Manawatū Jets forward Tom Vodanovich has been rewarded for his outstanding regular season in the NBL Showdown after being crowned the league's Most Valuable Player (MVP) on Sunday.
Vodanovich (101 votes) finished ahead of Otago Nuggets forward Jordan Ngatai (97) and Taranaki Mountain Airs guard Derone Raukawa (96) to receive the prestigious individual honour for the first time.
The 25-year-old has been in red-hot form for the Jets, where he delivered two games with 10 three-pointers, including a 43-point outing against the Franklin Bulls.
Vodanovich ended the regular season with averages of 21.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game, plus shooting 46.5 percent from deep.
"Just playing in this league has been awesome," says NZ international Vodanovich.
"People have come from all over the country and competed week in and out, and proven that there is some excellent talent here, so to pick up this is an absolute honour, especially with the calibre of players we have here."
Vodanovich also featured in the league's All-Star Five which included Raukawa and Ngatai, alongside Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa (Huskies), and Marcel Jones (Airs).
In other awards, Otago's Brent Matehaere won coach of the year after guiding the Nuggets to the best record after round play at 9-5.
Taane Samuel (Jets) picked up the youth player of the year, and the defensive player of the year was shared between Mauriohooho-Le’afa and Jarrod Kenny (Nuggets).