Second that anon, the sport struggles as it is.

They refer to the power v crows, the difference there bing that when the power came into AFL the crows were sold out every week and season tickets were almost impossible to get.

Hardly the same situation with basketball at the moment.

I would think with 2 teams here, only 1 would survive more than a couple of years. However, the new owners should be prepared to make sure that its the Sixers that do.

As much as I would love to be at a Pack Dome for a home town derby, you have to be realistic. If Sydney with a population of 4 million cant sustain 2 teams, i dont see how Adelaide would stand a chance.

Anon 89671

Why should everyone get behind them? We already have a team we support.
My full support would continue to go to the Team Ive supported since I was kid.

Its probably what has driven the price of the Sixers down. The new owners realising that at present while the full basketball support would go to the Sixers, in the near future it would have to compete against another team and lose some of its members. A new team is not going to attract too many new basketball fans, its mostly going to take away from the existing fans of the Sixers.

I disagree. Something like this would be an injection of enthusiasm for the sport. The NBL itself has said it would like to see 2 teams per major city (Adelaide, Perth only ones with out that) fact of the matter is if these guys have the passion for the sport then they will make a success of it to some degree. They already have the support at grass roots level with their Bear Basketball clinics, and with Mr. Bassett's corporate connections you would think would be able to generate enough support for this. Competition is only a healthy thing, something the Sixers not having allowed the mess to develop in the first place.

Time will tell, if it does happen hopefully the general public will support the 2 teams and then it will be a case of double the hoops action which i can only see as a positive!

From a fan's perspective, I wouldn't mind having a choice. Heck, I'm sure some die hard fans would go to both 36ers and Shark games.

Good on Basset and Bell for having a go.

However, from a business standpoint I don't understand why you would look at doing it unless you were willing to lose a lot of money.

Like posted above, Cowan appears to have done everything right in terms of securing sponsorship and selling tickets. However, that has also meant spending big on name coach, name player- Heal, overpriced role players, expensive imports, expensive stadium, etc, etc.

However, even with all this spending I can't see the Dragons getting 5,000 for a final let alone during the season. Tigers couldn't have sold out Vodafone even with Anstey and Co.

Unfortunately, my view is that irrespective of how well you were to run your individual team, your fortune would lie with the state of the NBL.

If it is not on FTA TV and getting good exposure then the massive TV rights deal that is the lifeline of most professional sports is missing right from the beginning.

Not only that but are the crowds going to flock in for your Sharks v Razorbacks, Slingers, Taipans, etc who whilst might be ok on the court, aren't and will never be marquee teams?

Sponsorship is tough enough in our market for one team, let alone two. The fact you would be competing for pretty much the same fan base even including the decent sized market of disgruntled 36ers fans would mean you would be in trouble right from the very beginning.

That would mean, spending big time to field a better team than the 36ers in the hope of picking up the bandwagon fans. Spending big time a la Cowan comes with major risks when combined with the risk of low ticket sales and sponsorship.

I think time and resources should be spent reviving the 36ers not starting a new club. They'd have no hope

Anonymous 89680 - well put!

While on the surface it appears that Paul Bell & co are 'doing great things for Basketball in SA' they clearly have their own ego driven agendas and dont care about trying to bring down Smyth and the Sixers to further their own ambitions.

This latest leak to the media is a classic case of sour grapes....get over it boys - you lost and cant accept the umpires decision. Do the right thing for the sport and just shut up!!

It didn't work in Adelaide back in the early 80's with the Bearcats and Eagles playing NBL.

The only way it could possibly work is if the team played out of Port Lincoln or Roxby Downs - that's where the money is.

If they had any smarts they would apply to get a team back in Hobart. They have a great stadium that's not being used and a state crying for a national league team.

It just shows how green these people are when it comes to business. It is one of the silliest ideas I have heard of. The crows/port situation is one example. They would just turn SA against them and this shows that these guys have had an hidden agenda from the start and it is no wonder that the government didn't give the sixers (if they have decided it).

I've asked this before but, doesn't BSA have a veto on a second team entering the league. This may change once the sale goes ahead, if it is the case.

On the positive side they could play out of the under utilised Dome cheaply you would think.

Anon 89697

Yeah, In melbourne they have other things to go see, like AFL, A-League, Music Concerts, Cricket....

Hold on, so do we in Adelaide!

Why would a second team need to be based in Adelaide.......Port Lincoln anyone?

Rabbit Stuffer - It wouldnt need to be based in Adelaide. However, from what I have read, the plan is for the team to be in adelaide.

I've been trying to work out what is to be gained by this announcement.

And for the life of me from a basketball person first, and business person second would really like someone from MVP to come on and explain.

Because I (and I think everyone else) just have to be missing the point.

1. So if you miss out yes you would be disappointed BUT, what do you gain by floating a concept that further destablises basketball in SA.

2. From a business perspective....Paul please.

It is questionable at best if anyone can make money out of the 36ers. But laughable to even think Adelaide can support 2 teams.

* Corporate support has been declining every year despite the team being relatively successful.
* Season ticket sales decreasing every year.
* Overal crowd numbers down.

So come on guys come clean and tell us the real point of your announcement.

"Well I will be the first one to get membership to the adelaide sharks or southern sharks if it goes ahead. We in Adelaide are then offerring extra opportunities to ABL players to make up the final spots in a team"

I can assure you all that the above opinion was not anyone from the MVP group as I'm the one who wrote that. I think it is a good idea. We have a lot of tallent coming through adelaide and I would love to see some of these players come back to adelaide. Imagine if the likes of Newley, Ingles, Holmes, Forman, Williams (Drew), Schencher (i wish) all came to play against each other in a home derby. I would be there for sure.

This is a bit like a TV show. Tonights viewing guide.

1. At 7.00pm its the Twighlight Zone.

The story of a soccer team in a small city, trying to take on its older, larger, better supported cross town rival. Its a struggle for survival in a town that really can't support 2 teams.

But wait, along comes a wealthy property developer to back the team, called the Adelaide Sharks.


2. At 8.00pm its Where are they now!!

Anyone know when the announcment on the new owner will be made? Is there a press conference today?

Foley announces decision to BSA at midday. Press release should be available soon after that.

I dont think there is enought talent in the country to support more teams at this point. When you got guys like EVERSTYN in th league (tall goofy and useless! all 2.16 meters!) you realise that there is a few too many open spots. It is possible that another Adelaide team COULD thrive sometime in the future, but NOT NOW. I think that the league should wait atleast 3 years before further expansion, there must be enough top flight Aussie talent to support another team.

A second team in Adelaide would be on a hiding to know where. If Bell & Co want to throw their money away, hell they can throw some my way. The result will be the same. They will do their dough. Its the sixers for this town. I cant see another team surviving.

Get real Bell & Co.

Chuck D, Brisbane doesn't have more than one team in Brisbane. The other teams are in regional areas miles away from Brisbane. It just happens that those areas are large enough to support an NBL team. The only major cities with more than one team is Sydney and Melbourne and even Melbourne have only had one team for the last few years and that one team only attracted 3000 spectators. If there were regional areas in south Australia such as Mt Gambier or Whyalla that could support a team, then that would be good, but Adelaide city cannot support another team.

What if....

If the MVP group want this team why couldnt they buy out an existing club in adelaide and help there juniors develop and have the possibility of progressing through basketball past the usual ABA with-in there club. This could only be good for SA basketball, the possiblity of having a four/fifth powerhouse in Junior ball in SA as well as having the NBL team there to help them along.
It can't be such a bad idea as its worked for Melbourne, Dandenong and Bulleen

fiji on the money.

Weren't Adelaide Sharks the old West Adelaide team in the NSL back in the 1990s?

I think a 2nd team in Adelaide could be a good thing, aslong as its financially viable to have both, which i wouldnt have a clue about, but i belive there are plenty of players not playing NBL who would be capable of it, but wethere they would sign with a Adelaide team who knows, guys like Dench, Moore, even maybe a Luke Schenscher if he didnt get a NBA contract, Ben Thompson, Derek Rucker, Truslove, Greg Blake, Darren Smith, Marcus Timmons are all solid to good NBL players without current contracts, and also having 2 new imports, and giving SA players such as Hambour, Sutton, Magden, Smylie, ect a go. And who knows in the near future guys like Newley and Forman and Holmes could wish to return to SA but not neccesarily the 36ers, so this could be a very exciting prospect, and i wouldnt mind seeing it aslong as it doesnt mean the death of the 36ers, Good luck to the 36ers new owners, and to the MVP sports with what ever they decide to do!!

everyone is saying about wasting money but obviously they dont care about money. so give em a shot see what happens. you might all be suprised. either shark or sixers are going to survive and 36ers are obvoiusly not drawing any new fans ne way. only the oldies. it not your money is it?

Ron,

Take your pot of money to the roulette table at the casino.

At least you know what the odds of winning are.

I was watching Brewsters Millions last night and there are some great ideas in that movie that maybe worthwhile investments too.