Tassie NBL delay fears

ANY further delay on the Tasmanian NBL team’s twomonth delay will see the state miss out on entry to the 2021-22 season as planned.

It has been announced progress on the in-principle agreement between the State Government and NBL owner Larry Kestelman for Tasmania to become the 10th team has been put on hold for two months because of the coronavirus crisis.

Kestelman said he fully understood the government’s priorities being on health and the economy, however adequate time was needed for the redevelopment of the tired Derwent Entertainment Centre and the creation of the team from scratch.

“We would need to know at the end of those two months it is full steam ahead, otherwise it would almost make it [the 2021-22 season] impossible,” Kestelman said.

He said if the deadline could not be reached he hoped the team would be up and running for the following year, the 2022-23 season. He had not been able to speak to Premier Peter Gutwein at this stage — for understandable reasons — but hoped to do so in the next fortnight to see if the Government was still as committed to the deal as when it had been announced in February.

The deal includes a taxpayer-funded $40 million

DEC upgrade, the building of a $20 million multisport facility and an annual $2 million sponsorship in return for the licence and a $150 million hotel, shopping and restaurant precinct at Wilkinsons Point.

“It is important to understand how all of the Tasmanians feel about this,” he said.

“I would have thought a major infrastructure project like the DEC, creating some jobs and once that is up and running also improving tourism so apart from the NBL, I would have thought that is an important thing for Tasmania. But we’ll be guided by the people. We’ll work with the Government and if they are still committed to do it then we’ll do everything in our power to see it through.”

He said he was also still committed to the Wilkinsons Point development but the appointment of a franchise chief executive had been put on hold as had a request for ideas for a team name. Kestelman said he still hoped to gain public feedback and ideas on the name when the time was right.