# 2012 New Zealand NBL season

The 2012 NBL season was the 31st season of the National Basketball League. While the Harbour Heat returned for the 2012 season, the Waikato Pistons dropped out of the league. It marked the first time the league had no Waikato presence since 1983.
The Hawke's Bay Hawks were regular season winners in 2012. The final Four weekend was held in Wellington, with the semifinals on Saturday 26 May, followed by the championship game on Sunday 27 May. In the final, the Auckland Pirates were victorious over the two-time defending champion Wellington Saints.

## Team information

| Team | City | Arena | Head coach | Import | Import |
| Auckland Pirates | Kohimarama, Auckland | ASB Stadium | Judd Flavell | Ron Dorsey | Isma'il Muhammad |
| Harbour Heat | Wairau Valley, Auckland | North Shore Events Centre | Alex Stojkovic | Zack Atkinson | Justin Bailey |
| Hawke's Bay Hawks | Napier | Pettigrew Green Arena | Paul Henare | Kareem Johnson | Galen Young |
| Manawatu Jets | Palmerston North | Arena Manawatu | Ryan Weisenberg | Chris Hagan | Josh Pace |
| Nelson Giants | Nelson | Trafalgar Centre | Chris Tupu | Pete Campbell | Michael Harrison |
| Otago Nuggets | Dunedin | Edgar Centre | Anthony Arlidge | Antoine Tisby | Akeem Wright |
| Southland Sharks | Invercargill | Stadium Southland | Richard Dickel | Larry Abney | Kevin Braswell |
| Taranaki Mountainairs | New Plymouth | TSB Stadium | Dave Bublitz | Darryl Hudson | Jack Leasure |
| Wellington Saints | Wellington | TSB Bank Arena | Pero Cameron | Jason Crowe | Ernest Scott |

## Summary
### Regular season standings

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

### Final Four

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final |
| 1 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 88 | | |
| 4 | Wellington Saints | 94 | | |
| 4 | Wellington Saints | 94 | Wellington Saints | 83 |
| | | | Auckland Pirates | 89 |
| 2 | Auckland Pirates | 104 | Auckland Pirates | 89 |
| 3 | Manawatu Jets | 88 | | |

## Awards
### Player of the Week

| Round | Player | Team |
| 1 | Akeem Wright | Otago Nuggets |
| 2 | Jason Crowe | Wellington Saints |
| 3 | Nick Horvath | Manawatu Jets |
| 4 | Lindsay Tait | Auckland Pirates |
| 5 | Anthony Gurley | Wellington Saints |
| 6 | Antoine Tisby | Otago Nuggets |
| 7 | Jack Leasure | Taranaki Mountainairs |
| 8 | Lindsay Tait | Auckland Pirates |
| 9 | Darryl Hudson | Taranaki Mountainairs |
| 10 | Justin Bailey | Harbour Heat |
| 11 | Jason Crowe | Wellington Saints |
| 12 | Larry Abney | Southland Sharks |

### Statistics leaders

Stats as of the end of the regular season
| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
| Points per game | Josh Pace | Manawatu Jets | 23.0 |
| Rebounds per game | Nick Horvath | Manawatu Jets | 15.8 |
| Assists per game | Jason Crowe | Wellington Saints | 8.7 |
| Steals per game | Kevin Braswell | Southland Sharks | 3.0 |
| Blocks per game | Michael Harrison | Nelson Giants | 2.1 |

### Regular season

* Most Valuable Player: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)
* NZ Most Valuable Player: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)
* Most Outstanding Guard: Lindsay Tait (Auckland Pirates)
* Most Outstanding NZ Guard: Lindsay Tait (Auckland Pirates)
* Most Outstanding Forward: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)
* Most Outstanding NZ Forward/Centre: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)
* Scoring Champion: Josh Pace (Manawatu Jets)
* Rebounding Champion: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)
* Assist Champion: Jason Crowe (Wellington Saints)
* Rookie of the Year: Reuben Te Rangi (Harbour Heat)
* Coach of the Year: Paul Henare (Hawke's Bay Hawks)
* All-Star Five:
** G: Lindsay Tait (Auckland Pirates)
** G: Paora Winitana (Hawke's Bay Hawks)
** F: Josh Pace (Manawatu Jets)
** F: Antoine Tisby (Otago Nuggets)
** C: Nick Horvath (Manawatu Jets)

### Final Four

* Finals MVP: Alex Pledger (Auckland Pirates)