FFS
When will people get it through their thick heads?
WA is completely dependent on mining, most of which is FIFO. A MINOR covid scare at the airport caused flights to be grounded for days, and thousands of workers to be placed in isolation. We are not opening the borders until the rest of you idiots stop spreading covid. Period.

And why would anybody be stupid enough to think that 80% is some magic number?
Even if they were 100% effective, which they are not,that still leaves 5 Million people to get infected, of which 200,000 will die.

It's also a completely illogical argument. If vaccination is that effective, then the disease will die out, and community transmission will cease. And then we'll open the borders anyway.

I'm not surprised with all the cases we have in Melbourne and Sydney. I can’t see any of the other states opening up anytime soon.

I wouldn't be surprised if the season starts in January again. December is most likely, but I got no idea which states will host the first couple of games.

I wouldn't be surprised if the season starts in January again. December is most likely, but I got no idea which states will host the first couple of games.

Heard nor read anything re the pre-season Blitz. No doubt it has also been cancelled???

I know the British Basketball League's has 10 teams like the NBL. Their BBL Cup has 2 groups which are North and South with 5 teams in each group.

Would be easier if the NBL could put teams in groups to avoid the travel restrictions.

I like your idea anonymous. Have Melbourne, S.E. Melbourne, Sydney, Illawarra and New Zealand in one group. Then have Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns and Tasmania in the other the group. That could work, but covid does spread fast so nothing is perfect.

Define "under control “ in Vic and NSW. They are not going back to no cases. That boat has sailed. If other states want to stay Covid-free they have to stay shut to over half of the Australian population (and the rest of the world). Doable I suppose, but it is going to create more and more problems over time.

By December most state borders will open. It's not that hard to calculate?

All good and well to say the nation should have spent more money into healthcare resources, but without the staff it's pretty useless. Pay nurses more money I say to increase the workforce.

I did see some stats that suggested an average fatality rate of 3.7%
But it varies considerably

That might have been the historical rate in Victoria.
The rate in NSW is much lower. That could reflect improved treatments, or the positive effects of vaccination.

IIRC I read somewhere that the fatality rate once vaccinated is less than 1%, and presumably is only the very infirm.
But of course I'm talking about the risk to unvaccinated.

My point is that whilst "80%" may sound good, in practices there's still huge potential for infection and spread.
In reality, it may be worse, because it's probable that low-vaccination could occur in community clusters.

We have to open up eventually. Look at Britain getting heaps of cases, but are still living normal lives. Cricket saga is another issue.

I heard Jeremy on SEN with Kane. Jeremy said NBL Cup is unlikely to happen this season because it will be hard fitting the extra 36 games to the season with the border restrictions, getting players vaccination and so on. But he also said the NBL Cup won't be counted in future seasons.

The arguement that bums on seats is the (financial) saviour of the NBL, in the long term, is flawed because stadia are finite.

Wouldn't a FTA deal with infinite viewership be far more lucrative?

Was the NBL Cup watched heavily? I watched every game! And loved it. Must admit that I was a bit basket-balled-out by the end of the season.

" Wouldn't a FTA deal with infinite viewership be far more lucrative?"

How many people do you think watch FTA secondary or third-ary channels?

I attended nearly every game except for the games at the State Basketball Centre. It's a pain driving there when you live on the opposite side if the city.

That's what you get for being one of those "north of the yarra" people ;)

Jokes aside, that’s an impressive effort! I tend to go to a couple in Melbourne and a couple in Adelaide over the Christmas period

United weren't playing any games at that Stadium, but I think I nearly attended every game at John Cain except for gameday 2.

@ Anon,
"Clubs make their money out of ticket sales, merchandise, corporate boxes etc etc TV deals are gravy. If there are no bums on seats clubs will fold pretty quickly."
Haven't several clubs already proved you're right? That's where a FTA deal has the advantages. Firstly a FTA deal will guarantee a certain amount of regular, dependable income. Secondly, it has the potential and probability of attracting new fans to attend games. Thirdly, it doesn't depend on people turning up to every game to turn profits. That depends on advertisers etc, I think, which has little to do with attendances. The clubs still get their agreed-to cut of the FTA deal.

"Look at Perth for example. Due to demand the price for tickets, corporate keep going up and up and up. That's where they make their money. And places like Illawarra don't."
Are you cherry-picking? Who else in the NBL does as well? It goes without saying that the Wildcats have done a marvelous job with/on their fans. They are a standout in the NBL. However, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney teams are getting by, but if left to their own devices, all the others are doomed. Perth is recognised as a sport-mad community and has just 1 (beloved) team in the NBL to support. Next closest, over the border in Australia, is arch-enemy Adelaide, then those latte sippers, and so it goes.

A mix of full houses and FTA is obviously the best for the league. And, FTA is much better with full houses.

So here's to full houses all this season, and a substantial FTA deal in the near future.

" Firstly a FTA deal will guarantee a certain amount of regular, dependable income."

No FTA network wants the NBL on a main channel, no FTA wants to pay the NBL to show the league.

FTA, guarantee, dependable income are words that do not share the same sentence with NBL.

“ So here's to full houses all this season, and a substantial FTA deal in the near future.”

The way FTA are channeling their funding and the way it's operating with streaming, we are seeing less money and opportunity into non-major sports for FTA and we are seeing less coverage/content for major sports in favour of shifting it to streaming.

AFL, NRL, Cricket, ALeague, Tennis all have shifted their content towards subscription TV or streaming.

Sorry, but the chances of NBL receiving a pay day and decent coverage on a main channel gets worse, not better with time.

That's why Perth are so successful. But there general ticket prices are too dear for just a 40m game of basketball. My club seat would be worth a fortune if my club was the Perth Wildcats.

It wouldn’t be bad if Perth had that second team. Just for the families who want a lower price membership and just want to support a family friendly team like how Phoenix are run and they gradually get better overtime. Be better for the Wildcats to face a team without travelling far and build a strong rivalry.

People who clearly don't know anything about the Perth sporting and basketball market need to stop talking about it.