The 2015–16 NBL Canada season was the fifth season of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC). The regular season began on December 26, 2015 and concluded on April 30, 2016. There were 40 total games played by each team, eight more than the previous year. The new expansion Niagara River Lions team are competing in their first season. The Halifax Hurricanes also began play, replacing the defunct Halifax Rainmen. During the offseason, the Mississauga Power folded to make way for Raptors 905 of the NBA Development League. Prior to the season, the league also enforced new policies to help improve its standard, including rules regarding sportsmanship, addressing the brawl that ended the 2015 NBL Canada Finals. The first regular season game featured the Island Storm and the Saint John Mill Rats.

Transactions

Coaching changes + Coaching changesOffseasonTeam2014–15 season2015–16 seasonHalifax Hurricanes Hugo LópezLondon LightningCarlos KnoxKyle JuliusNiagara River Lions Ken MurrayOrangeville A'sDave MagleyChris ThomasSaint John Mill RatsJulian KingRob SponWindsor ExpressBill JonesTony Jones (interim) On May 7, 2015, the Saint John Mill Rats hired Rob Spon as head coach. On May 8, 2015, the NBL Canada suspended Windsor Express head coach Bill Jones for one season. On May 29, 2015, the NBL Canada hired Brampton A's head coach Dave Magley as league commissioner. On July 14, 2015, the Windsor Express hired Tony Jones as interim head coach, temporarily replacing his brother, Bill. On July 29, 2015, the London Lightning fired head coach Carlos Knox after one year with the team. On August 19, 2015, the London Lightning hired Kyle Julius as head coach. On February 12, 2016, the Moncton Miracles hired Paul Mokeski to replace Serge Langis.

Preseason

Out-of-league On October 23, 2015, Raptors 905 of the NBA D-League, who replaced the Mississauga Power earlier in the offseason, announced that they would be facing two NBL Canada teams—the Windsor Express and London Lightning—in their three-game preseason schedule. The team would visit the WFCU Centre to face the Express on the road and compete with the Lightning at their home arena, the Hershey Centre. On November 5, Raptors 905 defeated the Express, 117–114. Adrian Moss, who scored 38 points, helped Windsor make a comeback after facing an 18-point deficit at halftime. Raptors 905 picked up another win over the Lightning on November 9, after pulling off a 126–111 victory. Tyshawn Patterson, a draft combine addition, led London with 26 points. The Windsor Express played another preseason game against the Lima Express of the Midwest Professional Basketball Association (MPBA) on December 13 at the St. Clair College SportsPlex in Windsor, pulling off the 108–82 win. Maurice Bolden led Windsor with 24 points while Lima's Jody Hill put up a game-high 26 points.

In-league On December 18, 2015, the Halifax Hurricanes and Island Storm competed in a preseason game at Centre 200 in Sydney, Nova Scotia, with the Hurricanes winning, 106–103. Centre 200 is expected to be the home of the future NBL Canada team, the Cape Breton Highlanders. On December 19, the London Lightning defeated the Windsor Express, 97–87, behind 19 points from Chad Posthumus and Stephen Maxwell. The Hurricanes also won their second preseason contest over the Moncton Miracles, that same day, pulling away for a 110–91 victory. On December 21, the Miracles defeated the Storm, 115–110, in a fundraising game at Crandall University. Moncton's James Justice led all scorers with 27 points. On December 23, the Saint John Mill Rats defeated the Miracles, 128–110, behind 33 points from Doug Herring, Jr. They set a franchise record for most fans at the Harbour Station, with an attendance of 6,646.

Teams 2015-16 National Basketball League of Canada Division Team City Arena Capacity Atlantic Halifax Hurricanes Halifax, Nova Scotia Scotiabank Centre 10,500 Island Storm Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island Eastlink Centre 4,000 Moncton Miracles Moncton, New Brunswick Moncton Coliseum 6,554 Saint John Mill Rats Saint John, New Brunswick Harbour Station 6,603 Central London Lightning London, Ontario Budweiser Gardens 9,000 Niagara River Lions St. Catharines, Ontario Meridian Centre 4,030 Orangeville A's Orangeville, Ontario Athlete Institute 1,000 Windsor Express Windsor, Ontario WFCU Centre 6,500

Map of teams

Regular season

Standings + Atlantic Division # Team 1 Halifax Hurricanes 29 11 0.725 0 14-7 40 2 Saint John Mill Rats 25 15 0.625 4 13-9 40 3 Moncton Miracles 15 25 0.375 14 10-13 40 4 Island Storm 14 26 0.370 15 7-15 40 + Central Division # Team 1 London Lightning 26 14 0.650 0 14-9 40 2 Windsor Express 21 19 0.525 5 15-10 40 3 Niagara River Lions 16 24 0.400 10 10-13 40 4 Orangeville A's 14 26 0.350 12 7-14 40

Statistics As of February 24, 2016.

Individual statistic leaders Category Player Team Statistic Points per game Logan Stutz Niagara River Lions 23.8 Rebounds per game Stephen Maxwell London Lightning 12.7Assists per game Sammy Zeglinski Niagara River Lions 8.8Steals per game Brandon Robinson Windsor Express 2.8Blocks per game Anthony Stover Saint John Mill Rats 3.9 Turnovers per game Sammy Zeglinski Niagara River Lions 4.3 Fouls per game Gabe Freeman Saint John Mill Rats 4.2 Billy White Halifax Hurricanes Minutes per game Brandon Robinson Windsor Express 41.2 FG% Mike Glover Halifax Hurricanes 0.640FT% Corey Allmond Saint John Mill Rats 0.9233P% Brandan Kearney Moncton Miracles 0.519Double-doubles Stephen Maxwell London Lightning 13 Triple-doubles Anthony Stover Saint John Mill Rats 1

Individual game highs Category Player Team StatisticPoints Anthony Anderson Saint John Mill Rats 51 Rebounds Stephen Maxwell London Lightning 22Assists Sammy Zeglinski Niagara River Lions 18Steals Adrian Moss Windsor Express 7Blocks Anthony Stover Saint John Mill Rats 10 Three Pointers Clinton Springer-Williams Niagara River Lions 10

Team statistic leaders Category Team Statistic Points per game Saint John Mill Rats 111.6 Rebounds per game Niagara River Lions 50.8 Assists per game Windsor Express 25.2 Steals per game Halifax Hurricanes 10.6 Blocks per game Saint John Mill Rats 5.9 Turnovers per game Niagara River Lions 20.4 Fouls per game Halifax Hurricanes 29.1FG% Halifax Hurricanes 0.486 FT% Saint John Mill Rats 0.773 3FG% London Lightning 0.376

Attendance Team HomeGames Average Total London Lightning 20 5,659 113,176 Island Storm 20 1,950 39,009Halifax Hurricanes 20 1,929 38,581Saint John Mill Rats 20 1,774 35,480 Moncton Miracles 20 1,545 30,896Niagara River Lions 20 1,305 26,108Windsor Express 20 1,262 25,249 Orangeville A's 20 341 6,822 League 160 1,971 315,321

Awards

Players of the Week Week Player Team Ref. Dec. 27 Doug Herring, Jr. Saint John Mill Rats Logan Stutz Niagara River Lions Jan. 3 Justin Johnson Halifax Hurricanes Jan. 10 Brandon Robinson Windsor Express Jan. 17 Tyshawn Patterson London Lightning Jan. 24 Mike Glover Halifax Hurricanes Stephen Maxwell London Lightning Jan. 31 Nick Okorie London Lightning Feb. 7 Anthony Stover Saint John Mill Rats Feb. 14 Kyle Hunt Halifax Hurricanes Feb. 21 Anthony Anderson Saint John Mill Rats Feb. 28 Brian Addison Island Storm Mar. 6 James Justice London Lightning

Playoffs

NBL Canada Finals

Notable occurrences Offseason

The league established a team from St. Catharines, Ontario called the Niagara River Lions. They begin play at the Meridian Centre as a member of the Central Division. The NBL Canada unanimously hired Brampton A's head coach and general manager Dave Magley as commissioner, succeeding Paul Riley. The Mississauga Power franchise folded with the creation of Raptors 905, a D-League affiliate to the Toronto Raptors of the NBA. Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) acquired the team's rights. The Halifax Rainmen filed for bankruptcy in the fallout of the 2015 NBL Canada Finals brawl. The franchise later gets new ownership and is rebranded as the Halifax Hurricanes. The Brampton A's relocated from Brampton to Orangeville, Ontario. Their home arena changed from the Powerade Centre to the Athlete Institute. They were also renamed the Orangeville A's. The league announced the Cape Breton Highlanders, a new expansion team from Sydney, Nova Scotia, who were expected to operate in the 2015–16 season in the Atlantic Division. However they later announced they would not join until the 2016–17 season. The Saint John Mill Rats unveiled a new logo, slightly resembling their previous one, and an official slogan "Building Amazing Now". The Mill Rats signed two former NBL Canada Most Valuable Players in Anthony Anderson and Gabe Freeman in a key offseason acquisition. The league's Board of Governors approved of a stricter drug policy, a dress code, and created rules to promote sportsmanship. The defending champions Windsor Express got new members from a private local partner to add to its ownership. The Mill Rats set a franchise record with an attendance of 6,646 in a preseason game vs the Moncton Miracles on December 23, 2015. Doug Herring, Jr. of the Mill Rats and Logan Stutz of the River Lions become the first co-Players of the Week on December 27, 2015.

References