A record 59 oversea players from 28 nations will compete in this year's NBA playoffs, media reported Friday.

Defending champion Miami is the only club among the 16 playoff teams to feature an all-American roster. The Heat beat Dallas in the NBA Finals last year, when 44 global players from 25 nations took part in the playoffs.

Golden State, Phoenix, San Antonio and Toronto each have six international players, the most on any club. During the regular season, 30 NBA clubs featured 85 global players from 37 nations.

France, Lithuania and Serbia each has five players in the playoffs, the most from any nation, while Slovenia and South American rivals Brazil and Argentina, the 2004 Olympic champion, each has four players in the playoffs.

Four Africans, two each from Congo and Senegal, are in the playoffs along with five from the Caribbean and China's Yao Ming of Houston is Asia's lone NBA representative.

The playoffs begin Saturday afternoon, starting with Vince Carter going back to Toronto in the opener of the Nets' series against the Atlantic Division champion Raptors. That's one of two high-profile returns in the first round, the other coming when Don Nelson leads Golden State into Dallas for the start of the Warriors' first postseason in 13 years.

Kobe Bryant and the Lakers get another chance to finish the job against the Suns. The Chicago Bulls try again to knock out the Miami Heat in the first round. The NBA's second season is all about second chances ¡ª and the Dallas Mavericks hope to get theirs in the NBA finals after their collapse against the Heat last year.

"There's only one champion," Mavericks coach Avery Johnson said, "No matter what you do in the regular season, at the end of the day you've got to try to get it done in the playoffs. It's not like you are playing against your 'B' team, where you are guaranteed to have the ring. There are other teams that have some say-so in this. It's not an easy task."

Editor: Donald