LNB Pro A
The LNB Pro A, commonly known as Pro A and for sponsorship reasons named the Jeep Élite,[1] is the top-tier men's professional basketball league in France. The competition has existed since 1921. Since 1987, the Ligue Nationale de Basket has organized the league. The bottom two placed teams from each season are relegated to the second tier level Pro B. The winner of the play-offs of the Pro A is crowned the French national champion.
Founded | 1921 |
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Country | France |
Other club(s) from | Monaco |
Confederation | FIBA Europe |
Number of teams | 18 |
Level on pyramid | 1 |
Relegation to | Pro B |
Domestic cup(s) | French Cup (Federation Cup) Leaders Cup (League Cup) |
Supercup | Match des Champions |
International cup(s) | EuroLeague EuroCup Champions League FIBA Europe Cup |
Current champions | ASVEL (19th title) (2018–19) |
Most championships | ASVEL (19 titles) |
Website | www |
2019–20 Pro A season |
Logos
Logos | |
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Since 2017 | Until 2017 |
Competition format
All 16 Pro A League teams play each other twice during the regular season. At the end of the regular season, the top eight teams qualify for the playoffs. The two teams with the worst regular season records are relegated to the 2nd-tier Pro B.
Through the 1985–86 season, the league championship was determined by a one-off final, or solely by league play. Since then, the format for the league finals has changed many times:[2]
- 1987–1992: Best-of-3 series
- 1993: Best-of-5
- 1994: Best-of-3
- 1995–1996: Best-of-5
- 1997–2004: Best-of-3
- 2005–2012: Single match (at Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris)
- 2013–present: Best-of-5
From the 2003–04 season, through the 2006–07 season, the Pro A League had 18 teams. Through the wild-card system, it will have 18 teams again from 2014–15 season.
Current teams
- Notes
- Most recently renamed from Levallois Metropolitans.
Arena rules
Currently, LNB Pro A clubs must play in arenas that seat at least 3,000 people.
French League history
- 1920–21 to 1948–49 Excellence
- 1949–50 to 1962–63 Nationale
- 1963–64 to 1964–65 Première Division
- 1965–66 to 1986–87 Nationale 1
- 1987–88 to 1991–92 Nationale 1A
- 1992 to 1993 Nationale A1
- 1993–94 to present Pro A
- 2017–18–present: Jeep Élite[1]
Title holders
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Performance by club
Club | Champions | Winning years |
---|---|---|
ASVEL | 1949–50, 1950–51, 1951–52, 1954–55, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1963–64, 1965–66, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1974–75, 1976–77, 1980–81, 2001–02, 2008–09, 2015–16, 2018–19 | |
Limoges CSP | 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1999–00, 2013–14, 2014–15 | |
Pau-Lacq-Orthez | 1985–86, 1986–87, 1991–92, 1995–96, 1997–98, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04 | |
FAM | 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1930–31 | |
Le Mans Sarthe | 1977–78, 1978–79, 1981–82, 2005–06, 2017–18 | |
Racing Paris | 1950–51, 1952–53, 1953–54, 1996–97 | |
Alsace de Bagnolet | 1960–61, 1961–62, 1966–67 | |
Olympique Antibes | 1969–70, 1990–91, 1994–95 | |
Stade Français | 1920–21, 1926–27 | |
CAUFA Reims | 1931–32, 1932–33 | |
CAM | 1934–35, 1936–37 | |
SCPO | 1935–36, 1937–38 | |
Métro | 1938–39, 1941–42 | |
Grenoble | 1942–43, 1943–44 | |
Étoile Charleville-Mézières | 1957–58, 1959–60 | |
PUC | 1946–47, 1962–63 | |
Berck | 1972–73, 1973–74 | |
ASPO Tours | 1975–76, 1979–80 | |
Chorale Roanne | 1958–59, 2006–07 | |
SLUC Nancy | 2007–08, 2010–11 | |
Élan Chalon | 2011–12, 2016–17 | |
ICAM Lille | 1921–22 | |
École Normale Arras | 1922–23 | |
Olympique Lillois | 1933–34 | |
Championnet Sports | 1944–45 | |
ESSMG Lyon | 1945–46 | |
Marseille | 1947–48 | |
Denain Voltaire | 1964–65 | |
SIG | 2004–05 | |
Cholet | 2009–10 | |
Nanterre 92 | 2012–13 |
Play-off Finals
Season | Home court advantage | Result | Home court disadvantage | 1st of Regular Season | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Limoges CSP | Cholet | Limoges CSP | |||
Limoges CSP | Orthez | Limoges CSP | |||
Limoges CSP | Olympique Antibes | Limoges CSP | |||
Olympique Antibes | Limoges CSP | Olympique Antibes | |||
Limoges CSP | Pau-Orthez | Limoges CSP | |||
Limoges CSP | Pau-Orthez | Limoges CSP | |||
Limoges CSP | Olympique Antibes | Limoges CSP | |||
Olympique Antibes | Pau-Orthez | Olympique Antibes | |||
Pau-Orthez | ASVEL | Pau-Orthez | |||
ASVEL | PSG Racing | Pau-Orthez | |||
Pau-Orthez | Limoges CSP | ASVEL | |||
Pau-Orthez | ASVEL | Pau-Orthez | |||
ASVEL | Limoges CSP | ASVEL | |||
ASVEL | Pau-Orthez | ASVEL | |||
Pau-Orthez | ASVEL | Pau-Orthez | |||
Pau-Orthez | ASVEL | Pau-Orthez | |||
Pau-Orthez | BCM Gravelines | Le Mans Sarthe | |||
SIG | SLUC Nancy | Le Mans Sarthe | |||
SLUC Nancy | Le Mans Sarthe | Pau-Orthez | |||
SLUC Nancy | Chorale Roanne | SLUC Nancy | |||
SLUC Nancy | Chorale Roanne | Le Mans Sarthe | |||
ASVEL | Entente Orléanaise Loiret | ASVEL | |||
Cholet | Le Mans Sarthe | Cholet | |||
Cholet | SLUC Nancy | Cholet | |||
Élan Chalon | Le Mans Sarthe | BCM Gravelines | |||
SIG | JSF Nanterre | BCM Gravelines | |||
SIG | Limoges CSP | SIG | |||
SIG | Limoges CSP | SIG | |||
SIG | ASVEL | Monaco | |||
Élan Chalon | SIG | Monaco | |||
Monaco | Le Mans | Monaco | |||
LDLC ASVEL | Monaco | LDLC ASVEL | |||
Monaco |
Historical players
- Alexis Ajinça
- Ron Anderson
- Roger Antoine
- Nicolas Batum
- Rodrigue Beaubois
- Louis Bertorelle
- Éric Beugnot
- Jean-Paul Beugnot
- Jim Bilba
- Yann Bonato
- Bruce Bowen
- Michael Brooks
- Marcus Brown
- André Buffière
- Robert Busnel
- Jacques Cachemire
- Fabien Causeur
- René Chocat
- Don Collins
- Richard Dacoury
- Nando de Colo
- Jean Degros
- Boris Diaw
- Yakhouba Diawara
- Alain Digbeu
- Maxime Dorigo
- Hervé Dubuisson
- Laurent Foirest
- Evan Fournier
- Lawrence Funderburke
- Pierre Galle
- Ken Gardner
- Didier Gadou
- Mickaël Gelabale
- Alain Gilles
- Rudy Gobert
- Henri Grange
- Ricardo Greer
- Udonis Haslem
- Thomas Heurtel
- Edwin Jackson
- Keith Jennings
- Cyril Julian
- Frank Kendrick
- Joffrey Lauvergne
- John Linehan
- Timothé Luwawu-Cabarrot
- Ian Mahinmi
- Conrad McRae
- *Sammy Mejia
- Jérôme Moïso
- Robert Monclar
- Gheorghe Mureșan
- François Németh
- Carl Nicks
- Frank Ntilikina
- Hugues Occansey
- Stéphane Ostrowski
- Tony Parker
- Žarko Paspalj
- Johan Petro
- Jean Perniceni
- Jacques Perrier
- Mickaël Piétrus
- Florent Piétrus
- Micheal Ray Richardson
- J.R. Reid
- Antoine Rigaudeau
- Stéphane Risacher
- David Rivers
- Delaney Rudd
- Marc Salyers
- Blake Schilb
- Laurent Sciarra
- Kevin Séraphin
- Moustapha Sonko
- Jean-Pierre Staelens
- Philip Szanyiel
- Axel Toupane
- Ronny Turiaf
- Graylin Warner
- Frédéric Weis
- Léo Westermann
- Rickie Winslow
- Michael Young
Players with the most French League championships won
Player | Club(s) | Number of Titles Won |
---|---|---|
Richard Dacoury | Limoges CSP (8), Racing Paris (1) | 9 |
Alain Gilles | ASVEL | 8 |
Frédéric Fauthoux | Pau-Lacq-Orthez | 7 |
Didier Gadou | Pau-Lacq-Orthez | 7 |
Henri Grange | ASVEL | 7 |
Jean-Michel Sénégal | ASVEL (2), ASPO Tours (2), Limoges CSP (3) | 7 |
André Buffière | Éveil Lyon (1), Marseille (1), ASVEL (4) | 6 |
Laurent Foirest | Olympique Antibes (2), Pau-Lacq-Orthez (3), ASVEL (1) | 6 |
Raymond Sahy | ASVEL | 6 |
French basketball clubs in European and worldwide competitions
Individual awards
In each Pro A season, individual honors are given to players and head coaches who performed well during a given season. The awards that are handed out include:
LNB All-Star Game
Notes and references
- "La PRO A devient la Jeep® ELITE" [The PRO A becomes the Jeep® ELITE]. Msb.fr. 2 March 2018. Retrieved 2 March 2018.
- "2006–07 French League". Euroleague.net. Retrieved 2007-05-29.
External links
- Official Site (in French)
- Eurobasket.com League Page