Basketball NZ can't keep up with boom

By Bonnie Jansen

Basketball is quickly becoming New Zealand’s trendiest sport.

Whether it is playing, watching, or adopting the style, the sport has captured the nation’s imagination. The surge in popularity has been so overwhelming that Basketball New Zealand is struggling to keep pace with the booming demand.

The national body’s chief executive Dillon Boucher told the Herald: “The popularity is causing problems all over the show.

“Not just venues but having coaches, having officials, score-bench volunteers, it’s putting pressure on the system. There are kids missing out right now, which is not a nice feeling.”

The five-a-side sport has experienced significant sustained growth in participation over the last two decades. In 2023, School Sports New Zealand census data recorded a 61% increase in secondary school participation since 2000.

It’s the second-most popular secondary school participation sport in Aotearoa schools behind netball and is expected to become the most popular by 2026.

Boucher, who is a former Tall Black, said due to the lack of basketball courts and facilities available they are having to schedule kids' games as late as 9pm just to accommodate all those who want to play.

“We’re trying to fast track a lot of those areas to be able to make sure the resource [is there] to be able to keep up with the growth,” he said.

“We’re doing our best to be able to build as many outdoor courts as we can to keep up with the demand, as well. So if people want to play basketball, they can just go into the local park or the local school and be able to pick up a ball and have a go at it.

“We’re doing a number of things, through referee and coach development. We’re doing a lot of work with councils and local government about what facilities can be built.

“I’m trying to work with our local associations and see what’s available because nearly every association I speak to and every league they run is pretty much full. I don’t know any that have got space available.

“At the moment, we’re capping space so schools can only put in a limited amount of teams.”

Sport New Zealand will invest $2.916 million over the next four years in Basketball NZ. That’s compared to the $3.024 million for NZ Rugby, $3.586 million for NZ Football and $3.672 million for Netball NZ.

Boucher believes the rise down under is thanks to the accessibility through digital platforms of America’s top leagues the NBA and WNBA.

He also explained how basketball is more than just a sport.

“[Basketball] has this kind of culture about it. It’s street, it’s cool, it’s fashion, it’s shoes, it’s got something about it that it’s more than just a sport.

“There’s a mixture of things ... but that’s really what is attracting a lot of our young people to the sport.

“New Zealand is finally realising that these things are a reality.

“The Breakers' success in the past [has helped], obviously having Steven Adams in the NBA as well, helps but also the great work that a lot of our associations are doing and building these programmes for these kids to have somewhere to play. Schools have got lots of opportunities to be able to put teams into competitions.

“Our leagues down here are getting stronger as well. The Sal’s NBL and the GJ Gardner Tauihi leagues have young people playing in it that people know and are associated with them and they realise it’s something you can do as a job.

“Having those role models being in the top leagues in the world, gives our kids aspiration to be able to play in those leagues.”

Young Kiwi wāhine are also inspired by the rise of American female stars such as Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese as Boucher explained the female game is “absolutely” exploding.

“We’ve got more female players in the United States on scholarships than males.”

The sporting fad has also caught on to the likes of airline Air New Zealand which revamped its safety video basketball-themed featuring Adams and his four-time Olympic medallist sister and shot putter Dame Valerie Adams.

“The fact that Air New Zealand chose basketball to be represented in their safety videos is great.

“We’re stoked, you know, it’s going to be the forefront of everyone’s eyeballs on a plane.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission