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The 2006–07 BBL season, the 20th since its establishment of the British Basketball League, started on 29 September 2006 when reigning champions Newcastle Eagles began with an 85–83 loss away to Sheffield Sharks.
| 2006–07 BBL season | |
|---|---|
| League | British Basketball League |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Roll of Honour | |
| BBL champions | Guildford Heat |
| Play-off's champions | Newcastle Eagles |
| BBL Cup champions | Guildford Heat |
| BBL Trophy champions | Plymouth Raiders |
Ten teams took to the field this season, including two new franchises to the BBL, London United and the Worcester Wolves, who both moved up from the English Basketball League during summer 2006.[1] The new additions were brought in after three teams withdrew from the League before the start of the season. Brighton Bears and London Towers both decided to "park" their respective franchises and take a one-year break[2][3][4] whilst Birmingham Bullets also decided to sit out due to a lack of suitable home venues available[5] and have since gone into liquidation.[6]
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| Team | City/Area | Arena | Capacity | Last season |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chester Jets | Chester | Northgate Arena | 1,000 | 7th |
| Guildford Heat | Guildford | Guildford Spectrum | 1,100 | 5th |
| Leicester Riders | Leicester | John Sanford Centre | 800 | 6th |
| London United | London | SPACe | 600 | New |
| Milton Keynes Lions | Milton Keynes | Bletchley Centre | 800 | 10th |
| Newcastle Eagles | Newcastle upon Tyne | Metro Radio Arena | 6,500 | 1st |
| Plymouth Raiders | Plymouth | Plymouth Pavilions | 1,480 | 9th |
| Scottish Rocks | Glasgow | Braehead Arena | 4,000 | 2nd |
| Sheffield Sharks | Sheffield | English Institute of Sport | 1,200 | 3rd |
| Worcester Wolves | Worcester | University of Worcester | 600 | New |
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- Following on from Brighton and Birmingham's decision to withdraw from the league, London Towers announced they were to be the third, and most high-profile team to sit out the upcoming season.[7]
- London United and Worcester Wolves were both elected from the English Basketball League to replace the three departed teams, and to keep franchises in the major markets of London and the Midlands.[8]
- A£2.5 million sponsorship deal was agreed on 22 September 2006, between the BBL and national broadcaster MKTV, including primetime TV coverage of 40 live games per season,[9] high-profile sponsorship and a National Community Development Programme.
- Molten, the world's leading manufacturer of inflatable sports balls, signed a ball sponsorship with the BBL worth £150,000 prior to the season opening. The new GG7 ball was unveiled on 25 September as the official match ball for the next three seasons.
- New league franchise Worcester Wolves record their first ever BBL win on 7 October, an 82–79 home victory against Chester Jets.
- The BBL Cup final took place at the National Indoor Arena, in Birmingham on 7 January 2007, and saw Guildford Heat claim their first Championship since foundation 18 months previous, with an 81–78 win against Scottish Rocks. The game was the first ever BBL match to be broadcast live over the internet, reaching a potentially worldwide audience.
- Plymouth Raiders also won their first silverware since stepping-up to the BBL, with a 74–65 win in the BBL Trophy final against holders Newcastle Eagles on 4 March. Held at Newcastle's Metro Radio Arena, the game was the first to be broadcast live on national television in over four years, as part of the sponsorship agreement with MKTV.
- Leicester Riders guard, and former Los Angeles Lakers star Steve Bucknall, as well as Guildford star Chad McKnight both test positive for marijuana and are each handed a three-month suspension. However, the story only comes to public attention several months later.[10]
- Chester Jets owner and head coach Mike Burton announced prior to their season finale that he would be retiring from the franchise at the end of the season. Burton's announcement, after 19 years at the helm, put serious doubts of the clubs' future.[11]
- Despite leading the League for most of the season, Guildford's one point 90–91 loss away to Scottish Rocks on 1 April, ensured that the title race went down to the wire, and only a final day 114–85 win at home to Chester Jets on 8 April guaranteed the 2007 League crown would belong to the Heat.
- Newcastle, playing in front of their home fans at the Metro Radio Arena on 29 April, were victorious against a resilient Scottish Rocks in the climax to the BBL Finals Weekend and the BBL season, as they claimed their third consecutive Playoff Championship with a 95–82 win.
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Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guildford Heat | 36 | 29 | 7 | 0.806 | 58 |
| 2 | Sheffield Sharks | 36 | 28 | 8 | 0.778 | 56 |
| 3 | Newcastle Eagles | 36 | 25 | 11 | 0.694 | 50 |
| 4 | Scottish Rocks | 36 | 22 | 14 | 0.611 | 44 |
| 5 | Plymouth Raiders | 36 | 20 | 16 | 0.556 | 40 |
| 6 | Milton Keynes Lions | 36 | 18 | 18 | 0.500 | 36 |
| 7 | Leicester Riders | 36 | 13 | 23 | 0.361 | 26 |
| 8 | London United | 36 | 11 | 25 | 0.306 | 22 |
| 9 | Chester Jets | 36 | 10 | 26 | 0.278 | 20 |
| 10 | Worcester Wolves | 36 | 4 | 32 | 0.111 | 8 |
| = League winners | |
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
Playoffs
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Guildford Heat | 71 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | London United | 68 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Guildford Heat | 71 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Scottish Rocks | 78 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Scottish Rocks | 83 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Plymouth Raiders | 77 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Scottish Rocks | 82 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Newcastle Eagles | 95 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Sheffield Sharks | 89 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Leicester Riders | 71 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Sheffield Sharks | 73 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Newcastle Eagles | 83 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Newcastle Eagles | 110 | ||||||||||||
| 6 | Milton Keynes Lions | 84 | ||||||||||||
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Third-place game
Final
29 April 2007 |
| Newcastle Eagles | 95–82 | Scottish Rocks |
| Scoring by quarter: 30–23, 17–21, 23–17, 25–21 | ||
| Pts: Olu Babalola 23, Tony Dorsey 18, Andrew Bridge 17, Shawan Robinson 16, Fab Flournoy 8, Jeremy Hyatt 6, Darius Defoe 5 | Pts: Robert Yanders 26, Sterling Davis 16, Maurice Hampton 16, Moritz Wohlers 10, Chris Anrin 5, Gareth Murray 4, Julius Joseph 4 | |
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Worthing Thunder | 22 | 21 | 1 | 0.955 | 42 |
| 2 | Reading Rockets | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0.864 | 38 |
| 3 | Manchester Magic | 22 | 17 | 5 | 0.773 | 34 |
| 4 | London Leopards | 22 | 13 | 9 | 0.591 | 26 |
| 5 | PAWS London Capital | 22 | 13 | 9 | 0.591 | 26 |
| 6 | West Hertfordshire Warriors | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0.500 | 22 |
| 7 | City of Sheffield Arrows | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0.500 | 22 |
| 8 | Solent Stars | 22 | 7 | 15 | 0.318 | 14 |
| 9 | Coventry Crusaders | 22 | 6 | 16 | 0.273 | 12 |
| 10 | King's Lynn Fury | 22 | 5 | 17 | 0.227 | 10 |
| 11 | Teesside Mohawks | 22 | 5 | 17 | 0.227 | 10 |
| 12 | Northampton Neptunes | 22 | 4 | 18 | 0.182 | 8 |
| = League winners | |
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
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Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | % | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Derby Trailblazers | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0.864 | 38 |
| 2 | Bristol Academy Flyers | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0.864 | 38 |
| 3 | Taunton Tigers | 22 | 15 | 7 | 0.682 | 30 |
| 4 | Team Northumbria | 22 | 14 | 8 | 0.636 | 28 |
| 5 | Newi Nets | 22 | 12 | 10 | 0.545 | 24 |
| 6 | Leicester Warriors | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0.500 | 22 |
| 7 | Birmingham Aston Athletics | 22 | 11 | 11 | 0.500 | 22 |
| 8 | Tamar Valley Cannons | 22 | 10 | 12 | 0.455 | 20 |
| 9 | Kent Crusaders | 22 | 7 | 15 | 0.318 | 14 |
| 10 | Plymouth Raiders II | 22 | 6 | 16 | 0.273 | 12 |
| 11 | Mansfield Express | 22 | 5 | 17 | 0.227 | 10 |
| 12 | Liverpool | 22 | 3 | 19 | 0.136 | 6 |
| = League winners | |
| = Qualified for the play-offs |
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This season's edition of the BBL Cup saw the two lowest seeds from the previous season's League rankings face off with the BBL's two newest additions – London United and Worcester Wolves – in the first round. As expected, the experience of Milton Keynes and Plymouth paid off and both teams advanced to the quarter-finals to join the rest of their league rivals in the last eight. In the clash of the round, eventual winners Guildford Heat saw off the Plymouth Raiders in a tie dominated by the shooting of Chad McKnight, who posted 39 points for the Heat.
The Semi-finals saw the league's four strongest teams drawn against each other, but while Guildford easily dispatched the visiting Sheffield Sharks, the Cup holders Newcastle Eagles, were defeated by the Scottish Rocks, where Rocks' Robert Yanders netted a game-high 23 points.
In only their second season since establishment, Guildford's success story continued when they scooped their first piece of silverware with an 82–79 victory in the Cup Final against the Rocks. Heat's star guard Brian Dux was named as MVP scoring 21 points on the way to victory.
First round
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
7 January 2007 |
| Guildford Heat | 82–79 | Scottish Rocks |
| Scoring by quarter: 16–27, 26–9, 15–7, 25–36 | ||
| Pts: Brian Dux 21, Chad McKnight 20, Dean Williams 10, Dan Wardrope 7, Mike Martin 7, Rod Wellington 7, Daniel Gilbert 6, Chris Brown 3 | Pts: Sterling Davis 21, Maurice Hampton 19, Rob Yanders 18, Julius Joseph 9, Moritz Wohlers 7, Hugo Sterk 4 | |
National Indoor Arena, Birmingham |
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Due to the lack of teams competing in this season's Championship, the BBL Trophy featured all 10 BBL teams plus six invited teams, four from the English Basketball League (Coventry Crusaders, London Leopards, Reading Rockets and Worthing Thunder) and two from the Scottish Basketball League (Edinburgh Kings and Troon Tornadoes). The First round saw all 16 teams divided into four regionalised groups with the top finishing team advancing to the Semi-finals.
Group stage
|
Northern Group 1
Southern Group 1
|
Northern Group 2
Southern Group 2
|
Semi-finals
Final
4 March 2007 |
| Newcastle Eagles | 65–74 | Plymouth Raiders |
| Scoring by quarter: 18–21, 17–19, 10–18, 20–16 | ||
| Pts: Tony Dorsey 20, Shawan Robinson 15, Fab Flournoy 12, Olu Babalola 11, TJ Walker 3, Darius Defoe 2 | Pts: Carlton Aaron 25, Gaylon Moore 17, Gavin Love 11, Andrew Lasker 10, DeAntoine Beasley 8, Allister Gall 3 | |
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| Category | Player | Stat |
|---|---|---|
| Points per game |  Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets) | 23.07 |
| Rebounds per game | Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders) | 12.43 |
| Assists per game | TJ Walker (Newcastle Eagles) | 5.86 |
| Steals per game | Maurice Hampton (Scottish Rocks) | 2.86 |
| Blocks per game |  Andrew Alleyne (Leicester Riders) | 1.36 |
| Field goal percentage |  Darius Defoe (Newcastle Eagles) | 60.00% |
| Free throw percentage | Dan Wardrope (Guildford Heat) | 86.19% |
| Three-point field goal percentage |   Hugo Sterk (Scottish Rocks) | 44.00% |
| Month | Coach | Player |
|---|---|---|
| October | Tom Hancock (Milton Keynes Lions) | Tony Windless (Milton Keynes Lions) |
| November | Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks) | Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders) |
| December | Paul James (Guildford Heat) | Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets) |
| January | Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle Eagles) | Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks) |
| February | Peter Scantlebury MBE (Sheffield Sharks) | Tarick Johnson (London United) |
| March |  Thorsten Leibenath (Scottish Rocks) | Daniel Gilbert (Guildford Heat) |
- Most Valuable Player: Brian Dux (Guildford Heat) and Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks)
- Coach of the Year: Paul James (Guildford Heat)
- All-Star First Team:
- Jeff Bonds (Sheffield Sharks)
- Brian Dux (Guildford Heat)
- Mike Martin (Guildford Heat)
- Carlton Aaron (Plymouth Raiders)
- Robert Yanders (Scottish Rocks)
- All-Star Second Team:
- Blake Shelton (Sheffield Sharks)
- Jazwyn Cowan (Chester Jets)
- Sterling Davis (Scottish Rocks)
- Tarick Johnson (London United)
- Fabulous Flournoy (Newcastle Eagles)
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