Basketball: Nuggets after council grant to pay for court hire

The Otago Nuggets are enjoying a bit of a renaissance but still need the community's support, Basketball Otago general manager Markham Brown says.

The Nuggets have made a great start to the season with four consecutive wins. Crowds are up about 20% on last year and there is even talk the franchise will end its 16-year playoffs drought.

A 33-point drubbing of traditional powerhouse the Nelson Giants at the Edgar Centre on Sunday has seen their stocks rise even further.

But despite some recent success, the whole operation runs on a very tight budget.

Last year, the Dunedin City Council made a one-off grant of $27,000 to Basketball Otago to go towards the annual cost of hiring the courts at the Edgar Centre.

That money is being used this season, so there are no immediate financial concerns. Brown made a written submission for a grant for the same purpose from the council's annual budget for 2013-14 and will make another submission in person this morning. He hopes councillors will see value in continuing the council's financial assistance.

''Whilst we are getting growth, it is not to the level that will replace that grant at this stage,'' Brown said.

''Obviously, the climate is dictating what they can do and they are saying they are not looking at it at this stage, as a bit of a blanket policy. But we think it is good to have high-level basketball in the city and there are a lot of positive spin-offs for the community.''

The $27,000 Basketball Otago seeks is small in comparison with the $400,000 a year the council is considering granting to help lure more events to Forsyth Barr Stadium.