committing six personal fouls in a game. That is one more than college basketball and FIBA, where five fouls send a player to the bench for good. Technical fouls count separately: two technicals in one game bring an automatic ejection regardless of personal fouls. - Which trophy has been presented to the NBA champion since 1984?
Larry O'Brien Trophy The Larry O'Brien Trophy, named after the commissioner who ran the league from 1975 to 1984, replaced the Walter A. Brown Trophy. It is made of sterling silver with 24-karat gold overlay. The Maurice Podoloff Trophy was the long-standing name of the regular season MVP award, honoring the NBA's first commissioner. - Which team won the 2026 NBA Finals?
New York Knicks The New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs 4 games to 1, clinching with a 94 to 90 road win in Game 5 on June 13, 2026. It was the franchise's first championship since 1973. Jalen Brunson scored 45 points in the clincher, the most ever by a Knick in a Finals game, and was named Finals MVP. - Who scored 100 points in a single NBA game in 1962?
Wilt Chamberlain Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks on March 2, 1962, in Hershey, Pennsylvania. No other player has reached 90 in an NBA game. No television cameras recorded the game, so the famous photo of Chamberlain holding a sheet of paper reading 100 is the main visual record. - Which franchise won eight consecutive NBA championships from 1959 to 1966?
Boston Celtics Bill Russell's Boston Celtics won eight titles in a row under coach Red Auerbach, a run no team in any major North American league has matched. Boston won 11 championships in 13 seasons overall. Russell took over as player-coach in 1966, becoming the first Black head coach in major American pro sports, and won two more titles. - Which team won the 2025 NBA Finals?
Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in seven games in June 2025, the franchise's first title since moving from Seattle in 2008. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was named Finals MVP. The SuperSonics won the 1979 title in Seattle, so the franchise's championship count stands at two across its two cities. - In which season did the NBA introduce the three-point line?
1979/80 The NBA adopted the three-point shot for the 1979/80 season, borrowing it from the ABA, which had used the line since 1967. Chris Ford of the Celtics made the first NBA three-pointer. The line was shortened to a uniform 22 feet (6.7 m) from 1994 to 1997 to boost scoring, then moved back to 23 feet 9 inches (7.24 m). - In which year did the BAA and the NBL merge to form the NBA?
1949 The Basketball Association of America and the National Basketball League merged on August 3, 1949, creating the National Basketball Association. The NBA counts BAA history from 1946 as its own. The merged league started with 17 teams, including small-market clubs such as the Sheboygan Red Skins and Waterloo Hawks that soon folded. - Which player holds the record for the most regular season MVP awards, with six?
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won six MVP awards between 1971 and 1980, three with Milwaukee and three with the Lakers. Jordan and Russell each won five, and LeBron James has four. Abdul-Jabbar won his first MVP in just his second season, when he led the Bucks to the 1971 championship. - Which team won the 2019 NBA Finals?
Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors beat the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors in six games, becoming the first team based outside the United States to win the NBA title. Kawhi Leonard was named Finals MVP. Leonard had been in Toronto for just one season after a trade from San Antonio, and left for the Clippers weeks after the parade. - Who was the first player to average a triple-double over a full NBA season?
Oscar Robertson Oscar Robertson averaged 30.8 points, 12.5 rebounds and 11.4 assists for the Cincinnati Royals in 1961/62. Nobody matched the feat until Russell Westbrook did it 55 years later in 2016/17. Robertson actually averaged a triple-double across his first five seasons combined, a stretch of 1961 to 1965 that few fans realize. - Which team won the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament in December 2023?
Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Indiana Pacers 123 to 109 in the first In-Season Tournament final at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. LeBron James was named the tournament's MVP. The competition was renamed the NBA Cup in 2024, and the final does not count toward regular season records. - Which legend's name was added to the NBA Finals MVP award in 2009?
Bill Russell The award became the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award on February 14, 2009, honoring the 11-time champion. Russell himself never won it, as it was first given in 1969, his final season. Jerry West, the first Finals MVP in 1969, remains the only player to win the award while playing for the losing team.
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