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Baloncesto Superior Nacional

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This article is about the men's league. For the women's league, see Baloncesto Superior Nacional Femenino.

Baloncesto Superior Nacional
Founded1929; 95 years ago (1929)
First season1930 (as LPB)
CountryPuerto Rico
FederationPuerto Rican Basketball Federation
ConfederationFIBA Americas
Number of teams12
Level on pyramid1
International cup(s)Champions League Americas
Current championsCriollos de Caguas
(2 titles; 2006, 2024)
Most championshipsVaqueros de Bayamón
(16 titles)
All-time top scorerGeorgie Torres (15,863)
TV partnersTelemundo Puerto Rico
DirecTV Puerto Rico
Websitewww.bsnpr.com
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.

Competition format

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 will play in the La Final Brava, or the Brava Final, a basketball tournament sponsored by Brava Lubricants.

History

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.

New Era and Renewed Interest (2019-present)

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 of the Vaqueros de Bayamón, when retired professional baseball player Yadier Molina acquired his hometown team.[3] In April 2021, the league approved the return of the Cangrejeros under the ownership of Noah Assad and Jonathan Miranda. Later that month, Bad Bunny joined the ownership group.[4][5] In October 2022, the Osos de Manatí returned from a short hiatus, when Puerto Rican singer Ozuna purchased the Brujos de Guayama and relocated the team to Manatí.[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 Vaqueros 80-60 in Game 5 of the BSN Finals, leading the Gigantes to become the 2023 BSN Champions.[9][10]

In October of 2024, Molina sold ownership of his team.

Current teams

class=notpageimage|
Locations of teams participating in 2024 season
Team Home city Year established Arena Capacity
Atléticos de San Germán San Germán 1930 Arquelio Torres Ramírez Coliseum
5,000
Cangrejeros de Santurce Santurce 1918 Roberto Clemente Coliseum
9,000
Capitanes de Arecibo Arecibo 1946 Manuel Iguina Coliseum
12,000
Criollos de Caguas Caguas 2023* Coliseo Roger Mendoza
3,000
Santeros de Aguada Aguada 1992 Ismael Delgado Coliseum
6,000
Gigantes de Carolina Carolina 1971 Guillermo Angulo Coliseum
5,000
Indios de Mayagüez Mayagüez 1956 Palacio de Recreación y Deportes
5,500
Leones de Ponce Ponce 1946 Juan Pachín Vicéns Auditorium
11,000
Mets de Guaynabo Guaynabo 1935 Mario Morales Coliseum
5,500
Osos de Manatí Manatí 2014 Juan Cruz Abreu Coliseum
8,000
Piratas de Quebradillas Quebradillas 1926 Raymond Dalmau Coliseum
5,500
Vaqueros de Bayamón Bayamón 1930 Ruben Rodriguez Coliseum
12,000

Defunct teams

Championships

Main article: List of BSN Champions

Number of championships won by teams

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 2 2 0 2006, 2024 —
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
  • *These titles are from Farmacia Martin, a team that later merged with the Atléticos de San Germán

[11]

BSN awards and leaders

Main article: Baloncesto Superior Nacional MVP
Main article: Baloncesto Superior Nacional Scoring Champion

League records

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.


BSN statistical leaders

^ Active player
* Inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame

BSN all-time scoring leaders

Rank Player Position(s) Nationality Years Total points Games
played 		Points
per game
average
1
 Georgie Torres
SG
  Puerto Rico 1975–2001
15,863
679
23.4
2
 Mario Morales
SF
  Puerto Rico 1975–1998
15,293
675
22.7
3
 Mario Butler
C
  Panama 1980–2008
12,252
779
15.7
4
 Rolando Frazer
C
  Panama 1980–2001
12,096
603
20.1
5
 Raymond Dalmau
PG
  Puerto Rico 1966–1985
11,592
537
21.6
6
 Rubén Rodríguez
PF
  Puerto Rico 1969–1991
11,549
631
18.3
7
 Roberto Ríos
PG
  Puerto Rico 1978–2000
11,312
681
16.6
8
 Ángel Santiago
SF
  Puerto Rico 1973–1996
11,287
617
18.3
9
 José Quiñones
PF
  Puerto Rico 1976–1995
11,012
579
19
10
 Christian Dalmau
PG
  Puerto Rico 1992–2003, 2009–2017
10,570
639
16.5

BSN all-time rebounding leaders

Rank Player Pos Years Reb GP RPG
1
 Mario Butler
C
 1980–2008 8,236 779 10.6
2
 Rubén Rodríguez
F/C
 1969–1991 6,178 631 9.8
3
 Rolando Frazer
C
 1980–2001 6,153 603 10.2
4
 Raymond Dalmau
F/C
 1966–1985 5,673 537 10.6
5
 Mario Morales
G/F
 1975–1998 5,665 675 8.4
6
 José Ortíz
C
 1980–2006 5,314 505 10.5
7
 Carlos Bermúdez
F
 1970–1984 4,884 422 11.6
8
 Edgar de León
F/C
 1981–2001 4,837 493 9.8
9
 Teófilo Cruz*
C
 1957–1982 4,672 584 8
10
 Ángel Santiago
F
 1973–1996 4,447 617 7.2

BSN all-time assists leaders

Rank Player Position(s) Years Total AST GP APG
1
 James Carter
PG
 1987–2006 3,025 543 5.6
2
 Christian Dalmau
PG/SG
 1992–2003, 2009–2017 2,931 639 4.6
3
 Pablo Alicea
PG
 1987–2006 2,762 503 5.5
4
 Javier Antonio Colón
PG
 1987–2008 2,748 555 5.0
5
 Federico López
PG
 1981–1997 2,440 446 5.5
6
 Wilfredo Pagan
PG
 1992–2018 2,367 652 3.6
7
 Roberto Ríos
G/F
 1978–2000 2,315 681 3.4
8
 Raymond Dalmau
F/C
 1966–1985 2,302 537 5.1
9
 Bobby Joe Hatton
PG
 1994–2012 2,235 489 4.6
10
 George Torres
G/F
 1975–2001 2,203 679 3.2

BSN all-time block leaders

Rank Player Position(s) Nationality Total blocks Games
played 		Blocks
per game
average
1
 Kleon Penn
C
  Puerto Rico
British Virgin Islands British Virgin Islands
755
300
—
2
 Jeffrion Aubry
C
  Puerto Rico
642
—
—
3
 Peter John Ramos
C
  Puerto Rico
527
—
—
4
 Carmelo Lee
SF
  Puerto Rico
414
—
—
5
 Jorge Brian Diaz
C
  Puerto Rico
314
—
—
6
 JaJa Richards
C
  United States Virgin Islands
314
—
—
7
 Luis 'PelaCoco' Hernández
C/F
  Puerto Rico
295
—
—
8
 Ricardo Sanchéz
C/PF
  Puerto Rico
278
—
—
9
 Nathanael Davis
C
  United States
268
—
—
10
 Alphonse Dyer
C
  United States
255
—
—

Last Updated July 26, 2023

See also

References

  1. ^ BSNPR (6 April 2021). "Los Atenienses de Manatí y Cangejeros de Santurce jugarán la temporada 2021". BSNPR.
  2. ^ "Ricardo Dalmau es electo nuevo presidente del BSN".
  3. ^ "Yadier Molina Buys Basketball Team – Latino Sports". 16 October 2020.
  4. ^ "Los Cangrejeros de Santurce regresan al BSN de la mano de Noah Assad, manejador de Bad Bunny" (in Spanish). El Nuevo Día. 6 April 2021. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  5. ^ Jessica Ruiz (18 May 2021). "Bad Bunny Is Now the Co-Owner Of Puerto Rican Basketball Team Los Cangrejeros de Santurce". Billboard. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  6. ^ "Ozuna Ventures into the World of Sports by Acquiring Ownership of Puerto Rican Basketball Team". Billboard.
  7. ^ Vega, Giovanny (8 April 2021). "Sobre la mesa la adición de un tercer refuerzo". El Vocero de Puerto Rico (in Spanish). Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  8. ^ "LeBron James makes young fan's day during Puerto Rican basketball game". CBS Sports. 19 July 2023. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  9. ^ "¡El BSN es del "calentón"! Los Gigantes de Carolina se coronan campeones". 27 July 2023.
  10. ^ "Los Gigantes de Carolina celebran su primer campeonato en el BSN".
  11. ^ "Estadísticas : Campeonatos - Baloncesto Superior Nacional Puerto Rico". bsnpr.com.
  12. ^ "ADENDI". adendi.com.
  13. ^ "40 años de la increíble gesta de Neftalí Rivera". El Nuevo Día. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  14. ^ "JONATHAN GARCIA ROMPE RECORD DE PABLITO ALICEA | Tiro al Blanco". Archived from the original on 25 June 2013. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
  15. ^ "Jonathan García: nuevo rey de asistencias". Primera Hora. 3 May 2012.
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