The Gold Coast basketball team have gone down in an inglorious and ironic blaze.
Short of supplying evidence of a bank guarantee of $1 million, detailed confirmation of ongoing funding and unconditional assurance that Basketball Australia would be paid outstanding debts, the club folded this week, leaving the NBL with a small but sound group of just eight.
The Blaze aren’t the first sports club on the glitzy coast to underwhelm with sketchy financials, nor will they likely be the last to ultimately fizzle. Perhaps the sunshine makes some accountants more optimistic than they should be.
But the pertinent question here isn’t what happened to the Blaze, but how does the NBL move forward?
To many in the media, there were already questions about the validity of the NBL as a ‘micro’ competition attempting to steal both fans and sponsors away from mass market entities like the NRL and AFL. This latest news simply fuelled their doubts about the league.
A headline that ran in The Sydney Morning Herald this week even insinuated that hoop greats Andrew Gaze and Steve Carfino were “fretting” over the Blaze’s demise. I’m quite certain while disappointed, neither is fretting right now. They’ve seen teams come and go, and still the NBL keeps on raining threes.
This raises the point that basketball fans shouldn’t care what the critics think. We know the sport has never commanded attention in Australia the way the NBA does in America, and yet it continues to have a passionate and loyal fan-base.
The game, despite what some cricket or tennis diehards will tell you, both deserves and can sustain a place on our summer sporting landscape. To this point, the greatest successes for the NBL have come from community-based initiatives where dedicated pockets of fans and players have gathered to support the game with all the fervour of a Globetrotters crowd.
The Wollongong Hawks, for example, continue to be a shining example of how the sport can be embraced by smaller communities who value a good product that connects with them. The Cairns Taipans are another. Even the Sydney Kings, who play in the country’s largest market, have similarly tapped into the city’s localised basketball wells to rejuvenate its once potent brand.
So when we think about what Basketball Australia might do to reignite the league after this recent dousing, I’d suggest its reviewing and considering those towns with a strong basketball tradition for new NBL licenses. I’m talking about the places where crowds once collected every weekend – without prompting – to cheer for their squad against the mighty Gaze-led Tigers, or D-Train-charged Kings.
BA needs to hone in on those former brands like Canberra’s Cannons, Geelong’s Supercats and Hobart’s Devils, and realise there are sports fans in those areas who would cherish a return to top flight basketball.
The league doesn’t need glamorous locales or mock-Miami Heat style uniforms to win patrons. It just needs a strong on-court product, which it’s already building towards, and the support of people who genuinely enjoy the game and want it to succeed.
John
Guest
I don't know much about basketball in Australia but I tend to agree with the article. Maybe look into expanding into some towns with few national sporting teams? Canberra, Geelong and Newcastle have already been mentioned. What about Darwin, a team from outback NSW (Bourke, Nyngan, Broken Hill). Perhaps an Albury/Wodonga side or a team from North West WA. I am not claiming these areas would work. I wouldn't know either way. But trying to compete with bigger sports won't work for basketball (unfortunately). Something different is required. If there was a Canberra side, I'd be a member and attend regularly. I already do with the WNBL.
William Goat
Guest
Sad to see another team go under in what is apparently a population & sporting paradise. The next franchise of any sport must surely consider calling themselves the Gold Coast Graveyards or Gravediggers, what is going on there ? It should be the success story of Australian sport,with booming teams in evey league going in Aussie sport played in some of the best conditions in the world. Add in the other attractions you'd think they'd be selling ticket packages with accommodation, entertainment & holidays rolled into one so fast there'd be a waiting list just to get on a waiting list !
Nick Jungfer
Roar Guru
Nice artilce, makes for a pleasant change to see a well informed NBL article, instead of so much of what we see in mainstream media. The NBL definitely needs to focus on the cities where basketball is strong right from the grassroots and re-connect with those players and fans - rather than cities like the Gold Coast with a growing population but no basketball tradition/grassroots.
JP
Guest
Paul I think the Falcons were one of the great clubs and if the league tapped into that history people would respond. They should be considered as a new club in the near future.
Australian Rules
Guest
The prospects of the Titans folding is suddenly a very real one again. The latest allegations of Searle committing fraud to pass a building inspection could be the final nail in the coffin...which would be sad. As it stands, the club is unable to sell the Centre of Excellence to pay off a chunk of debt. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/michael-searle-faces-fresh-fight-as-gold-coast-titans-future-cast-in-doubt-yet-again/story-fnbhnkbd-1226426260229 That said, Jay is right - if that happened, the ARLC will re-badge the club with a new identity. There will be an NRL team on the Gold Coast going forward.
JP
Guest
There have been some great ideas here. To your question Midfielder I think you touched on the strength of basketball - its large player base. Connecting with that base is not so much a sell as it a promotion because kids and young adults already love the game. They see it on TV and online, they know LeBron James and no doubt they're keen to watch it during the Olympics. The connection is easy in my mind because it's simply creating a product that's strong and attractive, but also showcasing it, getting players into the community and teaching kids in clinics etc I don't have all the details of the Blaze's strategy and I'm sure they had some good fans. But from where I sit the GC may not have been the best place to have a team. Don't get me wrong, nothing against the Gold Coast. But basketball has its historical roots in smaller communities like Newcastle, Geelong and Wollongong, for example. People there more readily collect around a club because they're not bombarded with competing sports. I live in Sydney and it's a crap shoot as to what people will follow on any given weekend. I imagine GC has suffered from that in recent years. Also, I don't like the marketing around some sports clubs. The Blaze moniker and uniform were poor. This isn't America, so there's no need to go down that road to try appeal to fans with loud uniforms and logos. The branding that works is simple and people can relate to it.
sledgeross
Guest
See what Mike Mitchell or Andre LaFleur are doing lol
Jay
Guest
It may happen.. the only thing is that the NRL would replace them with another team
Sav
Roar Rookie
This entire Gold Coast Blaze situation is just so dissapointing. This is a club that did fantastic work within the community in promoting not only themselves but the sport of basketball. They even had healthy crowds averaging 3493 a game last season. The reason for their demise was all financial and it was all due to poor management. The product on court was there, the community support was there, the brand was strong but upstairs in management they let everyone down. However with all that said I still believe the competition is on the rise and call me crazy but the halcyon days of the late 80's and early 90's will be back with or without the Gold Coast.
Sav
Roar Rookie
I believe the imports rule is fine as is and as for the AIS joining the competition that just wouldn't work. They were rarely competitive in the SEABL but regardless they have recently revamped the program and wouldn't have the time to compete full time in a competition like the NBL. I would like to see the player points system dropped. At the moment the teams have to fit under a salary cap of 1 Million plus have to fit all their players within the point system. I believe it to be too much. I'd like to know what everyone else thinks about it because I think it is ridiculous.
clipper
Guest
Bob - that won't happen. The Gold Coast is not a battle the NRL (or the AFL) want to lose.
Bob
Guest
Gold Coast Titans would be next on the list of failed ventures up in Death Valley.
Paul Arandale
Guest
It would be great to see a team back in Newcastle but how many games would I actually attend? I use to go to a lot of Falcons games and only attended one Hunter Pirates game.
Midfielder
Guest
Jppp Basketball has quite a large player base .... I would be interested in your comments of if & how your think connecting with your player base is important for the development of Basketball.. If so do you have any ideas on how it can be done? Football my preferred has a similar issue in turning the player base into active match goers and TV watchers... would be interesting to swap ideas ... as both sports have similar issues with media coverage and to a degree of major events being largely glossed over by the general media... and always the best players overseas...
B-Rock
Roar Guru
Both good ideas Cameron - AIS team would get flogged though
sledgeross
Guest
Geelong Supercats! Bring em back! Worlds smallest starting guards with wayne larkin and bobby locke!
Cam Larkin
Roar Guru
The NBL needs to loosen the imports rule, look at placing AIS team into league.