| Israeli Basketball Premier League | |
| Country: | Israel |
| Confed: | FIBA Europe |
| First: | 1953–54 |
| Relegation: | Liga Leumit |
| Levels: | 1 |
| Supercup: | League Cup |
| Confed Cup: | EuroLeague EuroCup Champions League Europe Cup |
| Champions: | Maccabi Tel Aviv |
| Most Champs: | Maccabi Tel Aviv (57 titles) |
| Tv: | Sport 5 |
| Ceo: | Ari Steinberg |
| Website: | basket.co.il |
| Current: | 2024–25 Israeli Basketball Premier League |
Ligat HaAl (Hebrew: ליגת העל, lit., Supreme League or Premier League), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is the top-tier level league of professional competition in Israeli club basketball, making it Israel's primary basketball competition. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL (Basketball Super League) or ISBL (Israeli Basketball Super League). For sponsorship reasons, the league is also referred to as Ligat Winner Sal (Hebrew: ליגת ווינר סל), lit. Winner Basket League, with "Winner" being the name of a game operated by the league's primary sponsor, Toto Winner.[1]
The league is run by the Israeli Basketball Super League Administration Ltd.[2]
Ligat HaAl comprises the top 12 basketball clubs in Israel, and was founded in 1954.
The league itself is most known in Europe, due to the success of the Israeli teams in European-wide competitions, such as the EuroLeague, EuroCup (formerly called the ULEB Cup), and FIBA's EuroChallenge (formerly called the FIBA EuroCup). Many non-drafted and free agent players from Europe and the NBA play in the Israeli league, as an alternative to NBA competition.
The league is the first division in Israeli basketball: the team that finishes last in a season is relegated to the Second Division, while the Second Division's top 8 teams compete in a play-off system right after the end of the regular season, with the team that reaches the finals series being promoted to the Premier League for the following season.
There are 12 teams in the league,[3] and they play against each other three times a season. The top eight teams advance to the five-game series Quarter-finals. The winners of the Quarter-finals advance to the Final Four.[4]
In the 1980s and the early 1990s, the Israeli League stars played in Israel against the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic, and Los Angeles Lakers.
In October 2005, Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated the Toronto Raptors 105–103 in an exhibition game played in Toronto, Canada; this was the first victory for any European or Israeli team over an NBA team on its home court.
Over the years, many of its players joined the NBA. In 2009, Omri Casspi became the first Israeli-born NBA player with the Sacramento Kings. Prior to that, three players were drafted: Doron Sheffer (who played U.S. college basketball at Connecticut), Yotam Halperin and Lior Eliyahu. Oded Kattash agreed to play with the New York Knicks, but he never played in the NBA because of the 1998–99 NBA lockout that started on July 1, 1998.
In the 2009 NBA draft, Omri Casspi was selected 23rd overall by the Sacramento Kings, and Gal Mekel followed in 2013 by signing with Dallas Mavericks. In 2016, Dragan Bender became the highest selection from the Israeli Basketball Premier League to be selected in an NBA draft with the Phoenix Suns taking him at 4th overall. Other players who have moved from the league to the NBA include: Will Bynum, Anthony Parker, Joe Ingles, Roger Mason Jr., P. J. Tucker, Eugene "Pooh" Jeter, Elijah Bryant, Carlos Arroyo, and Nate Robinson.
In 2016, Amar'e Stoudemire retired from the NBA. However, on August 1, 2016, he signed a two-year deal with Hapoel Jerusalem, a team he co-owns.[5] On October 1, 2016, he helped Hapoel Jerusalem win the 2016 Israeli Basketball League Cup.[6] He also played for Maccabi Tel Aviv during the 2019–20 season, helping them win the 2019–20 Israeli Basketball Premier League championship. He was named MVP of the championship game.[7]
In 2020 two players declared for the NBA draft. The first being Deni Avdija from Maccabi Tel Aviv and the second being Yam Madar from Hapeol Tel Aviv. Avdija was selected in the first round, 9th overall, by the Washington Wizards, and Madar was taken in the second round with the 47th pick of the draft by the Boston Celtics.
In 2011, the league imposed a limit of four non-Israelis per team.[8] However, as all Jews are immediately eligible for Israeli citizenship under Israel's Law of Return, non-Israeli Jewish basketball players are able to join a team in the league without using up one of the few roster spots available for non-Israeli players.
Examples of Jewish Americans joining teams in the league include Jon Scheyer, Jordan Farmar, Sylven Landesberg, David Blu, Amar'e Stoudemire, and Dan Grunfeld.
See main article: Israeli Basketball Premier League Statistical Leaders.