"Vote with your feet": CEO's message to Gold Coast

Interest in basketball and the NBL continues to grow in South East Queensland.

From two of the most recent NBL Blitz's being played there to now, the Gold Coast hosting the inaugural Ignite Cup Final, the region continues to prove its love for the sport.

It isn’t going unnoticed either, with NBL Group CEO David Stevenson saying during Monday’s Ignite Cup Final media opportunity that Gold Coast was in the mix for the competition’s potential 11th team.

“Whenever we think of expansion, we want to make sure that we're not just expanding for the sake of doing it,” Stevenson said.

“The Tasmania JackJumpers have been an absolute benchmark when we think about expansion. Sold out every game, played Finals every year bar one and won a title.

“When we do expand, we want to ensure the team's going to be strong and to do that, there are three important elements that are critical.

“One is around the fan support, and as we saw at the NBL Blitz [in recent years] there is great support here [for basketball].

“The second is corporate support, and the third is the venue, and that is the biggest topic point for us with the council and the state government, which is how do we guarantee the venue can hold as many people as we need it to, given the growth of the NBL.

“To that, to all the fans who are hoping for a team here on the Gold Coast, come along on Sunday night, show your support, vote with your feet, and I’m sure you will have a fantastic experience.”

>> BUY YOUR IGNITE CUP FINAL TICKETS NOW

Stevenson continued saying the NBL was leaving no stone unturned in its research about which destination would best suit a potential expansion side.

“We would love to have an expansion team here on the Gold Coast,” he said.

“An interesting statistic [we found] is that when we last had a team here with the Gold Coast Blaze, there were 1,000 local participants, and now there’s 12,000.

“The growth of basketball has been huge, and we've seen that through the success of the Blitz and the strong ticket sales of the Ignite Cup Final to date.

“All the pointers are looking towards a successful team here, but the one big question remains around the venue.

“Those conversations with the council and state government are ongoing and are heading in the right direction.

“But that venue is going to be important because the demand for strong and we can’t play on-going regular season games in 5,000-seat stadiums anymore. We do need to be pushing higher than 10,000, and if we do, I believe we will see positive movement on expansion.”

Having played for the Brisbane Bullets recently, NBA champion Aron Baynes believes an expansion team would be a success on the Gold Coast.

“When I think of the Gold Coast, I think of excitement,” Baynes said.

“I don’t think there’s a better place for new and exciting young players to start their careers than under the bright light and beaches of the Gold Coast.

“It would be an exceptional opportunity not only for players but also for the region to bring quality basketball to the city.

“[If it did eventuate] I believe it would be a really exciting thing for the NBL and the Gold Coast.”

>> BUY YOUR IGNITE CUP FINAL TICKETS NOW

Experience Gold Coast Executive Director of Events, Avril Harris, echoed Baynes’ comments, believing her city and region have a lot to offer to the NBL.

“It's not just about coming to a game, or in this case, the Ignite Cup Final on Sunday, it's also about extending that visit and enjoying our beautiful city,” Harris said.

“We have our beautiful beaches and hinterland, but we have so many experiences, world-class restaurants for people to actually enjoy and experience beyond their courtside experience.”

Tickets to Sunday’s fixture, which tips off at 4.30pm live on ESPN and Channel 10, are still available here.