Crosscourt HoopsFest special: All eyes on Perth for basketball’s moment

With all eyes on Perth this week for the inaugural HoopsFest, MICHAEL RANDALL breaks down the perfect launch script, what fans can expect, explores the festival’s future with a basketball legend and more.

All basketball eyes are on Perth this week and the NBL couldn’t have written a better script because neither of Western Australia’s AFL clubs are alive in the penultimate week of the season.

With four of the five footy states still alive, preliminary finals attention is hyper-focused, which leaves a clear runway for Perth to be the epicentre of the nation’s sporting attention.

While both the grand final rematch on Thursday between champion Tasmania and runner-up Melbourne and the hometown Perth clash with South East Melbourne on Friday are set to be sellouts, the inaugural HoopsFest looms as a flagship moment for the sport in Australia.

Every NBL and WNBL team will play games during the event, while the Under-18 Australian Club Championships will round out the on-court competitions.

The NBL24 Finals Series rematch between the JackJumpers and United will launch NBL25. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

They will be surrounded by a non-stop Hoops Fest Fan Zone, the weekend’s Sneakerland streetwear and shoe culture event, and the 14th annual Basketball Without Borders Asia camp.

It’s a coming together for the sport that has been more than a year in the making and is the brainchild of chief executive David Stevenson, who was one of the architects of the AFL’s successful Gather Round.

“When I first came into the role I was trying to look for that moment where the sport shines on the national stage,” Stevenson said.

“You look at the last two weeks of January, that’s the Australian Open, you look at the Boxing Day Test, that’s the cricket, you look at first Tuesday in November, that’s horse racing.

“But what’s that moment for basketball? I didn’t feel like we had it, so that really started the idea of how can we create something that would get the national attention and give our sport a moment to shine?

Melbourne United’s Marcus Lee and Will Magnay of the Tasmania JackJumpers. Picture: Getty

“So then you try to look at it in terms of our development and we’re not at the level yet where thousands of people are going to jump on a plane every week to go and watch their team play interstate ... that’s something that happens in the AFL, it’s part of the rituals passed down through generations of fans in footy.

“We don’t have that yet but this event that brings together the whole sport in the one place at the one time is a proposition that’s pretty compelling for people to jump on a plane and get over to Perth.”

Boomers and NBA legend Luc Longley said HoopsFest was an opportunity for fans to “binge basketball”.

“I’d like to think that it grows,” the Sydney Kings part-owner said.

“The idea of having all the games in one place; we’ve got the NBL, the under-18s, WNBL coming in, all that action around the sport.

“I’d like to think it’s going to get people excited about it.

“It’s the beginning of the season and you can binge basketball for a week. That’s what I’ll be doing.”

HoopsFest follows the likes of AFL’s Gather Round. Picture: Brenton Edwards.

And NRL’s Magic Round. Picture: Richard Walker

Asked whether the event should be a mainstay in Perth, Longley wasn’t fussed.

“I think where it is going to hopefully be secondary to what it is,” he said.

“If it becomes a focal point of the basketball community and gets everyone excited about the upcoming season, it will be where it needs to be.”

Stevenson said early indications were positive. Tickets to the NBL games at RAC Arena are selling well and there is a strong interstate presence.

“We haven’t got all of the stats yet of how many are coming from out of state but what we can look at is ticket sales and also travelling parties and they’re pretty strong numbers,” he said.

Stevenson said no stone would be left unturned and a full review of the event had been planned.

“The way I’m approaching it is we need to make the first year great but there will be a whole lot of things that work and maybe some that don’t,” he said.

“So we’ll review, for instance, the time frame; have we found the right window where we can shine?

“I’m sure there’ll be some things we learn that will make it even better next year.”

Two-time NBA champion and Inside The NBA star @TheJetOnTNT will be in attendance for Australia’s historic basketball event ✨

Get your tickets - https://t.co/AL2ZQh91Vc#WATheDreamState ☀️ pic.twitter.com/nhfNvekQhQ

— NBL (@NBL) September 12, 2024

The NBL smashed records in attendance, viewership and several other metrics last campaign but Stevenson said that was just scratching the surface.

“Coming off such a brilliant year last year, it’s always a big challenge to keep putting growth on top of growth, and I think what Hoops Fest does is it gives us a great platform to do that,” he said.

“I almost feel like we’ve got two round ones coming off the Blitz because we have this event right at the start of the season and then all the clubs have their normal home-and-away games starting next week.

“Hopefully that sets us up for a big season ahead.”

Originally published as Crosscourt HoopsFest special: All eyes on Perth for basketball’s moment