Goldfields Giants
| Goldfields Giants | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Leagues | State Basketball League |
| Founded | 1990 |
| History |
Goldfields Giants 1990–present |
| Arena | Niels Hansen Stadium |
| Capacity | 1,200 |
| Location | Kalgoorlie, Western Australia |
| Team colors | Navy blue, gold, white |
| Main sponsor | Silver Lake Resources |
| President | Jamie Crombie |
| Head coach | Lou Causer |
| Team captain | Jacob Holmen |
| Championships | 2 (2007, 2008) |
| Website | GoldfieldsGiants.com |
The Goldfields Giants are an Australian basketball team based in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. The Giants compete in the Men's State Basketball League (SBL) and play their home games at Niels Hansen Stadium. The team is affiliated with Kalgoorlie-Boulder Basketball Association (KBBA), the major administrative basketball organisation in the region. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the Silver Lake Resources Goldfields Giants.
Since debuting in the SBL in 1990, the Giants have reached five SBL Grand Finals, culminating in back-to-back championship wins in 2007 and 2008. They were also runners-up in 1995, 2004 and 2006.
The Giants entered the Men's State Basketball League in 1990, one year after the league's inaugural season in 1989. In their first season, the Giants were involved in a game against the Willetton Tigers where the scoreline was 155–134 in the Giants' favour. In that game, American import Paul Graham scored a league record-equalling 82 points on 34-of-51 from the field, 11-of-11 from the free throw line, and just one made three-pointer. Following that game, Graham parted ways with the team and returned to the United States for an NBA tryout. In 10 games for the Giants, Graham averaged an incredible 43.3 points per game. To replace Graham, the Giants signed Mark Griffin who teamed up alongside Calvin Earl. However, the team failed to make the playoffs in their first season, finishing the year in 12th place with a 7–19 win/loss record.
The Giants made the playoffs for the first time in 1993, a season where they finished eighth on the ladder with a 9–15 record. The following season, they finished as quarter-finalists for the second year in a row, before finally making it through to the SBL Grand Final in 1995 where they faced the Bunbury Slammers. In the league's first and only best-of-three grand final series, the Giants were defeated 91–78 in Game 1, and 88–86 in Game 2, losing the series 2–0 to the Slammers. They continued to make the playoffs in 1996 and 1997, before having a two-year playoff hiatus to round out the 1990s.
Between 2000 and 2010, the Giants made the playoffs every year except 2003. Included in this run of playoff appearances, the Giants made the grand final in 2004 and 2006, losing both times. The team's golden years took place over the next two years, with the Giants winning back-to-back championships in 2007 and 2008, defeating the Lakeside Lightning in the 2007 grand final, and the Willetton Tigers in the 2008 grand final. In both seasons, the team was led by captain Shamus Ballantyne and vice captains Mark Heron and Ryan Hulme. Import Michael Haney was also a major factor in the team's success, as was Matthew Leske and Todd Earle.
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