New Zealand (the country) is an amazing place, filled with winding roads, gorgeous mountain ranges and some of the best people in the world.
New Zealand (the basketball team) is currently sitting on top of the NBL ladder and a nine-game winning streak, defeating all but one club and taking out the defending champions twice in a week.
How did a team that lost their number one scorer, rebounder and assist man from the previous year break open the season and stamp their claim to the team to beat in 2017/18? Here is the rundown.
Guard Play
With the loss of Kevin Dillard, Corey Webster, Ben Woodside and David Stockton, the Breakers needed a whole new backcourt. In a league that has become more and more a guard dominant competition, New Zealand went with an entirely unknown starting duo of Edgar Sosa and DJ Newbill. It raised some eyebrows after the fantastic performance from Dillard to go with two newcomers at the two guard positions.
It has paid off handsomely for the Breakers, with Sosa and Newbill slotting into the team ethic seamlessly. The duo is heading the team in points per game while Sosa is leading in assists and Newbill in steals. Sosa and Newbill have staked a claim to the best backcourt in the league, ahead of more publicised guards like Ware and Goulding, Shorter and Sobey and Cotton and Martin.
Kirk Penney has finally started to succumb to Father Time slightly, coming off the bench for the first time in the NBL. As the ultimate professional, Penney moved to the bench to make way for Sosa and Newbill and has excelled. The 37-year-old has seen a significant decrease in statistics across the board, dropping from 30 minutes per game to 22, but he is still third in points per game and has led the team in scoring twice. He brings experience and class to the second unit.
Experience
The Breakers are only fourth in the league for average games played but their experience can only be matched by the Perth Wildcats. Between Mika Vukona, Thomas Abercrombie and Alex Pledger they have thirteen titles. Add in Kirk Penney who has won one championship, and this kind of success and familiarity creates a culture that expects accomplishments. It makes integrating new players into the fold easier and enforces a winning philosophy that compels everyone on the team to do better.
If a young or new player does not buy into this state of mind, expect another player to put them back in line. When a team is winning, it solidifies the playing group and makes the team better. When a team is losing, it fractures the squad and creates bickering and infighting. So, when a team already has that winning culture at its base and then starts winning, it’s hard to break up the camaraderie.
Shea Ili and Finn Delany
On the other hand, Ili and Delany have shown that the next generation of New Zealand basketball is in great hands. After an exceptional FIBA World Cup tournament where he was named to the All-Star Five, Shea Ili has continued his growth as a floor general. In just a two minute per game increase from last season, here are Ili’s statistics for 2017/18:
| Points | Field Goal % | Rebounds | Assists | |
| 2016/17 | 4.41 | 30 | 1.94 | 1.47 |
| 2017/18 | 11.20 | 45 | 2.50 | 3.00 |
The 25-year-old has embraced his position on the team, and as the favourite for the NBL Most Improved Award, he has shown that he is the future of New Zealand guard play.
Although he hasn’t had the same increase in production as Ili has, Finn Delany has been an integral part of the Breakers’ second unit. He has had a minutes increase by over 60%, and his length, hustle and athleticism have improved over last season. Once the old forces start to make way for the new charge, Delany will be at the forefront of the next generation.
Statistics
For a team that is currently on a nine-game winning streak, leading the league by two whole games and have played well as a team from day dot, the numbers do not seem to back them up.
New Zealand Totals
| Statistic | Per Game | Rank |
| Points | 86.8 | 5th |
| Rebounds | 35.8 | 2nd |
| Assists | 15.4 | 7th |
| Steals | 5.8 | 6th |
| Blocks | 3.7 | 2nd |
| Field Goal % | 46.1 | 5th |
| Turnovers | 11.2 | 2nd |
New Zealand Opponents Totals
| Statistic | Per Game | Rank |
| Points | 81.8 | 3rd |
| Rebounds | 31.6 | 3rd |
| Assists | 14.3 | 1st |
| Steals | 5.4 | 2nd |
| Blocks | 2.8 | 2nd |
| Field Goal % | 45.5 | 3rd |
| Turnovers | 11.5 | 7th |
The tables show a team that is good, but not great. Their offence is decidedly average, while the defence is above the norm. However, when a team is 9-1 to start the season, one would expect New Zealand to be closest to the top in more categories.
What this means is that the Breakers are doing just enough to win and not blowing teams out. Seven of their ten games have been decided by ten points or less. At seven points per win, it’s the second-lowest winning margin for any team in the NBL, only greater than Brisbane’s five points per win. Even Sydney has a greater margin of victory for their two wins. They won their two games by a margin of 10.5.
This points to the Breakers living on the edge, as they haven’t been able to blow out teams, but just doing enough which may come back to hurt them in games when they don’t put away oppositions early. It could be due to the closeness of the league as well as the team playing Perth twice as well as Melbourne and Adelaide already.
This team is a bonafide contender for their fifth championship in eight years, as they mix stellar guard play, experience and youth and an all-around confidence that comes with a winning culture. Can they sustain this production for another seventeen regular season games and then the finals series? Only time will tell.
Kyle has barracked for the North Melbourne Giants, Victoria Titans, Victoria Giants and the South Dragons. He's hoping the Melbourne United don't fold like the rest of them
