A new Tasmanian team appears high on the agenda for the NBL as Australia’s professional basketball league looks into the possibility of expansion over the next two seasons.
A recent visit from NBL chief executive Fraser Neill to Tasmania has fuelled speculation that Hobart may become one of the next Australian cities to receive a pro team.
Neill described the possibility of adding a Tasmanian team as “very close” according to a report by Fairfax, while a second team to New Zealand, Canberra, Gold Coast and Newcastle are among other locations also rumoured to be in the mix.
In Tasmania’s case, it is believed the cities of Hobart, Launceston, Burnie and Devonport would share the responsibilities of hosting a newly formed NBL team.
With over 2 million registered basketball players nationwide, Anthony Stewart, coach of the Hobart Chargers of the SEABL, envisions more than enough support for a number of smaller venues to host a new club.
“The idea is to take the league to 12 teams (in 2015-16) and that would mean 22 home games,” Stewart told News Limited.
“There would be games played any-and-every night of the week, with more games and more entertainment to get the community involved.
“The community model Fraser put forward is exciting and exactly what we need.”
The idea of keeping it small- opposed to the 13,000 capacity of Perth Arena- is a sentiment shared by the NBL’s top man.
“This is not about filling big stadiums,” Neill said.
“I would rather have 4000 people in a 4000-seat venue than 6000 in a 15,000-seat venue.”
The NBL seems determined to expand the game’s national audience, but is adding more teams the right way to go about things?
The addition of at least two NBA calibre players has bolstered the league’s image in 2013-14, but some clubs are privately unwilling to fork out major dollars to compete in this area. With most teams unable put together enough money to add top shelf talent and limited stocks of quality talent being produced at home, the NBL could actually benefit by sticking to current eight-team, smaller format for the short-term.
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