1980–81 National Basketball League season

[1] The league was sponsored by Rotary Watches for the third consecutive year and Birmingham Team Fiat broke the Crystal Palace monopoly by taking the league title.

Sunderland provided a major shock when securing the Play Offs title.

Palace, who were expected to make a clean sweep of silverware, gained some consolation by winning the National Cup.

[2] Coventry Team Fiat were rebranded Birmingham and moved to a larger venue at the Aston Villa Leisure Centre which served as a catalyst for their success.

A team called Solent Stars backed by a millionaire businessman called Harry Smith [3] easily won the second division and competed successfully against first division teams in tournaments.