For episode 114 of the Hoopsfix Podcast, we sit down with Caledonia Gladiators owner Steve Timoney.
Timoney and his wife Alison – who also own the Gladiators’ WBBL franchise – took over the BBL club just before the start of this season and are self financing the project they consider to be part of their legacy.
With a net worth estimated at anywhere between £60 million and £100 million they have lofty ambitions for the club which include a £20million facility project, announced last month.
In this hour long episode we speak to Steve about his business background, how he got involved with basketball, and his plans for the franchise which they are aiming to be a powerhouse in British basketball for years to come.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
02:42 Interview start
03:03 How he first got involved with basketball
09:06 Steve’s business background
12:41 If you want to turn a large fortune into a small fortune buy a sports team
16:41 The low hanging fruit to make the business work when Steve took over
24:26 Spending £20million on a 6000 seat arena and 5 court training facility
31:26 How the £20million is being financed for the facility
33:31 How to get a return on the £20million investment
36:47 Interactions with 777 and other franchises
44:11 We want to be the second biggest league in the world outside of the NBA
48:00 The challenges with getting the mainstream media to cover basketball
52:53 Building out the front office of the Caledonia Gladiators and the necessary head count
56:16 How much Steve is involved operationally at the moment
57:46 Can Scotland support another professional basketball franchise?