Australian basketball legend Larry Sengstock will take up the post of chief executive officer of Basketball Australia.
Sengstock, who had a decorated career on the court playing 293 games for Australia and representing his country at the Olympics on four occasions, boasts a strong background in sports administration, having been involved with the organising committee for the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games.
"Basketball faces great challenges in the next few years but is also entering a period of unparalleled opportunity," BA board chief David Thodey said.
"It was vital therefore that we appointed a CEO with a demonstrated track record - someone who has vision, drive and a proven ability to successfully manage a transformational agenda. Larry Sengstock clearly fits that bill and the Board were delighted that he was available."
"We underwent an aggressive recruitment process to find ourselves a best-of-breed business leader. That's exactly what we've found in Larry Sengstock, who more than ticks every box. The fact that he also happens to be someone who is an Australian basketball icon, and who has been intimately involved with the sport at every level, is an unbelievable bonus."
Sengstock replaces Scott Derwen, and will be faced with big challenges with the sports set for a major restructure over the next two years.
"I truly believe this is a time of opportunity for the sport," said Sengstock. "With the new men's national league set to be unveiled, Australia already having qualified for the 2010 senior World Championships, and the sport's stakeholders now unified and sharing a common purpose, we are poised on the brink of what could be a new golden age for basketball."
"I've heard plenty of people talk about basketball getting back to the success of the 1980s and '90s, but the reality is that we need to move the sport forward, rather than focusing on the past," Sengstock added.
"Our goal is to bring the sport into the 21st century commercially so we can capitalise on basketball's huge participation base and international successes."
And Sengstock knows that it is of utmost importance to get the new men's national league structured correctly.
"The National Basketball League is the showcase and it is important to get that right," he said.
"People's opinions of basketball are formed on what they see in that showcase. We need to make sure that is strong and that is back where it needs to be."