Japanese basketball officials announced the formation of a new professional basketball league onWednesday.

The six-team BJ-League will begin its inaugural season in November 2005 and will be composed of teams in Tokyo, Osaka, Saitama, Oita, Sendai and Niigata.

The 40-game season will run from November to May and four of the six teams will reach the playoffs. Organizers said Wednesday they hope to expand the league to 12 teams playing 80 games by the2010 season. Each team will be allowed to carry 15 players on itsroster: 13 Japanese players and two foreign players.

Basketball has been popular in Japan. NBA games are shown regularly on national broadcaster NHK and the sport enjoyed increased interest when point guard Yuta Tabuse became one of 12 players suiting up for the Phoenix Suns in their season opener earlier this month against the Atlanta Hawks. The 1.75-meter (5-foot, 9-inch) Tabuse is the first Japanese-born player to make an NBA roster.

The 2006 world basketball championships will be played in Japan.

Source: Xinhua