2014–15 NBL Canada season
Sports season
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The 2014–15 NBL Canada season was the fourth season of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada). The NBL Canada contracted to 8 teams for 2014–15 after the ownership of the Ottawa SkyHawks were revoked by the league following the 2013–14 season.[1]
March 2, 2015 – April 12, 2015 (Playoffs)
April 15 – 30, 2015 (Finals)
| 2014–15 NBL Canada season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball League of Canada |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | November 1, 2014 – February 28, 2015 March 2, 2015 – April 12, 2015 (Playoffs) April 15 – 30, 2015 (Finals) |
| Games | 32 |
| Teams | 8 |
| TV partner(s) | BeIN, EastLink TV, The Score, Rogers Media |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Jordan Weidner |
| Picked by | Mississauga Power |
| Regular Season | |
| Top seed | Windsor Express |
| Season MVP | Quinnel Brown (Windsor) |
| Top scorer | Quinnel Brown (Windsor) |
| Playoffs | |
| Atlantic champions | Halifax Rainmen |
| Atlantic runners-up | Island Storm |
| Central champions | Windsor Express |
| Central runners-up | Brampton A's |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Windsor Express |
| Runners-up | Halifax Rainmen |
| Finals MVP | Kirk Williams |
Offseason
During preseason, the NBL Canada's Board of Governors voted to revoke the ownership rights of Bytown Sports & Entertainment Inc., who operated the Ottawa SkyHawks. The league is working to find a new ownership group to bring the NBL Canada back to Ottawa, as soon as next season.[2]
Sam Hill was appointed NBL Canada Deputy Commissioner and General Counsel[3]
The owner of the Moncton Miracles, Kim Blanco, left the team without an owner during the off season.[4]
| Offseason | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team | 2013–14 season | 2014–15 season |
| Halifax Rainmen | Craig Hodges | Josep Clarós |
| London Lightning | Michael Ray Richardson | Carlos Knox |
| Mississauga Power | David Joseph | Kyle Julius |
| Moncton Miracles | Serge Langis | |
| Saint John Mill Rats | Rob Spon | Julian King |
| General Manager changes | ||
| Offseason | ||
| Team | 2013–14 season | 2014–15 season |
| London Lightning | Taylor Brown | Bill Smith |
| Moncton Miracles | Joe Salerno Sr. | |
Rule changes
The league will play a 32 game schedule (down from 40 in the previous two seasons) and take a break in the weeks heading up to Christmas.[5]
The minimum number of Canadians on a team has been increased from 3 to 4.[6]
The off season protected players list has been increased from 5 to 6.[7]
Coaching changes
Offseason
On July 17, 2014, the London Lightning hired Carlos Knox as head coach.[8]
General Manager changes
Offseason
On September 10, 2014, the London Lightning hired Bill Smith as general manager.[9]
On October 1, 2014, the Moncton Miracles hired Joe Salerno Sr. as general manager.[10]
Draft
The 2014 NBL Canada Draft took place on August 24 at the Wegz Stadium Bar in Vaughan, Ontario. 160 players competed over the weekend at the Pre-Draft Combine at the Athlete Institute in Mono, Ontario. 40 players were nominated to attend the Draft with the possibility of being selected. Following the combine, the Mississauga Power drafted Indiana Wesleyan guard Jordan Weidner with the first overall pick.[11]
Teams
| 2014-15 National Basketball League of Canada | |||||
| Division | Team | City | Arena | Capacity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic | Halifax Rainmen | Halifax, Nova Scotia | Scotiabank Centre | 10,500 | |
| Island Storm | Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island | Eastlink Centre | 4,000 | ||
| Moncton Miracles | Moncton, New Brunswick | Moncton Coliseum | 6,554 | ||
| Saint John Mill Rats | Saint John, New Brunswick | Harbour Station | 6,603 | ||
| Central | Brampton A's | Brampton, Ontario | Powerade Centre | 5,000 | |
| London Lightning | London, Ontario | Budweiser Gardens | 9,000 | ||
| Mississauga Power | Mississauga, Ontario | Hershey Centre | 5,400 | ||
| Windsor Express | Windsor, Ontario | WFCU Centre | 6,500 | ||
Map of teams
Atlantic Division 
Central Division
Regular season
The regular season began on November 1, 2014 and concluded on February 28, 2015.
Standings
|
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Playoffs
| Division Semifinals | Division Finals | NBL Canada Finals | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Halifax* | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Moncton | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Halifax | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Atlantic Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Island | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Island | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Saint John | 2 | ||||||||||||
| A1 | Halifax | 3 | ||||||||||||
| C1 | Windsor | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Windsor* | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Mississauga | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Windsor | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Central Division | ||||||||||||||
| 2 | Brampton | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Brampton | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | London | 2 | ||||||||||||
* Division winner
Bold Series winner
Finals
- All times local.
Game 1
April 15 7:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 104, Windsor Express 113 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 22–28, 29–30, 26–22, 27–33 | ||
| Pts: PJ Foster 15 Rebs: Jermaine Dailey 13 Asts: Cliff Clinkscales 3 |
Pts: Chris Commons 33 Rebs: Chris Commons 8 Asts: Gary Gibson 6 | |
| Windsor leads series, 1–0 | ||
April 17 7:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 100, Windsor Express 93 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 32–19, 22–24, 25–26, 18–27 | ||
| Pts: Tyrone Watson 16 Rebs: Young, Watson, Spikes, 9 each Asts: Kevin Young 5 |
Pts: Tony Bennett 25 Rebs: Jamarcus Ellis 8 Asts: Gary Gibson 7 | |
| Series tied, 1–1 | ||
April 23 7:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 100, Windsor Express 70 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 24–13, 23–19, 24–17, 29–21 | ||
| Pts: Kevin Young 17 Rebs: Young 12 Asts: Cliff Clinkscales 9 |
Pts: Kirk Williams 13 Rebs: Tim Parham 7 Asts: Chris Commons 3 | |
| Halifax leads series, 2–1 | ||
April 24 7:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 105, Windsor Express 109 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 22–29, 27–28, 26–28, 30–24 | ||
| Pts: Chris Cayole 23 Rebs: Jermaine Dailey 10 Asts: Young, Ando 4 each |
Pts: Kirk Williams 36 Rebs: Ryan Anderson 16 Asts: Anderson, Bennett 4 each | |
| Series tied, 2–2 | ||
April 26 2:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 125, Windsor Express 91 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 30–25, 29–20, 25–25, 41–21 | ||
| Pts: Chris Cayole 30 Rebs: Tyrone Watson 12 Asts: Tyrone Watson 5 |
Pts: Kirk Williams 20 Rebs: Ryan Anderson 15 Asts: Tony Bennett 6 | |
| Halifax leads series, 3–2 | ||
April 28 7:00 pm |
| Halifax Rainmen 112, Windsor Express 119 | ||
| Scoring by quarter: 28–32, 35–19, 22–34, 27–34 | ||
| Pts: Seiya Ando 27 Rebs: Liam McMorrow 11 Asts: Ando, Clinkscales 3 each |
Pts: Quinnel Brown 30 Rebs: Jamarcus Ellis 9 Asts: Tony Bennett 7 | |
| Series tied, 3–3 | ||
Notable occurrences
- NBL Canada's Board of Governors voted on July 30 to remove the Ottawa SkyHawks' ownership group. The SkyHawks will not participate in the 2014-15 season.[12]
- Sam Hill was appointed deputy commissioner and general counsel of the NBL Canada on August 7.[13]