JackJumpers' Cinderella story lights up Australia

MELBOURNE : Basketball has long been a benchwarmer in Australia where football and rugby league battle for market supremacy but the Tasmania JackJumpers' stunning rise into the playoffs has stolen the spotlight from the major sports.

Having barely signed a player a year ago, the expansion team stormed into the National Basketball League (NBL) 'Grand Final' series with a stunning Game Three knockout of defending champions Melbourne United on Monday.

The Sydney Kings await in the best-of-five series starting on Friday at their home Super Dome but the three-times champions can count on little support outside the city.

The rest of Australia has jumped on the JackJumpers bandwagon, gunning for the 'Tassie' underdogs to complete the fairytale.

"All of Australia is going to be backing Tassie outside of Sydney," said former Australia point guard Shane Heal, an NBL veteran-turned-TV pundit.

"It’s a Cinderella story, no doubt about that."

Detached from the mainland and home to barely half a million people, Australia's smallest state has produced a slew of sporting champions, including Olympic swimmer Ariarne Titmus and former test cricket captain Ricky Ponting.

Much of the talent ends up at mainland sports teams, however, with the dominant Australian Rules football and rugby league competitions having long overlooked the state.

The JackJumpers have given local basketballers a reason to stay home for the first time since the Hobart Devils were cut from the NBL in the mid-1990s due to financial pressures.

PAROCHIAL SUPPORT

Building a team through the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic had its challenges, but any doubts about the JackJumpers' viability have been crushed by a huge wave of support.

While the Australian Football League (AFL) and