1
00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,719
Speaker 1: The basketball where the Breakers have got new owners. Mike Mitchell,

2
00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:05,800
Speaker 1: not the police minister or another. Mike Mitchell's your new majority

3
00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:08,640
Speaker 1: owner investment group involves Leon and Stephen Greis, Paul and

4
00:00:08,680 --> 00:00:10,879
Speaker 1: Liz Blackwell. You may know the name they previously owned

5
00:00:10,880 --> 00:00:13,920
Speaker 1: the side. They're back along with former Plaid Tom Abercrombie. Anyway,

6
00:00:13,960 --> 00:00:17,159
Speaker 1: Mike Mitchell's with us. Mike morning, Good morning, How are

7
00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:19,319
Speaker 1: you very well? Indeed, is it easy to price up

8
00:00:19,360 --> 00:00:21,160
Speaker 1: a basketball team if you're looking to buy one?

9
00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:25,680
Speaker 2: No, it's not. What we do know is that the

10
00:00:25,720 --> 00:00:28,920
Speaker 2: prices are going up everywhere. Boston Celtics just sold for

11
00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:32,159
Speaker 2: six point one billion dollars US, so this is a

12
00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:34,839
Speaker 2: little bit different than that. But across the NBL, the

13
00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:39,760
Speaker 2: league is growing. Each team, though, has different assets. You know,

14
00:00:39,800 --> 00:00:43,160
Speaker 2: we have Spark Arena, which holds around eight thousand Perth

15
00:00:43,240 --> 00:00:47,159
Speaker 2: has a much bigger arena. There's apples and oranges. But

16
00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:50,280
Speaker 2: the thing that was consistent across the board was how

17
00:00:50,360 --> 00:00:53,440
Speaker 2: this league is growing in the popularity worldwide of the NBL.

18
00:00:53,720 --> 00:00:56,280
Speaker 1: What were you looking for a sports team in general

19
00:00:56,360 --> 00:00:57,640
Speaker 1: or you're a basketball now.

20
00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:02,560
Speaker 2: Both. I grew up in Los Angeles as a fan

21
00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:05,800
Speaker 2: of Magic Johnson and the Showtime Lakers. I still have

22
00:01:05,880 --> 00:01:08,200
Speaker 2: my Lakers season tickets even though I've lived here for

23
00:01:08,200 --> 00:01:11,280
Speaker 2: five years. So I am a basketball fan for sure,

24
00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,280
Speaker 2: But mostly I believe in Auckland. I believe in New Zealand.

25
00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:18,240
Speaker 2: I believe in sports in this region, not only from

26
00:01:18,240 --> 00:01:21,160
Speaker 2: a business perspective, but what it can do to help

27
00:01:21,240 --> 00:01:23,039
Speaker 2: change lives and transform communities.

28
00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:26,360
Speaker 1: Can you do something with the breakers to take them

29
00:01:26,400 --> 00:01:27,319
Speaker 1: back to what they were?

30
00:01:28,959 --> 00:01:31,200
Speaker 2: We're doing it. We're doing it from day one. I

31
00:01:31,200 --> 00:01:36,400
Speaker 2: hope everybody recognizes the vision here. So bringing in the Blackwells,

32
00:01:36,480 --> 00:01:40,240
Speaker 2: who are so beloved and so trusted, not only because

33
00:01:40,680 --> 00:01:42,880
Speaker 2: they won on the court, but because of what they

34
00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:45,960
Speaker 2: did off the court, the ties to the community and

35
00:01:46,520 --> 00:01:49,200
Speaker 2: all the programs that they set up that are still

36
00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:52,040
Speaker 2: having effects. So we're going to bring those back. Dylan

37
00:01:52,080 --> 00:01:56,320
Speaker 2: Boucher as my president of Basketball operation, to Tom Avercrombie, obviously,

38
00:01:56,400 --> 00:01:59,960
Speaker 2: Leon and Stephen Grice, who are really amazing Kiwis who

39
00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:03,840
Speaker 2: have so much experience across the board in business and

40
00:02:03,880 --> 00:02:07,280
Speaker 2: in government and beyond. And we're not done. I think

41
00:02:07,280 --> 00:02:09,360
Speaker 2: the fans will be really happy to see some of

42
00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:12,080
Speaker 2: the other people who will be involved and we'll announce

43
00:02:12,120 --> 00:02:14,040
Speaker 2: those in due time. We're just going to keep building

44
00:02:14,040 --> 00:02:16,320
Speaker 2: the team. It's going to be really strong. It's going

45
00:02:16,360 --> 00:02:19,080
Speaker 2: to have Kiwi roots and something that we can all

46
00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:19,560
Speaker 2: be proud of.

47
00:02:19,680 --> 00:02:21,000
Speaker 1: And you'll here for the long haul.

48
00:02:22,280 --> 00:02:25,880
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, we're here. We're by the way. The team

49
00:02:25,919 --> 00:02:28,160
Speaker 2: is in Auckland. We're not going anywhere. We are in

50
00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:30,760
Speaker 2: New Zealand. We will be the one team in the

51
00:02:30,880 --> 00:02:35,560
Speaker 2: NBL that represents this country. The NBIL has made that clear.

52
00:02:35,960 --> 00:02:37,920
Speaker 2: There are no other teams that are going to be

53
00:02:37,960 --> 00:02:40,280
Speaker 2: in New Zealand, so we represent the entire country and

54
00:02:40,280 --> 00:02:41,799
Speaker 2: we understand that responsibility.

55
00:02:41,880 --> 00:02:43,760
Speaker 1: Fantastic. What's you do the base with it? Mike Mitchell

56
00:02:44,160 --> 00:02:46,519
Speaker 1: the new Brake designer or one of the new Bright designers.

57
00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:49,720
Speaker 1: For more from the Mike Housking Breakfast, listen live to

58
00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:50,400
Speaker 1: news talks.

59
00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:53,560
Speaker 2: It'd be from six am weekdays, or follow the podcast

60
00:02:53,639 --> 00:02:54,520
Speaker 2: on iHeartRadio.