Indian Panthers CEO Parveen Batish Photo: RNZ / Blessen Tom
Indian Panthers CEO Parveen Batish has blamed the franchise's inability to bring less than half of its Indian-based players to New Zealand as the main reason for withdrawing his team from the National Basketball League.
Just three of the 10 Indian players initially named in the squad travelled to New Zealand, an outcome Batish blamed for the franchise's disastrous debut season.
Batish withdrew the franchise from the tournament on Monday, acknowledging it was unable to meet the conditions laid down by the league to complete the season.
The league accepted the Panthers' withdrawal from the competition subject to the finalisation of an agreement that ensured the franchise paid compensation for pulling the plug.
The league also wanted the franchise to honour all outstanding payments to creditors, including players and staff.
Batish vowed to compensate the league and pay all creditors, including players and staff, "in a short period of time".
"[Even after what has happened] everyone involved understands the vision and the opportunity was great," Batish said. "Everyone has left on good terms."
The Panthers' chief acknowledged that mistakes were made early in the launch.
"We underestimated how difficult it would be to bring a team from a different country for five months to play here in New Zealand. Unfortunately, we ran into all sort of problems, including visa issues for Indian players," Batish said.
"So, we decided the best thing would be to withdraw from the league so that the season can continue as in the past."
Batish said the franchise's inability to bring over a full complement of players from India was primarily to blame for the debacle.
"Our vision was to provide Indian basketball players an opportunity to play in a well-established league," he said.
"[So] the first part, which we weren't able to fulfil, was to bring the right number of Indian players over to play in the league."
The non-availability of Indian players due to their commitments with the Indian national basketball team also contributed to its woes, Batish said.
"Because of this, we were over-reliant on New Zealand players, which was not something we wanted," he said.
The team's debut season was fraught with challenges from the start.
The team took the court without any of the Indian players initially named in the squad in its season opener against the Hawke's Bay Hawks, citing international commitments.
Further disruption followed when head coach Miles Pearce resigned just two days before the Panthers' first home fixture.
Tensions reached a boiling point at the end of April, when players refused to play against the Canterbury Rams in protest over delayed payments, prompting the match to be postponed.
The franchise then shifted its base from Takanini to Pukekohe to save costs.
The Panthers didn't win any of the nine league games they played, raising serious questions about performance.
The National Basketball League suspended the Panthers on 1 May over allegations of non-payments.
On 9 May, the league issued an ultimatum to the Panthers to satisfy a series of requirements within 10 days, with financial viability a key area of concern.
That deadline expired on Monday, which was when the Panthers voluntarily withdrew from the competition.
Batish, who spoke passionately about the Indian connection of the team at the season launch in March, apologised to the community for failing to see the season out.
"Firstly, to the Indian community, thank you for your support. [In the short period] we have been here we have seen opportunities in basketball here. I encourage young players from the community to keep seeking those opportunities," Batish said.
"Secondly, I am sorry [for what has happened] and that we couldn't compete for the whole season."
