Article 1.

1.1     "Amateur athlete"means any individual who has represented the United States in the Olympic Games, the Pan American Games or the World Championships (including but not limited to the age restricted events as classified by FIBA) within the preceding ten years.

1.2     "Amateur Athlete" means, for purposes of this Constitution, an athlete who is eligible under FIBA rules to compete in international Amateur Athletic Competitions conducted under FIBA auspices.

1.3     "Amateur Athletic Competition" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Article I, Section 2 of the U.S.O.C. Constitution.

1.4     "This Association" means USA Basketball, formerly known as the Amateur Basketball Association of the United States of America, a corporation not-for-profit organized on October 28, 1975, under the laws of the State of Illinois.

1.5      "F.I.B.A." means Federation Internationale de Basketball.

1.6      "U.S.O.C." means United States Olympic Committee.

Article 2.

Office. The principal office of this Association shall, unless otherwise established by its Board of Directors, be at Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Article 3.

Purpose. The purpose of this Association is to act as the national governing body for the sport of Basketball in the United States, and in such connection, to be recognized as such by the U.S.O.C. and to act as the F.I.B.A. member in the United States. Pursuant to such purposes and the other purposes set forth in its Articles of Incorporation, this Association shall:

3.1     Develop interest and participation throughout the United States and be responsible to the persons and amateur sports organizations, and to other basketball organizations, active in the sport of Basketball.

3.2     Minimize, through coordination with other amateur sports organizations, and with other basketball organizations, conflicts in the scheduling of all practices and competitions in the sport of Basketball.

3.3     Keep Amateur Athletes active in the sport of Basketball informed of policy matters and reasonably reflect the views of such athletes in the policy decisions of this Association.

3.4     Sanction international Amateur Athletic Competition in Basketball, in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution, and allow Amateur Athletes to compete in such competition sanctioned by it.

3.5     Provide for participation by Amateur Athletes in Amateur Athletic Competition in the sport of Basketball, in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution.

3.6     Provide equitable support and encouragement for participation by men and women in the sport of Basketball.

3.7     Encourage and support amateur athletic sports programs in the sport of basketball for handicapped individuals.

3.8     Provide and coordinate technical information on physical training, equipment design, coaching and performance analysis in the sport of Basketball.

3.9     Encourage and support research, development and dissemination of information in the areas of sports medicine and sports safety in the sport of Basketball.

3.10     Be committed to equal opportunity and fair treatment providing for equal opportunity to all applicants for employment and to employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, physical handicap, sexual orientation or marital status, and shall actively involve qualified minorities and women, and similarly encourage its constituents towards such involvement, to occupy positions at all levels of this Association including the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, standing committees and the administrative staff.

Article 4.

Authority. This Association shall exercise the following powers:

4.1     Represent the United States in F.I.B.A.

4.2     Establish national goals and encourage the attainment of those goals in the sport of Basketball.

4.3     Serve as the coordinating body for amateur athletic activity in the sport of Basketball in the United States.

4.4     Exercise jurisdiction over international amateur athletic activities and sanction international Amateur Athletic Competition held in the United States and sanction the sponsorship of international Amateur Athletic Competition held outside the United States in the sport of Basketball, in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution.

4.5     Conduct Amateur Athletic Competition in the sport of Basketball, including national championships, and international Amateur Athletic Competition in the United States, and establish procedures for the determination of eligibility standards for participation in such competitions, except for restricted competition referred to in the provision hereinbelow.

4.6     Recommend to the U.S.O.C. individuals and teams to represent the United States in the Olympic Games and Pan American Games in the sport of Basketball.

4.7     Designate individuals and teams to represent the United States in international Amateur Athletic Competition (other than the Olympic and Pan American Games) in the sport of Basketball and certify, in accordance with the rules of F.I.B.A., the amateur eligibility of such individuals and teams, provided that any amateur sports organization which conducts Amateur Athletic Competition, participation in which is restricted to a specific class of Amateur Athletes (such as high school students, college students, members of the Armed Forces or similar groups or categories), shall have exclusive jurisdiction over such competition.

Article 5.

Autonomy. This Association shall be autonomous in its governance of the sport of Basketball, in that it independently shall determine and control all matters central to such governance, shall not delegate such determination and control, and shall be free from outside restraint. This provision shall not be construed as preventing this Association from contracting with third parties for administrative assistance and support, in connection with its purpose and powers.

Article 6.

Membership. There shall be three types of Association membership, none of which shall be considered voting members for purposes of the Illinois nonprofit corporations act, but which shall have the voting rights described below:

6.1      Active. This membership shall be open to all national amateur sports organizations which actively conduct a national program in Basketball as a competitive sport. Active memberships may also be open to other organizations which actively conduct national programs in basketball as a competitive sport. In addition, national basketball coaches associations for men and women shall be included, as approved by the Board of Directors of this Association. Such members shall have no direct voting representation; however, they shall receive indirect representation through their chosen officers, or other representatives, to the Board of Directors as detailed in Section 9.1.

6.2     Associate. This membership shall be open to sports organizations which conduct programs in or allied to Basketball as a competitive sport, but which do not qualify for active membership. Associate members shall not have voice or vote in this Association, but shall receive regular publications, news releases and other selected organizational mailings.

6.3      Affiliate. This membership shall be open only to travel and promotional agencies or similar commercial groups involving basketball in their activities. An affiliate member shall not have voice or vote in this Association and shall as a condition of affiliate membership certify that it will not directly or indirectly utilize the fact of such membership for commercial purposes. Affiliate members shall receive regular publications, media releases and other selected organizational mailings.

6.4     The active members of this Association are as follows:

• Amateur Athletic Union
• Continental Basketball Association
• National Association of Basketball Coaches
• National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics
• National Basketball Association
• National Basketball Development League
• National Collegiate Athletic Association
• National Federation of State High School Associations
• National Junior College Athletic Association
• National Pro-Am City Leagues Association
• National Wheelchair Basketball Association
• U.S. Armed Forces
• USA Deaf Sports Federation
• Women's Basketball Coaches Association
• Women's National Basketball Association

6.5     Active members, in addition to the above organizations, may be elected to this Association by vote of the Board of Directors.

6.6     Associate and affiliate members may be elected to this Association by vote of the Board of Directors.

Article 7.

Meetings of the Members.

7.1     Meetings of the members of this Association may be called by the President or a written petition signed by at least 50 percent of the active members. At each meeting of the members, representatives shall receive a report from the President concerning activities of this Association since the last meeting of the members and plans for the future, as well as advisement on any other relevant matters of the Association.

Article 8.

Board of Directors.

8.1     The affairs of this Association shall, subject to any limitations imposed by this Constitution, be governed and conducted by a Board of Directors. Actions taken by the Board or by the Executive Committee pursuant to authorization of the Board, shall constitute the acts of this Association and have full binding effect. The Board shall consist of twenty-five persons, five of whom shall be Active Athletes elected by Active Athletes. Members of the Board shall consist of both males and females and shall be selected without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, or national origin. The Board shall review any interim action taken by the Executive Committee on behalf of the Board at each meeting of the Board. The Board shall approve a budget for the fiscal year.

8.1.1.     The following organizations shall be entitled to appoint the number of members of the Board of Directors set forth opposite their respective organizations:

Full Positions

• Amateur Athletic Union - 1

• National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics - 1

• National Basketball Association, Women's National Basketball Association, and National Basketball Development League, collectively - 4

• National Collegiate Athletic Association - 4

• National Federation of State High School Associations - 1

• National Junior College Athletic Association - 1

• U.S. Armed Forces - 1

• National Basketball Players Association - 1

• Active Athletes (See Section 8.1.4) - 5

• Immediate Past President (see Section 8.1.3) - 1

• At-Large Positions (see Section 8.1.5) - 2

Shared Positions

CBA/ National Pro-Am City Leagues Association and Any other professional basketball organizations not already represented on the Board of Directors who are officially associated with a professional basketball
organization which is an active member of this Association. (see Section 8.1.2) 1

National Wheelchair Basketball Association/USA Deaf Sports Federation (see Section 8.1.2) 1

National Association of Basketball Coaches/
Women's Basketball Coaches Association (see Section 8.1.2) 1

Each full director appointed pursuant to this section shall serve for a term of four (4) years each and shall have no limitation to the number of terms.
8.1.2

The following organizations shall appoint one member of the Board of Directors:

First Shared Director:
• Continental Basketball Association
• National Pro-Am City Leagues Association
• Any other professional basketball organizations not already represented on the Board of Directors who are officially associated with a professional basketball organization which is an active member of this Association.

Second Shared Director:
• National Wheelchair Basketball Association
• USA Deaf Sports Federation

Third Shared Director:
• National Association of Basketball Coaches
• Women's Basketball Coaches Association

Each shared director appointed pursuant to this section shall serve for a term of two (2) years, at which time the other organization with which the position is shared shall appoint the director.

8.1.3     One member of the Board of Directors shall be the person who last served as President of the Association other than the person presently serving as President of the Association.

8.1.4     At least twenty percent (20%) of the Board shall consist of "Active Athletes." For purposes of this Constitution, five members of the Board of Directors shall be "Active Athletes." The Active Athlete members of the Board of Directors shall consist of both males and females and shall be elected for four-year terms by a majority of the votes cast of all persons meeting the Active Athletes definition. Any person serving as an Active Athlete director may be elected to succeed himself/herself provided he/she meets the Active Athlete definition at the time of such election.

8.1.5      Two members of the Board of Directors who are not Active Athletes and who are not elected pursuant to subsections 8.1.1-8.1.4 shall be elected at-large by the other twenty-three members of the Board of Directors to terms of four years each.

8.2      If a vacancy occurs on the Board of Directors, it shall be filled by the same manner in which the director was elected prior to the occurrence of such vacancy, and the person elected to fill the vacancy shall serve for the remaining unexpired portion of the term in question.

8.3     The Board of Directors shall meet at least annually. A majority of the Board members must be present at a meeting to constitute a quorum. An organization identified in subsection 8.1.1 shall be permitted to cast the total number of votes equal to the number of its members on the Board by one or all of its members present at the Board meeting. Otherwise, no Board member may be present or vote by proxy at a Board meeting. Except as otherwise provided herein, all matters brought before the Board are to be decided by a majority vote. In lieu of a meeting, the Board may act by unanimous written consent.

8.4     Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called by the President or shall be called by the President at the request of at least five members of Board. Unless notice is waived by all members of the Board, no meeting of the Board may be called with less than ten (10) days written notice by the President, Secretary, or Board members who called the meeting.

8.5     Board of Directors meetings shall be open to the public, except when the Board votes to meet in executive session.

8.6     The Board of Directors shall have primary responsibility for the competitive basketball programs of the Association by determining policy and exercising jurisdiction related thereto, and approving actions of any committees it appoints to directly administer or implement these programs.

Article 9.

Officers and Executive Committee.

9.1     The officers of this Association shall be a President, a Vice President, a Vice President (Men), a Vice President (Women), a Secretary, a Treasurer, and such other officers as shall be elected by the Board of Directors. No person who is an officer of another national governing body recognized as such by the U.S.O.C. shall be eligible to be elected an officer of this Association. The officers shall be elected from the members of the Board.

9.2      Election of the officers shall occur every fourth year immediately following election of the at-large members of the Board of Directors. The individual receiving a plurality of votes cast by the Board of Directors shall be deemed elected.

9.3      The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board of Directors, and shall otherwise be the principal volunteer officer of this Association, carrying out those responsibilities assigned by the Board.

9.4     Not less than thirty (30) days prior to the quadrennial regular meeting of the Board of Directors, the President shall appoint a Nominating Committee consisting of between three to five persons, which shall: (a) propose nominees for those at-large Board of Directors positions to be filled pursuant to Section 8.1.5, and (b) propose nominees for officers of this Association.

9.5     The other officers of the Association shall carry out those responsibilities assigned to them by the Board of Directors provided that: it shall be the responsibility of the Secretary to maintain the minutes of the meetings of the Association, its Board, and its officers, and it shall be the responsibility of the Treasurer to supervise and control the funds and financial records of the Association.

9.6     The officers of this Association, and the number of duly elected Active Athlete members of the Board of Directors representing twenty percent (20%) of the voting power of the Executive Committee (who shall be selected by and among the five Active Athlete directors), shall constitute the Executive Committee of the Association, and shall, subject to establishment of policies and operating principles by the Board of Directors, (i) act on behalf of the Board of Directors between meetings, and (ii) carry out the day-to-day affairs of the Association. The minutes of all Executive Committee meetings and conference calls shall be mailed to all active members of the Association, the Board and Athletes Council within two weeks after the event.

9.7     The Board of Directors shall fill any officer vacancies for any unexpired terms, subject to the limitations on eligibility contained in this Article.

Article 10.

Executive Director.

10.1     The Board of Directors shall employ an Executive Director as the principal administrator of the affairs of this Association. The Executive Director shall be responsible to the Board and Executive Committee for the performance of such managerial and administrative duties as shall be assigned by the Board.

10.2     The Executive Director shall, among his or her other duties, cause an annual proposed budget for the Association to be prepared on or before September 1 of each year, and shall submit such budget to the members of the Board of Directors at their annual meeting. Once the budget has been approved by the Board, the budget may be revised upon action by either the Board or the Executive Committee.

10.3      Subject to the approval of the Board of Directors, the Executive Director shall employ such additional administrative personnel as are necessary to carry out the affairs of this Association.

Article 11.

Committees.

11.1      The following shall be standing committees of this Association: Constitution and Bylaws, Disabled, Finance, Membership, Officials. Further, committees established by the Board of Directors to directly administer or implement the men's and women's competitive basketball programs shall also be considered standing committees. Standing committees may have constituent representation, other composition, size and responsibilities as prescribed either in the Bylaws or by action of the Board. The President shall propose nominees for all committees for approval by the Board of Directors or the Executive Committee. Any constituent representation to the men's and women's competition committees shall be directly appointed by the empowered constituent in numbers to be determined by the Board. Active Athletes shall represent twenty percent (20%) of the voting power of each standing committee and shall be eligible and elected under the requirements of the U.S.O.C. Constitution and Bylaws. The chairperson of each standing committee shall be named by the President with the approval of the Board, provided that no person shall chair such committee for more than eight years.

11.2     With the approval of the Board of Directors, the President shall name such ad hoc committees as he or she deems necessary or desirable, and these committees shall have Active Athlete representation as required by the U.S.O.C. Constitution and Bylaws.

Article 12.

Active Athletes Election and Representation and Athletes Council.

12.1     Active Athletes shall represent at least twenty percent (20%) of the voting power and membership on all entities within the governance and administrative structure of this Association as required by the U.S.O.C. Constitution and Bylaws. In the event an Active Athlete is unable to complete the term of a position to which duly elected, the Athletes Council shall elect a replacement for the remainder of the unexpired term.

12.2     An Athletes Council shall consist of all Active Athletes elected to the Board of Directors, standing committees (other than the men's and women's competition committees) and the U.S.O.C. Athletes' Advisory Council, and its chair shall be elected from and by the members thereof for a four-year term and eligible to serve as chair no more than eight years. A majority of the Athletes Council members must be present at its meeting to constitute a quorum. This Athletes Council shall be advisory to the Executive Committee and Board of Directors. The term of each Active Athlete on the Council shall be concurrent with their membership on the entities listed in this paragraph. Among the last items of Athletes Council business for a quadrennium shall be to nominate Active Athletes for election by all eligible Active Athletes to positions in this Association for the next quadrennium in accordance with the Active Athlete requirements, qualification and election procedures set forth in the U.S.O.C. Constitution and Bylaws.

Article 13.

F.I.B.A. Membership, Sanctioning, and Eligibility.

13.1     This Association shall carry out the responsibilities of the F.I.B.A. membership, as they may be defined from time to time by the F.I.B.A. governing bodies. With reference to the sanctioning by this Association of international Amateur Athletic Competition in Basketball, the sanction of this Association shall be required, and shall be granted, in accordance with the terms of Article VII, Section 2 of the U.S.O.C. Constitution.

13.2     This Association shall provide an equal opportunity to Amateur Athletes, coaches, trainers, managers, administrators, and officials to participate in Amateur Athletic Competition without discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, age, sex, or national origin.

13.3      Before declaring any Amateur Athlete, coach, trainer, manager, administrator or official ineligible to participate in any Amateur Athletic Competition, this Association shall provide the affected individual with written notice of the alleged grounds of ineligibility and of the individual's right to a hearing on the matter.

13.4.1     Unless the President determines that a hearing before the Board of Directors would result in unnecessary delay, the hearing shall be held before the Board at its next scheduled meeting. The affected individual shall be notified of the time and place of the hearing, his right to appear personally and/or through an attorney, and his right to present evidence and argument relating to his eligibility. The Association shall also have the right to present evidence and argument at the hearing, either through the Executive Director or his designee. The hearing shall be informal, with all parties being given reasonable opportunity to examine the pertinent evidence and to exchange views. At the request and expense of the affected individual, a transcript of the proceedings may be taken by a certified court reporter. Otherwise, the Secretary shall keep minutes of the hearing. Following close of the hearing, the Board of Directors shall render its written decision, citing the principal grounds therefore, and a copy thereof shall be provided the affected individual. There shall be no right of an appeal within the Association from a decision of the Board.

13.4.2      If the President determines that a hearing before the Board of Directors would result in unnecessary delay, he shall promptly appoint, from among the members of the Board, a disinterested hearing officer to conduct the initial eligibility hearing. The same hearing procedures set forth in Section

13.4.1     shall apply to a hearing before the hearing officer, except that he rather than the Secretary shall keep the minutes of the hearing. If the decision of the hearing officer is adverse to the affected individual, he shall have the right to appeal to the Board at its next scheduled meeting. Such an appeal shall consist of a de novo proceeding as provided in Section 13.4.1, except that the transcript or minutes of the hearing before the hearing officer shall automatically be included in the evidence before the Board.

Article 14.

Internal Grievance Procedure.

14.1     Any member of this Association may file a written grievance with the Executive Director pertaining to any matter within the cognizance of this Association and alleging a violation of any provision of this Constitution, the Amateur Sports Act of 1978, or the U.S.O.C. Constitution, By-Laws or General Rules.

14.2     Any grievance shall be signed under oath and shall allege with particularity the nature of the grievance and each claimed violation of the aforementioned documents by reference to specific sections thereof, stating in concise language how, when, and where the alleged violation occurred. The factual allegations shall be set forth in numbered paragraphs, each paragraph containing a single factual allegation.

14.3     Upon receipt of a grievance, the Executive Director shall refer it to the President or, in the case of more generalized grievances, to the Board of Directors. In the case of a grievance referred to the President, he shall make an effort to resolve the grievance himself, through informal means.

14.4     If the grievance is referred to the Board of Directors or, in the event that the member filing a grievance is not satisfied with the resolution of the matter reached by informal methods, the member shall be entitled to be heard before the Board at its next scheduled meeting. Procedures for hearing of the grievance shall be the same as are set forth in Section 13.4.1. The Board's determination of the matter shall be final.

Article 15.

Binding Arbitration.

15.1      In accordance with Article IV, Section 4 of the U.S.O.C. Constitution, this Association shall, subject to exhaustion of any internal remedies set forth in this Constitution, submit to binding arbitration conducted in accordance with the commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association in any controversy involving its recognition as a national governing body provided for in Article VIII of the U.S.O.C. Constitution, or involving the opportunity of any Amateur Athlete, coach, trainer, manager, administrator or official to participate in Amateur Athletic Competition, as provided in Article IX of the U.S.O.C. Constitution.

Article 16.

Dues and Assessments.

16.1      An active member of this Association shall pay annual dues of $1,000 plus an additional $500 for each additional seat on the Board of Directors above one that the organization is entitled to appoint as authorized in Article 8. An associate member of this Association shall pay annual dues of $500. An affiliate member of this Association shall pay annual dues of $250 By majority vote, the Board of Directors at any regular or special meeting of this Association may increase these dues and/or assess the various members for additional amounts. Dues notices shall be mailed to each member as soon as possible following the Association's annual meeting and in no event later than December 31 of each year. Any member that has not paid its annual dues by the following February 1 shall be deemed delinquent.

Article 17.

Conflict of Interest and Ethical Practices.

17.1      If any officer, or member of the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, or any other Committee, has a financial interest in any contract or transaction involving the Association, such individual shall not participate in the Association's evaluation or approval of such contract or transaction unless the material facts of the relationship or interest are disclosed or known to the other Directors or other Committee members. If such disclosure is made, the contract or transaction shall not be voidable if the Board or Committee in good faith authorized the contract or transaction by the affirmative vote of the majority of the disinterested Directors or Committee members and the contract or transaction is fair to the Association at the time it is authorized.

17.2 The Board of Directors shall adopt a written code of conduct and ethical practices for the Association which shall contain the requirement that each Officer, member of the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, other Committees, and each key employee of the Association abide by such code. Such code may be amended from time to time by the Executive Committee as it may deem advisable.

Article 18.

Bylaws.

18.1 The Board of Directors may adopt Bylaws or other operating procedures for this Association, not inconsistent with the terms herein.

Article 19.

Resolutions.

19.1 Legislation may be enacted through resolutions not inconsistent with the Constitution or Bylaws at any meeting of the Board of Directors, provided the legislation proposed is of a temporary character effective only for the time specified in the resolution.

Article 20.

Amendments.

20.1     The Constitution may be amended at any meeting of the Board of Directors of this Association, provided any proposed amendment has been circulated to the Board of Directors a minimum of thirty (30) days (postmark) prior to the meeting. Action shall be taken on all amendments submitted for consideration.
A two-thirds affirmative majority vote of the Board of Directors of this Association shall be required for adoption.

Updated November 10, 2004