Gladiators eye title in 'big moment' for British basketball

Caledonia Gladiators caput coach Gareth Murray believes his broadside tin situation for silverware again arsenic nan caller Super League Basketball ushers successful "a large moment" for nan athletics successful Britain.

Financial concerns led to nan demise of nan British Basketball League and nan hurried statement complete nan summertime of nan caller nine-team set-up.

Gladiators won nan BBL Trophy successful 2023 and vanished 3rd successful past season's wide championship, denied 2nd only connected points difference.

"We're trying to grow, trying to get a bully instrumentality guidelines for each team," Murray told BBC Scotland. "We want much franchises successful nan league.

"It's a large infinitesimal for British hoops but besides for nan Caledonia Gladiators. We want to return different measurement forward, build nan club, nan men's team, nan women's team, nan community. It's a big, breathtaking twelvemonth for us."

Murray, whose broadside commencement their run astatine location to Manchester Giants connected Friday, believes "it is realistic for us" to situation for nan caller title.

"We've brought six players backmost from past year, truthful it's important for america to support that continuity," he said. "I deliberation it's possible.

"A batch of nan teams are very evenly balanced this year, moreover much truthful than successful erstwhile years. So it's going to beryllium difficult for sure, but we consciousness nan correct group that tin make nan jump."

With British players providing nan halfway of nan squad, Murray is adamant he has capable spot successful depth, mentality and activity ethic.

"We still person nan imports - you tin person six imports successful nan team," he said. "For us, it's important to look to nan British talent.

"We person 8 British players connected our roster. I deliberation that's nan astir successful nan British league. So we want to create homegrown players and that's only imaginable if you person British players connected your master team."

Murray pointed retired that nan BBL Trophy triumph astatine nan Emirates ended a 20-year hold for specified a success.

"The convention is nan hardest point to triumph because you're playing 36 games and you're trying to beryllium nan apical squad complete 36 games," he added. "But nan cup and nan trophy are opportunities wherever you possibly only person to triumph 3 aliases 4 games and you get to a large final.

"It's important for america to get disconnected to a bully commencement against Manchester connected Friday. Then nan games travel heavy and fast. We person 11 games successful October, truthful we've sewage a batch of things to activity towards."