The NBA made their 10th regular season return in the UK last Sunday on the 18th of January in the O2 Arena.
The Memphis Grizzlies faced up against the Orlando Magic, with the Grizzlies coming out victorious 126-109.
The NBA is the highest professional level of basketball and is based all over America and Canada.
However, the game has never really sparked alight across the pond in the UK. With there only being 3 current British NBA players.
Whereas, according to NBA Communications there are about 315 American NBA players. That’s 70% of the entire league.
Still yet, the numbers of players don’t tell the full story. In the UK there has been a growth in basketball interest, with EY.com reporting the sport’s popularity climbing seven places in overall engagement.
The UK Government and the NBA have announced a major collaboration leading to a plan to build facilities and invest in grassroots basketball in the UK. £5 Million will be invested into the game.
Additionally, Buzz recently reported that local Dorset side, Bournemouth Oaks has seen a “massive uptake,” with their youth academy growing up to 150 kids playing consistently over the past three years.
The Bournemouth Oaks owner commented: “yes, there’s been a rise in interest in Bournemouth. We’re here to push the boundaries and grow the sport.”
This kind of anecdotal growth, from a small community club, suggests rising local involvement.
Bournemouth is also now riddled with places to play the game. Theres’s basketball clubs, such as the Poole Piranhas and the Bournemouth Oaks.
Courts are not only in parks but indoors as well now so people can also play recreationally.
Albeit, the NBA has made investments on and off the court to try and grow the game in the UK.
But are the NBA really doing the best they can?
During the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, viewer numbers were down 13% from previous years. Reuters.com reports that this was the 2nd lowest numbers for the game ever.
Yes, the NBA may have come to London, but tickets for the game started from £355 as the cheapest option.
This is a huge increase on the average ticket prices for an NBA game as NBA Events.com reports the price of a ticket in the US costs on average £53.81.
Even with the mass investment in the game in the UK, and the evidential growth in the interest in the game.
The NBA coming to the UK is rare, so the league upscaling the price not only harms growth for the game in the UK but it also limits the number of eyes on it too.
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