Explore an interactive map that showcases the hometowns of all current NBA players, offering a unique window into the global distribution of talent. By organizing teams into geographic regions, this guide reveals which areas of the world are most prolific in producing NBA talent. Dive deeper into this comprehensive exploration to uncover the extensive global influence on the NBA.
*The map above shows where every NBA player is from and highlight's each region with more than 2 players.
Which region produces the best NBA talent? In order to answer that we have split the players into different teams based on where they are from and quantified their team strength using each player's Crafted Wins Above Replacement metric. To create the regions, we started with a map from the Washington Post, that divided the USA into 50 regions based on the main city/cities "gravitational pull". We then split up the foreign players into teams based on their regions. Click on a team's name to see it's players.
*population = the region's population, in millions
*ppc = the number of NBA player per capita (per million residents)
*warp = the combined wins above replacement player of the players from this region
*quality = the team's combined WARP divided by their population
| # | Team | Players | Population | PPC | WARP | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LA | 28 | 21.4 | 1.31 | 47.7 | 2.23 |
| 2 | NYC | 22 | 21.6 | 1.02 | 40.8 | 1.89 |
| 3 | Toronto | 18 | 11.2 | 1.61 | 34.1 | 3.04 |
| 4 | DC/Baltimore | 18 | 10.7 | 1.68 | 19.8 | 1.85 |
| 5 | Atlanta | 17 | 9.1 | 1.87 | 33.8 | 3.71 |
| 6 | Chicago | 15 | 10.4 | 1.44 | 22.8 | 2.19 |
| 7 | Detroit/Toledo | 15 | 9.4 | 1.60 | 16.1 | 1.71 |
| 8 | Former Yugoslavia | 14 | 22.1 | 0.63 | 35.8 | 1.62 |
| 9 | Raleigh/Greensboro | 14 | 7.9 | 1.77 | 22.2 | 2.81 |
| 10 | Indianapolis | 14 | 5.5 | 2.55 | 21.1 | 3.84 |
| 11 | Dallas/Fort Worth | 14 | 9.3 | 1.51 | 27.4 | 2.95 |
| 12 | Western Europe | 14 | 170.7 | 0.08 | 24.9 | 0.15 |
| 13 | Philadelphia | 13 | 10.5 | 1.24 | 18.8 | 1.79 |
| 14 | Oceania | 11 | 25.9 | 0.42 | 12 | 0.46 |
| 15 | Charlotte | 11 | 6.9 | 1.59 | 11.9 | 1.72 |
| 16 | Seattle | 11 | 5.6 | 1.96 | 17.4 | 3.11 |
| 17 | Memphis/Little Rock | 10 | 4.7 | 2.13 | 19 | 4.04 |
| 18 | Central Europe | 9 | 160.4 | 0.06 | 15.7 | 0.10 |
| 19 | Kansas City | 9 | 4.2 | 2.14 | 9.6 | 2.29 |
| 20 | Milwaukee/Madison | 9 | 4.9 | 1.84 | 26.4 | 5.39 |
| 21 | Twin Cities | 9 | 6.5 | 1.38 | 8.3 | 1.28 |
| 22 | Central Florida | 8 | 13.3 | 0.60 | 11.4 | 0.86 |
| 23 | Houston | 8 | 8.5 | 0.94 | 12.8 | 1.51 |
| 24 | Charleston/Savannah | 7 | 3.9 | 1.79 | 9.2 | 2.36 |
| 25 | Upstate NY | 7 | 6.2 | 1.13 | 5.2 | 0.84 |
| 26 | Deep South | 7 | 6.2 | 1.13 | 2 | 0.32 |
| 27 | West Africa | 7 | 446.1 | 0.02 | 10.1 | 0.02 |
| 28 | St. Louis | 6 | 4.7 | 1.28 | 21.8 | 4.64 |
| 29 | San Antonio/Austin | 6 | 6.5 | 0.92 | 15.9 | 2.45 |
| 30 | NOLA/Delta | 6 | 8.2 | 0.73 | 2.4 | 0.29 |
| 31 | Richmond/Tidewater | 6 | 4.1 | 1.46 | 5.4 | 1.32 |
| 32 | Turkey/Caucasus | 6 | 94.4 | 0.06 | 10.6 | 0.11 |
| 33 | Bay Area | 6 | 13.4 | 0.45 | 21.7 | 1.62 |
| 34 | Phoenix | 6 | 7.3 | 0.82 | 9.2 | 1.26 |
| 35 | Cincy/Columbus | 6 | 7.9 | 0.76 | 8.1 | 1.03 |
| 36 | The Islands | 5 | 35.5 | 0.14 | 6.3 | 0.18 |
| 37 | New England | 5 | 9.5 | 0.53 | 2 | 0.21 |
| 38 | Las Vegas | 5 | 3.3 | 1.52 | 0.7 | 0.21 |
| 39 | Nashville | 5 | 3.2 | 1.56 | 6.6 | 2.06 |
| 40 | Baltics/Helsinki | 5 | 10.2 | 0.49 | 13.7 | 1.34 |
| 41 | Corn Belt | 5 | 4.1 | 1.22 | 5.9 | 1.44 |
| 42 | Miami | 5 | 7.5 | 0.67 | 7 | 0.93 |
| 43 | Montreal | 4 | 9 | 0.44 | 5.6 | 0.62 |
| 44 | Iberian Peninsula | 4 | 66.2 | 0.06 | 3.6 | 0.05 |
| 45 | Cleveland | 4 | 4 | 1.00 | 9.7 | 2.42 |
| 46 | Portland | 4 | 4.7 | 0.85 | 10.8 | 2.30 |
| 47 | Southern Europe | 4 | 73.1 | 0.05 | 11.2 | 0.15 |
| 48 | Central Africa | 3 | 135.7 | 0.02 | 1.5 | 0.01 |
| 49 | San Diego | 3 | 3.8 | 0.79 | 11 | 2.89 |
| 50 | OKC/Tulsa | 3 | 5.9 | 0.51 | 4.9 | 0.83 |
| 51 | Connecticut Valley | 2 | 4.1 | 0.49 | 4.5 | 1.10 |
| 52 | Eastern Europe | 2 | 157.4 | 0.01 | 0.5 | 0.00 |
| 53 | Louisville | 2 | 4.3 | 0.47 | 2.5 | 0.58 |
| 54 | Pittsburgh | 2 | 4.7 | 0.43 | 5.2 | 1.11 |
| 55 | Denver/Front Range | 2 | 5.8 | 0.34 | 7.8 | 1.34 |
| 56 | Japan | 2 | 125.8 | 0.02 | 2.2 | 0.02 |
| 57 | Columbia Plateau | 1 | 2.7 | 0.37 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 58 | Levant | 1 | 44.3 | 0.02 | 4.3 | 0.10 |
| 59 | Alaska | 1 | 0.7 | 1.43 | 0 | 0.00 |
| 60 | Utah | 1 | 2.7 | 0.37 | 2.5 | 0.93 |