Hoops

Time to bring back the Tigers

Please bring back the Tigers, and take Gaze back to melbourne with you.

People didn’t hate the Melb Tigers because of the NBL. Most people hated them because they were known to be poachers. Would offer all the best kids across Victoria a spot on their rep side. The other bigger clubs hated losing their best kids after they spent the time developing the fundamentals in the first place.

Slopernator,

In the NRL the Cowboys do play games in Cairns the Nth QLD Cowboys do have a large fan base in Cairns despite any rivalry it might have in the Cairns vs Townsville divide or Nth QLD bragging rights etc..

Bring back the Tigers?
They never went away in the first place. They just changed their name and distanced themselves from their past in order to lose a hell of a lot of baggage and actually be appealing to support.
But hey if you want to go back to the days of playing in the world's sporting capital yet having hardly any fans then go for it I guess.

"The casual cairns sports fan will get behind a team called the Nth QLD Crocs.. "

Anyone who thinks this is desperately mistaken. Anyone who has spent any time at all in NQ knows of the antipathy and disregard both cities have for each other.

Townsville effectively gave up on basketball when economic conditions put the pump on the city, to suggest they should be resurrected and combined with a Cairns team that posts a profit (albeit marginal) is fairly far gone.

Never read so much shit in one thread. Tigers are screwed. In any way shape or form. Any seabl or above level. "The Gaze's are owed money! OK. What's the point? Gaze and the Seabl side? He;s left that behind. Seabl Tigers have no money we all know that.
Geelong have stated for years they dont want to be back in the NBL.
Matt please give it up.

I agree a Geelong team would be well supported (a partnership with the AFL team would be a great idea) but does it have the financial backing to get it over the line and to LK's criteria?

Geelong, bigger and the sport is more popular than 30 years ago.
Would be more viable than adding a Melb s/e franchise out of Knox/Dandy/Kilsyth. Taking United Fans.

Bring back the Westside Wildcats

I'd rather see Geelong Supercats returning so you have the Melbourne vs Rural Victoria vibe (perhaps they could play games in Bendigo too) so I'm sure that would work.

I see a lot of crap spoken above but nobody has suggested how much the Tigers license is worth, if LK was to be interested in parting with the license then how much do you think it would take ?

Even if the Tigers did come back who would support them? They didn't sell out the Cage and now with United clearly more popular than the former Tigers who would go back to them. Yes you would have the diehard fans but thats not enough as we have seen to keep the team profitable and filling a stadium. Better to let the Tigers brand stay buried and build a new second Melbourne team when the time comes that can represent a region of the state and not piss off the local associations.

Bring back the Sydney Spirit.

SEABL is where there future lies. Maybe LK could sell there rights which would be good and if the NBL in like 30 years is promo/relegation then maybe..
Also didn't know the Tigers owe the Gazes money so are they on bad terms with the Gaze family now?
Sydney Supersonics would be awesome to bring back ala La Lakers/ala La Clippers style. Kings vs Sydney supersonics has a good ring to it. But i think the kings own the supersonics licence to now. But be good if the supersonics could come back.. I reckon Nth QLD will get a combined team ala Nth QLD Cowboys, change name to Crocs ditch Taipans. The casual cairns sports fan will get behind a team called the Nth QLD Crocs.. LK wanted that anyway a merger with crocs

While Tigers had a large loyal fan base, there were a lot of Melbourne fans who hated them for surviving when the other Melbourne teams didn’t.

The NBL mis-calculated how many of those fans would go over to supporting Tigers instead of Giants, Magic, etc

"Kestelman and Slepoy retain ownership of the Tigers identity at a professional level, ending any chance of a team called the Tigers emerging in the NBL."

https://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/tigers-turn-united-in-hope-of-galvanising-the-community-20140520-zrie9.html

Thought the United license is the old Tigers one, so not a chance?

Tigers were strongly against the formation of the NBL saying it would be bad for Oz basketball. Then after they were getting beat in the VBL , they managed to get the league to expand to 20+ teams and get in. Then mediocre performances both on and off the court for decades until they got lucky with Bradke and other local and OS imports for a few years, then fell over. never supported their women much, did little for the league as a whole, and they are "ICONIC".

Best left where they are IMHO

The Tigers owe the Gazes a lot of money. United doesnt.

Former Tigers fans are worse than Wildcats fans.

Move on from the glory days of the 90s

Former Tigers fans are worse than Wildcats fans.

Move on from the glory days of the 90s

If they can bring back the Kings & Bullets, its certainly possible if the right business situation appears but I doubt LK will easily allow the extrication process.

Great argument. I’m sold!