The Victoria Titans (known in its final two seasons as the Victoria Giants), were an Australian professional basketball team that competed in the National Basketball League (NBL).[1] The club was based in Melbourne, Victoria.[2]
| Victoria Titans | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Leagues | NBL | ||
| Founded | 1998 | ||
| Dissolved | 2004 | ||
| History | Victoria Titans 1998–2002 Victoria Giants 2002–2004 | ||
| Arena | Melbourne Park (1998–2000) Vodafone Arena (2000–2002) MSAC (2002–2004) | ||
| Capacity | MP – 15,000 VA – 10,500 MSAC – 2,000 | ||
| Location | Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Team colors | Titans – Black, teal, white Giants – Carolina blue, orange, white, black | ||
| Main sponsor | Liberty | ||
| Championships | 0 | ||
| Website | www.giants.com.au | ||
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History
editThe Titans were founded as a merger between the South East Melbourne Magic and North Melbourne Giants and competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) between the 1998–99 season and the 2003–04 season, and played their home games at Melbourne Park (1998–2000) and Vodafone Arena (2000–2002) when branded as the Titans. As the Giants the team played their games at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre (2002–2004).
Under the Titans name, the team competed in back-to-back NBL Grand Finals in 1999 and 2000, losing to the Adelaide 36ers and Perth Wildcats respectively. After the Titans folded in mid-2002, a group fronted by businessman Peter Fiddes was granted a licence in their place and called the new team the Giants. The club struggled financially for one season before being propped up by Gerry Ryan for the 2003–04 season. Ryan and co-owner Sandy Constantine pulled the team out of the league in 2004, but retained the licence despite the NBL's attempts to take it back.[3]
Season by season
edit| NBL champions | League champions | Runners-up | Finals berth |
| Season | Tier | League | Regular season | Post-season | Head coach | Captain | Club MVP | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Played | Wins | Losses | Win % | |||||||
| Victoria Titans | |||||||||||
| 1998–99 | 1 | NBL | 4th | 26 | 16 | 10 | .615 | Won qualifying finals (Wollongong) 2–0 Won semifinals (Melbourne) 2–0 Lost NBL finals (Adelaide) 1–2 |
Brian Goorjian | Tony Ronaldson | Tony Ronaldson |
| 1999–2000 | 1 | NBL | 4th | 28 | 20 | 8 | .714 | Won elimination finals (Melbourne 2–1 Won semifinals (Adelaide) 2–1 Lost NBL finals (Perth) 0–2 |
Brian Goorjian | Tony Ronaldson | Jason Smith |
| 2000–01 | 1 | NBL | 1st | 28 | 22 | 6 | .786 | Lost qualifying finals (Adelaide) 1–2 Lost semifinals (Townsville) 1–2 |
Brian Goorjian | Tony Ronaldson | Chris Anstey |
| 2001–02 | 1 | NBL | 1st | 30 | 21 | 9 | .700 | Lost qualifying finals (Melbourne) 1–2 Lost semifinals (Adelaide) 1–2 |
Brian Goorjian | Tony Ronaldson | Chris Anstey |
| Victoria Giants | |||||||||||
| 2002–03 | 1 | NBL | 10th | 30 | 9 | 21 | .300 | Did not qualify | Mark Wright | Darryl McDonald | Jamahl Mosley |
| 2003–04 | 1 | NBL | 11th | 33 | 11 | 22 | .333 | Did not qualify | Mark Wright | Rob Feaster | Ben Pepper |
| Regular season record | 175 | 99 | 76 | .566 | 2 regular season champions | ||||||
| Finals record | 27 | 13 | 14 | .481 | 0 NBL championships | ||||||
As of the end of the 2003–04 season
Source: Victoria Giants Year by Year
Honour roll
edit
| NBL Championships: | None |
| NBL finals appearances: | 4 (1998/99, 1999/2000, 2000/01, 2001/02) |
| NBL Grand Final appearances: | 2 (1999, 2000) |
| NBL Most Valuable Player: | None |
| NBL Grand Final MVP: | None |
| All-NBL First Team: | Jason Smith (2001), Chris Anstey (2002) |
| NBL Coach of the Year: | Brian Goorjian (2002) |
| NBL Rookie of the Year: | None |
| NBL Most Improved Player: | None |
| NBL Best Defensive Player: | None |
| NBL Best Sixth Man: | Chris Anstey (2001), Jamahl Mosley (2002) |
References
edit- ^ "2001 NBL Clubs". NBL.com.au. 8 April 2001. Archived from the original on 8 April 2001. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
- ^ Uluc, Olgun (16 October 2015). "The NBL's defunct franchises: Sydney Astronauts, Launceston Casino City, Singapore Slingers, and more". FoxSports.com.au. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ Howell, Stephen (19 October 2005). "Victoria back to two teams in NBL". TheAge.com.au. Retrieved 26 September 2017.