Stars chasing threepeat

From  tvnz.co.nz
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Think of New Zealand's recent sporting dynasties and the Auckland Stars deserve to be right there among them, possibly at the top of the heap.

The two-time defending champions can build on that dominance in the 2006 NBL Finals and you can watch all the action on TV2 from 2:45pm on Sunday.

With seven championships in the past 11 years and a great chance to add an eighth in 12, they have a more impressive record than teams that have dominated the nation's major sporting codes during that time - Canterbury Crusaders in Super Rugby, Auckland in NPC rugby and the Southern Sting in National Bank Cup netball.

Since Super 12 rugby began in 1996, the Crusaders have won six titles, their most recent last month with victory over the Hurricanes in the final.

Auckland defeated Otago in last year's NPC final, their sixth title since 1995, although they reeled off a stunning 11 championships between 1982-96.

The Sting have also accounted for six NBC crowns since that competition began in 1998. They lost last year's final to the Waikato Magic, but have a chance to add to their account this weekend when they take on the defending champions in this year's final.

Edging ahead of them all, though, are the Stars, who enter this week's NBL semifinals as regular season champions and favourites for yet another championship.

The secret to their success?

"The fact I'm not coaching in the league," claims TVNZ basketball commentator Jeff Green, the coach who momentarily interrupted Auckland's run during the early 2000s.

"They have never won a title while I've been in the league."

Green's selective memory seems to have blotted out any recollection of the 1999 and 2000 seasons, when he guided Waikato and the Stars prevailed. But Green did end the Tab Baldwin coaching era by defeating Auckland in the semis en route to the 2001 title and then eliminated Baldwin's successor, Kenny Stone, at the same stage of the 2003 competition.

The following year, Auckland returned to the winners' circle and the roll was back on.

"I think the reason is they have had such continuity in terms of players and systems," observes Green. "Tab started it up years ago and it has just continued.

"People don't realise that championships are built, that it's a continuing process where you only change one or two pieces each year. If one piece falls out, generally there is something to replace it.

"Since Tab left, Kenny has taken on the mantle and if you look at the players, they have been there for years. Auckland have just added one or two here and there over that period."

In the early years of the dynasty, the Stars' success was built around the mana of Tall Black captain Pero Cameron. More recently, though, another player has inherited that position in the national league - Cameron's long-time sidekick, Dillon Boucher.

The hustling forward debuted under Baldwin in 1994 and helped Waikato win in 2001-02, before returning to Auckland for the current run. He can dominate a game without scoring a point and has now won more titles than any player in NBL history with eight.

"If I was starting a franchise next year, I don't care what sort of contract he wanted, I would pay as much as I could to get Dillon," says Green.

"He is obviously the glue that pulls that team together. He does all the little things and is so energetic."

If Auckland's reign is to end, the other three semifinalists this year loom as worthy challengers. With five titles, St Laurence Wellington Saints are the second most successful franchise in NBL history and the last "other" team to take the crown back in 2003.

NBS Nelson Giants have been the perennial bridesmaids during this dynasty, winning one title and losing five other finals in the past 12 years, including four to Auckland.

And Bay Hawks have actually been the Stars' closest rivals recently, matching them with a 40-14 regular season record over the past three years.

Who can stop the threepeat?