When playing or watching basketball, you need to know the basic rules. There are many rules to keep in mind, but it’s especially useful when watching a match to know the rules regarding team size and member substitutions.
Here we will introduce the basic rules regarding the number of players in a basketball game, such as how many players can be on the bench and how many substitutions can be made.
【table of contents】
■How many people play basketball?
・Number of people who can participate in the match
・Rules regarding player substitutions
■[By age/league]Basketball number regulations
・Minibus (elementary school students)
・Junior high school students/high school students
■What happens if a player leaves the field?
■Enjoy the match by paying attention to how players are used
■How many people play basketball?
The number of players in a basketball game is determined by rules, including the starting lineup and the number of people who can be on the bench. Below is an overview of the rules regarding the number of starting members and player substitutions in general basketball rules.
・Number of people who can participate in the match
The number of starting members who can participate in a basketball game is 5 per team. A total of 10 players from both teams will play on the court.
Players who are not in the starting lineup will be on the bench as substitutes. The number of people who can be on the bench varies depending on the tournament and league, but generally it is about 10 to 15 people per team, including the starting lineup.
・Rules regarding player substitutions
Various sports have some kind of restrictions on player substitutions, such as soccer in which only five players can be substituted in a single game, and baseball in which players who are on the bench are prohibited from re-entering the field.
Basketball is characterized by the ability to substitute players relatively freely.
There is no limit to the number of times, and players who are on the bench can be brought back to play. Since there is no upper limit on the number of players that can be substituted at once, it is possible to use strategies that drastically change the team’s color, such as replacing all five players at once or replacing players every quarter (period).
However, players are not always free to take to the court or return to the bench. Player substitutions must be made only when play is stopped and must be approved by the referee.
■[By age/league]Basketball number regulations
The number of players in a basketball game may vary depending on age, league, etc. We will introduce the rules for the number of people by age and league, so please use this as a reference when watching games.
・Minibus (elementary school students)
Mini basketball (mini bus), which is aimed at elementary school students under the age of 12, has slightly different rules than regular basketball. Keep in mind that in addition to the match time and ring height, the number of participants in the match also differs.
Each team can have five players on the court, a minimum of eight players on the bench, and a maximum of 15 players.
Teams with 10 or more registered players cannot participate in the tournament with 8 or 9 players. For teams with 8 or more but less than 10 players registered, all players must enter to participate in the tournament.
In addition, in order to allow as many players as possible to participate in the minibus, there is a set time limit for each player to participate. Specifically, teams with 10 or more registered players must have 10 or more players participate in the game for at least 6 minutes (1 quarter).
Additionally, it is a rule that 10 or more players must participate in a game for at least 6 minutes and less than 12 minutes by the third quarter.
Player substitutions are only allowed at halftime until the third quarter. In the fourth quarter or overtime, players can be substituted at timeouts or when the game clock stops.
・Junior high school students/high school students
The number of players for junior high and high school basketball games is the same as for regular basketball. The number of players per team is five, and the number of players who can be on the bench is 10 to 15, including the starting lineup.
However, please note that rules may vary depending on the tournament.
For example, in the National High School Basketball Championship (commonly known as the Winter Cup), players who have transferred to another school for less than six months cannot, in principle, participate.
No more than two foreign student athletes may be registered to participate, and only one may be on the court at the same time.
・B League
The regulations regarding the number of players for Japan’s professional basketball “B League” are as follows.
・Roster (number of players who can participate in official games): 10 to 14 players per team
・Active roster (maximum number of players who can be on the bench for each game): 10 to 14 players per team
・Foreign players that can be registered: Up to 3 per team
・Asia special quota (players from the Philippines, Indonesia, South Korea, China, Chinese Taipei) or naturalized players: Up to 1 person per team
・Specially designated players (amateur players aged 16-22): Up to 2 players per team
Additionally, only two foreign players per team can be on the court at the same time during a match.
・NBA
The North American professional basketball league “NBA” plays games under different rules from those used in international tournaments such as the Olympics.
The rules for NBA player registration are as follows:
・Roster: 14-15 people per team
・Active roster: maximum 15 players per team
As for the roster, up to 18 players can be registered, including players on “two-way contracts” who can play in the lower organization G League while being on an NBA team.
It is also stipulated that a minimum of eight players must be available to participate in a match.
・3×3
3×3 (three x three), which was also adopted as a competition at the Tokyo Olympics, also has a different number of players than regular basketball.
As the name suggests, each team can only have three players participating at the same time. You can register up to 4 players per team, including substitute members.
Unlike regular basketball, there is no need to notify the referee when changing players. When the clock stops, you can freely substitute with bench members.
■What happens if a player leaves the field?
In basketball, players who are on the bench can re-enter the game, but players who commit five fouls in one game or who are sent off by the referee cannot re-enter the game.
If a player on the court is ejected for any reason, the game will be restarted with one additional player from the bench, making the court 5-on-5.
Even if the number of players on the bench drops to four or less due to a series of injuries or sending off players, the game can continue as long as there is agreement between the teams.
Although it is rare to see this, the game ends when one player is left on either team, and the team with only one player is recorded as having lost.
■Enjoy the match by paying attention to how players are used
Basketball is a sport with a lot of contact and intense movement. In addition to the high frequency of player substitutions, it is also possible that the number of players will be unexpectedly reduced.
Even in such cases, if you know the rules introduced above, you will be able to enjoy the game even more.
When watching a basketball game, why not pay attention to the players on the bench and how they are used?
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[Text]Alpen Group Magazine Editorial Department
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