COMPETITION SYSTEM
The Eligible NFs will be divided into six (6) Continentals, playing on the following dates:
20th January 2023 & 24th January (if qualified for finals)
- South East Asia
- Middle East
21st January 2023 & 24th January (if qualified for finals)
- Africa
22nd January 2023 & 25th January (if qualified for finals)
- Europe
25th January 2023
- North America
- South America
For the Middle East and Southeast Asia Conferences, each Team will play against the other Teams in their Conference once. The top two (2) Teams in each Conference will play a best of three final.
For the North and South America Conferences, the Teams will play against each other in a best of three final.
For the African Conference, the nations will be drawn into two (2) groups of four (4) Teams. Each Team will play against the other Teams in the group once. The top two (2) Teams from each group will advance to a knockout phase consisting of semi-finals and a final both in best of three format.
Teams in the Europe Conference will be drawn into two (2) groups of six (6) Teams. Each Team will play against the other Teams in the group once. The top two (2) Teams from each group will advance to a knockout phase consisting of semi-finals and a final in a best of three format.
TEAMS
A Team must consist of a minimum of five (5) and a maximum of six (6) Players.
During a Game all five (5) Players of each Team have to be present for the in-game court playing with their own Avatar.
Starting Five
. NFs have to confirm to the head-referee their starting five twenty-four (24) hours before the first Game at the latest.
. For the avoidance of doubt, NFs can switch or otherwise change Players in between Games played on the same day as long as the correct starting five is communicated to the Head Referee fifteen (15) minutes prior to the Game.
. NFs are not allowed to substitute the Player from whom Gameplay is captured with the encoder.
. In case a NF has two or more Players playing from the same location and want to substitute the Player from whom the Gameplay is captured, this is possible but needs to be communicated to the Head Referee thirty (30) minutes prior to the Game.
PLAYER ELIGIBILITY
Age requirement: Players must be a minimum of sixteen (16) years old by the first day of the Competition.
Nationality requirement:
. Players must be nationals of the NF that they represent.
. Players will be required to provide proof of nationality in an eligible country to compete in the Competition. Such proof must be government-issued, e.g., a passport, national ID card, or birth certificate.
. The NF is responsible for the eligibility of a Player and will bear the consequences of any infractions of the rules.
. Players are permitted to be resident in a country other than that of their nationality. However, Players have to be resident in a country that does not impact playability. NFs shall be responsible for verifying with FIBA that the resident country of a Player does not impact playability.
Player Registration
NFs may register a Roster of a minimum five (5) and maximum six (6) of Players with FIBA.
Players that meet the eligibility criteria must additionally be in possession of the Equipment.
Changes of Players: Except for instances of rescheduling as per article 10.10.2, NFs are not permitted to make changes to the Team during the Competition.
EQUIPMENT
Each Player must own or have access to the latest version of NBA 2K23 on PlayStation 5
Each Player must have a valid PSN ID
Each Player must have a valid PS Plus subscription
Each Player must have an Avatar rating of at least 95.
The Captain/Streamer must have a webcam (on phone or computer) in order to properly stream matches.
GAME ORGANIZATION AND RULES
Punctuality: Players shall be in the in-game Pro-Am arena, ready to play Games, at the time requested by the Head Referee. Penalties for late arrivals shall be at the discretion of the Head Referee.
Game Preparation
. Players must resolve any issues that arise prior to the start of a Game. Connection or hardware issues during a Game may lead to disqualification or other sanctions in accordance with the Code of Conduct if the circumstances warrant.
. Agreements between Players must be communicated to the Head Referee via the Discord server.
. If a Player experiences connection problems, they are required to immediately leave the Game and raise the issue with the Head Referee via the Discord Server. Players must also provide the Head Referee with a screenshot of their PlayStation Console NAT settings.
Game Media
. Screenshots of the Game result shall be uploaded to a designated country-specific channel in the Discord Server at the end of the Game, and in any event no later than fifteen (15) minutes following the end of the Game.
. If required, all other Game Media shall be uploaded to a link to be provided by FIBA, within twenty-four (24) hours of the end of a Game.
. All Game Media shall be retained by Players and Teams for at least fifteen (15) days following the conclusion of the Competition.
PSN Account Restrictions
. Players may only participate throughout the duration of the Competition with one (1) PSN ID.
. Players shall not be permitted to change their PSN accounts unless a valid reason is provided to FIBA at least seventy-two (72) hours before the next Game.
. Players using multiple or a changed PSN ID may be disqualified from the Competition.
. PSN IDs shall not contain obscenities or other offensive language.
Avatars
. Players are entitled to create their on-screen Avatars as they wish. However, it is prohibited to create Avatars bearing a likeness to;
(i) any NBA Player, coach or other personnel, or
(ii) any public figure, without consent.
. Players shall use the same Avatar throughout the entire Season. Players found to have used more than one (1) Avatar during the Competition may be subject to disciplinary sanctions in accordance with the Code of Conduct (Annex 1).
. The use of Legends is prohibited.
. Players may switch archetypes between Games.
. Players must use uniforms created in accordance with design-guidelines provided for each NF.
. Captains must use in-game court design provided by FIBA
Disconnects
. In the event one or more Players disconnect before three (3) minutes of the first quarter have elapsed on the Game clock, the Game will be restarted entirely by all Players. All points that have been scored will be reset going into the new Game, including fouls.
. In the event one or more Players disconnect after the clock has elapsed three (3) minutes in the first quarter and up until the point where three (3) minutes remains in the 4th quarter, the Game will be restarted and the remaining time of the Game left will be played out to constitute a full 20-minute Game with points carrying over up until the point of the disconnect.
. In the event one or more Players disconnect in the last three (3) minutes of the Game, the Game will continue as it is and the disconnected Player(s) will be replaced by an in-game bot controlled by the AI.
. In the event the same Team and/or Player gets a disconnect twice or more in the same Game, the Game will not be restarted regardless when the disconnect happens and the disconnected Player will be replaced by an in-game bot controlled by the AI for the rest of the Game.
Bugs
In the event of a bug that affects the playing of a Game the following will apply;
a) If the bug affects one Team only, the Team affected shall restart the Game.
b) If the bug affects both Teams, the Home Team shall restart the Game.
Rescheduling and Cancellation
In the event the Competition or a Game cannot be played due to technical reasons beyond the control of the Players, e.g. the PSN Network is down, the Head Referee shall be entitled, at their discretion, to reschedule or cancel the entire Game or Competition. In the event of a rescheduling, the new time will be announced to the Players and NFs using official communication channels.