Darwin Salties was a

NBL1 North NBL1 North, formerly the Queensland Basketball League (QBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Queensland partnered wit ...

club based in

Darwin, Northern Territory Darwin ( Larrakia: ') is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. The city has nearly 53% of the Northern Territory's population, with 139,902 at the 2021 census. It is the smallest, wettest, and most northerly of the Australi ...

, Australia. The club fielded a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 North for three seasons and played their home games at Darwin Basketball Stadium. The club was run under the joint management of Darwin Basketball Association (DBA) and Basketball Northern Territory (BNT).

Club history

On 10 November 2021, the

NBL1 The NBL1 is a semi-professional basketball league in Australia run by the National Basketball League (NBL). The league consists of five conferences: NBL1 South, NBL1 North, NBL1 Central, NBL1 West and NBL1 East, with each consisting of bot ...

announced that a club from Darwin under the joint management of Darwin Basketball Association (DBA) and Basketball Northern Territory (BNT) would enter the

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

-based

competition in the 2022 season. The club's entry saw the NBL1 become the first Australian sport league to have clubs based in and playing out of every state and territory in Australia. On 20 December 2021, DBA announced that the club would be called the Darwin Salties. The club colours of blue and orange as well as the logo were also revealed. The Salties made their debut in the NBL1 North on 30 April 2022, with both teams recording wins in their first game. In September 2024, after three seasons in the NBL1 North, the Salties withdrew from the league due to financial difficulties. The club had been forced to pay for both their own travel, as well as travel for opposition teams, due to their position in a Queensland based league, while being based in the Northern Territory. High air travel costs were cited for the clubs decision. The Salties had strong on-court results with the men finishing second on the ladder in the 2024 season. The club also boasted the highest home crowd spectator numbers of any club in the NBL1 North. In November 2024, it was revealed that the Salties had attempted to enter the

NBL1 Central NBL1 Central, formerly the Premier League, is a semi-professional basketball league in South Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball South Australia partnered with the National Basketball League (NBL) to ...

but were unable to meet the requirements for the 2025 season. The club will reportedly look to return in 2026.

References

External links

*{{facebook, darwinsalties
Darwin Salties official website
2021 establishments in Australia 2024 disestablishments in Australia Basketball teams established in 2021 Basketball teams disestablished in 2024 Sport in Darwin, Northern Territory Basketball teams in Australia Sports clubs and teams in the Northern Territory NBL1 North