Ask knox

This is BS

It would seem odd to me, since the whole point of blowing up the Tigers brand and changing to United was to move away from being a team with a limited supporter base and a majority of fans for whom the old brand would always be a rival.
I wonder how many Victorian basketball fans aren't footy fans.

I know they have a large (possibly the largest) AFL supporter base in Victoria, but it still puts them into a "faction" of sorts, where you're basically going to put off fans of 8 of the 9 Melbourne AFL teams from becoming a fan of the basketball team.
I don't know how big a factor it would be. Just putting it out there. Maybe the footy club sees potential for adding current non-AFL basketball fans to their membership.

There will simply not be a second melbourne team. End of

When you have two teams it's fine to be factional for one; when there’s only one team it’s stupid to be factional

The Richwood Pigers?

LK getting United more support, by bringing in Collingwood you automatically get 80% of the sporting public in Melb supporting the non-magpie team.

I think a team representing the south east suburbs of Melb would go very well. Not sure if I'd use the names magic or dragons though. Dragons did seem to have a good fan base though.

Why even bother playing at Dandenong or sbc? I don't think either are big enough to sustain an nbl team in Melb. Maybe Margaret court at the very least

Isn't the SBC likely to become the next Waverley Park/VFL Park?

If Collingwood were awarded a team surely it would make sense for them to play out of Margaret Court Arena. It's across the road from Collingwoods Headquarters and training facilities, is in Melbournes Sporting precinct so is accessible to everybody.

Why wouldnt they just play at Hisense?

I imagine that as a new entrant they're unlikely to attract 8,000-10,000 to their games straight up. Margaret Court Arena would be a better option if you're getting 6,000ish

5-6000, sure. Don't see a basis for more than that straight up, especially not "easily", in their first season

Expansion should be on the back burner. League is present in the major money markets and needs invest in winning the public back to make it profitable.

It's been proved time and time again in this league that entering new teams is not a solution, tired of seeing teams fold. Develop the popularity of the league and enter new teams when the public demand one.

16 team comp would be better w two divisions.

BTown, expansion is exactly what the league needs right now in my opinion. Theres many reasons for past failed attempts, with bad timing (eg bringing new teams when the league was shit) and too many teams at various stages being among them (13-14 teams is probably too many even during the so called golden years)

Right now the league is looking healthy again and with the league being an 8 team competition for quite a long time now, its time to start expanding or risk becoming stale and boring, which its in danger of doing if no new teams come in. 8 teams is a bit low for a professional league.

Collingwood is getting a team.

MELBOURNE THUNDER???

It absolutely makes sense, and the NBL would be nuts to not be looking at all options.
The league is barely viable, and a couple of teams are a year-to-year proposition. ONly takes a couple of those to stagger, and the league becomes a joke.

The biggest audience for BBL generally is still Melbourne, the alltime attendance record still belongs to a Melbourne Derby final, and you have the stadiums to cash in on them.
Bottomline is that it is allround the cheapest expansion option available.

The idea of an NBL franchise makes some sense for many Melbourne AFL teams. (Although ironically perhaps less so for Collingwood.)
They already have the gyms, training facilities, management, membership, and sponsorship staff in place (many of whom have extreme peaks in their work-year.)
They are mostly locked in a grim struggle for new members and sponsors in a saturated ultra-competitive market. And the market they are all chasing is youth without existing affiliations. Considering they are all legacy clubs ostensibly based in the city, its not even as though they can rely on geographical location.

Imagine if you could successfully launch a 2nd team in Melbourne, and grow that supporter base to its potential. Converting those people to your AFL cause would be a salivating prospect for some of the struggling clubs.

Also need to appreciate that by and large NBL players can be asked to work a lot harder in community events, and here you have the opportunity to build your brand year-round.

Now yes, from the NBL perspective, I think that say re-birthing the Saints as an AFL offshoot would be limiting, but perhaps there's a happy medium somewhere.

Lets also not forget what I will call the "Freo Fenomenon."
I cheered the Eagles to victory in 92 & 94 sitting next to guys who will now swear to my face that they "didn't follow AFL" until Freo joined. Excluding those permanently ensconced in Cafes, The City of Fremantle has a population of about 28. (There's a far larger population in East Fremantle, but they mostly hate those in the south and support the Eagles.) Yet despite this Fremantle is one of the most financially successful teams in the AFL, with a membership that most Melbourne clubs would murder for.
Point is, that for whatever reason, it may be possible to pull together substantial support for a 2nd Melbourne team.

It's Geelong sponsored by Geelong Cats of the AFL

Already been in the media, no Geelong team possible without at least a 5,000 seat stadium, so while that's a nice dream, it will remain a dream until they start building something.

South Dragons, just call them Melbourne Dragons if need be and be done with it I reckon.....