The NBL board yesterday announced the league would expand from nine teams to 11 for the next three years. Briggs greeted the news with relief.
He is a passionate supporter of the franchise and was bitterly disappointed when Basketball Otago decided against fielding a team in the 2009 league.
Instead of taking the disappointment lying down, Briggs, along with former Nuggets coach Todd Marshall, long-serving club player and coach Simon Clarke and former Nuggets manager Shane Atherton, initiated a "Save the Nuggets" group in an 11th-hour attempt to keep the franchise on the court.
The bid failed, but in August the men joined the board of Basketball Otago.
Effectively staging a coup, the group sent out emails to the basketball community urging people to attend the annual meeting and elect them to the board.
Yesterday's news came with an unexpected bonus.
Southland was also granted a spot in the league.
"I think it is great for basketball in Otago and Southland," Briggs said.
"There was a lot of work getting done behind the scenes by the board and the CEO [Mark Rogers] to get us back in the league."
The Nuggets folded because Basketball Otago no longer felt it could continue to prop up the cash-strapped franchise.
It had become a drain on the rest of the organisation.
However, the board remained committed to re-entering the league if the funding could be found.
It is expected to cost $500,000 to run the franchise in 2010.
Half of that money is coming from grants and donations, with $150,000 expected to come from sponsorship and income from corporate boxes.
Basketball Otago chief executive Mark Rogers is confident the organisation can deliver on its promises.
"Obviously, we wouldn't have put in a bid if we didn't think we feel comfortable we could deliver on what we've suggested, so that's the work that is in front of us now," he said.
Briggs said the Nuggets now had two main goals.
"Obviously, the goal is to secure whatever funding we need.
"And we need to secure the kids that were in the Junior Tall Blacks and see if we can get them to come back down and play for Otago."
Briggs believes the franchise should target local talent such as Tom Rowe, Riki Buckrell, Morgan Nathan and Sam King, all of whom played for New Zealand at the world under-19 championships this year.
"They're all local boys and they are the ones that you would certainly have to go out and target straight away. The challenge now is getting the team on court . . . but we've got to secure the funding to make sure it happens."
As well as locals, the Nuggets will have to recruit two quality imports to be competitive.
With two extra teams in the league, the recruitment battle will be intense.
Southland will be looking to swoop on all the best talent in the lower half of the South Island.
Former Tall Blacks Ed Book, Terrence Lewis and Brendon Pongia played for the Southland Flyers this season and may be keen to get involved in the Southland NBL side.
Given the franchise is new it may be quite an attractive proposition, whereas the Otago Nuggets have some baggage to overcome.
In its last four seasons the team won just nine of 72 games.
Off the court, the Nuggets created headlines when two players were suspended for cannabis use and star American import Lemar Gayle publicly criticised the team and coach and then quit when the club fined him $500.
One of the bigger setbacks was when general manager Warrick Diack resigned following a money dispute with one match remaining in the 2008 season.
Joining Otago and Southland will be this year's teams: Auckland Stars, Bay Hawks, Christchurch Cougars, Harbour Heat, Manawatu Jets, Nelson Giants, Taranaki Dynamos, Waikato Pistons and Wellington Saints.
• Otago Nuggets
Timeline
1990: Team enters NBL under future Tall Blacks coach Tab Baldwin.
1993: Mark Dickel (16) becomes youngest player in NBL history and is named rookie of the year.
1995: Leonard King becomes an All-Star for the second time. Nuggets enjoy best season, finishing third under coach Carl Dickel.
1998: Wickliffe Press withdraws sponsorship, having pumped in more than $1 million over a decade.
2001-02: Nuggets finish last in NBL.
2005-08: Nuggets churn through three coaches - a German, an Australian and an American - and claim the wooden spoon in four consecutive seasons.
December 5, 2008: Basketball Otago announces Nuggets will not play in 2009 national league for financial reasons.
May 2009: Dunedin City Council asked for a $50,000 grant to help Nuggets re-enter the league. Request denied but olive branch offered when council agrees to reconsider application if the Nuggets get back into the league.
July 2009: Basketball Otago calls for the community to pledge funds to the franchise.
Yesterday: NBL reveals plans to expand from nine to 11 teams. Nuggets and a new Southland franchise boost South Island representation from two to four teams.
