2022 NBL Finals
# 2022 NBL Finals

The 2022 NBL Finals was the championship series of the 2021–22 NBL season and the conclusion of the season.

## Format

The finals was played in April and May 2022 between the top four teams of the regular season, consisting of two best-of-three semi-final and one best-of-five final series, where the higher seed hosts the first, third and fifth games.

## Qualification

The 2022 NBL Finals marked the first time in 35 years that the Perth Wildcats have not qualified for the finals, having last failed to do so in 1986.

### Qualified teams

| Team | Date of qualification | Round of qualification | Finals appearance | Previous appearance | Previous best performance |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Melbourne United | 10 April 2022 | 19 | 27th | 2021 | Champions (1993, 1997, 2006, 2008, 2018, 2021) |
| Sydney Kings | 14 April 2022 | 20 | 16th | 2020 | Champions (2003, 2004, 2005) |
| Illawarra Hawks | 22 April 2022 | 21 | 22nd | 2021 | Champions (2001) |
| Tasmania JackJumpers | 24 April 2022 | 21 | 1st | N/A | N/A |

### Ladder

| Pos | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte | 2021–22 NBL season vte |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PCT | Last 5 | Streak | Home | Away | PF | PA | PP |
| 1 | Melbourne United | 28 | 20 | 8 | 71.43% | 4–1 | L1 | 9–5 | 11–3 | 2455 | 2244 | 109.40% |
| 2 | Illawarra Hawks | 28 | 19 | 9 | 67.86% | 4–1 | W2 | 8–6 | 11–3 | 2498 | 2345 | 106.52% |
| 3 | Sydney Kings | 28 | 19 | 9 | 67.86% | 3–2 | L1 | 9–5 | 10–4 | 2397 | 2313 | 103.63% |
| 4 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 28 | 17 | 11 | 60.71% | 4–1 | W4 | 8–6 | 9–5 | 2230 | 2220 | 100.45% |
| 5 | Perth Wildcats | 28 | 16 | 12 | 57.14% | 2–3 | L2 | 7–7 | 9–5 | 2495 | 2377 | 104.96% |
| 6 | S.E. Melbourne Phoenix | 28 | 15 | 13 | 53.57% | 3–2 | W2 | 7–7 | 8–6 | 2456 | 2424 | 101.32% |
| 7 | Adelaide 36ers | 28 | 10 | 18 | 35.71% | 3–2 | W1 | 6–8 | 4–10 | 2283 | 2346 | 97.31% |
| 8 | Brisbane Bullets | 28 | 10 | 18 | 35.71% | 2–3 | L2 | 6–8 | 4–10 | 2379 | 2500 | 95.16% |
| 9 | Cairns Taipans | 28 | 9 | 19 | 32.14% | 1–4 | W1 | 5–9 | 4–10 | 2228 | 2408 | 92.52% |
| 10 | New Zealand Breakers | 28 | 5 | 23 | 17.86% | 0–5 | L10 | 2–12 | 3–11 | 2234 | 2478 | 90.15% |

Updated to match(es) played on 24 April 2022. Source: NBL.com.au

### Ladder progression

* Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top four.
* Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
* Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished last place on the ladder in that round.

2021–22 NBL season vte :

| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Adelaide 36ers | 8 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 |
| Brisbane Bullets | 7 | 5 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Cairns Taipans | 9 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 |
| Illawarra Hawks | 3 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| Melbourne United | 6 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| New Zealand Breakers | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| Perth Wildcats | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| S.E. Melbourne Phoenix | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Sydney Kings | 5 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Tasmania JackJumpers | 4 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 |

### Seedings

* Melbourne United
* Illawarra Hawks
* Sydney Kings
* Tasmania JackJumpers

The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win–loss record, the overall points percentage will determine order of seeding.

**Playoff Bracket**

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Melbourne United | 74 | 72 | 73 | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 63 | 79 | 76 | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 63 | 79 | 76 | 3 | Sydney Kings | 95 | 90 | 97 | X | X |
| | | | | | 4 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 78 | 86 | 88 | X | X |
| 2 | Illawarra Hawks | 79 | 87 | X | 4 | Tasmania JackJumpers | 78 | 86 | 88 | X | X |
| 3 | Sydney Kings | 89 | 99 | X | | | | | | | |

## Semifinals series

### (1) Melbourne United vs. (4) Tasmania JackJumpers

Tasmania won 2–1 in the regular season series :

1 January 2022

boxscore

Tasmania JackJumpers 72, Melbourne United 76

MyState Bank Arena, Hobart

6 February 2022

boxscore

Melbourne United 85, Tasmania JackJumpers 94

John Cain Arena, Melbourne

23 April 2022

boxscore

Tasmania JackJumpers 83, Melbourne United 61

MyState Bank Arena, Hobart :

### (2) Illawarra Hawks vs. (3) Sydney Kings

Illawarra won 3–1 in the regular season series :

11 December 2021

boxscore

Sydney Kings 84, Illawarra Hawks 92

Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney

13 January 2022

boxscore

Illawarra Hawks 97, Sydney Kings 89

WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong

14 April 2022

boxscore

Illawarra Hawks 102, Sydney Kings 107 (OT)

WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong

24 April 2022

boxscore

Sydney Kings 84, Illawarra Hawks 87

Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney :

## Grand Final series

### (3) Sydney Kings vs. (4) Tasmania JackJumpers

Sydney won 2–1 in the regular season series :

22 December 2021

boxscore

Sydney Kings 83, Tasmania JackJumpers 71

Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney

4 February 2022

boxscore

Tasmania JackJumpers 77, Sydney Kings 70

MyState Bank Arena, Hobart

3 April 2022

boxscore

Tasmania JackJumpers 83, Sydney Kings 103

MyState Bank Arena, Hobart :

## Media coverage

### Television

Australian broadcast rights to the season are held by ESPN. All games are available live on ESPN and the streaming platform Kayo Freebies. Network 10 will broadcast Sunday afternoon games on 10 Peach and 10 Play.

