x x	As one of the Taipans' Statisticians, Tanya has attended a few of these Gala Nights CLICK HERE --- for the Ball in 2007 and CLICK HERE --- for the Ball in 2006 and CLICK HERE --- for the Ball in 2003 and CLICK HERE --- for the Ball in 2002

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x At the Ball x x Nat, Tanya, Emily and Jane x

Boom rookie Nathan Jawai has capped his first year in the NBL with Taipans MVP honours
Jawai was named Cairns’ best player for season 2007-08 at the Taipans’ Starry Starry Night Presentation Dinner at the convention centre last night

The 206cm centre, who finished among the league’s top scorers and rebounders this season as well as being named in the All-NBL second team, received most votes from games throughout the season

Home and visiting coaches nominate votes on a three-two-one basis each game and the Taipans use this system to work out their MVP

Jawai finished the 31-game season – made up of 30 fixtures and the knockout quarter-final against New Zealand – averaging 17.3 points and 9.4 rebounds a game

The 21-year-old Bamaga product is still contracted to the Taipans but will head to the US with Snakes assistant coach Aaron Fearne in May to complete workouts with interested clubs ahead of the NBA draft in late June
He has an NBA get-out clause in his contract but could return to the NBL to play for the Taipans next season if his draft bid is unsuccessful

Jawai’s return would be a boon for the Snakes who can hold onto the centre sensation as a one-point player after drafting him into the league after grooming him through the ranks of the Taipans Academy

If Jawai was to leave the NBL and play in a foreign league before returning, or was to join any other club, he would attract the maximum 10-point rating according to NBL player rankings released yesterday

In other awards last night, Martin Cattalini won the Coach’s Award
The trophy is awarded at the coach’s discretion for effort on and off the court, with Cattalini recognised for his remarkable dedication and extraordinary comeback from what was thought to be a season-ending injury
Cattalini played just 15 games this season but it was several more than anyone expected after he underwent an operation on his troublesome achilles after an earlier knee surgery that also kept him off court

Aaron Grabau was named Best Defender

Brad Tassell was named Clubman Of The Year