| Baloncesto Superior Nacional | |
| Pixels: | 250 |
| Country: | Puerto Rico |
| Fed: | Puerto Rican Basketball Federation |
| Confed: | FIBA Americas |
| First: | 1930 (as LPB) |
| Levels: | 1 |
| Confed Cup: | Champions League Americas |
| Champions: | Gigantes de Carolina (1 title) |
| Most Champs: | Vaqueros de Bayamón (16 titles) |
| Top Scorer: | Georgie Torres (15,863) |
| Tv: | Telemundo Puerto Rico DirecTV Puerto Rico |
| Current: | 2024 BSN season |
The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, abbreviated as BSN, is the first-tier-level professional men's basketball league in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1929 and is organized by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation.
The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, which is played under FIBA rules, currently consists of 12[1] teams, of which the most successful has been the Vaqueros de Bayamón with 16 titles as of 2022.
The league has produced players that have distinguished themselves in the NBA, EuroLeague, Spain's ACB, and other tournaments throughout the world. Among them, Georgie Torres was the first Puerto Rican to sign an NBA contract & Butch Lee was the first BSN player to win an NBA title. Later on players including José Ortiz, Ramón Rivas, Daniel Santiago, Carlos Arroyo and J. J. Barea, started their careers playing for BSN teams and later played in the NBA.
The BSN games are played under the regular FIBA basketball rules. The twelve teams each play a total of four games amongst themselves, two at home and two away, for a total of 44 games during the regular season. Of the 12 participating teams, the top 8 move on to the postseason. The final two teams left, play in the "LA FINAL BRAVA".
The league began in 1930, and is noted for having had several head coaches who went on to achieve international recognition later in their careers. Among those are Basketball Hall of Fame members Dr. Jack Ramsay, Tex Winter and Red Holzman, who coached the Leones de Ponce in the 1950s and 1960s, and Phil Jackson, who coached the Piratas de Quebradillas and Gallitos de Isabela in the late 1980s. Others notable coaches who have worked for BSN teams include Gene Bartow, Lou Rossini, Del Harris, P. J. Carlesimo, Bernie Bickerstaff, Herb Brown and Sergio Hernández.
During the 1980s, notable players followed in the footsteps of players such as Juan "Pachin" Vicens (1959 Santiago Chile FIBA World Championship's All-Tournament Team) and Butch Lee, the first Puerto Rican and BSN player to enter the NBA. Among those are: Mario 'Quijote' Morales, Raymond Dalmau, Jose 'Piculin' Ortiz, Ramón Rivas, Jerome Mincy, Georgie Torres, Angelo Cruz, Angel Santiago, the late Federico 'Fico' Lopez, Rolando Frazer, Mario Butler, and Rubén Rodríguez, who showcased their talents to all of Puerto Rico's TV viewers and game goers.
On September 19, 2019, the BSN team owners selected Ricardo Dalmau Santana to succeed Fernando Quiñones Bodea as president of the league.[2]
In October 2020, there was a change in ownership with the Vaqueros de Bayamón with retired pro baseball player Yadier Molina purchasing his hometown team outright.[3] In April 2021, the league approved the return of the Cangrejeros under the ownership of Noah Assad and Jonathan Miranda, who were later joined by urban artist Bad Bunny the following month.[4] [5] In October 2022 the Osos de Manatí returned from hiatus, when local Puerto Rican singer Ozuna had purchase the Brujos de Guayama and relocated the team to Manati.[6] [7]
In game 1 of the 2023 BSN finals, LeBron James made a surprise appearance as the Gigantes defeated the Vaqueros, 89-85, in overtime to take a 1-0 series lead.[8] On July 27 2023, the Gigantes De Carolina defeated the Bayamon Vaqueros 80-60 in Game 5 of the BSN Finals, to become the 2023 BSN Champions.[9] [10]
| Team | width=90 | Home city | Year established | width=200 | Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atléticos de San Germán | San Germán | 1930 | Arquelio Torres Ramírez Coliseum | |||
| Cangrejeros de Santurce | Santurce | 1918 | Roberto Clemente Coliseum | |||
| Capitanes de Arecibo | Arecibo | 1946 | Manuel Iguina Coliseum | |||
| Criollos de Caguas | Caguas | 2023* | Coliseo Roger Mendoza | |||
| Santeros de Aguada | Aguada | 1992 | Ismael Delgado Coliseum | |||
| Gigantes de Carolina | Carolina | 1971 | Guillermo Angulo Coliseum | |||
| Indios de Mayagüez | Mayagüez | 1956 | Palacio de Recreación y Deportes | |||
| Leones de Ponce | Ponce | 1946 | ||||
| Mets de Guaynabo | Guaynabo | 1935 | Mario Morales Coliseum | |||
| Osos de Manatí | Manatí | 2014 | Juan Cruz Abreu Coliseum | |||
| Piratas de Quebradillas | Quebradillas | 1926 | Raymond Dalmau Coliseum | |||
| Vaqueros de Bayamón | Bayamón | 1930 | Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum |
See main article: List of BSN Champions.
| Teams | Finals | Championships | Runners-up | Years won | Years runners-up | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vaqueros de Bayamón | 26 | 16 | 10 | 1933, 1935, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1981, 1988, 1995, 1996, 2009, 2020, 2022 | 1930, 1934, 1970, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2023 | |
| Atléticos de San Germán | 26 | 14 | 12 | 1932, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1942-1943, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1985, 1991, 1994, 1997 | 1931, 1933, 1936*, 1938*, 1940, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1986, 2022 | |
| Leones de Ponce | 25 | 14 | 11 | 1952, 1954, 1960, 1961, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1990, 1992, 1993, 2002, 2004, 2014, 2015 | 1949, 1958, 1963, 1967, 1989, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2013, 2019 | |
| Cangrejeros de Santurce | 14 | 8 | 6 | 1962, 1968, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2007 | 1942, 1942–1943, 1951, 1952, 1964, 2006 | |
| Capitanes de Arecibo | 19 | 8 | 11 | 1959, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2016, 2018, 2021 | 1932, 1946, 1948, 1961, 1966, 1992, 2007, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017 | |
| Cardenales de Río Piedras | 15 | 6 | 9 | 1946, 1955, 1956, 1957,1963, 1976 | 1941, 1947, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1977 | |
| Piratas de Quebradillas | 18 | 6 | 12 | 1970, 1977, 1978, 1979, 2013, 2017 | 1937, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1999, 2000, 2009, 2011, 2020 | |
| Capitalinos de San Juan | 9 | 5 | 4 | 1930, 1931, 1940, 1945, 1958 | 1943, 1944, 1950, 1974 | |
| Mets de Guaynabo | 10 | 3 | 7 | 1980, 1982, 1989 | 1978, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1990, 1993, 2021 | |
| Vega Baja | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1934, 1937 | 1935, 1939 | |
| Gallitos de la UPR | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1944, 1951 | 1945 | |
| Indios de Canóvanas | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1983, 1984 | 1988 | |
| Club Náutico San Juan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1936 | — | |
| Polluelos de Aibonito | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1986 | 1987 | |
| Titanes de Morovis | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1987 | — | |
| Criollos de Caguas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2006 | — | |
| Indios de Mayagüez | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2012 | — | |
| Santeros de Aguada | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2019 | - | |
| Gigantes de Carolina | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2023 | 1979, 1997, 2008 | |
| Brujos de Guayama | 2 | 0 | 2 | — | 1991, 1994 | |
| Gallitos de Isabela | 1 | 0 | 1 | — | 1984 | |
| Maratonistas de Coamo | 1 | 0 | 1 | — | 2004 |
See main article: Baloncesto Superior Nacional MVP.
See main article: Baloncesto Superior Nacional Scoring Champion.
Rubén Rodríguez established most of the early long-standing records in the BSN. He broke both the single-season points record with 810 in 1978 and the highest career points record with 11,549. The current holder of the career mark is Georgie Torres, who broke it before retiring in 2001 with 15,863 points in 679 games, playing his first 7 years before the establishment of the three-point line.[12] Rodríguez also holds the mark for most rebounds in a career with 6,178. He also held the single-season rebound record with 380 in 1978, which stood until Lee Benson broke it in 2008. Currently, Neftalí Rivera holds the record for most points in a game in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional when he scored 79 points on May 22, 1974. In that game he achieved the record by making 34 field goals (all of them 2-pointers as 3-pointers were not adopted back then) and 11 free throws.[13] In 1989, Pablo Alicea of the Gigantes de Carolina established a record for most assists in one game with 25.[14] The record stood for over two decades until May 1, 2012, when Jonathan García of the Caciques de Humacao broke it recording 33 assists against the Brujos de Guayama. García's mark is an unofficial world record pending the approval of Guinness World Records, since there is no higher number recorded in any amateur or professional international league or in FIBA competition.[15] During this game, the Caciques also established the team points record for a single game with 130 and for most scored during a single (10-minute) quarter with 46. The Vaqueros de Bayamón hosted the game with highest attendance in the league, with 17,621 fans attending a home game against Río Piedras on September 8, 1969. This bested the previous top of 16,564 in a game between Ponce and Santurce. The Vaqueros also hold the record for most consecutive championships, winning five from 1971 to 1975.
| ^ | Active player | |
| Inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame |
| Rank | Player | Position(s) | Nationality | Years | Total points | Games played | Points per game average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975–2001 | ||||||||
| 1975–1998 | ||||||||
| 1980–2008 | ||||||||
| Rolando Frazer | 1980–2001 | |||||||
| 1966–1985 | ||||||||
| 1969–1991 | ||||||||
| Roberto Ríos | 1978–2000 | |||||||
| Ángel Santiago | 1973–1996 | |||||||
| José Quiñones | 1976–1995 | |||||||
| Christian Dalmau | 1992–2003, 2009–2017 |
| Rank | Player | Pos | Years | Reb | GP | RPG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mario Butler | 1980–2008 | 8,236 | 779 | 10.6 | |||
| Rubén Rodríguez | 1969–1991 | 6,178 | 631 | 9.8 | |||
| Rolando Frazer | 1980–2001 | 6,153 | 603 | 10.2 | |||
| Raymond Dalmau | 1966–1985 | 5,673 | 537 | 10.6 | |||
| Mario Morales | 1975–1998 | 5,665 | 675 | 8.4 | |||
| José Ortíz | 1980–2006 | 5,314 | 505 | 10.5 | |||
| Carlos Bermúdez | 1970–1984 | 4,884 | 422 | 11.6 | |||
| Edgar de León | 1981–2001 | 4,837 | 493 | 9.8 | |||
| Teófilo Cruz | 1957–1982 | 4,672 | 584 | 8 | |||
| Ángel Santiago | 1973–1996 | 4,447 | 617 | 7.2 |
| Rank | Player | Position(s) | Years | Total AST | GP | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Carter | 1987–2006 | 3,025 | 543 | 5.6 | |||
| Christian Dalmau | 1992–2003, 2009–2017 | 2,931 | 639 | 4.6 | |||
| Pablo Alicea | 1987–2006 | 2,762 | 503 | 5.5 | |||
| Javier Antonio Colón | 1987–2008 | 2,748 | 555 | 5.0 | |||
| Federico López | 1981–1997 | 2,440 | 446 | 5.5 | |||
| Wilfredo Pagan | 1992–2018 | 2,367 | 652 | 3.6 | |||
| Roberto Ríos | 1978–2000 | 2,315 | 681 | 3.4 | |||
| Raymond Dalmau | 1966–1985 | 2,302 | 537 | 5.1 | |||
| Bobby Joe Hatton | 1994–2012 | 2,235 | 489 | 4.6 | |||
| George Torres | 1975–2001 | 2,203 | 679 | 3.2 |
| Rank | Player | Position(s) | Nationality | Total blocks | Games played | Blocks per game average | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
British Virgin Islands | |||||||
| Jeffrion Aubry | |||||||