The Canberra Times announced it would sponsor the Canberra Cannons for the 1994 National Basketball League season on this day in 1993.
The deal superseded Realty World as the naming-rights sponsor.
The team was to be known as the Canberra Times Cannons. The two-year deal consisted of one year plus a one-year option - a "getting to know you" process.
Cannons chairman Alex Brinkmeyer said the three-time NBL champions and The Canberra Times had a lot in common.
"It is the major newspaper in the region and we should complement and enhance each other," he said.
"The Canberra Times is a great family newspaper and basketball is a great family sport. This partnership for the Cannons is perfect and we're particularly pleased to welcome them to our team."
The Canberra Times managing director at the time, Ian Meikle, expanded on the common ground.
"Like Canberra Times Direct, they're fast, accurate and very, very competitive," he said.
"This major sponsorship also reinforces our paper's continuing commitment to supporting local endeavours and local achievement. Like the Cannons, we put Canberra and its region first."
Neither party would reveal the price of sponsorship, but Mr Brinkmeyer said it was "very satisfactory".
The Cannons included seven Canberra-born players in its squad of 12 earlier that year.
Mr Meikle said the deal had been attractive partly because of the sport's popularity among young people.
Canberra had won 12 matches already in the season.
They did not qualify for the finals in 1993, and finished ninth place.
See trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/page/13971514
