Moncton Miracles hope local investors can build buzz around team

The Moncton Miracles basketball team says it has found local investors as it looks for a buyer and ways to boost attendance at its games.

Newly hired Miracles president Steve Trueman said finding local ownership for the team is his top priority. The Miracles are currently owned by the National Basketball League of Canada.

“Our number 1 priority is getting local ownership,” he said. “The team has never been locally owned.”

Trueman said he can’t divulge the name of the investors yet, but hopes their involvement will help bring more people to watch the team, which has seen dwindling attendance over the past two years.

Ryan Smith, a native of Dalhousie, N.B., is the only local player on the team. He said there’s nothing like the feeling of playing in front of hometown fans, but wants to see more people in the crowd.

“I really hope and I really think that we will have a great team this season, so I hope the support continues and we get more fans,” he said.

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Trueman said attendance at Miracles games averages about 1,500 spectators.

Don Mills is an investor in the Halifax Hurricanes, a team that rose from the ashes of the Halifax Rainmen after a controversial finish to the NBL championship series last season. He said local money has helped the new team grow its fan base.

“Having a group of local investors helps a great deal. It opens up all of their networks to help us find that corporate support,” he said. “We have actually done very well with our season-ticket base. We are more than double the previous year.”

However, attendance has been a challenge for NBL teams across the Maritimes. Mills said Halifax only averages about 1,000 fans per game, not even enough for the team to break even. His goal is to boost the number to 3,000 fans per game over the next three years.

Both Mills and Trueman said growing the sport in a region dominated by hockey is a challenge, but they remain confident that raising the caliber of the games will help them reach new fans.

Trueman also believes focusing on local ownership, doing a better job promoting the team and highlighting local players such as Smith will help fill seats in Moncton.

He said he plans to announce details regarding the new investor involvement sometime next week.