NBL1

NBL1 is a semi-professional basketball league in Australia, consisting of South, North, Central and West Conferences with both men's and women's competitions. Each conference is run by their respective state governing body, with the league including 56 clubs from Victoria (14), Western Australia (14), Queensland (13), South Australia (11), Tasmania (3) and New South Wales (1).[1][2][3] The league replaced the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL), Australia's pre-eminent semi-professional basketball league between 1981 and 2018. Following the NBL1's inaugural season in 2019, the 2020 season saw the 2019 teams comprise the new South Conference and the former Queensland Basketball League (QBL) and Premier League (South Australia) become the new North and Central Conferences. In 2021, the league will be joined by the teams from the former WA State Basketball League (SBL).

NBL1
Current season, competition or edition:
2020 NBL1 season
SportBasketball
Founded2019
Inaugural season2019
No. of teams18 (South Conference)
13 (North Conference)
10 (Central Conference)
14 (West Conference)
CountryAustralia
ContinentFIBA Oceania (Oceania)
Most recent
champion(s)		M: Nunawading Spectres (1st title)
W: Kilsyth Cobras (1st title)
Most titlesM: Nunawading Spectres (1 title)
W: Kilsyth Cobras (1 title)
Related
competitions		NBL
Official websiteNBL1.com.au

History

The building blocks

In October 2018, following the demise of the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL), Basketball Victoria announced a new senior elite league to take the reins as Australia's pre-eminent semi-professional basketball league. All Victorian-based SEABL teams joined the new league, while Eltham Wildcats, Knox Raiders, Ringwood Hawks and Waverley Falcons also joined the league from the Big V State Championship Division.[4] The North-West Tasmania Thunder men and Launceston Tornadoes women also kept their place, as did Basketball Australia's Centre of Excellence teams.[4] In February 2019, the league was named NBL1.[2]

Expansion

After a successful first season, the league announced in October 2019 that it would be expanding into Queensland for the 2020 season.[5] In January 2020, NBL1 expanded with the establishment of North and South conferences for the 2020 season. After a landmark agreement with Basketball Queensland, NBL1 North replaced the Queensland Basketball League (QBL). As a result, the 2019 NBL1 teams formed the new south conference.[6] The following month, NBL1 expanded into South Australia after an identical agreement with Basketball South Australia for NBL1 Central to replace the Premier League.[7] However, the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic forced the 2020 season to be cancelled.[8]

In October 2020, NBL1 expanded into Western Australia for the 2021 season after an agreement with Basketball Western Australia for NBL1 West to replace the State Basketball League.[9]

Conferences
Map of NBL1 Conferences

South Conference
Main article: NBL1 South

Founded in 2019, the South Conference was the only conference in NBL1 during its inaugural season and predominately consisted of teams from the defunct South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL). The South Conference currently has 18 teams spread across Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales and South Australia.

North Conference
Main article: NBL1 North

In 2020, the North Conference joined the league, becoming the second conference introduced following NBL1's merger with the former Queensland Basketball League (QBL). The North Conference currently consists of 13 teams, all of which are based in Queensland.

Central Conference
Main article: NBL1 Central

In 2020, the Central Conference joined the league, becoming the third conference introduced following NBL1's merger with the former South Australian Premier League. The Central Conference currently consists of 10 teams, all of which are based in South Australia.

West Conference
Main article: NBL1 West

In 2021, the West Conference will join the league, becoming the fourth conference introduced following NBL1's merger with the former Western Australian State Basketball League. The West Conference currently consists of 14 teams, all of which are based in Western Australia.

Current clubs
Main article: List of NBL1 clubs

Spread across the four conferences, a total of 55 clubs compete in the league.

  • South Conference: 19 clubs (includes 18 female teams and 18 male teams)
  • North Conference: 13 clubs
  • Central Conference: 10 clubs
  • West Conference: 14 clubs

Honours

List of League Champions
Team Men's Women's Notes
Titles Winning Seasons Titles Winning Seasons
Kilsyth Cobras 0 1 2019 Won the inaugural Women's title in 2019.
Nunawading Spectres 1 2019 0 Won the inaugural Men's title in 2019.

Awards
Main article: NBL1 Awards
  • Most Valuable Player
  • Defensive Player of the Year
  • Youth Player of the Year
  • All-Star Five
  • Coach of the Year
  • Referee of the Year
  • Club of the Year

References
  1. "Basketball Victoria partners with NBL to launch NBL1 league". pickandroll.com.au. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  2. "NBL1 to Showcase Next Level of Australia's Basketball Talent". NBL.com.au. 15 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  3. "NBL1 To Come To Queensland In 2020 | NBL". nbl.com.au.
  4. Ward, Roy (31 October 2018). "Basketball Victoria announces new elite league to replace SEABL". SMH.com.au. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  5. "NBL1 To Come To Queensland In 2020 | NBL". nbl.com.au.
  6. "NBL1 Expands To North And South Conferences". NBL1.com.au. 15 January 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  7. "NBL1 Central To Tip Off In 2020". NBL1.com.au. 14 February 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  8. "NBL1 2020 season completely shutdown' leaving Tasmania's three clubs out in the cold". www.themercury.com.au. 24 March 2020. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  9. "NBL1 West to tip off in 2021". NBL1.com.au. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
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