Know Your Team: Derek Hall
6’11
Centre
From Northampton, Pennsylvania
Tenure: 2017-2019
2018 All-NBLC
His towering stature matched by his outstanding numbers, Derek Hall became one of the biggest success stories of the NBL Canada no sooner having began his tenure in Kitchener.
Prior to that, Hall played four years for the Albright Lions in NCAA Division III, averaging 15.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game in his senior year, where he was the team's starting centre and made the All-Mid-American Conference First Team. From there, he made the move to Hungary, where he first played for Marso Nyiregyhazi, followed by Szombatheley. He split the 2015-16 season between the Moncton Magic and the London Lions in the UK.
Hall spent the following season in Taiwan with Kaohsiung Truth, for whom he averaged 20.1 points and 12.4 rebounds per game, while shooting over 50% from both two and three-point territories, competing in the ASEAN League.
After seeing limited minutes in his first NBLC stint, when Hall was brought to the KW Titans in 2017 he saw his role grow considerably. Quickly becoming a starter for the team, he went on to have the best season of his career so far, averaging 18.4 points, 11.8 rebounds.
He led the Titans in scoring and set a number of team records, including field goals and rebounds made in a single game, when he grabbed 21 against the Niagara River Lions going along with his 21 points on the night of January 30th 2018. Though his season performance wasn't enough to lift the Titans to the playoffs, it saw him named to the All-NBL Canada Third Team.
After a highly successful first season at the Aud, bringing back Hall must have been one of the easiest decisions for the Titans during the off-season. He made an immediate statement with double-doubles in his opening four games of 2018, going on to record thirteen more in the season and pass the thousand-point mark for the team.
He was part of the KW team who completed the famous defeat of London in the playoffs before falling to the St. John's Edge in the division finals - Hall would score 19 and grab nine boards in what would be his last NBLC game. A sudden end to an exceptional player whose eye-opening numbers would make him one of the best to wear a KW Titans jersey and among the most overlooked NBLC talents.
