The Ishikawa Blue Sparks [ja] sought entry into the NBDL but were denied due to not satisfying the league's capital requirements; the club subsequently announced it would fold at the close of the final JBL2 season.
[3] Three of the NBDL's teams, the Excellence, Toyota Tsusho Fighting Eagles and Renova Kagoshima received associate membership to the NBL, which granted them the possibility of future promotion to the top league.
The Fighting Eagles (30-2) finished on top of the standings in the first season of the league, but were defeated by second-placed Tokyo Excellence (29-3) in the championship match.
[6][7] The Tokyo-based Kuroda Electric Bullet Spirits [ja] withdrew to compete in the Kanto corporate league and transferred their NBDL membership to the newly-formed Earthfriends Tokyo Z.
[2] The final season of the NBDL saw the Tokyo Hachioji Trains join as an expansion club, taking the league to ten teams.