National Basketball Association in the context of "Herb Kohl"

A basketball is a spherical ball used in basketball games. Basketballs usually range in size from very small promotional items that are only a few inches (some centimeters) in diameter to extra large balls nearly 2 feet (60 cm) in diameter used in training exercises. For example, a youth basketball could be 27 inches (69 cm) in circumference, while a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) men's ball would be a maximum of 30 inches (76 cm) and an NCAA women's ball would be a maximum of 29 inches (74 cm). The standard for a basketball in the National Basketball Association (NBA) is 29.5 inches (75 cm) in circumference and for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), a maximum circumference of 28.5 inches (72 cm). High school and junior leagues normally use NCAA, NBA or WNBA sized balls.

Aside from the court and the baskets, the basketball is the only piece of equipment necessary to play the game of basketball. During the game, the ball must be bounced continuously (dribbling), thrown through the air to other players (passing) or thrown towards the basket (shooting). Therefore, the ball must be very durable and easy to hold on to. The ball is also used to perform tricks (sometimes called freestyling), the most common of which are spinning the ball on the tip of one's index finger, dribbling in complex patterns, rolling the ball over one's shoulder, or performing aerobatic maneuvers with the ball while executing a slam dunk, most notably in the context of a slam dunk contest.

In basketball, a field goal is a basket scored on any shot or tap other than a free throw, worth two or three points depending on the location of the attempt on the basket. Uncommonly, a field goal can be worth other values such as one point in FIBA 3x3 basketball competitions or four points in the BIG3 basketball league. "Field goal" is the official terminology for a made shot used by the National Basketball Association (NBA) in their rule book, in their box scores and statistics, and in referees' rulings. The same term is also the official wording used by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and high school basketball.

One type of field goal is called a slam dunk. This occurs when a player jumps near the basket with possession of the ball, throwing the ball down through the basket while airborne.

In basketball, a technical foul (colloquially known as a "T" or a "tech") is any infraction of the rules penalized as a foul which does not involve physical contact during the course of play between opposing players on the court, or is a foul by a non-player. The most common technical foul is for unsportsmanlike conduct. Technical fouls can be assessed against players, bench personnel, the entire team (often called a bench technical), or even the crowd. These fouls, and their penalties, are more serious than a personal foul, but not necessarily as serious as a flagrant foul (an ejectable offense in leagues below the National Basketball Association (NBA), and potentially so in the NBA).

Technical fouls are handled slightly differently under international rules than under the rules used by the various competitions in the United States. First, illegal contact between players on the court is always a personal foul under international rules, whereas in the United States, such contact is, with some exceptions, a technical foul when the game clock is not running or when the ball is dead. Second, in FIBA play (except for the half-court 3x3 variant, in which individual personal foul counts are not kept), players foul out after five total fouls, technical and personal combined (since 2014, one technical can be included towards the total; committing another risks immediate ejection). The latter rule is similar to that in college, high school, and middle school basketball in the United States. However, in leagues that play 48-minute games such as the NBA, and in some leagues such as the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA), players are allowed six personal fouls before being disqualified, and technical fouls assessed against them do not count toward this total. However, unsportsmanlike technicals in the (W)NBA carry a fine, its severity depending on the number of technicals the player has already obtained, and players are suspended for varying amounts of time after accumulating sixteen technicals in the regular season or seven in the playoffs.

In basketball, a block or blocked shot occurs when a defensive player legally deflects a field goal attempt from an offensive player to prevent a score. The defender is not allowed to make contact with the offensive player's hand (unless the defender is also in contact with the ball) or a foul is called. In order to be legal, the block must occur while the shot is traveling upward or at its apex. A deflected field goal that is made does not count as a blocked shot and simply counts as a successful field goal attempt for shooter plus the points awarded to the shooting team. For the shooter, a blocked shot is counted as a missed field goal attempt. Also, on a shooting foul, a blocked shot cannot be awarded or counted, even if the player who deflected the field goal attempt is different from the player who committed the foul. If the ball is heading downward when the defender hits it, it is ruled as goaltending and counts as a made basket. Goaltending is also called if the block is made after the ball bounces on the backboard (NFHS excepted; the NCAA also used this rule until the 2009–10 season).

Nicknames for blocked shots include "rejections", "stuffs", "bushed", "spoinked", "fudged", or “double-fudged" (two-handed blocks), "facials", "swats", "denials", and "packs". Blocked shots were first officially recorded in the NBA during the 1973–74 season.

In the game of basketball, carrying is a ball-handling violation. Like other violations, the penalty is that possession of the ball is given to the opposing team. Statistically, this counts as a turnover of the ball.

Basketball players can advance the ball by passing it to a teammate, but the ball handler cannot move except while dribbling (bouncing) the ball. Dribbling is subject to several rules that limit the ball handler's advantage. The National Basketball Association Rule No. 10 (Section II (d)) states, "A player who is dribbling may not put any part of his hand under the ball and (1) carry it from one point to another or (2) bring it to a pause and then continue to dribble again."

The New York metropolitan area is one of only two in the United States with more than one team in each of the "Big Four" major professional sports leagues, along with two in Major League Soccer. New York metropolitan area sports teams have been crowned champions of their respective leagues on 69 occasions. American football, baseball and basketball are the city's most-followed sports.

New York City is the headquarters of Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, the National Basketball Association, the National Football League, the National Hockey League, the National Women's Soccer League, and the Women's National Basketball Association.It hosts the US Open, one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, and the New York City Marathon, the world's largest. The Millrose Games is an annual track and field meet whose featured event is the Wanamaker Mile. Boxing is also prominent, with events like the Amateur Boxing Golden Gloves being held at Madison Square Garden each year.

Sports in the United States are a significant aspect of the nation's culture. Historically, the most popular sport has been baseball. However since the mid 20th century American football has slowly become the most popular spectator sport. Additionally, Basketball and Ice Hockey saw a significant growth during this period due to the advent of television. As such, the sanctioning bodies of these sports (MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL) comprise what broadcasters refer to as the "Big Four" of the sport industry. These sports, with the addition of soccer, are the most popular sports played at the youth level.

In the first half of the 20th century boxing, collegiate rowing, and collegiate football were among the most popular sports after baseball. Soccer(football) has emerged as the fourth most popular sport in the 21st century, surpassing ice hockey. Roughly 27% of United States-based sports fans show an interest in soccer, compared to a global average of 40%. By contrast, American football is the most popular sport in the United States with 52%. Basketball with 43% and baseball with 37% are further behind. Approximately 17% of the people in the United States follow ice hockey.

The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. The Lakers play their home games at Crypto.com Arena, an arena they share with the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Lakers are one of the most successful teams in the history of the NBA with 17 championships, the second most in the league behind the Boston Celtics.

The franchise began in 1946 as the Detroit Gems of the National Basketball League (NBL). After one season, a new ownership relocated the team to Minneapolis, Minnesota, and renamed the team as the Minneapolis Lakers. The Lakers won the 1948 NBL championship before joining the rival Basketball Association of America, where they won the 1949 BAA championship. Following the merger of the NBL and the BAA into the NBA in 1949, the Lakers won four of the next five NBA championships. After struggling financially in the late 1950s, they relocated to Los Angeles before the 1960–61 season.

Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, which compete in the sports of football, baseball, basketball, ice hockey, and soccer, include the National Football League (NFL), Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Hockey League (NHL), and Major League Soccer (MLS). As the NFL only competes in the U.S., the prominent gridiron football league in Canada is the Canadian Football League (CFL).

MLB, the NBA, the NFL, and the NHL are commonly referred to as the "Big Four". Each of these is the wealthiest professional club competition in its sport worldwide, and along with the Premier League, make up the top five sports leagues by revenue in the world.

Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd streets above Pennsylvania Station. It is the fourth venue to bear the name “Madison Square Garden”; the first two, opened in 1879 and 1890, were located on Madison Square, on East 26th Street and Madison Avenue, with the third Madison Square Garden (1925) farther uptown at Eighth Avenue and 50th Street.

The Garden hosts professional ice hockey, professional basketball, boxing, mixed martial arts, concerts, ice shows, circuses, professional wrestling and other forms of sports and entertainment. It is close to other midtown Manhattan landmarks, including the Empire State Building, Koreatown and Macy's at Herald Square. It is home to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL), the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and was home to the New York Liberty of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 to 2017.