# 2022 New Zealand NBL season

The 2022 NBL season was the 41st season of the National Basketball League. For the second year in a row, the league fielded 10 teams, with the only changes being the rebrand of the Auckland Huskies to Auckland Tuatara and Taranaki Mountainairs to Taranaki Airs.
The regular season commenced on 28 April in Nelson with the Nelson Giants hosting the Otago Nuggets at the Trafalgar Centre. The season contained 15 weeks of regular season games followed by a four-day finals schedule in August.

## Team information

| Team | City | Arena | Head coach | Import | Import | Import |
| Auckland Tuatara | Auckland | Eventfinda Stadium | Aaron Young | Chris Johnson | Siler Schneider | |
| Canterbury Rams | Christchurch | Cowles Stadium | Judd Flavell | Larry Austin Jr. | Sunday Dech | Matthew Moyer |
| Franklin Bulls | Auckland | Franklin Pool and Leisure Centre | Morgan Maskell | Giddy Potts | | |
| Hawke's Bay Hawks | Napier | Pettigrew Green Arena | Mick Downer | Tajuan Agee | | |
| Manawatu Jets | Palmerston North | Arena Manawatu | Natu Taufale | John Bohannon | Rob Crawford | Zane Najdawi |
| Nelson Giants | Nelson | Trafalgar Centre | Michael Fitchett | Trey Mourning | Sam Thompson | Jarrod West |
| Otago Nuggets | Dunedin | Edgar Centre | Brent Matehaere | Tray Boyd III | Keith Williams | Todd Withers |
| Southland Sharks | Invercargill | Stadium Southland | Rob Beveridge | Romaro Gill | Daishon Knight | Winston Shepard |
| Taranaki Airs | New Plymouth | TSB Stadium | Trent Adam | Javonte Douglas | Anthony Hilliard | Shaun Willett |
| Wellington Saints | Wellington | TSB Bank Arena | Troy McLean | Xavier Cooks | Mike Smith | Reggie Upshaw |

## Summary
### Regular season standings

| Pos | Team | W | L | Qualification |
| 1 | Taranaki Airs | 12 | 6 | Semi Finals |
| 2 | Nelson Giants | 12 | 6 | Semi Finals |
| 3 | Otago Nuggets | 10 | 8 | Play-in |
| 4 | Wellington Saints | 10 | 8 | Play-in |
| 5 | Auckland Tuatara | 10 | 8 | Play-in |
| 6 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 10 | 8 | Play-in |
| 7 | Canterbury Rams | 8 | 10 | |
| 8 | Franklin Bulls | 7 | 11 | |
| 9 | Southland Sharks | 6 | 12 | |
| 10 | Manawatu Jets | 5 | 13 | |

### Finals

| Play-In Matches | Play-In Matches | Play-In Matches | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Semi Finals | Final | Final |
| | | | 1 | Taranaki Airs | 104 | | |
| 4 | Wellington Saints | 87 | 5 | Auckland Tuatara | 107 | | |
| 5 | Auckland Tuatara | 92 | | | | Auckland Tuatara | 73 |
| | | | | | | Otago Nuggets | 81 |
| | | | 2 | Nelson Giants | 74 | | |
| 3 | Otago Nuggets | 91 | 3 | Otago Nuggets | 89 | | |
| 6 | Hawke's Bay Hawks | 80 | | | | | |

## Awards
### Performance of the Week

| Round | Player | Team |
| 1 | Trey Mourning | Nelson Giants |
| 2 | Jayden Bezzant | Franklin Bulls |
| 3 | Chris Johnson | Auckland Tuatara |
| 4 | Trey Mourning | Nelson Giants |
| 5 | Javonte Douglas | Taranaki Airs |
| 6 | Chris Johnson | Auckland Tuatara |
| 7 | Xavier Cooks | Wellington Saints |
| 8 | Jarrod West | Nelson Giants |
| 9 | Javonte Douglas | Taranaki Airs |
| 10 | Anthony Hilliard | Taranaki Airs |
| 11 | Corey Webster | Franklin Bulls |
| 12 | Javonte Douglas | Taranaki Airs |
| 13 | Sam Thompson | Nelson Giants |
| 14 | Xavier Cooks | Wellington Saints |
| 15 | Tray Boyd III | Otago Nuggets |

### Statistics leaders

Stats as of the end of the regular season
| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
| Points per game | Anthony Hilliard | Taranaki Airs | 26.6 |
| Rebounds per game | John Bohannon | Manawatu Jets | 14.0 |
| Assists per game | Jarrod West | Nelson Giants | 7.3 |
| Steals per game | Dontae Russo-Nance | Auckland Tuatara | 2.9 |
| Blocks per game | Romaro Gill | Southland Sharks | 2.9 |

### Regular season

* Most Valuable Player: Xavier Cooks (Wellington Saints)
* Most Outstanding Guard: Jarrod West (Nelson Giants)
* Most Outstanding NZ Guard: Corey Webster (Franklin Bulls)
* Most Outstanding Forward: Xavier Cooks (Wellington Saints)
* Most Outstanding NZ Forward/Centre: Robert Loe (Auckland Tuatara)
* Scoring Champion: Anthony Hilliard (Taranaki Airs)
* Rebounding Champion: John Bohannon (Manawatu Jets)
* Assist Champion: Jarrod West (Nelson Giants)
* Most Improved Player: Sam Dempster (Nelson Giants)
* Defensive Player of the Year: Jarrod West (Nelson Giants)
* Youth Player of the Year: Dontae Russo-Nance (Auckland Tuatara)
* Coach of the Year: Michael Fitchett (Nelson Giants)
* All-Star Five:
** G: Jarrod West (Nelson Giants)
** G: Anthony Hilliard (Taranaki Airs)
** F: Javonte Douglas (Taranaki Airs)
** F: Xavier Cooks (Wellington Saints)
** C: Chris Johnson (Auckland Tuatara)

### Finals

* Grand Final MVP: Keith Williams (Otago Nuggets)