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Just watched the nbl report on Sports tonight, of the giants v 36 ers game.
1 match after Adelaide lost to a astrong hawks outfit, by 50 odd , they travelled to melbourne to play the victorian giants, the match was won by the giants by 15, but the big talking point was after the match had ended, when 1 player from each side took maters into there own hands and started a rare melay in the national baskettball league.
It was reported , the giants coach ran over to adelaides Nash and held him in a headlock after the melay had started.
I know athletes get hot under the colar, but in this case there was a raging inferno!
Yeah, good to see some physical action in the NBL!
Apparantly it started when one of the giants players went to shake hands, and the 36ers player hip & shouldered him, or something similar.
The two teams play again this Wednesday I think, again at MSAC.
Well the re-match was tonight. Unfortunately no fireworks this time. However as a result of the publicity, the game was a sell-out - cramming 2,200 people into the 2,000-seat venue. (The first time the giants have sold out MSAC).
Basketball certainly has had a fall from grace. Think of the heydays in the early 1990s.
But realistically, basketball was always unpopular in Australia. Anyone who went to a Sydney Supersonics NBL match at Alexandria Basketball Stadium (and there were only 200 of you) would know what I mean.
The popularity of 10 years ago was due to many cumulative factors. Free to air TV coverage, Aussie kids being swamped by US superstars Jordan and Barkley on TV ads, the NBA Jam Video Arcade Game was one of the most popular ever (I loved it!), and there were people with bg money putting dough into the NBL (Wrublewski for the Kings for example). The NBL just couldn't capitlise on it. NBL success was largely due to NBA popularity in Oz.
Basketball certainly has a future in this country. Despite a lack of free to air coverage and small crowds, it gets considerable press and our national team is quite good. It is a bit like the NSl. The full poitential hasn't been realised.
True that, the only reason the nbl became so unpopular was because of the manager we had before Rick Burton which was Peter Ali, this was during the late 90's. This guy screwed up everything, he took off the Free to air TV coverage, both nbl and nba. Did not bother to get a major sponsor for the league after Mitsubishi's contract ended. It was just bad marketing.
Also the fact that the popularity of basketball in Victoria has dropped big time, they used to get crowds of over 10,000 a game, today they only get 3,000 at maximum. It's a pity because Victoria is the state where most Aussie psycho basketballers are born, players like Shane Heal, Andrew Gaze, Andrew Bogut etc.
But just give it about 6 years and the league will be fixed.
Ok, i know that both the tigers and the giants moved away from vodafone arena because the costs were too high and they couldnt fill it, but can anyone tell me that they would want to go to an NBL game in 2000 seat arena, they would get much higher crowds than 2200 if they were at a good venue such as vodafone or Rod Laver, 10 years ago half of the tigers and magic games would sell out melbourne park, and the ones that didnt would still get 12,000 and up. Victorian teams had huge crowds, leading the nation, now it seams like the vic teams are the slime in the bottom of the barrel, they play at MSAC and SNHC for crying out loud.
Yeah apparantly Melbourne park charge absolute shitloads for both Rod Laver & Vodafone. It would be great if the local derby games were still played at one of the two venues. The Giants would earn more profit with 2,000 at MSAC than 5,000 at Vodafone. The glory days have certainly past, however lets hope Melbourne returns to the top some time soon. And I agree with you the guy, the only way for this to happen is for one or both teams to move back to Vodafone - or maybe just the big games.
Doesn't Melbourne have that glasshouse stadium or whatever, they should play there instead of them hobbit holes they play in now. The capacity is 7,500, I'm sure it won't cost as much as Melbourne Park.
But hey, nice to see Melbourne getting some sellout crowds for the nbl recently.
The Glasshouse is no longer a sports venue, as such. It's being converted into Collingwood FC HQ! Social Club, Training venue, etc.. Plus a new full-size footy ground has been developed on the other side of the main stadium at olympic park. The glasshouse is managed by 'Melbourne & Olympic Parks' anyway, so pricing probably would of been steep as well.
Collingwood administration moving to the glasshouse was a horrible deal.
The glasshouse should have been made into a permanent ice rink, if that had been the decision, it would have benefitted everybody (even the pies)
1. it would have given melbourne a centralized ice rink for ice sports such as ice hockey, figure skating, short track speed, these sports would then be played by people who could not before because of logistics
2. it would have given melbourne a better quality ice rink
3. it would have served as the home of the australian ice hockey league's Melbourne Ice, this would draw more fans from the western, central, inner eastern, and northern suburbs, who do not attend games because of time it takes to travel
4. save money for the state government, now they are being pressured to builda brand new top quality ice rink, central to the city
5. keep sport being played at the glasshouse, they floor space their was certainly large enough for an ice rink, now its just offices and a gym for the pies, who will soon lose the heart of the collingwood people (still be rich, but driven by the boardroom, not the fans cheering)
on vodafone and rod laver, currently they have now permanent team at either venue, surly they should lower their rent prices, two low paying tenants will bring in much more than none at all, i see the tigers playing at their old home rod laver, and the giants playing at vodafone, if only the admin of melbourne park would wake up and hear the silence of no sport being played at their venues.
, they travelled to melbourne to play the victorian giants, the match was won by the giants by 15, but the big talking point was after the match had ended, when 1 player from each side took maters into there own hands and started a rare melay in the national baskettball league. 
after the melay had started.
