Bram Welch has been writing about sports betting and iGaming for over five years now, starting as a freelancer before joining our team. Previously he worked teaching English as a foreign language and as a journalist for the UK's largest regional newspaper.
All posts by Bram Welch
Writer and editor with over 15 years of experience in the iGaming industry, having worked for TeamTalk, ClubCall, Planet Sport and several Tier 1 and Tier 2 sportsbooks. Passionate Middlesbrough FC supporter.
All posts by Andrew MorganThe NBA contains 30 teams, each with a different number of players. Each team is limited to 15 players but not all teams use their full allowance. Meanwhile, some teams go over the limit using two-way contracts.
It is therefore hard to discern exactly how many players are playing in the NBA at any one time. However, let’s take a look at how many players tend to compete in a typical NBA season.
-
NBA Rosters – A Simplified Breakdown
We can work out roughly how many players there are with some simple math. We know there are 30 teams and that each NBA team can have a maximum of 15 players in a squad.
15 x 30 = 450
Therefore there should be a maximum of 450 players competing in an NBA season. However, the actual number of players involved in an NBA season usually exceeds 450. There are a few reasons for this.
Total Number of NBA Players in Recent Seasons
Each team is allowed 15 players and there are 30 teams so there should be a maximum of 450 players in an NBA season. However, this is not the case.
The number of players who have recorded at least one minute of playing time in NBA games has exceeded 500 per season in each of the last six seasons. Prior to this, the numbers were around 480. Why?
Why Does the Number of NBA Players Vary?
The number of players in an NBA season rarely sits at our previously calculated number of 450. The number of NBA players varies each season for a few reasons. Take a look at the factors that largely contribute to the smaller or larger number of players in the NBA each season.
1. Fifteen contracts is the maximum limit, some teams have fewer
Teams can register a maximum of 15 players in a season. However, this is merely a maximum and some teams may register fewer. This might be down to choice or due to a constraint of resources. Every team must have at least 12 active players though so there will always be at least 360 players competing in the NBA.
In the 2023-24 season, the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns, and Toronto Raptors have only registered 14 players. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, and Philadelphia 76ers have only registered 13 official players.
2. Some teams have players on two-way contracts
In the 2017-18 season, the NBA introduced two-way player contracts. These mean that teams can sign three extra players to both their professional basketball squad and their minor league team. A current example would be point guard JD Davison. He is signed for both the Boston Celtics and their G League affiliate team, the Maine Celtics. G League players often feature in the NBA and he has played for both Celtics teams in the 2023-24 season.
Two-way player slots do not count towards the overall roster maximum of 15. Davison, along with center Neemias Queta and power forward Drew Peterson, are on two-way contracts with the Celtics. This means Boston have three more players to use beyond the 15 registered as part of their official squad.
3. The adoption of 10-day contracts
The National Basketball Association introduced 10-day contracts as a way for teams to combat spikes in injuries. They are only permitted after January 5 each season, although the NBA can grant an exception if a team is facing a particularly high number of injuries.
Ten-day contracts cannot run into the NBA playoffs and so are only applicable to regular season games after January 5. Their time span, as the name suggests, is 10 days or three games, whichever is longer.
These contracts are another reason why a team might field more than 15 basketball players in a season.
4. Other key reasons
Of course, during the season, teams will add new players to their NBA roster. They might also waive a player’s contracts before replacing them with another player. Teams will also sell and trade players so there can be a lot of movement in NBA squads throughout the season.
This is another way that the overall number of players in an NBA season can vary from the expected league wide average of 450.
How Many Players Are in the NBA – The History
Towards the end of the Basketball Association of America, before it merged with the National Basketball League in 1949, there were 11 teams with a roster of around 12 players each. This means there would be around 132 players in the final days of the BAA.
In the 1961-62 season, NBA teams were allowed up to 10 players. There were nine teams in that season, meaning there were 90 players competing.
By the 1970s, teams were permitted rosters of 11 or 12 players. There were 17 teams in the 1970-71 season so this means there were between 187 and 204 players competing.
At the beginning of the Larry Bird and Magic Johnson era in the early 1980s, teams still had rosters of around 11-12 players. By the middle of the decade, rosters contained around 13 people. By the beginning of the Chicago Bulls’ domination in the 1990s, teams had rosters of around 15 players. This was the highest in NBA history at the time.
All of this makes calculating the total number of players in the NBA ever quite impossible.
How the Total Number of NBA Players Compares to Other Major US Sports
The upper limit of rosters in other popular US sports varies.
The NHL allows rosters of between 20 and 23 players. Teams must operate with at least 18 skaters and two goalkeepers. NHL teams have six players on the ice at any one time whereas there are five players on the NBA court per basketball team. Yet the difference between the roster sizes is quite significant. In theory, an NHL roster could make up nearly four teams as opposed to the NBA’s three.
The MLB allows a squad of 26 men with up to 13 pitchers per team. From September 1, teams must have at least 28 players, including a maximum of 14 pitchers, until the end of the regular season. The large difference from an NBA squad is understandable because they need to put nine fielders on the field and there will be pitchers and batters to consider too.
The MLS allows a team to register up to 30 players on its first team roster. A match-day squad consists of 18 players, which usually includes two goalkeepers.
By far and away the largest rosters in US sports exist in the NFL. The NFL allows rosters of up to 53 players along with a 16-player practice squad. The match-day squad in the NFL is composed of a defensive and an offensive team, each with 11 players. Despite the huge number of players, the NFL roster actually only contains two match-day squads’ worth of players.
Conclusion
NBA teams are allowed a maximum of 15 players registered on their roster. There are 30 teams so there should be 450 players involved in each season. However, teams are also allowed three more players on two-way contracts. They may also sign players on 10-day contracts to help deal with injuries.
As a result, the number of players in an NBA season is often over 500. It is one of the smallest upper limits for rosters in US sports.
How Many Players Are in the NBA – FAQs
How many players are in the NBA currently?
How does the total number of NBA players compare with other sports?
How many players are in the NBA Hall of Fame?
