The NBL Canada Finals is the championship series of the

National Basketball League of Canada The National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada; french: Ligue nationale de basketball du Canada) is a Canadian professional men's minor league basketball organization. The NBL Canada was founded in 2011, when three existing Premier Basketb ...

(NBL). It is played between the winners of the Central Division and Atlantic Division. The first team to win four games in the series is declared NBL Canada champion. It has been played since the league's inaugural 2011–12 season. The

London Lightning The London Lightning is a Canadian professional basketball team based in London, Ontario, Canada, with home games at the Budweiser Gardens. The team is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC) that began play for the 201 ...

and

Windsor Express The Windsor Express is a Canadian professional basketball team based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The Express are an expansion team of the National Basketball League of Canada that began play in the 2012–13 season. The Express play its home gam ...

are currently the only teams that have claimed the title, with the latter one winning the last two editions of the Finals. Only two coaches have won the championship so far. In the

2015 NBL Canada Finals The 2015 NBL Canada Finals was the championship series of the 2014–15 National Basketball League of Canada season and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Central Conference champions Windsor Express controversially won the title after ...

, the Express won by default after the

Halifax Rainmen The Halifax Rainmen were a professional basketball team based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. They played in the Atlantic Division of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL) and their home games took place at the Scotiabank Centre, form ...

forfeited Game 7 due to safety concerns following a pre-game brawl. In the first two series in NBL history, head coach

Micheal Ray Richardson Micheal "Sugar" Ray Richardson (born April 11, 1955) is an American former professional basketball player and head coach. He played college basketball for the Montana Grizzlies. The No. 4 overall pick in the 1978 NBA draft, Richardson played in ...

led the London Lightning to back-to-back championships. Richardson was named

Coach of the Year Many sports leagues, sportswriting associations, and other organizations confer "Coach of the Year" awards. In some sports — including baseball and association football — the award is called the "Manager of the Year" award. Some of the ...

for both seasons. Bill Jones led Windsor to consecutive titles as well.

Finals MVP

The player with the top performances in the NBL Finals is named Finals Most Valuable Player. Its first two recipients,

Gabe Freeman Gabriel DeAndre Freeman (born November 5, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Halifax Hurricanes of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). He previously played for the Rochester Razorsharks of the Premier Basket ...

, who won the 2012 Finals with the Lightning, is the sole player to be named regular season

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

the same year.

References

{{National Basketball League of Canada