National Basketball League (Australasia)

The National Basketball League, also known as the iiNet NBL Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Australasia.

There are currently 9 teams in the league, with teams in Adelaide, Auckland, Cairns, the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Townsville and Wollongong. The 2010–11 season saw the return of the Sydney Kings. This comes after a turbulent period, when the league lost teams from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane during 2008 and 2009. A second Melbourne club, the South Dragons, entered the league in season 2006/07, but pulled out after season 2008/09 in which they were premiers. The National Basketball League has also become the first Australasian sporting league to field a team from Asia with the Singapore Slingers playing in the 2006/07, through to the 2007/08 season. The Gold Coast Blaze joined the competition in the 2007/08 season.

Most teams have historically featured at least one and usually two American imports; teams are limited to having two non-Australasians on the roster at any one time. Some of these players have moved to Australia permanently and become Australian citizens; a few have even played for the Australian national team (under a rule that allowed one naturalised player to compete for a national team).

The league's best years were arguably in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but it has struggled recently and many teams have downsized to smaller venues to cut costs. A number of clubs have folded or ceased to compete in the competition. The previous major sponsor of the NBL was Mitsubishi Motors. Mitsubishi, which left its sponsorship when the ABC ceased televising NBL basketball games left the National Basketball League close to folding.

In 2010, the NBL returned to free-to-air television in Australia for the first time in nine years when One HD started broadcasting 2–3 games a week.

History

The league commenced in 1979, playing a winter season (April–September) and did so until the completion of the 20th season in 1998. The 1998/99 season, which commenced only months later, was the first season after the shift to the current summer season format (October–April). This shift was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes.

Despite these issues, at the start of the 2004/05 season the league struck a new television deal with Fox Sports in Australia and a multi-year naming-rights sponsorship deal with electronics manufacturer Philips. In 2007, Philips announced they would not continuing their naming rights sponsorship after the current contract ends in June in response to the National Basketball League wishing to increase the sponsorship deal.^[1] On 18 September 2007, the National Basketball League announced Hummer as their naming rights sponsor for the 2007/08 season.^[2]

Current clubs

Former and defunct clubs

• Brisbane Bullets (1979–2008)
• Canberra Cannons (1979–2003)
• Geelong Supercats (1982–1996)
• Glenelg Tigers (1979)
• Gold Coast Rollers / Gold Coast Cougars (1990–1996)
• Hobart Devils (1983–1996)
• Hunter Pirates (2003–2006)
• Launceston Casino City (1980–1982)
• Newcastle Falcons (1979–1999)
• North Melbourne Giants / Coburg Giants (1987–1998)
• Singapore Slingers (2006–2008)
• South Dragons (2006–2009)
• South East Melbourne Magic / St. Kilda Saints / Nunawading Spectres / Eastside Spectres (1992–1998)
• Victoria Titans / Victoria Giants (1998–2004)
• West Adelaide Bearcats (1979–1984)
• Sydney Spirit / West Sydney Razorbacks (1998–2009)

Administration

Salary cap

The NBL's salary cap for the 2006–07 season was A$776,000, and increased to $810,000 for the 2007–08 season; the cap rose for two consecutive years due to the continued growth of the league.^[3] The salary cap for the 2009–10 season is $1,000,000.^[4]

Broadcasting Details

Current Broadcast Detail

The current 2010/11 NBL season will see a minimum of 2 games per week or 3 games in some weeks (because of the involvement of the New Zealand Breakers team on a separate TV deal with Sky TV), are shown on One HD, the high definition sport orientated multichannel of Network Ten, which is the first time NBL has been shown only on free to air TV since the end of the basketball boom in early 2001 (although Channel Nine had rights to show one NBL game per week in 2007). The current deal runs up until the end of the 2014/15 season, with 5 games a week to be shown in the last season of the deal.

For the first time since 1997, the Melbourne Tigers/Sydney Kings game was shown nationally on Network Ten on Australia Day.

Some clubs also have live broadcasts on local radio stations, most of which are available to listen to online. [1]

NBL Broadcast History

• Māori Television (New Zealand), 2007–2010
• Sky Sport (New Zealand), 2011 – present
• ABC TV/ABC1, 1979–1987
• Seven Network, 1988–1991
• Network Ten, 1992–1997
• Fox Sports, 1995–2010
• ABC TV/ABC1 late 1998-early 2001
• Nine Network, 2007 (one 'highlighted' game a week)
• Network Ten / ONE HD (2010–present)

List of Champions

Teams in bold are current members of the NBL.

NBL Finals

Rivalries

Adelaide 36ers vs Perth Wildcats

Both teams were perennial championship contenders in the late 1980s and early 90s and had several marquee players with excellent matchups, the two most notable involving the imports: Al Green (Adelaide) vs Cal Bruton (Perth), Mark Davis (Adelaide) vs James Crawford (Perth). Games during this era were rarely blowouts and helped to fuel the rivalry. Ironically, while the two teams have played numerous semi-finals against each other, with the Wildcats never losing a series, they never played each other in the grand final series. As the mainstay players began to slow with age and retire, the intensity of this rivalry has declined. The two clubs remain the most successful in the NBL with four championships for Adelaide and five for Perth and are first and second on the all-time wins list, and have also matched up on more occasions (100 times total; Perth leading all time between the two 54-46) than any other two teams in the NBL (as of 28 October 2011).

Wollongong Hawks vs Sydney Kings

Wollongong Hawks fans consider the Sydney Kings to be their most fierce rival. Many Wollongong players have moved to the Kings with two former Rookie of the Year winners and a two time Olympian joining the Kings from Wollongong. In the absence of the Kings, the Sydney Spirit took the role of rival, but this felt fake to some Wollongong faithful. Wollongong took bragging rights after the 2000/2001 season when they became the first team from New South Wales to qualify for the NBL finals, which they won against Townsville. Sydney then took the ascendency when they won three championships in a row, including a clean sweep of the Hawks.

Many Hawks fans were happy when Sydney was kicked out of the NBL, but in truth have missed the biggest rivalry.

Cairns Taipans vs Townsville Crocodiles

A local derby-style rivalry nicknamed "Reptile Rumble" has developed to determine which is the dominant North Queensland team. The Cairns-Townsville basketball rivalry would have to be one of the longest and most passionate in the NBL. Both teams generally attract a close to capacity crowd anywhere from 4000+ at their home games. Each team and their supporters and mascots generally boo and taunt their visiting rivals with all sorts of crazy on field entertainment antics. The rivalry has been in existent for over 10 years and almost came to a near end when the Cairns Taipans were on the verge of extinction due to financial issues.

Adelaide 36ers vs. Melbourne Tigers

Apart from the normal Victorian and South Australian rivalry, a new rivalry has emerged with Julius Hodge, a former 36er, returning to the NBL in November 2009, signing with the Melbourne Tigers. Hodge was a star in Adelaide when he joined the 36ers mid-season the previous two years, however issues relating to alleged missed payments caused him to walk out on the club in early January 2009 on bad terms.[2]

Hodge returned to his old home court for the first time on 5 December 2009 in a Tigers overtime victory. After being heckled and taunted all night in a quiet game by his standards, Hodge caused more controversy when he stamped and spat on the Brett Maher signature on the centre of the Brett Maher Court following his new club's win.He was booed off aggressively and loudly by the Adelaide fans and needed security to escort him out of the stadium for security reasons.[3]

Road trips

Doomsday Double

The Doomsday Double, involving a journey out west to play the Adelaide 36ers and Perth Wildcats during the same round, has occurred 141 times as at the end of the 2010–11 NBL season. Unbelievably just four teams have won both legs of the trip on consecutive nights.

Sunshine Swing

Similar to the Doomsday Double, the Sunshine Swing pits teams against an away double or even triple game schedule against opponents from the state of Queensland, in the same round. The most frequent combinations have featured the Brisbane Bullets/Gold Coast Rollers or Cairns Taipans/Townsville Crocodiles double. Other variants include Brisbane Bullets/Townsville Crocodiles and the gruelling Brisbane Bullets/Cairns Taipans/Townsville Crocodiles triple.

The NBL in the future

The NBL experienced its golden age in the early to mid-1990s,^[5] but its popularity, media attention, attendance and corporate support deteriorated and plateaued in the decade afterward. Australian NBA player Andrew Bogut suggested the NBL try to adopt a model similar to the Australian Football League (AFL) whereby there are the same 10 or 15 teams over a 10 year period [4]. Disgruntled Australian basketball enthusiasts have suggested expansion to 16 teams, most importantly locating a team in the city of Darwin [5] making the Singapore road-trip less drawn-out, also Darwin currently does not have the support for a national domestic team of any sort. Since the inception of the Singapore Slingers in 2006, both Asia and Oceania are represented in the National Basketball League, however Asian players are not considered local players unless they are from Singapore and play for the Slingers. The Slingers are no longer part of the NBL.

There has been significant support for the NBL to expand into Asia by many NBL players as well as ex-Australian Boomers head coach Brian Goorjian [6] [7], be it differently to how it was done with the now defunct Singapore Slingers which had a 14 hour round-trip flight to the Australian East Coast [8]. The 2009/10 season is earmarked as the season in which the NBL will begin its revamping, much like the old National Soccer League which became the eight team A-League (later expanding to 10 teams). [9].

The Sydney Kings name was purchased for the sum of A$20,000 on 31 July 2008 adding hope to the club also making a return to the league [10]. Other possible locations for clubs include Hobart, Wellington and even an Australian Institute of Sport team based in Canberra comprising the best Australian players under the age of 22. Canberra has not had an NBL side since the Canberra Cannons which folded in 2003, the success of the AIS team in the Australian Women's National Basketball League underlines the likelihood of such a venture working [11]. John Brumby has called for a second Melbourne team to be added to the league.^[6]

Brisbane remains the most important team to come back into the league. While Newcastle is rumoured to be returning due to the strong drive from Mining magnate Nathan Tinkler. Both teams are expected to re-enter the league in 2012-13.

A 2nd Melbourne team (as well as the possibility of Wellington, NZ) will most likely be re-entering in 2013-14.

Canberra and Hobart are also rumoured to be interested in returning to the league within the next 5 years.

Hall of Fame

The National Basketball League celebrated 20 seasons of competition in 1998. As part of the celebrations, the NBL initiated the Hall of Fame to recognise the outstanding players, coaches, referees and contributors to the league.

In order to be eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame, candidates must have fulfilled the following criteria:

• Players must have made an outstanding contribution to the NBL, have been retired for a minimum of four seasons, and have played 100 NBL games or more.
• Coaches must have made an outstanding contribution to the NBL, have been retired for at least four seasons, and have been an NBL head coach for 10 seasons or more.
• Referees must have made an outstanding contribution to the league and have been retired for at least four seasons.
• Contributors must have made an outstanding contribution to the NBL, and may be elected at any time.

In 2010, the Basketball Australia Hall of Fame and National Basketball League Hall of Fame were united under the Australian Basketball Hall of Fame to acknowledge the restructure of the NBL and Basketball Australia into a single, united governing body.^[7]

Inductees are listed in alphabetical order.

Award winners

• 25th Anniversary Team (2003)
• 20th Anniversary Team (1998)
• Most Valuable Player
• Most Valuable Player — Grand Final
• Coach of the Year
• Rookie of the Year
• Most Improved Player
• Best Defensive Player
• Best Sixth Man
• Good Hands Award (defunct)
• Most Efficient Player (defunct)
• All NBL teams

All-Star game

The All-Star game is an annual event in the NBL. It was once contested between the East and West but was now contested by the locals (Aussie All-Stars) and imports (World All-Star).

All-Star Games by Season

See also

• All-time Records
• List of attendance figures at domestic professional sports leagues — the NBL in a worldwide context
• List of National Basketball League (Australia) venues
• Basketball in Australia

References

External links

• Official NBL website
• Basketball Australia
• Aussie BBall
• Australia's basketball magazine
• FOX Sports Australia Basketball section
• SportsAustralia.com Basketball
• NBL on Austadiums