Sending out an SOS for Australian basketball

BA has taken ownership of the NBL and a new board has been elected to take the league into its 33rd year of competition. The streamlined eight-team competition is set for a September 24 tip-off.

How will BA and NBL administrators evoke the passion and traction required to demand the outsider to take notice?

The heart of the revamp concerns the streamlining of teams from ten to eight, a negotiation of a major sponsor and an upgraded television rights deal.

BA is reluctant to confirm an agreement has been struck, however, BA Chief Executive Larry Sengstock has hinted the deal will expose the league to a larger TV audience than ever before.

An essential element, especially after Australia’s only magazine dedicated to basketball, Handle, ceased publication in March this year.

Current SEN radio host and former Communications Manager for the defunct South Dragons, Ed Wyatt, is waiting to see how the new changes will play out. In particular, a raising of the salary cap by $200,000 to $1 million and a reduction in quarters from 12 to ten minutes which will conform with FIBA International standards.

“While I understand the concept of complying with FIBA’s international game, I think it will restrict playing time for the 8th, 9th and 10th players,” Wyatt says.

“Last season, guys like Rhys Carter and Nathan Herbert played a huge role in the Dragons’ success. Not sure they’d have been able to contribute as much in a ten-minute quarter.

“Much has been made about the salary cap, but I don’t see much change to be honest. New Zealand has already admitted that they cannot conform to the new cap. Cairns has said they will not use 100% of the cap and I doubt Wollongong will either. The questions surrounding the Melbourne Tigers will still be there, right or wrong.”

Finding stability for each club should be a BA priority. The QLD Government has committed to a three-year $350,000 sponsorship deal with the Cairns Taipans. It’s a significant move that brings sustainability to the club in exchange for players participating in healthy living programs for youngsters (a fundamental demographic).

A proposed preseason tournament to be held in Darwin, The Top End Blitz, is a vibrant crack at rejuvenating the spirit among players. Subject to NT Government approval, the tourney would symbolise a league willing to revitalise - an icebreaker of sorts, an initiation to what may be a turgid transitional process.

With team rosters still being confirmed it will serve as a chance for coaches to formulate tactics, player units and give the players a fitness boost - ensuring a high standard of play come season tip-off.
Teams in the major markets of Sydney and Brisbane are noticeably absent.

While BA has expansion plans to re-introduce both teams for the 2009-10 season, this might be a case of BA having eyes bigger than its belly.

The return of exiled NBL icon Brian Goorjian, arguably the Australian coach of the past two decades regardless of sport, should be higher on BA’s priority list.

The veteran coach has accepted an assistant coaching role with the Chinese national team, after the South Dragons team he coached to the 2008-09 NBL championship (Goorjian’s sixth title) elected to abstain from nominating for the new league.

Wyatt says that while there have been problems in the past with consistency in the scheduling of fixtures, which hurts both attendances and media coverage, the NBL still has a lot to offer.

“It’s a reasonably professional league with some talented players who are very media-friendly. I can honestly say that every guy on last year’s Dragons squad was a good guy. I’ve met very few NBL players I don’t like. The games are usually well-played and competitive.”

‘He could not want to lose this fight. If he did, they would write up the epitaphs for his career, and the dead have no n’golo.’

The upcoming NBL season may be seen as a gap year by BA administrators- a season to establish momentum and stability. It’s also a chance to recapture some n’golo of days gone by.
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Thanks to Ed Wyatt for his time. Check out his website and twitter page at www.edwyatt.com.au & www.twitter.com/edwyatt