The NBA is the strongest basketball league in the world, which allows fans to have fun in every game in a great way. Not everyone can play in this league, but only selected players who must have great physical predispositions that enable them to make incredibly attractive moves in almost every game.

Spectacular dunks, incredible shots for three points, crazy assists, blocks, all that fans can see during one NBA game. Each NBA game lasts a little more than two hours on average, and during that time, fans have the opportunity to enjoy a beautiful basketball show.

Spectators not only enjoy the moves of their favorite players, but they can also adequately have fun during the break between the two halves. During that period, which lasts fifteen minutes, fans can participate in interesting prize games, watch the performances of cheerleaders, go to the toilet, eat or drink something.

For the players, that time is an opportunity to rest before the game continues and to agree with the coach on tactics before the start of the second half.

How long does NBA game last?

Each NBA game lasts 48 minutes and is divided into four periods called quarters and each quarter lasts 12 minutes. Of course, there are many interruptions during the game, so the NBA match doesn't last 48 minutes.

As we have already mentioned, the matches last more than two hours, and how long the match will last depends on whether there were several overtimes in the match, whether there were many fouls, which means a large number of free throws during which time stands still.

Timeouts are needed, and each team has seven timeouts at its disposal, so time is spent on that as well. After every quarter, the players go on a break that lasts shorter or longer, so when all the mentioned things are taken into account, then it is quite logical that the matches last over two hours and sometimes longer than that.

How long is NBA quarter?

Each NBA game consists of four periods. These periods are called quarters. Each quarter lasts 12 minutes. Due to various interruptions, timeouts, fouls, free throws, the time of stopping one quarter lasts much longer than 12 minutes. One half in the NBA lasts more than an hour, and between the two halves, players go on a 15-minute break.

After the remaining quarters, the players go for short breaks during which they receive advice from the coach, and during these breaks, commercials are shown on small screens showing the sponsors of the league and a certain club. These breaks do not last longer than 130 seconds. If the winner is not won after four quarters or 48 minutes, overtime will be played. One overtime lasts five minutes.

Overtime is played until the winner is won, because basketball is a sport in which there is no draw, unlike some other sports. The people who lead the NBA league estimated that this way of dividing the game into four periods of 12 minutes is the most suitable for both fans and players. Earlier games were divided into two periods and examples in the NCAA such a division is present today, so the game consists of two periods lasting 20 minutes. In Europe, the match is also divided into four periods, but one quarter lasts 10 minutes.

How long is NBA halftime?

Since one quarter in the NBA lasts twelve minutes, one-half of an NBA game lasts 24 minutes. After each quarter, the players go on vacation. After the first, third, and fourth quarters, the players go on a break that lasts 130 seconds. The longest break is between two halves, which lasts 15 minutes.

Basketball is a very dynamic sport and players spend a lot of their own energy. Sometimes the result is not appropriate for a certain team, the opponent gained a huge advantage in the first half and then all the players can hardly wait for halftime. During those fifteen minutes, the players can rest before the efforts that await them in the continuation of the game.

This is a great opportunity to listen to advice from their coach, to come together if they are not doing very well that day and to focus on how to play better in the second half than the game they provided in the first half. During that time, the fans also have the opportunity to rest, but also to have a good time.

How long is the break between periods in the NBA? 

NBA games last relatively long, ie more than two hours, among other things, because the players go on a shorter or longer break after every quarter. As we mentioned mostly most of these breaks don’t last much longer than two minutes. After the first, second, and third quarters, that break lasts 130 seconds.

At first glance, those breaks don't mean much, but every break is welcome to the players because the NBA is a league that is played very fast and those little more than two minutes mean to the players to breathe the air and prepare for the game.

During that short break, the players receive advice from their coach who tells them what they should fix in the continuation of the match. Fans can hardly do much during those breaks. That’s not enough time to go to the bathroom or buy something to freshen up.

At that moment, it will certainly be nice for them to stay in the stands, because they will probably be able to see attractive cheerleaders who are there to entertain the fans in the breaks between quarters.

For some more serious things, he will use halftime when the break lasts 15 minutes, which is quite enough time to do a lot of things before the second half starts.

What do players and fans do during halftime? 

During a half-time that lasts 15 minutes, all the actors of one NBA game can do a lot of things. The players go to the locker room where they are recovering from a hard first half.

On that occasion, the coaches give the players advice and tell them what was good, and also what was not good in their game during the first half. The players really used those 15 minutes in a productive way.

If necessary, they go to the toilet, but those 15 minutes are really enough time for the players to rest before the game continues. The players used the last few minutes to warm up before the start of the second half.

After almost an hour, a 15-minute break is good for the fans. During that holiday, fans can buy a refreshing drink, eat something or go to the toilet because they have enough time for all these things.

On the other hand, they can always enjoy interesting basketball shows that are mostly organized during halftime. They can see great acrobatics and fantastic moves, performances by cheerleaders, or participate in prize games.

Teams in the NBA have a lot of great sponsors who often want to reward the fans of the team they love.

For example, fans shoot a three-pointer from half the field and if they hit that shot, they get money, a car, or some other reward. Like other shorter breaks, halftime serves to ensure that all sponsors are respected.

Fans who watch the game from home will have the opportunity to see a lot of commercials on TV during halftime, and also, like the fans in the hall, go to the toilet to eat or drink something.

Fun Fact 

Before the end of 2020, we had the opportunity to watch a historic match. The participants in that game were the Dallas Mavericks and the Los Angeles Clippers, and the game went down in NBA history because the Mavericks had a 50-point advantage at halftime. Dallas had a 75-25 advantage.

That is the biggest advantage that any NBA team had at halftime. The Clippers eventually managed to score 73 points, but were defeated by as much as 51 points, which is the worst defeat in the history of this franchise.

The previous record lead at halftime was held by the Golden State Warriors, who just over three decades ago had a 47-point lead at halftime against the Sacramento Kings.

Final words

Halftime is a great opportunity for players and fans to adequately rest and prepare for the continuation of the match. The break between the two halves lasts 15 minutes.

During that time, the players have the opportunity to refocus before the game continues and to listen to all the tactical ideas of their coach. Sometimes players don’t have their day and don’t play at their best so they can’t wait for halftime to come.

During that period, they can see where they made mistakes and fix it in the second half.

During those 15 minutes, the fans also have the opportunity to take a break. They can go to the toilet, eat or drink something, and possibly participate in a prize game. All the players in the NBA game used that period in a productive way.