61-403: The National Basketball League Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual National Basketball League (NBL) award given since the league's inaugural season to the best performing player of the regular season. As of the 2023–24 season, coaches and captains from each team, and a panel of experts, vote for the MVP. The votes are collated and the individual with the most votes at
122-458: A disappointing 1998 campaign, Mark Bragg was sacked as head coach. With 151 games played out of the Suns' 164, Jason Cameron was the only player to have played in all six Suns seasons. Throughout, Townsville fans stuck by the team, ensuring the club set an Australian record for attendances; the Suns sold out their first 69 games at the "Furnace" (capacity 4,141), a streak that was only broken after
183-680: 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. 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
244-644: A league license, following the same model as the Tasmania JackJumpers.” The last Canberra team to play in the NBL was the Cannons from 1979–2003. They won three NBL championships and played their home games at the AIS Arena . In January 2024, the NBL announced a partnership with the Japanese B.League which will see future collaboration on pre-season game crossovers and potential exploration of
305-673: A near end when the Cairns Taipans were on the verge of extinction due to financial issues. The rivalry between the two North Queensland based clubs is currently extinct due to the Crocodiles folding at the end of the 2015–16 NBL season . Illawarra Hawks vs Sydney Kings Illawarra Hawks fans consider the Sydney Kings to be their most fierce rival. Many Hawks players have moved to the Kings including two former Rookie of
366-533: A push to make it to the top four in the 2008–09 season when they re-signed imports Williams and Ellis and also signings Brad Williamson and Steven Broom from the Brisbane Bullets and former Boomer Russell Hinder . The 2008/09 season saw them struggle to have a full roster with Bradley Sheridan (ankles), Ben Pepper (personal reasons) and Steven Broom (shoulder) leaving the club before the season had even began. The local fans were able to rally behind
427-527: 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. Adelaide 36ers vs Perth Wildcats Both teams were perennial championship contenders in
488-537: A row, including a clean sweep of the Hawks. The next time they met in the post-season, Sydney swept the Hawks 2–0 in the 2022 Semi-Finals enroute to their fourth championship. New Zealand Breakers vs Perth Wildcats Townsville Crocodiles The Townsville Crocodiles were an Australian professional men's basketball team based in the North Queensland city of Townsville . They competed in
549-404: 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. The rivalry has been in existent for over 10 years and almost came to
610-605: Is the premier professional men's basketball league in Australia and New Zealand. Before the establishment of the NBL, there were two national basketball competitions: the National Titles and the Australian Club Championships. In August 1979, the inaugural season of the NBL commenced, playing in the winter season (April–September) which it did so until the completion of the 1998 season ,
671-586: The 2013–14 NBL season , recording the highest cumulative crowd attendance figures for the past five years. After numerous teams folding and a plummeting public profile property developer Larry Kestelman purchased a 51% portion of the league. Since then game attendance, TV viewership, website visitors and app downloads have been consistently on the increase. In April 2016, the Townsville Crocodiles folded as they had become too financially unsustainable to continue. Larry Kestelman has stated on
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#1732787800774732-432: The 2019–20 season ; a season which was widely regarded as a major season for the league. After an active off-season, including the signings of LaMelo Ball and R. J. Hampton , two highly rated NBA 2020 draft picks , the league started by continuing to topple attendance records from the first round. The season's opening night had 10,300 fans in attendance to watch Melbourne United and the S.E. Melbourne Phoenix compete in
793-689: The Apollo Stadium ) when they won Game 2 104–83 before Adelaide won its first NBL title with a 113–91 win at Apollo in Game 3. The teams were evenly matched at the time with players such as Al Green, Mark Davis, Bill Jones, Peter Ali, Darryl Pearce , Mike McKay and Dwayne Nelson (Adelaide) against Brisbane's star import Leroy Loggins , captain Larry Sengstock , guard Ron Radliff , forwards Danny Morseu , Robert Sibley and Chris McGraw, centre John Dorge and (in 1985 and 1986) Cal Bruton. Loggins
854-415: The Brisbane Bullets and Bruton, who moved from Brisbane to be player-coach of Perth in 1987, built a team specifically to beat the reigning champions. Despite the long time rivalry between the two clubs, and the two teams having played numerous semi-final series against each other with the first being in that 1987 season , they did not face each other in a grand final series until the 2013–14 season , which
915-488: The Clipsal Powerhouse a 'double bird'. Heal, who had scored 61 points in the last regular season game before scoring 42 points in Game 1 to lead Brisbane to a 116–105 home win over the 36ers, had not actually managed to score a point before half time in Game 2 which the 36ers had won 99–91 before also winning Game 3 101–84. Heal, along with former 36er Mark Bradtke who had left under acrimonious circumstances at
976-516: The Illawarra Hawks are the oldest clubs in the league, both clubs were established in 1979. The Illawarra Hawks are the only club which has participated in every NBL season since the inaugural season in 1979. After weeks of reports of a return of a Tasmanian team, in June 2019, Larry Kestelman flagged Tasmania as a potential 10th team. However he stressed that if a Tasmanian team did enter
1037-591: The National Basketball League (NBL) and played their home games at the Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre . Between their inception in 1993 and their final season in 2015–16 , the Crocodiles enjoyed financial stability and sustained community support, but on-court success eluded them. Former Brisbane Bullets guard Mark Bragg, a Townsville resident, began campaigning to bring an NBL franchise to Townsville in
1098-470: The Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre for the 2015–16 season. In February 2016, the Queensland Police seized a compressed air launcher use by the team for over ten years to launch folded T-shirts into the crowd, after the device was deemed to be a category B weapon. On 14 April 2016, the Crocodiles pulled out of the 2016–17 season due to financial pressures. As of the end of
1159-459: The 36ers stating that he would finish his one-year contract with the club should he return within a certain time. Upon his return to Australia, Bradtke stated his intention not to return to the 36ers with the Tigers rumoured to be actively chasing him. After protracted negotiations with 36ers management that led to the club being prepared to buy out his remaining contract, the NBL stepped in and vetoed
1220-877: The Aussie Hoopla podcast that no NBL club will ever fold again as long as he is in control of the league. Allowing for clubs to recruit the best Australian players not in the NBA became easier with the marquee rule which saw the return from Europe and the US of players such as Brad Newley , David Andersen and Andrew Bogut . In addition the Special Restricted Player rule, introduced for the 2016–17 season, allows for clubs to recruit players born in countries such as China , Philippines , Taiwan , India , South Korea , Singapore , and Japan who would not count as imports under NBL rules. From 2016 to 2018, there
1281-594: The Crocodiles announced that the Townsville RSL Stadium would be their new home court for the 2014–15 season. Following the 2014–15 season, the Crocodiles decided to place themselves into Voluntary Administration. On 21 May 2015, they re-entered the league for a second time after regaining control of the Deed of Company Arrangement and subsequently received NBL approval to re-enter the competition. The Crocodiles also announced that they would be returning to
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#17327878007741342-422: The Crocodiles strung together a 16-game winning streak to again finish second on the NBL ladder. (The streak equaled an NBL record.) Townsville lost the opening-round series 2–1 to Wollongong, but by virtue of NBL rules, got a second chance to advance; they were then finally eliminated by the eventual champion Sydney Kings . After another disappointing season in 2005–06, Townsville head coach Ian Stacker's contract
1403-520: The Crocs turn back into a strong team. With also help from the crocs bench saw them finish the season in fifth place with a record of 17–13. But just like the 2006–07 season, saw the crocs win their first game against another newcomer Gold Coast Blaze but were once again saw them smashed by the team who finished one win higher than the Crocs in the Perth Wildcats 96–78. The crocs have now made
1464-529: The NBL (as of 15 November 2019). The rivalry continues into the 2012–13 season with the 36ers beating the Wildcats in back to back games in rounds 6 and 7, including the opening game at Perth's new home, the Perth Arena , in front of a then record Wildcats crowd of 11,562. The Wildcats and the 36ers dominated the 2013–14 NBL season , finishing first and second respectively during the regular round. After
1525-452: The NBL returned to their normal format of 28 games with no midseason tournament. The top four teams at the end of the regular season advances to the Finals. The team finishing in the first and second position at the completion of the regular season receives home advantages in their best-of-three first round matchup against the team finishing in third and fourth position. The winner of each of
1586-522: The NBL would begin its revamping, much like the old National Soccer League which became the eight team A-League . The NBL returned to free-to-air television in Australia for the first time in three years with One broadcasting 2–3 games a week. The 2010–11 season saw the return of the Sydney Kings after the club was purchased for A$ 20,000 on 31 July 2008. In 2013, the NBL had a de-merger from Basketball Australia . Crowds improved for
1647-494: The NBL, they would be eased in, and that there was no timeline. On 28 February 2020, the NBL and the Tasmanian Government announced that they had reached an agreement for Tasmania to host the 10th team in the NBL, known as the Tasmania JackJumpers, which would join for the 2021–22 season . In April 2022, Larry Kestelman flagged Canberra as a potential 11th team. Kestelman says “Canberra could be next in line for
1708-602: The Suns' debut in February 1993. With Bragg at the helm as head coach, the Suns struggled during their debut season, but it only took five games before they recorded their first-ever NBL win, a victory over the Newcastle Falcons. Townsville broke the mould in 1993, becoming the first Australian team to hire an 'import' player from a country other than the United States ; Lithuanian player Rimas Kurtinaitis
1769-516: The Year winners and a two-time Olympian. In the absence of the Kings, the Sydney Spirit took the role of rival, but this felt fake to some Hawks faithful. The Hawks took bragging rights after the 2000–01 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
1830-522: The buy out, effectively letting Bradtke leave for Melbourne without the 36ers receiving any compensation for the remainder of his contract with the club. When Bradtke returned to Adelaide with the Tigers on 4 July 1993 he was soundly booed whenever he touched the ball by the 8,000 strong crowd at the Clipsal Powerhouse . The booing of Bradtke and the Andrew Gaze led Tigers continued for a number of seasons. A new rivalry has emerged with Julius Hodge ,
1891-551: The championship. The Crocs again went 22–6 the following year and, under the league's new playoff system, eliminated both the Sydney Kings and the Victoria Titans . It came down to the grand final series, where the team lost 2 games to 1- 95–92 in the final game- after a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback by the Wollongong Hawks . Townsville missed the playoffs in 2002 and the 2003 season looked no better, but
NBL Most Valuable Player Award - Misplaced Pages Continue
1952-619: The club (plus another with Perth), while Blakemore, the NBL's Rookie of the year in 1993 and its Most Improved Player award winner in 1994 , as well as playing for the Australian Boomers in 1995, joined the Canberra Cannons in 1996 and his career went downhill from there with his NBL career ending at the end of 1997 after just two seasons with the Cannons. As the mainstay players began to slow with age and retire,
2013-466: The club to finish 5th. The Crocs were unable to make the grand final series as they were knocked out by eventual champions South Dragons . On 8 April 2013, the Crocodiles announced that Barrier Reef Basketball Pty Ltd was relinquishing its National Basketball League license, putting the Crocodiles' 2013–14 season in doubt. In September 2013, the Crocodiles re-entered the league as a community owned club under head coach, Shawn Dennis . In June 2014,
2074-492: The competition in the 2007–08 season . In 2007, 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. A turbulent period during 2008 and 2009 saw the league lose teams from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Singapore. The 2009–10 season earmarked as the season in which
2135-574: The cup tournament with a Magic Round -style basketball event. The NBL was founded in 1979 with ten clubs. Due to club expansions, reductions, and relocations, many of the clubs either changed or ceased to exist. There are currently ten clubs; nine clubs in Australia and one club in New Zealand. The clubs are located in Adelaide , Auckland , Brisbane , Cairns , Hobart , Melbourne , Perth , Sydney , and Wollongong . The Brisbane Bullets and
2196-498: The domestic cricket competition (which commenced its first season in 1892) and Australian Football League (which commenced its first season in 1897 as the Victorian Football League before changing its name in 1990). The NBL experienced its "golden age" in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but its popularity, media attention, attendance and corporate support deteriorated and plateaued in the decade afterward with
2257-550: The end of 1992 to join the Melbourne Tigers, became public enemy #1 to the 36ers crowd following the incident. With the Bullets returning to the NBL in 2016, the rivalry has continued with Adelaide defeating the Bullets in their first encounter at home, the Bullets returning the favour with an away win in Adelaide, while a week later Adelaide spoiled the Bullets regular season return to the Entertainment Centre for
2318-716: The end of the regular season is awarded the Most Valuable Player. The winner receives the Andrew Gaze Trophy , which is named in honour of Australian basketball legend Andrew Gaze , a seven-time winner of the NBL MVP award. National Basketball League (Australia) The National Basketball League ( NBL ) is a men's professional basketball league in Australasia , currently composed of ten teams: nine in Australia and one in New Zealand. It
2379-483: The first "Throwdown", with a further 20,550 fans attending games across the first round. After signing a broadcasting deal with Facebook Watch , over one million American fans watched Ball 's first game in the NBL against the Brisbane Bullets . Following two condensed seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the 2022–23 NBL season and the 2023 finals series saw a number of all-time attendance records being set for
2440-487: The first time since 1997 with a resounding 101–83 win. Adelaide 36ers vs Melbourne United Apart from the normal South Australian and Victorian rivalry, the 36ers vs United (formerly Tigers) rivalry started at the end of the 1992 season when 36ers centre Mark Bradtke joined Spanish club Juver Murcia following the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona , Spain for a short stint. Before he left he signed an agreement with
2501-557: The growth of the country's four football codes. A second Melbourne club, the South Dragons , entered the league in the 2006–07 season , but was short lived, soon folding 3 years later after the 2008–09 season in which they were NBL champions. In the 2006–07 season, the NBL became the first Australasian sporting league to field a team from Asia with the Singapore Slingers playing. The Gold Coast Blaze also joined
NBL Most Valuable Player Award - Misplaced Pages Continue
2562-409: The intensity of this rivalry has declined. The two clubs remain some of the most successful in the NBL with four championships for Adelaide and ten for Perth, and are first and second on the all-time wins list (748 wins for Perth, 692 wins for Adelaide as of 20 May 2021) and have also matched up on more occasions (134 times total; Perth leading all time between the two 73 – 61) than any other two teams in
2623-552: The key, Blakemore back handed Cattalini, giving the Wildcats forward a large cut on his mouth that required 15 stitches. Blakemore was suspended for Game 2 in Perth as the Wildcats swept the 36ers 2–0 before going on to defeat the defending champion North Melbourne Giants (who had swept Adelaide in 1994) 2–1 in the Grand Final. In an ironic twist, Cattalini would join the 36ers in 1996 and later went on to win two championships with
2684-413: The late 1980s and early 90s and had several marquee players with excellent match-ups, the three most notable all involving American imports: Al Green (Adelaide) vs Cal Bruton (Perth), Mark Davis (Adelaide) vs James Crawford (Perth) and Bill Jones (Adelaide) vs Tiny Pinder (Perth). Games during this era were rarely blowouts and helped to fuel the rivalry. Adelaide won the 1986 NBL Championship over
2745-610: The late 1980s. The franchise adopted the name of Townsville's State League team, becoming the Townsville Suns. The NBL was ready to admit the Suns, along with fellow Queenslanders the Gold Coast Cougars , in 1990, but financial backing for the Suns' venue fell through. Local government then got behind Bragg's bid, and the Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre was completed in time for
2806-401: The league's twentieth season. The 1998–99 season , which began only months later, was the first to be played during the summer season (October–April). The shift, which is currently used by the league, was an attempt to avoid competing directly against Australia's various winter season football codes . Officially the NBL is Australia's third oldest continuing national sporting competition after
2867-426: The league. In the 2023–24 season , one million fans attended NBL games for the first time since 1996. Since the 2009–10 season , each team has played 28 games during the regular season, 14 home and 14 away. The regular season starts in early October and ends in mid February. In the 2020–21 season , each team played an extra 8 games (36 games) due to the newly formatted NBL Cup tournament. The following season
2928-481: The play-in tournament. The third seed will play the fourth seed for third spot and the loser will play the winner of fifth or sixth for the fourth seed. In the 2020–21 season , the NBL introduced the NBL Cup which is a 36-game mid-season competition. Each game would contribute to each team's regular season record. In the 2021–22 season , the NBL returned to their normal format of 28 games. The league may return
2989-495: The reins, and immediately attracted top-name talent like Australian Olympic player Sam Mackinnon , but it would take one more season before Townsville's long-suffering fans saw playoff basketball. The Crocodiles finished second in the NBL in 1999/2000 with a 22–6 record, meaning they got a first-round bye in the NBL playoffs. But they faced a battle-hardened Perth Wildcats team in the semi-finals, and were defeated 2–1 in front of their disappointed home fans. Perth would go on to win
3050-512: The season, the team was struggling with injuries to both 7-foot centre's Ben Pepper (back) and Greg Vanderjagt (knee) along with swingman Bradley Sheridan (back). The team ended up losing newly signed import Rosell Ellis who suffered a freak of an injury when he tore his pectoral muscle during a weight session just after two matches. In those two matches saw Ellis get 27 points and 11 rebounds in both matches. The Crocs then brought in streetball legend Corey 'Homicide' Wiliams which saw
3111-724: The season. Adelaide and Perth play for the Cattalini Cup named for Perth born Martin Cattalini who won two championships with each club. In each game, the game MVP is awarded with the Paul Rogers Medal named for Adelaide born centre Paul Rogers who made his NBL debut for the 36ers in 1992 and later joined Perth, winning 2 championships and the NBL MVP award in 2000 while with the Wildcats. Cairns Taipans vs Townsville Crocodiles A local derby-style rivalry nicknamed "Reptile Rumble" has developed to determine which
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#17327878007743172-451: The three matches advances to the Grand Final. The winner of Series 1 plays the winner of Series 2 in the best-of-five Grand Final series, with home advantage being awarded to the highest remaining seed. The winner of this series is crowned as NBL champion. In the 2022–23 season , the NBL introduced play-in games . The top two seeds in the regular season will automatically qualify to the semi-finals. Teams ranked three to six will compete in
3233-470: The three previous semi-final meetings, they then faced off in their first ever Grand Final series which saw the Wildcats emerge with their record 6th NBL championship with a 2–1 series win. This was one of the most anticipated series in NBL history, not only given the two clubs' long-standing rivalry, but also due to the post-game on court 'brawl' which took place following their Round 18 clash in Perth earlier in
3294-499: The two clubs met in the 1986 NBL Grand Final , the first NBL GF to be played over a 3-game series. An Australian indoor sports attendance record of around 11,000 saw the first game of the 1986 series played at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre with Adelaide, who had a 24–2 record for the season , winning 122–119 in overtime. Brisbane then handed Adelaide its only home loss of 1986 (the 36ers had gone 13–0 at
3355-529: The venue was expanded for the 1998 season. It was a very different team that took the court in the 1998/99 season. The team had been involved in a dispute with the NBA 's Phoenix Suns , who held the "Suns" trademark in Australia . Faced with the prospect of paying Phoenix royalties on merchandise sales, the team changed its name to the Townsville Crocodiles. New head coach Ian Stacker took
3416-520: The viability of a team from Japan participating in the NBL. Adelaide 36ers vs Brisbane Bullets Arguably the NBL's oldest rivalry started in 1985 when the Brian Kerle coached Bullets defeated the Ken Cole coached 36ers 121–95 in the 1985 NBL Grand Final , the last single game Grand Final in NBL history. From 1985 to 1987, the Bullets and 36ers were the two dominant teams in the NBL and
3477-478: Was a crucial part of the team during their debut season. The Suns finished 4–22 and took the wooden spoon. Townsville would not reach the playoffs in its first six seasons, although they came perilously close in the 1997 season; needing only one win from their final six games to ensure a historic playoff appearance, the Suns went 0–6 after centre Clarence Tyson suffered a season-ending knee injury in Canberra. After
3538-486: Was a renewed interest in the sport, with it being described as being the National Basketball League's greatest ever period. 2016–17 set a new attendance record for the league, with the figure being matched the following year, as well as the Grand Final series for the 2017–18 season. In 2018, the S.E. Melbourne Phoenix were announced as the latest club to join the league, and started competing in
3599-403: Was not renewed. The Crocodiles again failed to make the playoffs. Trevor Gleeson was appointed coach and the team improved on their failed 2005–06 season by making the play-offs. They won their first final against one of the newcomers in the Singapore Slingers but lost their second to the Sydney Kings. 2007–08 saw the Crocs struggle in their first ten games, only winning three matches. Before
3660-467: Was the NBL MVP in 1986 and 1987 (and player of the match in the 1985 GF) while Mark Davis was the Grand Final MVP in 1986 and shared the NBL MVP award with Loggins in 1987 . The Rivalry between the two clubs again reached fever pitch in the mid-1990s when Bullets guard Shane Heal earned the ire of the Adelaide crowd during Game 3 of the 1994 Elimination final series when he gave the crowd at
3721-473: Was won by the Perth Wildcats. the Wildcats have won each semi-finals series played between the two (1987, 1989 and 1995 ). The 1995 series proved to be one of the most volatile and controversial due to an incident between 36ers forward Chris Blakemore and Perth's Martin Cattalini in Game 1 in Adelaide. Under instructions from coach Mike Dunlap to basically belt the next Perth player to go through
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