International Representative Teams
- the Boomers, Australia's senior men's team. The Boomers finished ninth at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.
- the Opals, Australia's senior women's team. The Opals took the silver medal in Athens, finishing behind the United States Of America.
- the Crocodiles, Australia's junior (under-21) men's team. (Not to be confused with the NBL's Townsville Crocodiles.)
- the Gems, Australia's junior (under-21) women's team.
- the Gliders, Australia's senior men's wheelchair basketball team.
Basketball Australia Links
| 2004 Pan Pacific Masters Games |
Basketball Western Australia
Newcastle Basketball - Aussie Hoops |
History of Basketball
Since its invention in 1891, by James Naismith, it has developed to become a truly international sport. It originated in the YMCA; early leagues were formed in colleges. Basketball eventually became a professional sport, and organizations such as the National Basketball Association developed. It gained Olympic status in 1936 and, even though it was originally an American sport, it quickly spread internationally and outstanding players and teams are found today all over the world.
Basketball is primarily an indoor sport, played in a relatively small playing area (the court). Points are scored for passing the ball through the basket from above (shooting); the team with more points at the end of the game wins. The ball can be advanced on the court by bouncing it (dribbling) or passing it between teammates. Advantageous personal contact (fouls) is not permitted and there are restrictions on how the ball can be handled (violations).
Through time, basketball has developed to involve common techniques of shooting, passing and dribbling, as well as players' positions (which are not legally required) and offensive and defensive structures. Height is considered advantageous. While competitive basketball is carefully regulated, variations have developed for casual play. Basketball is also a popular spectator sport.
History of Basketball in Australia
It formed in 1978, playing a winter season (April-September). In 1998 the competition was shifted to a summer competition between October and April, mainly to avoid competing directly against Australia's various football codes. There are currently eleven teams in the league, with teams in all capital cities (except Canberra, Hobart and Darwin), regional centres Cairns, Newcastle, Townsville and Wollongong, as well as New Zealand. A second Melbourne club, the South Dragons, will enter league in 2006-07.
The league's best years were in the late 1980s and early 1990s, but it has struggled recently and many teams have downsized to smaller venues to cut costs. A number of clubs have folded or ceased to compete in the competition. Despite these issues, at the start of the 2004/05 season the league struck a new television deal with Fox Sports in Australia and a multi-year naming-rights sponsorship deal with electronics manufacturer Philips. There are future plans to expand into South East Asia with a Singaporean team being considered. The previous major sponsor of the NBL was Mitsubishi Motors, however due to the switch to summer and lack of funding from its owner left the NBL close to folding.Most teams have historically featured at least one and sometimes two American imports; teams are limited to having two non-Australians on the roster at any one time. Some of these players have moved to Australia permanently and become Australian citizens; a few have even played for the Australian national team (under a rule that allowed one naturalized player to compete for a national team).
www.NBL.com.au Teams
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Hall of Fame
The National Basketball League celebrated 27 seasons of competition in 2005. The NBL Hall of Fame recognises outstanding players, coaches, referees and contributors to the basketball league.
| Name | Award | Inducted |
|---|---|---|
| Barry Barnes | Coach | 1998 |
| Cal Bruton | Player | 1998 |
| Steve Carfino | Player | 2004 |
| Wayne Carroll | Player | 1999 |
| Ian Davies | Player | 2001 |
| Al Green | Player | 1999 |
| Michael Johnson | Player | 2004 |
| Damian Keogh | Player | 2000 |
| Herb McEachin | Player | 1998 |
| Danny Morseu | Player | 2002 |
| Bill Palmer | Contributor | 1998 |
| Darryl Pearce | Player | 2002 |
| John Raschke | Contributor | 1998 |
| Larry Sengstock | Player | 2001 |
| Phil Smyth | Player | 2000 |
| Mal Speed | Contributor | 2000 |
| Bob Turner | Coach | 2000 |
Australian Basketball Champions
1979 St Kilda Saints (def Canberra Cannons 94-93 in final)
1980 St Kilda Saints (def West Adelaide Bearcats 113-88 in final)
1981 Launceston Casino City (def Nunawading Spectres 75-54 in final)
1982 West Adelaide Bearcats (def Geelong Cats 80-74 in final)
1983 Canberra Cannons (def West Adelaide Bearcats 75-73 in final)
1984 Canberra Cannons (def Brisbane Bullets 84-82 in final)
1985 Brisbane Bullets (def Adelaide 36ers 121-95 in final)
1986 Adelaide 36ers (def Brisbane Bullets 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1987 Brisbane Bullets (def Perth Wildcats 2-0 in best-of-three final series)
1988 Canberra Cannons (def North Melbourne Giants 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1989 North Melbourne Giants (def Canberra Cannons 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1990 Perth Wildcats (def Brisbane Bullets 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1991 Perth Wildcats (def Eastside Melbourne Spectres 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1992 South East Melbourne Magic (def Melbourne Tigers 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1993 Melbourne Tigers (def Perth Wildcats 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1994 North Melbourne Giants (def Adelaide 36ers 2-0 in best-of-three final series)
1995 Perth Wildcats (def North Melbourne Giants 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1996 South East Melbourne Magic (def Melbourne Tigers 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1997 Melbourne Tigers (def South East Melbourne Magic 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
1998 Adelaide 36ers (def South East Melbourne Magic 2-0 in best-of-three final series)
1999 Adelaide 36ers (def Victoria Titans 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
2000 Perth Wildcats (def Victoria Titans 2-0 in best-of-three final series)
2001 Wollongong Hawks (def Townsville Crocodiles 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
2002 Adelaide 36ers (def West Sydney Razorbacks 2-1 in best-of-three final series)
2003 Sydney Kings (def Perth Wildcats 2-0 in best-of-three final series)
2004 Sydney Kings (def West Sydney Razorbacks 3-2 in best-of-five final series)
2005 Sydney Kings (def Wollongong Hawks 3-0 in best-of-five final series)
