Puke Lenden

Puke Lenden
No. 33 Super City Rangers
Position Shooting guard / Small forward
League NBL
Personal information
Born 4 January 1980
Napier, New Zealand
Nationality New Zealand
Listed height 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight 210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school Napier Boys' (Napier, New Zealand)
Pro career 1998–present
Career history
As player:
1998 Hawke's Bay Hawks
1999 Auckland Rebels
2000–2002 Hawke's Bay Hawks
2003–2011 Waikato Titans/Pistons
2014 Southland Sharks
2015–present Super City Rangers
As coach:
2012–2013 Waikato Wizards
Career highlights and awards
  • 3x NBL champion (1999, 2008, 2009)
  • NBL Finals MVP (2008)

Puke Lenden (born 4 January 1980) is a New Zealand professional basketball player who currently plays for the Super City Rangers of the National Basketball League (NBL).

Playing career

From 1998 to 2002, Lenden played in the New Zealand NBL for the Hawke's Bay Hawks and the Auckland Rebels, winning his first championship in 1999 with the Rebels. From 2003 to 2005, he played for the Waikato Titans, and from 2006 to 2011, he played for the Waikato Pistons after the club changed its name from Titans to Pistons. Lenden was named the 2008 Finals MVP following the Pistons' 2–0 grand final series defeat of the Wellington Saints.[1] In 2009, the Pistons also won the championship after defeating the Nelson Giants, 2–0.

On 5 June 2014, Lenden signed with the Southland Sharks for the rest of the 2014 New Zealand NBL season.[2] After a successful return to action in 2014, he joined the Super City Rangers for the 2015 season.[3]

Coaching career

In 2012 and 2013, Lenden coached the Waikato Wizards of the Women's Basketball Championship (WBC).[4]

Personal

Lenden's mother, Lesley, lives in Whakatu.[5]

References

External links