1987 NBL season

The 1987 NBL season was the ninth season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of 14 teams contested the league. Three of the Melbourne-based clubs rebranded themselves in the off season, with the Nundawading Spectres renaming themselves to Eastside Spectres, Coburg Giants became North Melbourne Giants and the St. Kilda Saints became Westside Saints.[1]

1987 NBL season
LeagueNational Basketball League
SportBasketball
Duration24 April – 27 September 1987
30 September – 4 October 1987 (Semi-finals)
10 – 16 October 1987 (Grand Finals)
Number of teams14
TV partner(s)ABC, ATN7, BTQ7, STW9, SAS10
Regular season
Season championsAdelaide 36ers
Season MVPMark Davis (Adelaide)
Leroy Loggins (Brisbane)
Top scorerPaul Stanley (Hobart)
Finals
ChampionsBrisbane Bullets (2nd title)
  Runners-upPerth Wildcats
Finals MVPLeroy Loggins (Brisbane)

Clubs

The NBL had 14 clubs spread across all Australian states and territories with the exception of the Northern Territory.

Club Location Home Venue Capacity Founded Head coach
Adelaide 36ers South Australia Adelaide, South Australia Apollo Stadium 3,000 1982 United States Gary Fox
Brisbane Bullets Queensland Brisbane, Queensland Brisbane Entertainment Centre 13,500 1979 Australia Brian Kerle
Canberra Cannons Australian Capital Territory Canberra, Australian Capital Territory AIS Arena 5,200 1979 Australia Jerry Lee
Eastside Spectres Victoria (state) Melbourne, Victoria Burwood Stadium 2,000 1979 Australia Barry Barnes
Geelong Cats Victoria (state) Geelong, Victoria Geelong Arena 2,000 1982 Australia Ken Richardson [2]
Hobart Tassie Devils Tasmania Hobart, Tasmania Kingborough Sports Centre 1,800 1983 United States David Adkins
Illawarra Hawks New South Wales Wollongong, New South Wales Illawarra Basketball Stadium 2,000 1979 Australia Dave Lindstrom
Melbourne Tigers Victoria (state) Melbourne, Victoria Albert Park Basketball Stadium 2,000 1931 Australia Lindsay Gaze
Newcastle Falcons New South Wales Newcastle, New South Wales Broadmeadow Basketball Stadium 2,200 1979 Australia Steve Johansen
North Melbourne Giants Victoria (state) Melbourne, Victoria The Glass House 7,200 1980 United States Bruce Palmer
Perth Wildcats Western Australia Perth, Western Australia Perth Superdome 4,500 1982 United States Cal Bruton
Sydney Supersonics New South Wales Sydney, New South Wales State Sports Centre 5,006 1982 Australia Ken Cole
Westside Saints Victoria (state) Melbourne, Victoria Keilor Stadium 2,000 1979 Australia Andris Blicavs
West Sydney Westars New South Wales Sydney, New South Wales State Sports Centre 5,006 1982 Australia Mike Osbourne

Regular season

The 1987 regular season took place over 22 rounds between 24 April 1987 and 20 September 1987.

Ladder
Pos 1987 NBL season
Team Pld W L PCT Last 5 Streak Home Away PF PA PP
1 Adelaide 36ers 26 21 5 80.77% 4–1 W2 11–2 10–3 3046 2677 113.78%
2 Brisbane Bullets1 26 20 6 76.92% 5–0 W9 13–0 7–6 2711 2497 108.57%
3 Illawarra Hawks1 26 20 6 76.92% 4–1 W4 13–0 7–6 2680 2528 106.01%
4 Perth Wildcats 26 19 7 73.08% 4–1 W4 11–2 8–5 3005 2756 109.03%
5 Canberra Cannons 26 17 9 65.38% 3–2 W1 10–3 7–6 2848 2770 102.82%
6 North Melbourne Giants 26 15 11 57.69% 2–3 W1 10–3 5–8 3060 2807 109.01%
7 Hobart Tassie Devils 26 14 12 53.85% 2–3 L3 8–5 6–7 2599 2568 101.21%
8 Eastside Spectres2 26 13 13 50.00% 2–3 L1 6–7 7–6 2607 2596 100.42%
9 Geelong Cats2 26 13 13 50.00% 3–2 L2 10–3 3–10 2644 2707 97.67%
10 Sydney Supersonics 26 9 17 34.62% 2–3 W1 5–8 4–9 2744 2861 95.91%
11 West Sydney Westars 26 8 18 30.77% 2–3 L2 4–9 4–9 2564 2695 95.14%
12 Newcastle Falcons 26 6 20 23.08% 3–2 W1 4–9 2–11 2948 3176 92.82%
13 Westside Saints 26 4 22 15.38% 0–5 L6 3–10 1–12 2673 2980 89.70%
14 Melbourne Tigers 26 3 23 11.54% 1–4 W1 3–10 0–13 2635 3146 83.76%

Updated to match(es) played on 20 September 1987. Source: NBL.com.au

The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win–loss record, the results in games played between the teams will determine order of seeding.

1Head-to-Head between Brisbane Bullets and Illawarra Hawks (1-1). Brisbane Bullets won For and Against (+11).

2Head-to-Head between Eastside Spectres and Geelong Cats (1-1). Eastside Spectres won For and Against (+7).

Finals
Main article: 1987 NBL Finals

Playoff bracket
Elimination Finals Semi-finals Grand Final
1 Adelaide 36ers 99 99 93
4 Perth Wildcats 101 4 Perth Wildcats 98 101 103
5 Canberra Cannons 96 2 Brisbane Bullets 80 106 X
4 Perth Wildcats 79 87 X
2 Brisbane Bullets 109 77 100
3 Illawarra Hawks 105 3 Illawarra Hawks 87 78 82
6 North Melbourne Giants 97

1987 NBL statistics leaders
CategoryPlayerTeamStat
Points per gamePaul Stanley[3]Hobart Tassie Devils920 pts
Rebounds per gameMark DavisAdelaide 36ers17.1
Assists per gameGordie McLeodIllawarra Hawks8.5
Steals per gameSteve CarfinoHobart Tassie Devils88 stls
Blocks per gameWillie SimmonsNorth Melbourne Giants114 blks
Field goal percentageJames CrawfordPerth Wildcats62.6%
Three-point percentageAlan BlackPerth Wildcats53.8%
Free throw percentageScott FentonSydney Supersonics92.5%

NBL awards

All NBL Team
# Player Team
PGSteve CarfinoHobart Tassie Devils
SGAndrew GazeMelbourne Tigers
SFLeroy LogginsBrisbane Bullets
PFMark DavisAdelaide 36ers
CJames CrawfordPerth Wildcats

References
  1. "1987 Westside Melb Saints". YouTube. Archived from the original on 6 December 2021.
  2. "Honour Boards".
  3. "All Time Leaders". NBL.com.au. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017.
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