The Latvian-Estonian Basketball League, known as Paf Latvian-Estonian Basketball League for sponsorship reasons, is the top-tier men's basketball league in Latvia and Estonia. The competition was introduced in 2018 and is organised by the Latvian Basketball Association and the Estonian Basketball Association.
 | |
| Founded | 2018 |
|---|---|
| First season | 2018–19 |
| Countries |  Estonia (8 teams) Latvia (7 teams) |
| Other club(s) from |  Ukraine (1 team) |
| Confederation | FIBA Europe |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Current champions | BC Prometey (2nd title) |
| Most championships | BC Prometey (2 titles) |
| TV partners | Delfi TV, Inspira, LTV7, TV4 |
| Website | estlatbl.com |
 2023–24 season | |
History edit
Following the demise of the Baltic Basketball League, the LEBL was established in 2018 when the Latvijas Basketbola līga (LBL) and the Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML) largely merged. In its inaugural season, 15 teams participated in the league.[1] After a Final Four is played to determine the winner of the league, there are playoffs to decide the national champions of Latvia and Estonia. The first game was played on 28 September 2018, with Estonian champions BC Kalev/Cramo hosting a game against the Latvian champions BK Ventspils. On 9 April 2019, BK Ventspils won the first league championship.[2] On 19 November 2021, representatives of the Latvian Basketball Association and the Estonian Basketball Association agreed to continue the development of a joint league for the next three years. Both parties acknowledged that the league promotes the development of players and coaches, attracts basketball fans and inspires young people to focus on basketball.[3]
In June 2022, Ukrainian club BC Prometey joined the league as the Ukrainian SuperLeague was suspended due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. The team plays its home games in Riga.[4]
Title sponsorships edit
Since inaugural season, the League has had title sponsorship rights sold to two companies, most recently to the Paf betting company.
| Period | Sponsor | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 2018–2019 | Olympic Entertainment Group | OlyBet Latvian-Estonian Basketball League |
| 2019–2024 | Paf | Paf Latvian-Estonian Basketball League |
Competition format edit
The competition follows a double round-robin format. During the course of a season each club plays each other club twice (once at home and once away). Teams' rankings at season end are determined by winning percentage. At season end, the eight top teams play-off, pitting the first place standings team against the 8th place team, and so on. The play-off format initially was supposed to be Quarterfinals and Final Four, but since the inaugural season it has changed every season.
For the 2023-24 season play-off format changed. Quarterfinals and semifinals are to be played in best-of-three series, while bronze and gold medals are to be played out in one game with hosts being a team that finished regular season higher in the standings.
Home Grown Player Rule edit
A foreign player (not Latvian or Estonian) who has been registered and played in the Latvian National Championship or the Estonian National Championship for three consecutive seasons between the ages of 12 and 19 is considered to be a local player.[5]
Current teams edit
| Team | Home city | Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| AVIS UTILITAS Rapla
|
Rapla | Sadolin Sports Hall | 958[6] |
| BC Kalev/Cramo
|
Tallinn | Unibet Arena | 7,200[7] |
| Kalev Sports Hall | 1,700[8] | ||
| BC Prometey
|
Riga | Arena Riga | 11,200 |
| Rimi Olympic Sports Center | 830 | ||
| BK Liepāja
|
Liepāja | Liepāja Olympic Center | 2,542 |
| BK Ogre
|
Ogre | Sports Arena Ogre | 1,700 |
| BK Ventspils
|
Ventspils | Ventspils Olympic Center | 3,085 |
| Keila Coolbet
|
Keila | Keila Health Center | 800[9] |
| Latvijas Universitāte
|
Riga | Rimi Olympic Sports Center | 830 |
| Pärnu Sadam
|
Pärnu | Pärnu Sports Hall | 1,820[10] |
| Rīgas Zeļļi
|
Riga | Arena Riga | 11,200 |
| Daugava Sports Hall | 400 | ||
| Tallinn Kalev
|
Tallinn | TalTech Sports Hall | 1,000[11] |
| Nord Cramo Sports Hall | 980[12] | ||
| TalTech/OPTIBET
|
TalTech Sports Hall | 1,000[11] | |
| Tartu Ülikool Maks & Moorits
|
Tartu | University of Tartu Sports Hall | 2,600[13] |
| Valmiera GLASS VIA
|
Valmiera | Vidzeme Olympic Center | 1,500 |
| VEF Rīga
|
Riga | Rimi Olympic Sports Center | 830 |
| Viimsi
|
Haabneeme | Forus Sports Center | 500[14] |
Results edit
| Season | Final | Third and fourth place | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winners | Score | Second place | Third place | Score | Fourth place | |||
| 2018–19 Details |
 BK Ventspils |
102–80 | VEF Rīga |
 BC Kalev/Cramo |
87–85 | BK Ogre | ||
| 2019–20 Details |
Curtailed and voided due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||
| 2020–21 Details |
BC Kalev/Cramo |
86–75 | VEF Rīga |
BK Ogre |
75–73 | AVIS UTILITAS Rapla | ||
| 2021–22 Details |
VEF Rīga |
95–64 | KK Viimsi/Sportland |
Pärnu Sadam |
84–77 | BK Ogre | ||
| 2022–23 Details |
 BC Prometey |
77–62 | VEF Rīga |
Tartu Ülikool Maks & Moorits |
63–60 | BC Kalev/Cramo | ||
| 2023–24 Details |
BC Prometey |
91-83 | Kalev/Cramo |
VEF Rīga |
84–76 | BK Ventspils | ||
Performance by club edit
| Club | Winners | Runners-up | Years won | Years runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BC Prometey
|
2 | 0 | 2023, 2024 | – |
| VEF Rīga
|
1 | 3 | 2022 | 2019, 2021, 2023 |
| BC Kalev/Cramo
|
1 | 1 | 2021 | 2024 |
| BK Ventspils
|
1 | 0 | 2019 | – |
| Viimsi
|
0 | 1 | – | 2022 |
All-Final Four Team edit
The Latvian-Estonian Basketball League All-Final Four Team is an award for the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League, that is given to the league's top five basketball players for each season.
Team by season edit
League records edit
The following records include games played in the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League since its establishement in 2018. These records do not include any games played in local championship playoffs, Latvian Basketball League and Estonian Basketball League respectively.
- Most points scored in a game
- 41 by
Roberts Blūms ( VEF Rīga), against Kalev/SNABB on January 21, 2024 - 41 by
Matej Radunić (
Keila KK), against Valmiera Glass VIA on March 17, 2023 - 41 by
Jalen Riley ( VEF Rīga), against BK Liepāja on February 5, 2022
- 41 by
- Most total rebounds in a game
- 21 by
Arnaldo Toro ( VEF Rīga), against BK Liepāja on November 14, 2023 - 21 by Klāvs Dubults ( Valmiera Glass VIA), against Rakvere Tarvas on March 6, 2022
- 21 by
- Most assists in a game
- 17 by Tony Wroten ( Kalev/Cramo), against Jēkabpils/SMScredit.lv on January 24, 2019
- 17 by
- Most steals in a game
- 10 by Kevin Anthony Johnson ( Keila KK), against KK Viimsi on September 24, 2023
- 10 by Alterique Gilbert ( Pärnu Sadam), against BK Liepāja on March 5, 2022
- 10 by
- Most blocked shots in a game
- 7 by
Tomas Pavelka ( Tartu Ülikool Maks & Moorits), against Pärnu Sadam on December 7, 2022 - 7 by Klāvs Čavars ( VEF Rīga), against Jēkabpils/SMScredit.lv on February 9, 2019
- 7 by
- Most 3-point field goals made in a game
- 11 by Jalen Riley ( VEF Rīga), against BK Liepāja on February 5, 2022
- 11 by
- Highest PIR in a game
- 60 by Matej Radunić ( Keila KK), against Valmiera Glass VIA on March 17, 2023
- 60 by
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "News – 15 teams participating in OlyBet Latvian-Estonian Basketball League". www.estlatbl.com. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "News – Ventspils won the first ever OlyBet Latvian-Estonian basketball league trophy (Lomažs was named MVP)". www.estlatbl.com. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
- ^ "Tweet from official League account". www.twitter.com. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ "Ukrainian club Prometey to play in a Latvian-Estonian League". basketnews.com. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
- ^ "Latvian-Estonian Basketball League Regulations" (PDF). www.basket.lv. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 February 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2021.
- ^ "Sadolin Spordihoone". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Unibet Arena". Retrieved 16 April 2024.
- ^ "Kalevi Spordihall". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Keila Tervisekeskus". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Pärnu Spordihall". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ a b "Tallinna Tehnikaülikooli spordihoone". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Nord Cramo spordihoone". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Tartu Ülikooli Spordihoone". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "FORUS Spordikeskus Viimsi". spordiregister.ee (in Estonian). Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "BC Kalev/Cramo defeated VEF in Paf League final, Ogre brought home the bronze". www.estlatbl.com. 12 April 2021. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
- ^ "Riia VEF pani Paf liiga finaalis oma klassi maksma, debütant KK Viimsi sai kaela väga magusa hõbemedali" (in Estonian). Estonian Basketball Association. 10 April 2022.
- ^ "Külalised Ukrainast võitsid hõredate rivide kiuste Eesti-Läti liiga". Postimees Sport (in Estonian). 8 April 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2023.