The Franklin Bulls are a New Zealand

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

team based in

Pukekohe Pukekohe is a town in the Auckland Region of the North Island of New Zealand. Located at the southern edge of the Auckland Region, it is in South Auckland, between the southern shore of the Manukau Harbour and the mouth of the Waikato River. ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Franklin Pool and Leisure Centre. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the EnviroNZ Franklin Bulls.

Team history

In July 2019, the Franklin Bulls were granted provisional entry into the National Basketball League (NBL) for the 2021 season. However, following the withdrawal of the Southern Huskies and Super City Rangers, the Bulls expedited their process to complete a set of requirements set down by the league, and in November 2019, they were granted entry into the NBL for the 2020 season. Their inaugural season in the NBL looked in doubt when the season was suspended due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. The league returned in a reduced format based entirely in Auckland, with the Bulls finishing fifth in the regular season with a 7–7 record before losing their elimination final to the Taranaki Mountainairs. Coached by Australian Liam Simmons, the inaugural squad featured

Everard Bartlett Everard Verdon Bartlett (born 6 February 1986) is a New Zealand basketball coach and former player. He most recently served as the head coach of the Hawke's Bay Hawks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). Bartlett was a regular ...

and

Sam Timmins Samuel Timmins (born 23 May 1997) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the New Zealand Breakers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Washington Huskies. In 2022, he helped the Otago Nugge ...

Current roster

References

External links

Official website of Franklin Basketball
* {{National Basketball League (New Zealand) National Basketball League (New Zealand) teams Basketball teams in New Zealand Basketball teams established in 2019 2019 establishments in New Zealand