Numbers And Facts About Tonight’s NBA Global Game In London

Numbers And Facts About Tonight’s NBA Global Game In London

 

Today, the NBA will play its annual Global Game in London for a 9th consecutive year. Fans from all over Europe can be excited for a great matchup when the Philadelphia 76ers face the Boston Celtics. Two young, but up and coming teams that play exciting basketball.

Former NBA Champion Gary ‘The Glove’ Payton talked about why the Global Games are worth watching and why London is a great host city.

 

Gary Payton on London:

GP: “It’s a great city. It’s a city that everybody in the United States wants to come to, it’s historic, things like that. They’re going to have fun, it’s going to be a fun thing. And then, you’ve got to think about it, as years go on, this city becomes more of a basketball type of city. That’s why we host games here because, if you think about it, it’s more like New York. They’re both the same, it’s almost like an American city, it’s great like that. I think this city is picking up more on basketball than any city in the world.”

 

On why fans in the UK should go watch the NBA London Game 2018

“It’s going to be an exciting game. I think more young kids and UK people are wondering about basketball. This is a good way to go there and experience the feeling of basketball. Bring the same as you’ve got football over here, do the same as in basketball because you can get excitement. Excitement with the dunks, the threes. You’re going to have great players coming over here. You’ve got a lot of young superstars coming over here, you have to go see this because this is the only way you’re going to learn about basketball even more and see superstars that you might not get to see in the period time, now. Go see it because you’ve got six, seven, eight dynamic players who’s coming, go see it!”

 

Below is a look at additional facts and figures about the NBA London Game 2018 presented by Nike:

1 – The 76ers count two Number 1 Draft picks on their current roster; Ben Simmons (2016) and Markelle Fultz (2017).

– The Atlanta Hawks, Brooklyn Nets, and the Toronto Raptors are tied for the most games played in London with three games apiece.

5
 – The 76ers have already played five games in Europe: two in Spain (2006 and 2013), two in Cologne (2006) and one in Manchester (2013) – their record is 3-2.

8 – The matchup will be the NBA’s eighth regular-season game in London.

9
– This will mark the Celtics’ ninth game in Europe, having played three times in Madrid (two games in 1988 and one in 2015), three times in Italy (2007, 2012 2015), once in London (2007) and once in Istanbul (2012).

10 – 10 seasons since the Celtics played in the first NBA game at The O2 in London; they subsequently went on to win the 2007-08 season NBA Championship.

11 – There will be 11 international players in the NBA London Game 2018: Philadelphia (5): Joel Embiid (Cameroon), Furkan Korkmaz (Turkey), Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (France), Dario Saric (Croatia), Ben Simmons (Australia). Boston (6): Aron Baynes (Australia), Al Horford (Dominican Republic), Kyrie Irving (Australia), Abdel Nader (Egypt), Daniel Theis (Germany), Guerschon Yabusele (France).

16 – The total number of teams that will have played in London following NBA London Game 2018, representing over half of the NBA’s 30 teams.

17 – The Celtics have won a league-best 17 NBA Championships including a record eight consecutive titles between 1959 and 1966.

25 – 25 years since the first NBA Game in London which saw the Atlanta Hawks take on the Orlando Magic in October 1993.

64 – The record number of European players on opening-night rosters for the 2017-18 season.

91 – Following the NBA London Game 2018, the NBA will have played 91 games in Europe.

213 – Standing 213 centimeters in height, 76ers center Joel Embiid is the tallest player at the NBA London Game 2018.

273 – Combined points by the then-New Jersey Nets (137) and Toronto Raptors (136) during the second of two back-to-back games, marking the first-ever regular-season games in Europe at The O2 arena in London, England, on March 4 and 5 as part of NBA Games – London 2011.

267 – The NBA London Game 2018 court that will feature the NBA London Game 2018 presented by Nike logo will be made up of 267 pieces of wood squares.

1983 – The year the 76ers won their third NBA Championship (1955, 1967, 1983).

18,689 – Capacity at The O2 – this year’s game once again sold out in less than one hour.

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