| 1996–97 BBL season | |
| League: | British Basketball League |
| Sport: | Basketball |
| Playoffs: | Roll of Honour |
| Conf1: | BBL |
| Conf1 Champ: | Leopards |
| Conf2: | Play Off's |
| Conf2 Champ: | London Towers |
| Conf3: | National Cup |
| Conf3 Champ: | Leopards |
| Conf4: | BBL Trophy |
| Conf4 Champ: | London Towers |
| Seasonslist: | List of British Basketball League seasons |
| Seasonslistnames: | British Basketball League |
| Prevseason Year: | 1995–96 |
| Nextseason Year: | 1997–98 |
The 1996–97 BBL season was known as the Budweiser League for sponsorship reasons. The league retained a total of 13 teams, playing 36 games each. The main change featured the return of Crystal Palace after several seasons of rejected applications. Palace replaced Doncaster Panthers following the liquidation of the South Yorkshire club.[1]
The League's two London-based teams dominated throughout the season, with the Leopards team claiming their first silverware in its franchise history after winning the Budweiser League and Sainsbury's Classic Cola Cup double. Their Capital foes, London Towers were equally successful throughout the campaign, clinching the 7 Up Trophy and pipping Leopards to the play-off title, with a one-point victory in the final at Wembley Arena against their rivals.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leopards | 36 | 28 | 8 | 0.778 | 56 | |
| 2 | London Towers | 36 | 26 | 10 | 0.722 | 52 | |
| 3 | Sheffield Sharks | 36 | 26 | 10 | 0.722 | 52 | |
| 4 | Birmingham Bullets | 36 | 26 | 10 | 0.722 | 52 | |
| 5 | Chester Jets | 36 | 24 | 12 | 0.667 | 48 | |
| 6 | Manchester Giants | 36 | 22 | 14 | 0.611 | 44 | |
| 7 | Newcastle Eagles | 36 | 21 | 15 | 0.583 | 42 | |
| 8 | Leicester Riders | 36 | 15 | 21 | 0.416 | 30 | |
| 9 | Derby Storm | 36 | 14 | 22 | 0.389 | 28 | |
| 10 | Thames Valley Tigers | 36 | 14 | 22 | 0.389 | 28 | |
| 11 | Worthing Bears | 36 | 12 | 24 | 0.333 | 24 | |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 36 | 5 | 31 | 0.138 | 10 | |
| 13 | Hemel & Watford Royals | 36 | 2 | 34 | 0.055 | 4 |
| = League winners | ||
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
(1) Leopards vs. (8) Leicester Riders
(2) London Towers vs. (7) Newcastle Eagles
(3) Sheffield Sharks vs. (6) Manchester Giants
(4) Birmingham Bullets vs. (5) Chester Jets
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ware Rebels | 26 | 21 | 5 | 0.808 | 47 | |
| 2 | Plymouth Raiders | 26 | 20 | 6 | 0.769 | 46 | |
| 3 | Coventry Crusaders | 26 | 18 | 8 | 0.693 | 44 | |
| 4 | Guildford Swifts | 26 | 18 | 8 | 0.693 | 44 | |
| 5 | Oxford Devils | 26 | 16 | 10 | 0.615 | 42 | |
| 6 | Westminster Warriors | 26 | 15 | 11 | 0.578 | 41 | |
| 7 | Stockton Mohawks | 26 | 14 | 12 | 0.538 | 40 | |
| 8 | Cardiff Phoenix | 26 | 14 | 12 | 0.538 | 40 | |
| 9 | Nottingham Knights | 26 | 12 | 14 | 0.462 | 37 | |
| 10 | Bury & Bolton Wildcats | 26 | 11 | 15 | 0.423 | 36 | |
| 11 | Mid-Sussex Magic | 26 | 10 | 16 | 0.385 | 36 | |
| 12 | Brixton TopCats | 26 | 7 | 19 | 0.269 | 33 | |
| 13 | Liverpool Atac | 26 | 6 | 20 | 0.231 | 32 | |
| 14 | Solent Stars | 26 | 0 | 26 | 0.000 | 26 |
| = League winners | ||
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
Semi-finals
Final
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Solihull Chiefs | 26 | 25 | 1 | 0.962 | 51 | |
| 2 | London Towers II | 26 | 22 | 4 | 0.846 | 48 | |
| 3 | Thames Valley Tigers II | 26 | 20 | 6 | 0.769 | 46 | |
| 4 | South Wales SS | 26 | 17 | 9 | 0.654 | 43 | |
| 5 | South Bank Leopards | 26 | 15 | 11 | 0.578 | 41 | |
| 6 | Derby Storm II | 26 | 15 | 11 | 0.578 | 41 | |
| 7 | Slough Chargers | 26 | 14 | 12 | 0.538 | 40 | |
| 8 | Northampton 89ers | 26 | 11 | 15 | 0.423 | 37 | |
| 9 | Aston Adante | 26 | 9 | 17 | 0.346 | 35 | |
| 10 | Swindon Sonics | 26 | 8 | 18 | 0.308 | 34 | |
| 11 | Flintshire Flyers | 26 | 7 | 19 | 0.269 | 33 | |
| 12 | Chessington Wildcats | 26 | 7 | 19 | 0.269 | 33 | |
| 13 | Sheffield Forgers | 26 | 6 | 20 | 0.231 | 31 | |
| 14 | Bournemouth Dolphins | 26 | 5 | 21 | 0.192 | 30 |
| = League winners | ||
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
Final
| width=240 | Team 1 | width=240 | Team 2 | width=60 | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 91-61 | |||||
| 56-86 | |||||
| 91-84 | |||||
| 55-95 | |||||
| 70-102 | |||||
| 80-79 | |||||
| 74-84 | |||||
| 103-112 |
| width=240 | Team 1 | width=240 | Team 2 | width=60 | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 103-98 | |||||
| 83-74 | |||||
| 99-93 | |||||
| 87-102 |
| width=240 | Team 1 | width=240 | Team 2 | width=60 | 1st Leg | width=60 | 2nd Leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 91-80 | 75-84 | ||||||
| 93-92 | 72-70 |
Northern Group
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | L | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.Sheffield Sharks | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| 2.Chester Jets | 8 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0.800 | |
| 3.Leicester Riders | 4 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0.400 | |
| 4.Manchester Giants | 4 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0.400 | |
| 5.Derby Storm | 2 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0.200 | |
| 6.Newcastle Eagles | 2 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0.200 |
Southern Group
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | L | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.Leopards | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| 2.Thames Valley Tigers | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0.600 | |
| 3.Worthing Bears | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0.600 | |
| 4.Birmingham Bullets | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0.600 | |
| 5.Crystal Palace | 2 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0.400 | |
| 6.Hemel & Watford Royals | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0.000 |
Leicester finished ahead of Manchester by having the best head-to-head record between the teams, whilst Birmingham qualify as fourth-placed finishers with the best record. London received a bye into Quarter-finals.
Birmingham Bullets vs. Leicester Riders
Leopards vs. London TowersThames Valley Tigers vs. Chester JetsWorthing Bears vs. Sheffield Sharks
Chester Jets vs. Leicester Riders
Sheffield Sharks vs. London Towers