Short answers, pulled from the story.
NBA commissioner David Stern and deputy commissioner Russ Granik announced the formation of the National Basketball Development League on the 13th of June 2000. The league began play in November 2001 with eight franchises located entirely within the Southeastern United States.
The minimum age to play in the NBA G League is eighteen years old, which contrasts with the NBA requirement of nineteen years old plus one year out of high school. Players generally sign contracts with the league itself rather than individual teams.
Chris Andersen became the first player drafted by an NBDL team while Mike Taylor from the Idaho Stampede was drafted fifty-fifth by the Portland Trail Blazers in 2008 as the first player from the NBDL to be drafted by an NBA team. Bobby Simmons earned Most Improved Player honors with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2004-05, and Khris Middleton became the first former D-League player named an NBA All-Star when selected for the 2019 game.
Gatorade paid the D-League to rename itself the NBA Gatorade League before the 2017-18 season, making it the first U.S. professional sports organization named for an advertiser. The name officially shortened to NBA G League prior to the start of play that same year.
The league held its first All-Star game on the 17th of February 2007 at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Pops Mensah-Bonsu was named MVP after the East defeated the West 114 to 100.