Sports analyst says The Five basketball team will encourage young athletes

Sudbury is getting ready to showcase its first National Basketball League team.

On Tuesday, officials announced the name of the team will be The Five.

Cliff Skelliter, the head of the Launchpad Creative agency, described the new name as concise, quick and to the point, but with meaning.

"Our area code is the 705," he said.

"There are five major cities with the 705 area-code which we just happen to be in the centre of. On top of that, we're the Nickel City. I'll say my cheesy joke again it just made sense."

Randy Pascal, a long time sports writer in Sudbury, says he thinks the name will grow on people.

"I understand that there certainly was an idea behind not wanting to go to the old yes, this is the Nickel City and something with a mining reference and hard rocks and anything along those lines," he said.

"This certainly goes to the other extreme where you have to stop and explain where you're coming from. I don't think that will make or break the success of the team."

Kyle Beers, the founder of the Northern Lights Basketball Academy, says the new team will encourage young athletes to aim high. He says basketball is starting to grow in popularity.

"Lo-Ellen is joining the OSBA [Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association], so it's a preparatory league," he said.

"As we get the new levels in, we're showcasing to the athletes what the potential is."

The Five is the 11th team in the NBL Canada league. The team's franchise vice president of basketball operations, Bob Johnston, says a head coach will be named in June. After that, the team will start signing players.

"The National Basketball league of Canada mandates that five of the players be Canadian-born. Because of that, we're going to actively look for qualified talent in Sudbury," he said.

"In fact we've already done some of that legwork. We know there's a few professional players who have played and they're local men, so we've certainly had discussions."

Johnston adds the team intends to spend up to its $200,000 salary cap to field its 12-player roster.