Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league for women. It was made in April 22, 1996. The league first held games in June 1997. The WNBA had 12 teams, all in the United States, in its most recent 2024 season.[1] A thirteenth U.S. team will join in 2025, and two more teams, one each in the U.S. and Canada, will start play in 2026.
Current season, competition or edition: 2025 WNBA season | |
 | |
| Sport | Basketball |
|---|---|
| Founded | April 22, 1996 |
| Founder | David Stern |
| Inaugural season | 1997 |
| Commissioner | Cathy Engelbert |
| No. of teams | 13 |
| Country | United States |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Most recent champion(s) | New York Liberty (1st title) |
| Most titles | Houston Comets Minnesota Lynx Seattle Storm (4 titles each) |
| Official website | WNBA.com |
The games have four 10-minute quarters. There is also a 24-second shot clock. Each team is allowed to have 12 players, and must have at least 11 on the roster. Due to a strict salary cap, many teams only carry 11 players on their rosters. The ball used for WNBA games is 1 inch (2.54 cm) smaller in circumference and 2.5 ounces (70 g) lighter than the ball used for all adult men's full-court basketball (including the National Basketball Association, the top professional basketball league for men in the United States). The WNBA ball is the same size used for all adult women's full-court play.[a] The ball also has alternating white and orange panels, unlike the all-orange NBA ball.[b]
Footnotes
change- ↑ The ball used in 3x3, the internationally sanctioned three-on-three half-court game, is the same circumference as the women's ball, but the same mass as the men's ball.
- ↑ Except in the WNBA Commissioner's Cup, an in-season tournament that has been played since the 2021 season; that ball instead has alternating white and black panels.
References
change- ↑ "History of the WNBA". WNBA.com - Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved 2023-04-28.
