The task of unifying the sport as Chair of the BBF – with Chris Grant – Ep. 113

Hoopsfix Podcast - British Basketball with Sam Neter

For episode 113 of the Hoopsfix Podcast we sit down with new Chair of the British Basketball Federation (BBF), Chris Grant.

Having been announced in September and officially starting the role in November, Grant joined the organisation following a tumultuous summer for the Great Britain national team programmes, underscored by the men’s disastrous showing at EuroBasket.

In this little over an hour podcast, we discuss why he took on the role, what the challenges are, and what he is trying to do to change the future of the BBF.

Timestamps:

00:00 Intro
02:45 Interview start
03:05 How Chris came across the role and what made him want to take it on
03:56 His previous experience and knowledge of basketball
06:36 What his perception was of British basketball before getting involved
11:12 What are the specific issues that have held the BBF back over the years
16:53 The medals debate with regards to individual vs team sports
21:18 What Chris is going to do differently to try to unify the sport, and whether or not we should give up on the idea of a BBF with the Home Country Associations
29:58 Whether the option for the BBF to disband is completely off the table
32:33 Why he hasn’t done any interviews since taking the role
42:46 What commitment UK Sport has made to the programme moving forward
47:20 The terms of the UK Sport funding
50:41 The disastrous men’s EuroBasket campaign last summer
57:05 What the ideal process would be for accountability of the board
1:05:33 777’s interest in the national teams
1:08:04 Whether he could see 777 investing in the national team programme
1:09:23 Wether the increased investment in the league will mean the licence fee paid to the BBF will increase
1:11:29 How much it costs to run the BBF every year
1:14:46 Whether the men will be entered into the FIBA Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournaments this year