OceanaGold Nuggets
| Otago Nuggets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Leagues | National Basketball League | ||
| Founded | 1981 | ||
| Folded | November 2014 | ||
| History |
Otago Nuggets 1990–2008; 2010–2014 |
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| Arena | Edgar Centre | ||
| Location |
Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand |
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| Team colors | Navy blue & gold | ||
| Championships | 0 | ||
| Uniforms | |||
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The Otago Nuggets were a New Zealand basketball team based in Dunedin. The Nuggets competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) and played their home games at the Edgar Centre.
The Nuggets did not see much success upon entering the NBL in 1990. They made the NBL playoffs just four times, and pulled out of the competition in 2009 and 2015 due to financial constraints.
Otago basketball began with the inception of the Conference Basketball League (CBL) in 1981. Otago was the inaugural CBL champion, and went on to finish runners-up in 1983, claim a second championship in 1985, and finish runners-up again in 1986.
In 1988, legendary coach Tab Baldwin made his New Zealand coaching debut with Otago in a pre-season clash with the Canterbury Rams. Baldwin helped elevate Otago to the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1990.
Between 1990 and 1997, the Nuggets made the NBL semi-finals three times (1991, '95 and '97), but never made it to the grand final. Following this early success, however, the Nuggets failed to make a playoff appearance in 15 straight seasons. Between 2001 and 2008, the Nuggets finished in last place every season bar 2003 (7th) and 2004 (9th, second last). They did have some individual success during this time though, with 2002 bringing in a Scoring Champion in Ron Grady, and 2006 bringing in a Rookie of the Year winner in Shaun Tilby and a Rebounding Champion in Miles Pearce.
Despite hiring American head coach Don Simms for the 2008 season, the Nuggets finished with a 2–16 win/loss record for the second straight year. To make matter worse, guards Nat Connell and Steve Robinson were suspended mid-season for breaching the league's drug protocols.
In 2009, Basketball Otago pulled the Nuggets out of the league, citing financial concerns. The Nuggets returned to the NBL in 2010, albeit with a modest budget. In October 2009, Basketball Otago announced that a new partnership had been confirmed with OceanaGold, as the company became the principal sponsor for the franchise for the 2010 season, with the new name for Basketball Otago's NBL team being "OceanaGold Otago Nuggets". However, despite a fresh start, new sponsor, and new coach, the Nuggets once again struggled in 2010, finishing the season with a winless record (0–18), becoming just the third team in NBL history to finish a season without a win (joining the 1998 Northland Suns and the 2009 Taranaki Mountainairs).
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