By ABC News
Copyright abc
The Adelaide Lightning basketball team has secured a group of South Australian investors which will eventually fully own the team, just months after the club’s future was saved.
The WNBL team faced an uncertain future after the previous owners relinquished their licence to Basketball Australia in August 2024.
In May, the state government stepped in to support the league in a transition to new ownership, amid the league’s decision to decline former Lightning owner Pelligra’s request to continue in the league.
The SA government agreed to provide $571,000 to the club per year over the next three years.
The ownership team will consist of Mohan Koo, Jeevan Koo, James Begley and John Paul Drake.
Mr Drake said he was surprised when he first saw the books.
But despite that, the well-known South Australian businessperson was confident in the team’s future.
“We’re business people, and we want to start that way, and understand that the athletes are your most important asset,” he said.
“Seeing the talent here, my only concern is they’re not going to stay here because they’re going onto bigger and better things.”
Mohan Koo, a local entrepreneur, said the investors were born and bred South Australians who believe in the future of the club.
“We see it as a platform to be able to do more than just win basketball championships. Obviously, we want to win championships, and we brought on a fantastic team of coaches and players that will hopefully get us to there,” he said.
“But it’s much more about the community building, it’s much more about driving positive change.”
Chief executive of the club, Melanie MacGillivray, said it was a special moment for the club.
“I’ve only been in this position for around 45 days, and I know when I was first having discussions with the ownership group, it was very much laying the groundwork to ensure that the team was investor-ready by year three,” she said.
“Look at what we’ve been able to accomplish in a very, very short period of time.”
Adelaide Lightning will kick off the 2025-26 season against the Perth Lynx on October 19.
