Edgar Centre manager Blair Crawford said the Nuggets were a key part of the centre's overall entertainment package and a ''key user'' of the facilities.
The Nuggets played nine home games at the venue this year, incurring court hire charges.
And when you factor in all the training sessions, the revenue generated through ticketing and by supplying food and beverages to the Nuggets' corporate customers, the Edgar Centre stands to lose close to $100,000 in turnover.
Crawford described it as a significant loss, but was not surprised Basketball Otago, which is in the midst of a financial crisis, had opted against fielding an NBL team next year.
''It is disappointing, but probably on the cards with the current situation,'' Crawford said.
''They have to get the sport sorted first before the professional game. That was the feedback we were getting.''
The Nuggets have been a marque product for the Edgar Centre and BBO is one the centre's biggest users, so its financial health is of great concern to Crawford.
It is unclear how deep BBO's financial crisis is as the audited accounts for the financial year ending December 2013 have not been made public, but the Otago Daily Times understands BBO will report a deficit of about $50,000.
Crawford revealed BBO had settled some of its previous debts incurred through court hire, but still owes the Edgar Centre $45,000 for court hire, most of which was incurred this season.
''They've sort of got up to speed in terms of old accounts, but that has meant some of the current accounts for court hire weren't being paid.''
Filling the gap the Nuggets left would be a challenge, Crawford said.
''We will be on the hunt for more events that perhaps we can slot in with the gaps that have been left by basketball. But really it is going to be pretty tough to fill that void.
''There is nothing that jumps out. And a lot of the times for Nuggets matches were outside normal bookings.
''But we are going to do our best to support Basketball Otago moving ahead because they are an important user. So we will certainly do what we can to help their survival.''
