Basketball New Zealand chief executive Iain Potter wants to send a clear message - the sport will continue in the region despite Basketball Otago facing liquidation.
BBO's financial position became clearer yesterday with news it had added a further $80,934 of debt since the beginning of the year.
In an email to its members, BBO advised it had negative equity of $178,964 as of October 31 2014.
It had previously reported a deficit of $45,199 for the financial term ending December 2013, leaving it with just under $100,000 of debt.
But it failed to bring its spending under control and stopped trading last month.
A special meeting has been called for December 16 to ratify the appointment of a liquidator.
While BBNZ is not in a position to bail out BBO, it can play a role in ensuring the game continues at the grassroots level, Potter said.
BBO competitions manager Greg Brockbank is now being paid by BBNZ and Katherine Richards' contract with BBO is also being honoured.
''The reason we are doing that is ... so we can reassure the Otago basketball community that there will be community basketball next year,'' Potter said.
''There will [also] be representative basketball next year. The board of BBNZ met on Thursday and agreed that we need to ensure that there is a mechanism in place that allows representative basketball.''
BBNZ's support does not extend to the National Basketball League, which is a franchise-based competition.
But the region's aspiring age-group players will still be able to play for the province, which will come as a relief.
''How the BBO thing will play out is really up to the basketball people in the community, whether they elect for liquidation or some other means.
"But [BBO] can't trade as they are so we've acted to preserve the situation.
''Once all that plays out then we will work with Sport Otago and interested people down there to determine what the structure which delivers basketball will look like, how it is constituted and who is part of it.''
The basketball community has rallied and formed a trust with the purpose of helping BBO stave off liquidation.
The group's spokeswoman, Angela Ruske, said the trust was still working on refining its recently established website (www.keepbasketballinotago.co.nz) so it could promote its main fundraising ideas.
New Zealand NBA player Steven Adams has promised a signed singlet which the group hopes will generate national interest.
The singlet will form the main part of an online sales promotion rather than be raffled off as originally intended.
''You cannot legally sell raffle tickets online but you can sell sales promotion items where people go into a lottery,'' Ruske said.
''So that's all good. We just need to get it up on the website now.''
Other fundraising ideas include hosting a Canterbury Rams pre-season game, possibly against the Southland Sharks.
Dual cricket and basketball international Suzie Bates has donated two White Ferns tops which could be raffled off or auctioned.
And the group plans to establish a supporters `brick wall' at the Edgar Centre on which local businesses and individuals can make pledges.
Ruske said the funds pledged on the ''brick wall'' would be for the specific purpose of helping BBO avoid liquidation.
But if the group fell short of its goal, then the pledges would not be called upon. However, supporters could choose to donate that money to any entity which replaced BBO.
In the statement released by BBO, the association said ''the only way [BBO] can continue without any individual member or board member risking becoming personally liable, is for BBO to raise sufficient funds to either pay the creditors in full or get the creditors to accept a payment in the dollar in full and final settlement of their outstanding accounts''.
BBO asked its members to consider whether that was ''really likely''.
If so, then members can vote to adjourn the special meeting to a date in February which would allow members more time to raise the required funds.
