The
New Zealand national basketball team represents
New
Zealand
in international basketball competitions. It is nicknamed
the
Tall Blacks, derived from the name of
New Zealand's
rugby union team, the
All Blacks.
History
The Tall
Blacks competed at the 2000 Sydney
Olympics and finished with a 1-5 record, their only win coming
against Angola
in the
playoff for eleventh.
In 2001 they defeated
Australia in a
three-game series to qualify for the 2002
FIBA
World Championships in
Indianapolis.
At the tournament they finished fourth, after
beating Puerto Rico in the
quarter-finals before losses to Yugoslavia and Germany
.
Tall
Blacks captain Pero Cameron was the
only non-NBA player named to the all-tournament
team in Indianapolis
.
The Tall Blacks qualified for the
2004 Athens Olympics but again finished
with a 1-5 record and lost to Australia in the playoff for ninth
place. Their most noted moment was on the 7th day of the games,
when they beat
Serbia and
Montenegro (the world champions) 90-87.
The Tall Blacks went on a South-American tour in 2006 as a lead up
to the FIBA Basketball World Championships. They played Argentina
(Olympic Champions and runners up in 2002 FIBA Championships),
Brazil and Venezuela. They played four games against each country.
The Tall Blacks got swept by Argentina and Brazil. They only
managed one win against Venezuela but still loss the series
3-1.
2006 FIBA World Championships
In 2006, a few months before the FIBA world championships, the Tall
Blacks took on the Australian Boomers in a post-tournament 4 game
series. The Tall Blacks won a 2 game tie by points difference.The
Tall Blacks also swept Qatar in a 2 game match up post tournament
as well.
In 2006, the Tall Blacks were not to repeat their fourth-place
finish as in 2002. Instead, they finished in the final 16 of the
FIBA Basketball World Championships, after a second round loss to
Argentina, 79-62, which knocked them out of the tournament.
After that disappointment,
Tab Baldwin
resigned as the coach of the Tall Blacks and was replaced by
Nenad Vučinić, his long time
assistant coach.The Tall Blacks just managed to make it to the
final 16 as they were beaten by Spain, 86-70, (New 2006 FIBA World
Champions), Germany, 80-56, and Angola, 95-73. Their only wins were
over Panama, 86-75, and Japan, 60-57.
The Tall Blacks 'fourth place' spot went to Argentina, the team who
knocked them out, and swept them in the post tournament
series.
Notable players
Probably the most well-known former New Zealand Tall Black player
in the
National
Basketball Association is
New
Orleans Hornets forward
Sean Marks,
who is in his ninth NBA season. Another New Zealand player, former
University of
Wisconsin star
Kirk Penney, briefly
played in the NBA, and later played with top European teams
Maccabi Tel Aviv and
Žalgiris, but now plays with the
New Zealand Breakers in the Australian
NBL. In past generations players such as
Stan
Hill and
Glen Denham, were well
revered and respected players who were the face of New Zealand
Basketball.
Roster
Competitons
Performance at Oceania Championship
Rosters
1986 World Championship:finished
21stamong 24 teams
Gilbert Gordon, Peter Pokai, Stan Hill, Neil Stephens, Dave
Edmonds, Ian Webb, Dave Mason, Tony Smith, Colin Crampton, Frank
Mulvihill, Glen Denham, John Rademakers (Coach: Robert
Bishop)
2000 Olympic Games:finished
11thamong 12 teams
Sean Marks, Pero Cameron, Mark Dickel, Phil Jones, Kirk Penney,
Robert Hickey, Nenad Vucinic, Tony Rampton, Paul Henare, Brad
Riley, Ralph Lattimore, Peter Pokai (Coach: Keith Mair)
2002 World Championship:finished
4thamong 16 teams
Sean
Marks,
Pero Cameron,
Mark Dickel,
Phil Jones,
Kirk Penney,
Robert
Hickey,
Dillon Boucher,
Damon Rampton,
Ed Book,
Paul Henare,
Paora Winitana,
Judd
Flavell(Coach:
Tab Baldwin)
2004 Olympic Games:finished
10thamong 12 teams
Sean Marks,
Mark
Dickel,
Phil Jones,
Pero Cameron,
Kirk Penney,
Dillon
Boucher,
Ed Book,
Paul Henare,
Paora
Winitana,
Tony Rampton,
Aaron Olson,
Craig
Bradshaw(Coach:
Tab Baldwin)
2006 World Championship:finished
9thamong 24 teams
Kirk Penney,
Pero Cameron,
Phil Jones,
Mark Dickel,
Casey
Frank,
Paul Henare,
Dillon Boucher,
Paora Winitana,
Tony
Rampton,
Craig Bradshaw,
Aaron Olson,
Mika
Vukona(Coach:
Tab Baldwin)
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