A big crowd at an impressively transformed Oaklands College Sports Zone saw Oaklands Wolves basketball host their annual presentation event.

Players from each of the club's eight juniors sides, plus the four senior weekend teams and the new veterans' side, were in attendance to receive four awards for each team as well as hear some words from the coaches and a selection of highlight reels on the big screen.

The Most Valuable Player (MVP) award for each team was voted for by the players, with the coaching staff choosing the Most Improved Player (MIP), Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) and Coach’s player winners.

American guard Ri Thompson has terrorised WBBL defences throughout the season, and unsurprisingly collected the women’s most valuable player.

Allison Day was named most improved while Shaq Wade was the defensive player of the year.

Claire Abbott, in her final season as a player, was give head coach Lee Ryan's vote for the coach's award.

Captain La’Quarne Sayles regularly poured in the points for the Division Two men, including a 47-point haul at Ipswich, and he deservedly collected the MVP trophy.

Bill Irvine continued where he left off for the U16s last season by winning both the coach’s and most improved awards while another former junior, Ethan Downing, collected the defensive trophy.

The Division Two women, made up entirely of academy players, narrowly missed out on a place in the play-offs. Captain Caitlin Ryan was MVP award, Lily Harkness the most improved, Joanna Akpan the defensive player and and Ella Brown the coach’s player.

Three former junior Wolves also collected awards for the Division Three men, Milic Pavic (MVP), Dontel Rose (most improved), Lewis Street (defensive player) and Dan Kostadinov (coach’s award).

Eunice Wong was the winner of the U16 girls MVP, with Lucy Claridge winning defensive player and U14 Daisy Golan getting the MIP award.

Having hit a game winner and also scoring a basket to take another game to overtime, Elise Beardsworth deservedly won the coach’s award.

A tough campaign saw the U16 boys eventually stave off the prospect of competing in the relegation play-offs, and Otis Lau-Johnston became the only junior to collect two awards, being voted MVP by his team-mates and DPOY by his coach George Walker.

Daniel Vega grabbed the MIP while Jayan Pisharody went home with the coach’s player trophy.

Despite playing up two age groups, U15 captain Jacob Edrupt was clear winner of the MVP award for his team, while Oliver Thomas (MIP), Seth Coetzee (DPOY) and Kean Berba (coach’s) all collected trophies from Coach Sayles.

Wolves U14 boys could claim to be the club’s most successful side having made it through to the JNBL Premier play-offs, and it was Liam Schertel who got the nod from his team-mates with the MVP.

Zac Butterworth received the coach’s award from Ibrahim Garbia while Sam Mcree (MIP) and Titouan Vimeux (DPOY) also went home clutching silverware.

There was little surprise that Jane Yu collected the U14 girls MVP after a season where she also regularly started for the U16s.

Another regular in the older age group, Olivia Akers, received the coach’s award from Allison Day, with Isobel Reed winning DPOY and Guari Kohli DPOY.

U13 captain Alex Ryan followed in his sister’s footsteps by winning his side’s MVP trophy, with play-caller George Walker presenting Harry Regan with MIP, Frank Fojit DPOY and Ethan Fraser-Evans with the coach’s award.

Martha Riley went home clutching the U12 girls MVP award after a first JNBL season for the club at JNBL level, while Rose Marsh won the award from the coaching staff.

Francesca Scott went home with the DPOY, while Martha Riles win MIP.

A high-scoring season saw Manuel Gracia Peris collect the U12 boys’ MVP as his team finished second in their division of the JNBL, only losing to league champions MK Breakers.

Tristan Ball won the coaches’ award, Alex Cofone getting MIP and Aiden Harriman the DPOY.

At the start of the 2021/22 season a few players’ dads took a spare Saturday morning hour on the court at Oaklands, and within two years the group had grown to the point that they entered the Herts League Division Two.

With some players returning to the game after one or even two decades, it was tough going at times but they finished the season with five wins  from 18 games and were one victory short of the play-offs.

Erik Witt won the side’s MVP, John Bretherton collected MIP, Tom Baldwin was DPOY while Fraser MacFarlane received the coach’s award.

George Walker managed to coach seven of the club’s junior national league sides along with the D3 men at least once, and he was rewarded with the Wolves' club person of the year trophy.

Finally Academy players Grace Foster, Caitlin Ryan, Jack Davies, Amye Swinney and Stella Ekblad-Piscatelli all received special mentions for their additional coaching with the club’s Elevate programme which introduces basketball to primary school pupils.