The Tall Blacks is the nickname of New Zealand's national men's basketball team. The name was chosen as it reminds people of New Zealand's rugby team, the All Blacks. For sponsorship reasons, they are often referred to in New Zealand media as the Burger King Tall Blacks.
The Tall Blacks competed at the 2000 Sydney Olympics and finished with a 1-5 record, their only win coming against Angola in the playoff for eleventh.
In 2001 they defeated Australia in a three-game series to qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Championships in Indianapolis. At the tournament they finished fourth, after beating Puerto Rico in the quarter-finals before losses to Yugoslavia and Germany. Tall Blacks captain Pero Cameron was the only non-NBA player named to the all-tournament team in Indianapolis.
The Tall Blacks qualified for the 2004 Athens Olympics but again finished with a 1-5 record and lost to Australia in the playoff for ninth place. Their most glorious moment was on the 7th day of the games, when they beat Serbia and Montenegro (the world champions) 90:87.
Probably the most well-known New Zealand player in the National Basketball Association is San Antonio Spurs forward Sean Marks, who is in his fifth NBA season.
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