City of Birmingham Rockets
| City of Birmingham Rockets | |
|---|---|
| League | NBL D1 |
| Established | 2003 |
| History | City of Birmingham 2003–2017 City of Birmingham Rockets 2017–present |
| Arena | Nechells Centre |
| Capacity | 400 |
| Location | Birmingham, England |
| Website | Official website |
The City of Birmingham Rockets are an English basketball club, based in the city of Birmingham, West Midlands.
History[edit]
The club was formed in 2003 as the City of Birmingham Basketball Club.[citation needed]
The founders of the club were looking to provide regular opportunities and a clear pathway for young people from Birmingham and the surrounding areas to play basketball. The club runs representative teams at various age levels from Under-11s through to seniors, based in one of the most deprived wards in the country, with participants drawn from all parts of the city.[citation needed]
The senior men's team entered the English Basketball League in 2014. The volunteer-led organisation's name was then changed to the City of Birmingham Rockets in August 2017 to recognise a partnership set up with Houston Rockets and NBA legend Hakeem Olajuwon.[1]
Despite spending most of their existence with a focus on youth development and competing in the lower divisions of the English Basketball League, with new backing it has been mooted that the Rockets could join the British Basketball League[2] [3] in the near future; however, these plans appear to be hold at least for the 2019–20 season. [4][5]
The Rockets' home venue was refurbished in 2021 with funding from 2K, the American video game company behind the NBA 2K game series.[6]
Players[edit]
Notable former players
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.
| Criteria |
|---|
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To appear in this section a player must have either:
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Season-by-season records[edit]
| Season | Division | Tier | Regular Season | Post-Season | National Cup | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Played | Wins | Losses | Points | Win % | |||||||
| City of Birmingham | ||||||||||||
| 2014–15 | D4 Mid | 5 | 3rd | 16 | 9 | 7 | 18 | 0.563 | 1st round | Did not compete | ||
| 2015–16 | Dev SW | 5 | 3rd | 20 | 12 | 8 | 24 | 0.600 | 1st round | 1st round | ||
| 2016–17 | D4 Mid | 5 | 5th | 18 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 0.556 | Did not qualify | 1st round | ||
| City of Birmingham Rockets | ||||||||||||
| 2017–18 | D4 Mid | 5 | 4th | 22 | 16 | 6 | 32 | 0.727 | Did not qualify | 1st round | ||
| 2018–19 | D4 Mid | 5 | 5th | 16 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 0.500 | Did not qualify | 3rd round | ||
| 2019–20 | D3 Mid | 4 | 2nd | 21 | 17 | 4 | 35 | 0.810 | No playoffs | 1st round | ||
| 2020-21 | D2 Nor | 3 | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||||
| 2021-22 | D2 Nor | 3 | 7th | 22 | 9 | 13 | 19 | 0.409 | Did not qualify | 2nd round | ||
| 2022-23 | D2 Nor | 3 | 1st | 22 | 21 | 1 | 42 | 0.955 | Winners | 2nd round | ||
| 2023-24 | D1 | 2 | 9th | 24 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 0.375 | Did Not Qualify | |||
Honours[edit]
- NBL Division 2 Playoffs (1): 2022-23 [7]
References[edit]
- ^ Amardeep Bassey (25 August 2018). "NBA Legend Hakeem Olajuwon on Why He's Made Birmingham His Home – and What He Thinks of Trump". Huffington Post.
- ^ Mark Woods. "BBL Shake Up Format". MVP247.
- ^ Mark Woods. "Hope Remains for Leeds Franchise". MVP247.
- ^ Sam Neter (10 March 2023). "Troy Deeney throws hat into ring for Birmingham BBL franchise". Hoopsfix.
- ^ Sam Neter (27 January 2022). "Investment group looking to establish BBL franchise in Birmingham". Hoopsfix.
- ^ Sam Neter (23 November 2020). "2K to fund court refurb in conjunction with City of Birmingham Rockets". Hoopsfix.
- ^ Sam Neter (22 April 2022). "City of Birmingham Rockets take NBL D2 Playoff crown". Hoopsfix. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
