Central Division (NBL Canada)
Current season, competition or edition: 2017–18 NBL Canada season
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Logo NBL Canada
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| Sport | Basketball |
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| Founded | 2011 |
| Inaugural season | 2011–12 |
| CEO | Dante Lerra |
| No. of teams | 10 |
| Country |
 Canada |
| Continent | FIBA Americas (Americas) |
| Most recent champion(s) |
London Lightning (3rd title) |
| Most titles | London Lightning (3 titles) |
| Official website | nblcanada |
The National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada; French: Ligue nationale de basketball du Canada) is a Canadian professional men's basketball league. The NBL was founded in 2011, when three teams formerly of the Premier Basketball League joined with four new franchises to form the NBL's "Original Seven". By 2017, the league had grown to ten teams, with six located in the Atlantic provinces and four in Ontario. The current champions are the London Lightning, having defeated the Halifax Hurricanes 4–3 in the 2017 NBL Finals. The league's season begins in November and ends in April of the following year.
In mid-2011, discussion began of a domestic basketball minor league in Canada. Three franchises from the Premier Basketball League (PBL), the Halifax Rainmen, Quebec Kebs, and Saint John Mill Rats were the first to join the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). The teams had been unhappy with the officiating in the PBL. On May 12 of that year in Halifax, Nova Scotia, league CEO Andre Levingston held a press conference regarding the creation of the NBL Canada. By the end of the summer, the London Lightning, Moncton Miracles, Oshawa Power, and Summerside Storm were established and had announced that they would join the league. There had also been unsuccessful attempts to start up teams in Fredericton, New Brunswick and Kingston, Ontario.
In June 2011, the league finalized rules for its first season. There would be seven teams, four of which qualified for the playoffs, and no divisions. It would follow FIBA rules and each team would play 36 games in the regular season. Team rosters could contain 10–12 players, at least two of them Canadian, and they had a salary cap of $150,000 Canadian. Players could earn potentially $70,000 in one season, and each game would draw an average of 3,000 fans, varying by location. Levingston envisioned the NBL Canada as a more stable alternative to other North American minor basketball leagues with players living close to home while playing professionally.
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