On the 15th of December, before a crowded media contingent and an enthusiastic Victorian basketball community, South Dragons co-owner Mark Cowan discussed the rationale behind the naming, logo and colours of the NBL's newest franchise.

"There are four things about Dragons of which everyone agrees. They’re big. They’re Ferocious. They breathe fire. And they’re the stuff of legends.

"When we decided to call our new club the Dragons, we looked at the competitive set in the NBL and it consists mostly of animals. We decided that a Dragon was not only a more powerful being than a Wildcat or a Crocodile but importantly in a one-on-one battle with a King or a Tiger, a Dragon would win every time.

"A Dragon is a campaignable icon with powerful imagery which we intend to use to its fullest to provide an entertainment experience that will become the hottest ticket in town.

"We’ve called ourselves South because geographically we are the southernmost NBL franchise, not only within Ausralia but within the Asia-Pacific
region.

"We intend to represent this state and not just this city. Victorian basketball has a proud heritage and we want the throne back. We want every nbl team to fear the flight South.

"Of the sixteen home games for next season we’ll be playing four of these in regional centres around Victoria. The remaining 12 will be at Vodafone, a 60 miilion dollar stadium in the heart of the city.

"It was built for basketball and we're proud to take it back to the big stage. It was built for major events and we plan to put on 12 each year - not counting finals.

"We have also launched our theme for the next year – the evolution of Basketball. It speaks of a different way of doing things, of taking the product to a new level.

"Our positioning line for the new team is tougher, smarter, hotter.

"Tougher: Victorians will respect a team that has a red hot go. Tougher off the court too – in terms of the standards we’ll set for ourselves in everything we do. Tougher is about heart and in sport you need it to win, and we intend to win the hearts of Victorians.

"Smarter: if tougher is about the heart, smarter is about the head. Our organisation has a clearly defined value system that every employee must subscribe to and believe in to be part of our team.

"Smarter is also about marketing, it's about a professional and considered approach to everything we do. Our philosophy is that we are not just in the business of sport, we are in the business of entertainment. We have a plan in place for the future and I am excited about some of the announcements we wil be making over the coming months. I am sure you will be too when we share them with you.

"Hotter: hotter is all about putting on the show. Having an experience that engages the head and the heart. Show business with a game thrown in. A ticket pricing structure that’s affordable for everyone, including families and most importantly – those that play the game.

"I can give you 300,000 reasons why we will be successful in Victoria and here's four of them walking out now (four Basketball Victoria representatives take the stage).

"There are approximately 300,000 people who regularly play the game around Victoria. They are in associations and schools and we want to connect and involve as many of them and their families as possible. We want them as our supporters and we want them on our team.

"Young Victorians like these young men represent the future of the sport and I am proud that we will be providing 12 more opportunities for kids like these to play at the professional level and live the dream.

"As they said in Mad Max the movie - people need heroes. Our goal is to give Victorians their heroes, get them from their home state and have them wear black.

"Ladies and Gentlemen: The evolution is here."