Dutch national basketball team
Netherlands 
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| FIBA ranking | 84  (2016)
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| Joined FIBA | 1946 | ||
| FIBA zone | FIBA Europe | ||
| National federation | NBB | ||
| Coach | Toon van Helfteren | ||
| Nickname(s) | Oranje (Orange) | ||
| Olympic Games | |||
| Appearances | None | ||
| FIBA World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 1 (1986) | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| EuroBasket | |||
| Appearances | 15 | ||
| Medals | None | ||
| Uniforms | |||
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The Dutch national basketball team is the basketball side that represents the Netherlands in international competitions. It is administrated by the NMT, an organisation solely for the national team.
When it qualified for the FIBA EuroBasket, team Netherlands played quite competitive at some of the tournaments. The team reached the Final Four once and proceeded to the playoffs several times. However, its last appearance dates back to 1989 when it finished 8th. Since 1991, the team has known some tough years, overshadowed by the lack of money and support of fans and media attention. In the 2015 tournament they will make their first appearance in 25 years, only two years after the initially dissolvement of the team.
The Netherlands were one of the teams that played at the 1946, 1947, 1949 and 1951 EuroBasket tournaments. The 5th place in 1949 was the best performance of the team.
Oranje qualified for three EuroBaskets in a row from 1961 till 1967. After two missed tournaments, the Netherlands had another 3-EuroBasket appearances streak. In 1977, the Netherlands' star player Kees Akerboom, Sr. shined during the tournament. He was the top scorer of EuroBasket and got a place in the All-Tournament Team.
In 1983, the Netherlands booked its biggest success in history: the team got the fourth place at the EuroBasket tournament. In the third-place game it lost to the Soviet-Union.
From 1991 until 2012, the Netherlands didn't qualify for a EuroBasket-tournament. Star player Francisco Elson, former NBA-champion, represented the team on various occasions but the team never came close to qualifying. To go along in this period, notable Dutch players like Dan Gadzuric weren't willing to play for the team. Home games were usually played at the Topsportcentrum in Almere and usually got little to nothing media attention and fan support in the Netherlands.
In December 2012, it was announced the Netherlands team would be dissolved for 2 years, because the national federation NBB wasn't willing to invest money in it. After a campaign by Dutch player who played in the Dutch Basketball League, the national team was eventually saved. Sports broadcaster Sport1 became main sponsor and DBL-teams investend in the team, which started playing again.
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