has had ten teams ever since. The early years of the league were plagued by the financial instability, exacerbated by the 1997 Asian financial crisis which had impacted South Korea especially hard. As with other domestic sports leagues, the KBL was not immune to the economic fall-out. The KBL had difficulty finding a league sponsor for the 1997–98 season while teams were forced to cut costs. Between 1997 and 2001, five of the ten teams had changed ownership due to financial problems. Format The KBL follows FIBA rules regarding standards of play and court dimensions. For the regular season, the round-robin format is utilized as each team plays against every other team six times (three home and three away). A total of 54 games are played in six rounds. Only the top six teams in the regular season standings advance to the post-season playoffs. League structure KBL Cup The KBL Cup was first introduced in 2020 as a pre-season competition for all teams to test out their strengths before the commencement of the regular season. It is generally held in September. Aside from the participation of all 10 teams of the KBL league, Sangmu Basketball Team also participates in the KBL Cup, making it a total of 11 teams. Regular season The regular season runs from October to early April. Each team plays against the other nine teams six times (3 home and 3 away). A total of 54 games are played in six rounds. The annual KBL Award Ceremony takes place right after the end of the regular season. Teams which failed to qualify for the post-season playoffs take a short break before commencing their off-season training to prepare them for the upcoming season. Post-season playoffs The playoffs usually begin a week after the end of the regular season. Only the top six teams in the regular season standings advance to the post-season playoffs. The qualification of the six teams for either the quarter-finals or semi-finals of the playoffs are determined by their regular season standings. The teams ranked from third to sixth qualify for the quarter-finals, and the teams ranked first and second earn an automatic advancement to the semi-finals. The quarter-finals are played in a best-of-three format. The two winning teams of the quarter-finals then advance to the semi-finals. The semi-finals are played in a best-of-five format. The two winning teams of the semi-finals then compete for