The 2011 NBL season was the 30th season of the National Basketball League. In 2011, the Auckland Pirates debuted in the league but the Christchurch Cougars did not take part due to the effects of the 2011 Canterbury earthquake. The Harbour Heat also did not compete in the 2011 season, leaving the total number of teams at nine.
The regular season commenced on Wednesday 13 April with the Auckland Pirates hosting the Otago Nuggets at ASB Stadium in Auckland.2011 NBL Round One Six teams qualified for the NBL Playoffs, with the third and fourth seeds hosting quarterfinal games against the sixth and fifth seeds, respectively, on Tuesday 12 July. The winners then joined the first and second seeds at the final four weekend. Wellington's waterfront TSB Bank Arena hosted the 2011 NBL Final Four, with two semifinals on Friday 15 July and the championship game on Sunday 17 July.NBL returns to Final Four finals format
Team information Team City Arena Head coach Import Import Auckland Pirates Auckland ASB Stadium Kenny Stone Kevin Mickens Hawke's Bay Hawks Napier Pettigrew Green Arena Paul Henare Josh Pace Galen Young Manawatu Jets Palmerston North Arena Manawatu Ryan Weisenberg Chris Hagan Darryl Hudson Nelson Giants Nelson Trafalgar Centre Chris Tupu Darryl Dora Rod Grizzard Otago Nuggets Dunedin Edgar Centre Anthony Arlidge Lance Allred Scott O'Gallagher Southland Sharks Invercargill Stadium Southland Richard Dickel Kaniel Dickens Mike Rose Taranaki Mountainairs New Plymouth TSB Stadium Angelo Hill Marcus Campbell Jack Leasure Waikato Pistons Hamilton Hamilton Boys' High School Dean Vickerman Jason Crowe Jerry Smith Wellington Saints Wellington TSB Bank Arena Pero Cameron Kareem Johnson Erron Maxey
Summary
Regular season standings Team 1Wellington Saints 13 32Waikato Pistons 13 33Hawke's Bay Hawks 12 44Nelson Giants 9 75Manawatu Jets 7 96Southland Sharks 6 10 7Auckland Pirates 5 118Taranaki Mountainairs 5 119Otago Nuggets 2 14
Playoff bracket
Awards
Player of the Week Round Player Team Ref 1 Kevin Mickens Auckland Pirates 2 Nick Horvath Manawatu Jets 3 Kareem Johnson Wellington Saints 4 Erron Maxey Wellington Saints 5 Darryl Hudson Manawatu Jets 6 Lance Allred Otago Nuggets 7 Alex Pledger Waikato Pistons 8 Galen Young Hawke's Bay Hawks 9 Rod Grizzard Nelson Giants 10 Lindsay Tait Wellington Saints 11 Chris Hagan Manawatu Jets 12 Lindsay Tait Wellington Saints 13 Rod Grizzard Nelson Giants
Statistics leaders Stats as of the end of the regular season Category Player Team Stat Points per game Jack Leasure Taranaki Mountainairs 22.9 Rebounds per game Nick Horvath Manawatu Jets 11.7 Assists per game Jason Crowe Waikato Pistons 7.2 Steals per game Jason Crowe Waikato Pistons 3.3 Blocks per game Alex Pledger Waikato Pistons 2.4
Regular season Most Valuable Player: Alex Pledger (Waikato Pistons) NZ Most Valuable Player: Alex Pledger (Waikato Pistons) Most Outstanding Guard: Lindsay Tait (Wellington Saints) Most Outstanding NZ Guard: Lindsay Tait (Wellington Saints) Most Outstanding Forward: Alex Pledger (Waikato Pistons) Most Outstanding NZ Forward/Centre: Alex Pledger (Waikato Pistons) Scoring Champion: Jack Leasure (Taranaki Mountainairs) Rebounding Champion: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets) Assist Champion: Jason Crowe (Waikato Pistons) Rookie of the Year: Steven Adams (Wellington Saints) Coach of the Year: Dean Vickerman (Waikato Pistons) All-Star Five: G: Lindsay Tait (Wellington Saints) G: Jason Crowe (Waikato Pistons) F: Thomas Abercrombie (Waikato Pistons) F: Mika Vukona (Nelson Giants) C: Alex Pledger (Waikato Pistons)
Playoffs Finals MVP: Lindsay Tait (Wellington Saints)Wellington Saints repeat as NBL championsPirates loss wake-up call for champion Saints
References
External links Basketball New Zealand 2011 Results Annual 2011 QF Results 2011 Grand Final Preview Saints win 2011 crowd numbers