Who is the Most Average Player in the NBL?

Eighty eight contracted players will suit up for NBL teams in the opening round of the 2017/18 season, but there is one player who stands out above the rest to be the most average guy in the league.  He’s neither tall, short, heavy, light, young or old but is the most abnormally normal player in the competition.

 

He’s neither taller, shorter, heavier, lighter, younger or older than the what the calculated average is for an NBL player, but at the same time, he is far from the average player in the competition.

 

The player concerned is Melbourne United’s, Casey Prather.

 

 

After calculating the averages for the physical attributes of all eighty-eight players in the league, Prather’s attributes mirrored exactly those of the league’s average attributes.

 

 

	Height	Weight	Birth Year
League Average	198	97	1989
Casey Prather	198	97	1991

 

Now, this is most likely the only way you’ll find anyone able to describe the two-time NBL champion as average, but as you can see above, Prather is the exact same height and weight of the average NBL player and only one and a half years off the average NBL player age.

 

Prather is the player closest to matching the league’s average attributes, Illawarra’s Tim Coenraad is the next closest, matching the same league average in height and weight but was being born in 1985 sits him a little outside the average age of an NBL player.

 

 

Tall Timber (in cm)

Tallest Players	Team	Height	Shortest Players	Team	Height
Alex Pledger	NZB	215	Adam Doyle	ADE	176
Isaac Humphries	SYD	213	Casper Ware	MEL	178
Daniel Johnson	ADE	212	Jarrad Weeks	CRN	180
Amritpal Singh	SYD	212	Travis Trice	BRI	183
Tom Jervis	BRI	211	Shea Ili	NZB	183

 

Although Sydney doesn’t have the most experienced frontcourt, they sure do have some big bodies in the paint.  Humphries and Singh are giants in the league and should at least give the Kings’ stellar backcourt some help.  There are ten players 210cm or taller, which shows that even though the guards had the spotlight last season, the tall trees are still in demand.

 

Casper Ware led the league in points and was on the All-NBL First Team, and doing it as the second shortest player in the competition is spectacular.  His ability to use his body and blazing speed to succeed is a great example that basketball isn’t always a tall man game.

 

Heavy Lifting (kg)

Heaviest Players	Team	Weight	Lightest Players	Team	Weight
Nathan Jawai	CRN	139	Bryce Cotton	PER	75
Alex Pledger	NZB	119	Travis Trice	BRI	77
Isaac Humphries	SYD	116	Casper Ware	MEL	79
Matt Hodgson	ADE	116	Edgar Sosa	NZB	79
AJ Ogilvy	ILL	115	Matt Kenyon	BRI	79

 

As like any of the other seasons that Nathan Jawai has played, he is far and away the heaviest player in the league.  He’s a whopping twenty kilograms heavier than any other player and will most likely hold that crown until he retires.

 

There are only two teenagers with NBL contracts this upcoming season and are on opposite ends of the spectrum.  Coming in as the second tallest and third heaviest player, Humphries already has a man-sized body, while Matt Kenyon needs to add weight.  The young Bullet, Kenyon is 195cm, so 79kg makes him a beanpole who will probably get pushed around in 2017/18.

 

Spring Chickens and Old Timers (Year of Birth)

Oldest Players	Team	YOB	Youngest Players	Team	YOB
Kirk Penney	NZB	1980	Isaac Humphries	SYD	1998
David Andersen	MEL	1980	Matt Kenyon	BRI	1998
Mika Vukona	NZB	1982	Finn Delany	NZB	1995
Oscar Forman	ILL	1982	Kuany Kuany	CRN	1995
David Barlow	MEL	1983	Dane Pineau	SYD	1994

 

It’s crazy to think that when Humphries and Kenyon were born, Penney and Andersen were old enough to drive, drink and vote.  In fact, Penney was playing professionally for the North Harbour Kings in the NZNBL and winning Rookie of the Year.

 

Andersen played 25 games for the Wollongong Hawks in the 1998/99 season, averaging six points and four rebounds.

 

Average NBL Team Measurements

Team	Height	Weight	YOB	Games
Adelaide	197.3	93.8	1990.5	71.9
Brisbane	199.1	94.5	1990.0	115.5
Cairns	197.2	99.8	1990.1	87.9
Illawarra	197.5	98.4	1988.3	144.3
Melbourne	198.1	97.6	1988.5	72.5
New Zealand	198.4	99.2	1988.9	106.3
Perth	198.4	95.3	1987.8	116.6
Sydney	200.0	97.7	1990.5	85.8

 

Breaking Down The Numbers

• Cairns is the shortest team on average, yet is the heaviest. (Nathan Jawai plays a factor here).
• Perth is the oldest team, which goes hand in hand with their championship experience.
• Illawarra is the second oldest team in the league, so it’s not surprising that they are far and away the leaders in NBL game experience.
• Adelaide, on the other hand, is the youngest team and have the least NBL game experience.
• Twenty players have yet to play an NBL game, making 22.7% of the first year players.
• The Sydney Kings are putting a lot of faith in first-year players. Jason Cadee, Tom Garlepp, Kevin Lisch, Brad Newley and Todd Blanchfield are the only Kings who have played any NBL games. Sydney has league-high first-year players.
• Of those first-year players in the NBL, only six will be eligible to win the Rookie of the Year award, Isaac Humphries, Dane Pineau, Amritpal Singh and Adam Thoseby (Sydney), Kuany Kuany (Cairns) and Peter Hooley (Melbourne).
• Melbourne United have only two players who have played over 100 games, the least for any team. In comparison, Brisbane and Illawarra have six players who have achieved the feat.
• New Zealand’s Mika Vukona has plenty of experience with 391 games, which has him in the top 50 all-time in games played.
• Oscar Forman has played 485 NBL games and is currently sitting #15 all time. By playing in all 28 games this season, he will finish at 513 and sit in the top 10 all-time in NBL games played.