2011 New Zealand NBL season
# 2011 New Zealand NBL season

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. 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.

## 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

| Pos |
| - |
| Pos | Team | W | L |
| 1 | Wellington Saints | 13 | 3 |
| 2 | Waikato Pistons | 13 | 3 |
| 3 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 12 | 4 |
| 4 | Nelson Giants | 9 | 7 |
| 5 | Manawatu Jets | 7 | 9 |
| 6 | Southland Sharks | 6 | 10 |
| 7 | Auckland Pirates | 5 | 11 |
| 8 | Taranaki Mountainairs | 5 | 11 |
| 9 | Otago Nuggets | 2 | 14 |

### Playoff bracket

| Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | | | 1 | Wellington Saints | 103 | | |
| 4 | Nelson Giants | 89 | 4 | Nelson Giants | 82 | | |
| 5 | Manawatu Jets | 76 | | | | Wellington Saints | 106 |
| | | | | | | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 97 |
| | | | 2 | Waikato Pistons | 86 | | |
| 3 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 89 | 3 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 95 | | |
| 6 | Southland Sharks | 75 | | | | | |

## Awards

### Player of the Week

| Round | Player | Team |
| - | - | - |
| 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)
