Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball through the defender's hoop while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own hoop. A field goal is worth two points, unless made from behind the three-point line, when it is worth three. After a foul, timed play stops and the player fouled or designated to shoot a technical foul is given one, two or three one-point free throws. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but if regulation play expires with the score tied, an additional period of play (overtime) is mandated.

The USA Basketball Men's National Team, commonly known as the United States men's national basketball team, is the most successful team in international competition, winning medals in all eighteen Olympic tournaments it has entered, including fifteen golds. In the professional era, the team won the Olympic gold medal in 1992, 1996, 2000, 2008, 2012, and 2016. Two of its gold medal-winning teams were inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in August 2010: the 1960 team, which featured six Hall of Famers, and the 1992 "Dream Team", featuring 14 Hall of Famers. The team is currently ranked first in the FIBA World Rankings.

In sports, a most valuable player award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual as the most performing player in an entire league, for a particular competition, or on a specific team. Initially used in professional sports, the term is now also commonly used in amateur sports, as well as in other unrelated fields such as media, business, and music. In many sports, MVP awards are presented for a specific match—in other words, a player of the match award.

The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It has more than 700,000 members nationwide, including more than 100,000 volunteers.

Women's basketball is a team ball sport developed in the United States of America in the late 1800s, in tandem with its men's counterpart. Women's basketball became popular, spreading from the east to west coast of the United States in large part via women's college competitions. As of 2020, women's basketball is played globally, with basketball being one of the most popular and fastest growing sports in the world.

Basketball at the Summer Olympics has been a sport for men consistently since 1936. Prior to its inclusion as a medal sport, basketball was held as a demonstration event in 1904. Women's basketball made its debut in the Summer Olympics in 1976. FIBA organizes both the men's and women's FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournaments and the Summer Olympics basketball tournaments, which are sanctioned by the IOC.

Suzy Batkovic is an Australian professional basketball player and politician. Suzy played her junior basketball with the Port Hunter Basketball Club in Newcastle. She has played basketball for several European clubs including the French Valenciennes, the Spanish side Ros Casares, the Russian side UMMC Ekaterinburg, and Italian side Cras Basket. In the United States, she has played for the Seattle Storm after having been selected as a first round draft pick in 2003. She has played professional basketball domestically for the Australian Institute of Sport in 1996–1999, the Sydney Uni Flames from 1999–2001, and 2009–2010, the Townsville Fire in 2001–2002, the Canberra Capitals in 2010–2011, and the Adelaide Lightning in 2011–2013; she returned to the Fire for the 2013–14 season. She has been a member of the Australia women's national basketball team, being named to the team for the first time in 1999. She won a silver medal with the team at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Olympics and a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Sports in the Philippines is an important part of the country's culture. There are six major sports in the Philippines: basketball, boxing, tennis, football, billiards, and volleyball. Despite being a tropical nation, ice skating has recently become a popular sport in the Philippines. Sports such as athletics, weightlifting, aerobics, and martial arts are also popular recreations.

Kristi Harrower is an Australian professional basketball player, who three times won the silver medal with the Australian Women's Team at the Summer Olympics, and also the bronze in 2012. She played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1998 to 2005 for the Phoenix Mercury and Minnesota Lynx.

Abby Bishop is an Australian professional basketball forward/center who plays for Virtus Bologna of the Lega Basket Femminile (LBF). In Australia, she has played for the Australian Institute of Sport from 2005–2006, the Canberra Capitals from 2006–2010, Dandenong Rangers from 2010–2011 Canberra Capitals. She is currently a member of the Adelaide Lightning (2016/2017). She is a member of the Australia women's national basketball team and won a gold medal during the 2007 Oceania World Qualifications series and a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Elizabeth Cambage is an Australian professional basketball player for the Las Vegas Aces of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the Australian Opals. Cambage currently holds the WNBA single-game scoring record with her 53-point performance against the New York Liberty on 17 July 2018.