The Greatest Seasons In NBL History, as PER the numbers

The NBA’s use of advanced metrics is increasing every year and across the globe here in the NBL it’s a little slower but no different.

One of the people who helped NBL teams to do this is Andrew Price. Andrew started out analysing data for Andrej Lemanis during his time with the New Zealand Breakers and now compiles detailed player analytics for multiple NBL clubs as well as the Australian Boomers.

Using advanced analytics is definitely a growing focus for NBL teams. As it should be in a league where one or two wins can be the difference between first place and last place, as last season showed” said Andrew Price, Brisbane Bullets Analytics Consultant.

NBL coaches now use advanced statistics to provide scouting reports when players want to go left or right, is a certain player good or bad at defending a pick and roll and what player combinations does a team run to be its most effective (or ineffective).

NBL coaches are now using data to determine what player line-ups are the least effective for their opposition and making strategic substitutions that force opposing teams to use a less than optimal line-up (as the Dallas Mavericks famously did against the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals).

One advanced statistic coaches use is the player efficiency rating (PER) which measures a player’s per-minute productivity.

PER identifies which players who are the most efficient at scoring and continue to gather assists, rebounds, blocks and steals as they play. The formula penalises players who miss missed shots, make turnovers or commit fouls.

“PER is a good metric and one we use in the NBL. It uses the stats taken from game box scores but also adjusts for pace, minutes played. Obviously, there are things that don’t show up in a box score or advanced statistics but by understanding the data and using it collaboratively with things a coach sees from the sidelines, it’s a way coaches can get all that they can from their rosters” said Price.

Using a linear weighted PER model, if we look at the players from last season, it ranks last seasons competition pretty effectively.

Players voted to the league’s All-NBL First Team, Bryce Cotton, Jae’sean Tate, Nick Kay and Lamar Patterson all ranked within the top 8 players in PER.

It does tend to weigh the big men a little higher due to the fact that they tend to shoot closer to the basket and commit fewer turnovers due to having the ball in their hands less, but it’s a very precise way to measure a players minute by minute effectiveness.

Melbourne United’s Shawn Long was a clear leader in the category. His averages of 18.5 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game saw him sit in the top 10 for all of those categories.

In addition to that, he was unstoppable around the basket. He connected on 54% of his total shots last season, the highest shooting percentage of anyone in the league taking 13 or more shots per game.

These numbers see him listed as the most statistically effective player in last seasons NBL competition.

Using PER we’ve taken the time to list the review some of the greatest single seasons in NBL history below.

 

AJ Ogilvy

Ogilvy’s incredible 2015/16 season ranks as the 21st greatest season of all time, but we mention it because it is the only season that occurred in the past 20 years and occurred in the 40-minute era.

This was Ogilvy’s first season with the Illawarra Hawks after a year abroad playing in the tough Spanish national league. The Hawks were looking to redeem themselves after a six-win effort and a last-place finish in 2015 and Ogilvy was keen to redeem himself for what was a rather unsuccessful season with the Sydney Kings 18 months earlier.

A.J. was a revelation for the Hawks, literally doing it all, he finished in the top six in the league in five statistical categories averaging 16.4 points (6th), 8.5 rebounds (2nd), 1.5 steals (2nd), 1.7 blocks per game (1st) and shooting 45.% from the field (4th).

A.J.’s dominating return to the NBL guided the Hawks to a third-place regular-season finish (17-11) and a semi-final clash with the second-seeded Perth Wildcats. Perth would defeat the Hawks in three games and remarkably win their seventh NBL championship. Almost just as remarkable, is A.J.’s efforts that year.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
Illawarra	2016	26.4		31		16.4		8.5		1.8		1.5		1.7		55%		14%		77%		36

 

Tim Dillon

Dillon played only two seasons in the NBL, his debut year sits eighth for the most efficient of all-time and his second season ranks 17th all-time, those are two damn good seasons.

Dillon arrived in Melbourne in 1988 and paired with fellow big man, Scott Fisher, which the fans quickly began referring to as “Twin Boulders”. Dillon’s arrival skyrocketed the Giants up the NBL ladder and caused regularly sellouts at the Glasshouse, their 6,000 seat home court (now known as the Holden Centre).

That season, the Newcastle Falcons realised you couldn’t do much to stop him after he exploded for 49 point points nailing 22 of 29 shots (79%) and over the course of the season scoring 35+ points 13 times over 30 games. Dillon was a no-brainer for a spot on the All-NBL First Team that season and alongside Fisher, led the Giants into a semi-final match-up against the Perth Wildcats.

Dillon and the Giants made easy work of the Perth Wildcats in the semi-finals and reached the Grand Final for the first time in the club’s history. The Cinderella season ended prematurely, however, with the Canberra Cannons taking home the NBL championship in a 2-1 series victory.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
North Melb.	1988	29.4		30		33.2		10.9		1.9		1.5		1.0		57%		36%		74%		49

 

Scott Fisher

Fisher’s 1989 season isn’t number one on this list (in fact it’s sixth) but it is the greatest single-season ever by a player who was able to win an NBL championship.

No doubt going head to head with the aforementioned Tim Dillon at training for the entire 1989 season helped Fisher take his game to a new level.

To kick off the 1989 Fisher posted 38 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals against Westside Melbourne. He made sure all the fans in NSW knew he meant business when he had a  career-high 45 points against Newcastle and then notched up 35 points and 21 rebounds the next night against Sydney.

Fisher would claim the league MVP award at seasons end having led the Giants to a 21-8 record and a first place on the ladder. North Melbourne then defeated Canberra in two short games and Fisher, who averaged 35 points and 12 rebounds in the series, was an easy choice for Grand Final MVP honours.

Fisher would continue to play incredibly the next year in 1990, a season which also ranks ninth in the top NBL seasons of all-time.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
North Melb.	1989	31.2		28		32.1		12.7		3.6		1.9		0.1		55%		50%		88%		45
North Melb.	1990	29.1		27		31.4		12.0		3.2		1.5		0.2		55%		46%		84%		47

 

Andrew Gaze

The NBL’s greatest player ever had many efficient seasons, in fact, his name appears four times in the top ten highest PER seasons of all time.

“Drewey’s” efforts show up as the third, fourth, seventh, tenth and eleventh most efficient statistical seasons in NBL history, his best coming in 1987. This was a ridiculous season by Gaze, one which included his career-high 60 point game and averaging the most points ever in a single season (44.1 points per game).

The Melbourne Tigers of the early ’80s were not talented teams, however. In 1987 the Tigers lost every away game and finished with a record of 3-23. So it shouldn’t surprise anyone that there were nights when Gaze was asked to do it all. In those years Gaze routinely put up huge numbers on terrible teams which went unnoticed due to how rarely the team won.

Gaze’s 1990 season (fourth highest PER of all-time) would see the Tigers reach the NBL playoffs for the first time and his efforts in 1991 (seventh-highest PER of all-time) would be enough to finally earn the NBL Most Valuable Player award. Gaze would take home the NBL MVP award in seven of his next eight seasons.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
Melbourne	1987	32.8		20		44.1		8.2		5.8		2.5		0.2		53%		39%		81%		60
Melbourne	1990	32.6		22		37.6		4.8		6.9		2.6		0.4		57%		39%		87%		48
Melbourne	1991	31.1		28		38.8		4.4		6.0		2.7		0.4		55%		33%		87%		59

 

James Crawford

The Perth Wildcats moved from Perry Lakes Stadium to the Perth Superdrome (now HBF Stadium) and the Wildcats were faced with the task of trying to fill a 5,000 seat stadium instead of an 800-seat stadium.

To make sure that happened they recruited James Crawford who had already earned All-NBL First Team honours three times whilst playing with the Geelong Supercats and Canberra Cannons.

Let’s just say with Crawford in WA, finding an extra 4,200 rapid basketball fans in Perth was easy work. Crawford earned his fourth (and last) All-NBL First honour and led the Wildcats to the NBL Grand Final producing the best statistical season of his career.

Despite the “Alabama Slamma” producing the second greatest statistical season in NBL history, it wasn’t enough to stop the Brisbane Bullets from defeating the Wildcats in two games.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
Perth	1987	32.9		32		33.4		11.8		2.8		1.9		2.3		61%		33%		66%		57

 

Norman Taylor

The most dominant statistical season of all time is held by “Stormin” Norman Taylor who holds the Hawks’ record for most points in a game.

Taylor’s game was unique in the fact that he didn’t play above the rim, his jump shot didn’t make it out to the three-point line (he nailed only one shot from downtown as a Hawk) but with a vast posterior and a wide array of spin moves he was unstoppable in the low post despite being only 206cm.

Consider the fact he made an incredible 65 per cent of his field goals for his career and it shouldn’t surprise you he holds both the first and fifth most efficient seasons in NBL history.

To put into perspective how good Taylor was, look no further than the 18th of May, 1990. Today we give the ultimate respect to legendary players Bruce Bolden and Dean Uthoff as two of the greatest big men who ever played. Well, they both tried to stop Taylor that night, (Kent Lockhart was there for good measure too) and despite all of their attention focused on stopping Taylor, he notched up 54 points (at 76% from the field) and 13 rebounds to give the Hawks a 122-117 victory over Eastside Melbourne that night.

 

Team	Season	PER		G		PPG		RPG		APG		SPG		BPG		FG%		3P%		FT%		HS
Wollongong	1990	33.0		26		27.5		10.3		3.2		1.9		0.5		67%		0%		76%		54
Wollongong	1989	31.8		24		29.9		11.7		3.2		1.7		0.5		61%		0%		81%		49

 

The 50 Greatest NBL Seasons of All-Time

Note: players must have played over 20 games in a season to qualify.

Visit the All-Time NBL Stats section on our website for more advanced stats.

 

	Name	Year	Team	M	PER	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	FG%	TO
1	Norman Taylor	1990	Illawarra	26	33.0	27.5	10.3	3.2	1.9	0.5	67%	2.3
2	James Crawford	1987	Perth	32	32.9	33.4	11.8	2.8	1.9	2.3	61%	3.2
3	Andrew Gaze	1987	Melbourne	20	32.8	44.1	8.2	5.8	2.5	0.2	53%	4.9
4	Andrew Gaze	1990	Melbourne	22	32.6	37.6	4.8	6.9	2.6	0.4	57%	4.1
5	Norman Taylor	1989	Illawarra	24	31.8	29.9	11.7	3.2	1.7	0.5	61%	3.7
6	Scott Fisher	1989	North Melbourne	28	31.2	32.1	12.7	3.6	1.9	0.1	55%	3.2
7	Andrew Gaze	1991	Melbourne	28	31.1	38.8	4.4	6.0	2.7	0.4	55%	4.5
8	Tim Dillon	1988	North Melbourne	30	29.4	33.2	10.9	1.9	1.5	1.0	57%	3.0
9	Scott Fisher	1990	North Melbourne	27	29.1	31.4	12.0	3.2	1.5	0.2	55%	3.1
10	Andrew Gaze	1989	Melbourne	27	29.0	34.5	5.3	7.2	2.4	0.8	54%	4.2
11	Andrew Gaze	1988	Melbourne	24	28.9	36.9	6.3	4.7	2.3	0.6	52%	3.7
12	Mark Davis	1987	Adelaide	29	27.8	26.1	17.1	1.4	1.4	0.8	58%	3.4
13	Bruce Bolden	1990	Eastside Melbourne	28	27.6	26.4	11.5	4.5	2.0	1.2	56%	3.8
14	Andrew Gaze	1995	Melbourne	29	27.4	33.9	4.2	8.0	2.3	0.5	51%	4.5
15	Orlando Phillips	1989	Adelaide	25	27.1	20.5	11.0	1.0	1.2	1.0	63%	2.9
16	Dwayne Mcclain	1991	Sydney	24	26.9	28.4	7.1	5.2	2.5	1.1	58%	4.6
17	Tim Dillon	1989	North Melbourne	29	26.9	29.4	10.0	2.8	1.4	1.8	52%	3.1
18	Leon Trimmingham	1995	Sydney	26	26.7	27.5	11.2	1.8	2.1	2.2	54%	4.4
19	Scott Fisher	1991	North Melbourne	31	26.5	30.3	12.0	4.1	2.0	0.4	52%	3.5
20	Jason Reese	1991	Hobart	26	26.4	29.8	10.4	2.2	1.3	0.3	55%	3.7
21	A.J. Ogilvy	2016	Illawarra	31	26.4	16.4	8.5	1.8	1.5	1.7	55%	2.5
22	James Crawford	1988	Perth	28	26.4	26.8	9.4	2.7	2.0	1.9	55%	3.4
23	Kent Lockhart	1989	Eastside Melbourne	24	26.4	28.8	6.6	2.4	1.5	0.5	52%	2.3
24	David Colbert	1990	Melbourne	28	26.4	31.1	10.7	2.9	1.3	1.6	51%	2.8
25	Matthew Burston	2003	Perth	35	26.3	11.6	6.8	0.5	0.7	0.8	62%	0.7
26	Andre Moore	1990	Brisbane	34	26.3	26.9	12.6	1.6	1.3	2.0	61%	2.8
27	Leon Trimmingham	1994	Sydney	29	26.3	27.3	10.7	1.2	1.3	2.2	59%	4.4
28	Chris Anstey	1996	South	32	26.2	11.8	7.8	0.6	1.2	1.5	61%	1.5
29	Leroy Loggins	1994	Brisbane	29	26.0	25.7	7.1	3.6	2.5	1.0	51%	2.6
30	Andrew Gaze	1992	Melbourne	32	25.9	33.8	4.6	6.3	2.2	0.3	51%	5.0
31	Andrew Gaze	1993	Melbourne	33	25.8	32.0	5.4	6.1	2.7	0.1	51%	4.6
32	Carlos Powell	2007	New Zealand	33	25.8	28.2	8.2	4.0	1.7	0.9	54%	3.6
33	Charlie Thomas	1991	Canberra	22	25.8	21.0	10.8	2.6	2.1	0.7	60%	2.4
34	Wayne Mcdaniel	1990	Hobart	25	25.7	33.9	10.3	1.8	1.5	0.2	56%	4.0
35	Diamon Simpson	2012	Adelaide	27	25.7	14.3	8.6	0.9	0.9	1.5	59%	1.8
36	Mark Davis	1989	Adelaide	27	25.6	25.6	14.4	1.6	1.3	1.0	52%	2.9
37	Bruce Bolden	1991	South Melbourne	31	25.6	27.2	10.4	3.2	1.4	1.3	55%	2.9
38	Willie Simmons	1987	North Melbourne	27	25.6	21.4	12.0	0.9	0.8	4.3	60%	2.0
39	Andrew Gaze	1994	Melbourne	30	25.6	33.4	4.8	7.2	2.4	0.2	51%	5.7
40	Andrew Vlahov	1992	Perth	22	25.6	22.5	10.4	4.8	2.3	1.0	52%	3.1
41	Mark Davis	1988	Adelaide	24	25.5	25.3	13.9	2.2	1.4	0.9	51%	3.1
42	Mark Davis	1990	Adelaide	24	25.5	27.2	12.0	2.8	1.2	0.6	51%	2.9
43	Andrew Gaze	1996	Melbourne	35	25.5	31.1	5.3	8.1	1.7	0.5	51%	4.7
44	Bruce Bolden	1989	Westside Melbourne	24	25.5	24.3	13.4	3.3	1.7	2.0	61%	4.0
45	Ebi Ere	2008	Brisbane	32	25.3	26.0	6.0	2.1	1.7	0.5	48%	2.4
46	Butch Hays	1991	Adelaide	30	25.3	24.6	4.5	9.0	2.0	0.3	54%	3.3
47	James Crawford	1990	Perth	34	25.2	23.3	10.1	2.5	1.2	2.1	57%	2.7
48	Leroy Loggins	1987	Brisbane	31	25.2	28.0	7.3	3.2	2.9	0.9	53%	3.6
49	Ricky Grace	1990	Perth	34	25.2	21.4	4.7	7.5	2.6	1.0	57%	3.9
50	Chris Williams	2003	Sydney	38	25.2	23.6	12.1	4.3	2.2	1.3	53%	3.2