Panthers withdraw from NBL
The Indian Panthers are half of one and done.
They have withdrawn from the National Basketball League midway through their rookie season.
The Auckland-based team have been forced to acknowledge they can not meet their obligations as set down in the participation agreement, and have pulled out of the league.
And by that, you can read that they have not paid their bills.
It has been a complete debacle.
The league previously gave them 10 days to meet their obligations or face expulsion. That deadline lapsed on Monday, and there had been radio silence until yesterday.
The Panthers opted to fall on their sword instead.
Their withdrawal from the league is immediate.
The nine games they played are null and void, although individual statistics will remain on the official record.
Perhaps the situation would have been left to fester longer had their players not taken action and boycotted the game against the Canterbury Rams in Auckland on April 29.
Up until then, there had been rumours the Panthers were struggling, but the boycott shone a light on the situation.
The saga might have another chapter.
The league has accepted the Panthers' withdrawal on the basis they honour outstanding payments to creditors, including players and staff, as well as compensation to the league.
"When we embarked on the Panthers project, our shared vision was to provide Indian players with a platform to develop and showcase their talents on a respected and historically significant stage," the Panthers said in a statement yesterday.
"However, the journey has presented unforeseen challenges.
"While some obstacles were within our control, others were not.
"In hindsight, fielding a team abroad for five months has proven more complex than anticipated, and we do not foresee a resolution in the immediate future."
The Panthers had also been granted entry in Tauihi Basketball Aotearoa, but will no longer participate in the women's league.
The Southern Hoiho's participation in Tauihi is also in doubt after the team's owners, SEN, surrendered the playing licence earlier in the year.
The Indian Panthers' entry into the NBL will go down in New Zealand sporting history as one of its worst failed experiments.
They immediately had trouble delivering on the hype surrounding their inclusion.
The team took the court without any of the Indian players initially named in the squad for their season opener against the Hawke's Bay Hawks on March 12.
They cited international commitments for the delay in getting players out to New Zealand, but many of them never arrived.
There were further disruptions when coach Miles Pearce quit two days before their first home game.
Tensions erupted when the team boycotted the Rams' game in protest over delayed payments.
And the situation became even more untenable when star import Alex Robinson jun posted claims on social media that he had not been paid.
They also made the decision to relocate from their initial base at the Bruce Pulman Arena to the Franklin Pool and Leisure Centre in Pukekohe.
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