By Official Release
Posted Dec 9 2009 6:00PM
The start of the 2009-10 NBA season will mark 83 international players from 36 countries and territories on official rosters (active and inactive), matching the record of international players on opening night rosters (2006-07). Twenty-seven of the 30 teams have at least one international player.
The Milwaukee Bucks roster features the most international players with seven. The Charlotte Bobcats, Sacramento Kings and Toronto Raptors each feature five international players. Omri Casspi (Israel) of the Sacramento Kings, Jonas Jerebko (Sweden) of the Detroit Pistons, and Hasheem Thabeet (Tanzania) of the Memphis Grizzlies are representing their countries for the first time on an NBA roster. France has the strongest representation with a record ten players. At the end of the 2008-09 regular season, the NBA featured 77 international players from 33 countries and territories on team rosters (both active and inactive). In comparison, the NBA had 36 international players from 24 countries and territories in 1999-2000.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | Bulls' Defend on a String Even though the possession ends with a basket, the Bulls' showcase great defense, good rotations and closeouts against the Nets. |
 | Sealing the Perimeter The Bulls' aggressive defense prevents the Knicks' from getting the ball to their wingman. |
 | Sealing the Perimeter 2 Kyle Korver and Luol Deng's aggressive defense shuts down the Celtics 3-point shooters. |
 | The Art of Defense The Bulls showcase their great ability to defend the New York Knicks without fouling. |
 | Bulls Weak Side The Nets actually get an open corner 3 on the Bulls weak-side but was unable to capitalize on the opportunity. |
 | The Lin-sanity Continues Jeremy Lin exploded for 38 points against the Lakers at Madison Square Garden on Friday night. Relive the Lin-sanity. |
 | The Daily Zap Get highlights from all 12 games on Friday night in one convenient spot. |
 | Play of the Day Chris Paul proves to be clutch for the Clippers as he hits the game-winning shot with three seconds left on the clock. |
 | Friday's Top 10 Catch the top 10 assists, blocks, steals, alley-oops, drives and game-winners from Friday's action. |
 | Nightly Notable Jeremy Lin lights up the Lakers for 38 points and seven assists in the Knicks victory on Friday night. |
Copyright © NBA Media Ventures, LLC. All rights reserved. No portion of NBA.com may be duplicated, redistributed or manipulated in any form. By accessing any information beyond this page, you agree to abide by the Privacy Policy / Your California Privacy Rights and Terms of Use. | Ad Choices 
NBA.com is part of Turner - SI Digital, part of the Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network.
