Manawatu Jets
Basketball team in Palmerston North, New Zealand
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Manawatu Jets are a New Zealand professional men's basketball team based in Palmerston North. The Jets compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Central Energy Trust Arena. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the Property Brokers Manawatu Jets.
1982; 1985–1987; 1989–2001
Manawatu Jets
2002–2015; 2018–present
| Manawatu Jets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| League | NZNBL | ||
| Founded | 1982 | ||
| History | Palmerston North Jets 1982; 1985–1987; 1989–2001 Manawatu Jets 2002–2015; 2018–present | ||
| Arena | Central Energy Trust Arena | ||
| Location | Palmerston North, Manawatū, New Zealand | ||
| Team colours | Green, white, black | ||
| Main sponsor | Property Brokers | ||
| Chairman | Craig Nash | ||
| Head coach | Tony Webster[1] | ||
| Ownership | Tim Mordaunt[2] | ||
| Championships | 0 | ||
| Retired numbers | 1 (12) | ||
| Website | thejets.co.nz | ||
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Team history
The Palmerston North Jets were a foundation member of the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1982. After finishing eighth in the eight-team competition, the Jets were relegated to the second-tiered Conference Basketball League (CBL) in 1983. After finishing as CBL runners-up in 1984, they were promoted back into the NBL in 1985. They finished fifth in both 1985 and 1986, but after finishing tenth in the ten-team competition in 1987, the Jets were relegated to the CBL in 1988. The 1988 season saw the Jets win the CBL championship, which saw them promoted back into the NBL in 1989.[3] The Jets were regular season winners in 1989, but despite being the top seed at the finals weekend, they were defeated 92–84 in the semifinal by the Canterbury Rams.[4] In 1992, the Jets reached the NBL final, where they were defeated 79–71 by the Rams.[4] In 2002, the team became known as the Manawatu Jets.[5]
In November 2015, the Jets withdrew from the NBL due to reduced funding and an unsustainable business model.[6][7] In April 2017, the Jets lodged their application to Basketball New Zealand to compete in the 2018 NBL season.[8] Their application was successful, and on 29 August 2017, the Jets were readmitted into the league.[9][10]
In 2020, the Jets reached the NBL final for the second time in their history,[11][12] where they lost 79–77 to the Otago Nuggets.[13][14]
In 2022, the Jets retired the number 12 jersey of Jake McKinlay following his death the previous year.[15]
Players
Current roster
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
| Manawatu Jets roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Updated: 23 July 2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Notable past players
Retired numbers
| Manawatu Jets retired numbers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No | Nat. | Player | Position | Tenure | Ceremony date |
| 12 |  | Jake McKinlay | SF/PF | 2018–2021 | 23rd July 2022 |