2021 New Zealand NBL season | |
---|---|
League | New Zealand NBL |
Sport | Basketball |
Duration | 24 April – 23 July |
Number of games | 18 |
Number of teams | 10 |
Regular season | |
Minor premiers | Wellington Saints |
Season MVP | Dion Prewster (Wellington Saints) |
Top scorer | Hunter Hale (Nelson Giants) |
Final Four | |
Champions | Wellington Saints |
Runners-up | Hawke's Bay Hawks |
Grand Final MVP | Kerwin Roach |
The 2021 NBL season was the 40th season of the National Basketball League.
As a result of the modified, COVID-affected 2020 season, three of the top four teams in 2019 (Wellington Saints, Hawke's Bay Hawks and Southland Sharks) did not compete. All three teams re-entered in 2021 to increase the league's total number to 10 for the first time since 2014. [1] [2]
The regular season commenced on 24 April in Dunedin with the Otago Nuggets (2020 champions) hosting the Wellington Saints (2019 champions) at the Edgar Centre. The season contained 12 weeks of regular season games followed by a two-day finals schedule in July. [2] The Saints won their 12th NBL championship in 2021 with a win over the Hawks in the grand final.
Team | City | Arena | Colours | Head Coach | Import | Import |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auckland Huskies | Auckland | Eventfinda Stadium | Aaron Young | Justin Bibbs | Chris Johnson | |
Canterbury Rams | Christchurch | Cowles Stadium | Mick Downer | E. J. Singler | Deshon Taylor | |
Franklin Bulls | Auckland | Franklin Pool and Leisure Centre | Jamie Reddish | Zane Waterman | ||
Hawke's Bay Hawks | Napier | Pettigrew Green Arena | Jacob Chance | Rhys Vague | Devondrick Walker | |
Manawatu Jets | Palmerston North | Arena Manawatu | Tim McTamney | DeAndre Daniels | Daishon Knight | |
Nelson Giants | Nelson | Trafalgar Centre | Michael Fitchett | Hunter Hale | Donte Ingram | |
Otago Nuggets | Dunedin | Edgar Centre | Brent Matehaere | Geremy McKay | Isaiah Moss | |
Southland Sharks | Invercargill | Stadium Southland | Rob Beveridge | Courtney Belger | Josh Cunningham | |
Taranaki Mountainairs | New Plymouth | TSB Stadium | Trent Adam | |||
Wellington Saints | Wellington | TSB Bank Arena | Zico Coronel | Romaro Gill | Kerwin Roach | |
In the final round of the regular season, due to an extreme weather event and major flooding across the top of the South Island, the games between the Manawatu Jets and Nelson Giants (Sunday 5pm) and Taranaki Mountainairs and Nelson Giants (Monday 7:30pm) were both cancelled. With the games not having an impact on the 2021 Final Four, the League advised neither clash would be rescheduled. [3]
Pos | Team | W | L | Qualification |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Wellington Saints | 16 | 2 | Final Four |
2 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 13 | 5 | |
3 | Southland Sharks | 13 | 5 | |
4 | Auckland Huskies | 11 | 7 | |
5 | Canterbury Rams | 9 | 9 | |
6 | Otago Nuggets | 9 | 9 | |
7 | Nelson Giants | 6 | 10 | |
8 | Franklin Bulls | 5 | 13 | |
9 | Manawatu Jets | 4 | 13 | |
10 | Taranaki Mountainairs | 2 | 15 |
Semi Finals | Final | ||||||||
1 | Wellington Saints | 99 | |||||||
4 | Auckland Huskies | 73 | |||||||
Wellington Saints | 77 | ||||||||
Hawke's Bay Hawks | 75 | ||||||||
2 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 98 | |||||||
3 | Southland Sharks | 91 |
Stats as of the end of the regular season [4] [5] [6]
Category | Player | Team | Stat |
---|---|---|---|
Points per game | Hunter Hale | Nelson Giants | 26.9 |
Rebounds per game | Sam Timmins | Otago Nuggets | 13.9 |
Assists per game | Courtney Belger | Southland Sharks | 5.7 |
Steals per game | Hunter Hale | Nelson Giants | 2.6 |
Blocks per game | DeAndre Daniels | Manawatu Jets | 2.3 |
The National Basketball League (NBL) is a men's semi-professional basketball league in New Zealand.
The Otago Nuggets are a New Zealand basketball team based in Dunedin. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Edgar Centre. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the Night 'n Day Otago Nuggets.
Leon Hofeni Nehemiah Henry is a New Zealand professional basketball player who last played for the Wellington Saints of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He debuted in the New Zealand NBL in 2004 and has since won seven championships. He also played five seasons in the Australian NBL, where he was a member of the New Zealand Breakers' 3-peat championship contingent between 2010/11 and 2012/13.
The 2010 NBL season was the 29th season of the National Basketball League. Foundation member and nine-time NBL champions the Auckland Stars withdrew from the league in 2010, while the Otago Nuggets returned after a one-year absence and the Southland Sharks joined for the first time.
The 2013 NBL season was the 32nd season of the National Basketball League. The 2013 season saw the withdrawal of the Auckland Pirates and Harbour Heat, but saw the return of the Waikato Pistons after a one-year hiatus as well as the Super City Rangers, who returned to the league for the first time since 1995.
Dion Anthony Prewster is an American-born New Zealand professional basketball player for the Sandringham Sabres of the NBL1 South. He played college basketball for San Jacinto College and Stephen F. Austin State University.
The 2015 NBL season was the 34th season of the National Basketball League. The season draw was supposed to be released in December 2014, but the withdrawal of Otago and Waikato prompted a rethink for the 2015 competition format. In the past, each team played each other twice in a 10-team competition, meaning each franchise had nine home games. However, with two fewer teams in 2015, it was decided the new format would be played over two and half rounds to keep incomes at a similar rate for the remaining sides. Each team was scheduled to play each other twice and play three of the sides in a third game.
Samuel Timmins is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the New Zealand Breakers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies. In 2022, he helped the Otago Nuggets win the New Zealand NBL championship.
The National Basketball League Finals Most Valuable Player is an annual National Basketball League (NBL) award currently given to the best performing player over the NBL's annual Final Four weekend. The award has previously been known as Final MVP and Final Four MVP.
Derone Jordan Raukawa is a New Zealand basketball player for the Hawke's Bay Hawks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL).
The 2016 NBL season was the 35th season of the National Basketball League. The league's team total dropped to an all-time low for the 2016 season, with the departure of the Manawatu Jets leaving the competition with seven teams.
Ethan Rusbatch is a New Zealand basketball player for the Hawke's Bay Hawks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He began his NZNBL career in 2012 with the Southland Sharks after spending one season in the United States playing college basketball for Lincoln Trail College. After playing for the Taranaki Mountainairs in 2013, he spent the next four seasons with the Canterbury Rams. He joined the Hawks in 2018 and won the NZNBL's Most Improved Player in 2019. He also played two seasons with the New Zealand Breakers in the Australian NBL.
The 2017 NBL season was the 36th season of the National Basketball League. For the second year in a row, the league fielded seven teams.
The 2018 NBL season was the 37th season of the National Basketball League. In 2018, the league welcomed back the Manawatu Jets after a two-season hiatus.
The 2020 NBL season was the 39th season of the National Basketball League.
Thomas James Vodanovich is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the New Zealand Breakers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball in the United States for the James Madison Dukes between 2013 and 2017 before having a two-year stint with the Breakers. He joined the Sydney Kings in 2021 and won an NBL championship in 2022. In 2020, he was named the New Zealand NBL MVP playing for the Manawatu Jets.
The 2022 NBL season was the 41st season of the National Basketball League. For the second year in a row, the league fielded 10 teams, with the only changes being the rebrand of the Auckland Huskies to Auckland Tuatara and Taranaki Mountainairs to Taranaki Airs.
Brent Matehaere is a New Zealand basketball coach and former semi-professional basketballer. He is the current coach of the Otago Nuggets in the National Basketball League.
Jordan Hunt is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the Hawke's Bay Hawks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He debuted in the NZNBL in 2015 with the Wellington Saints and won a championship with them in 2016. After four years of college basketball in the United States with the Southern Oregon Raiders, he helped the Otago Nuggets win the NZNBL championship in 2020 while earning grand final MVP. He subsequently spent the 2020–21 NBL season in Australia with the Cairns Taipans as a development player.
...with grand final MVP Kerwin Roach Jnr (16 points and seven rebounds)...