Albany Patroons

Albany Patroons
Leagues CBA
1982–1992, 2005–2009
USBL
2006–2007
TBL
2017-present
Founded 1982
History Albany Patroons
1982–1992
Capital Region Pontiacs
1992–1993
Albany Patroons
2005–2009
Albany Patroons
2017–present
Arena Washington Avenue Armory
Location Albany, New York
Team colors gold, green
         
Head coach Derrick Rowland
Championships 2 (1984, 1988)
Uniforms

The Albany Patroons are a professional basketball team that plays in The Basketball League (TBL). Previously, the team competed in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and in the United States Basketball League (USBL).

The Patroons' home arena was the 3,500-seat Washington Avenue Armory, a former New York National Guard armory with a castle-like exterior. In 1990, the Patroons moved from this location and into the newly constructed Times Union Center, then called the Knickerbocker Arena. When the team was re-established in 2005, it moved back into the Armory. In February 2009, the CBA announced it was abbreviating its regular season as of February 3.[1] On its official website, it was announced that the team would not play in the 2009–2010 season.[2]

In 2017, the Patroons became one of the inaugural members of North American Premier Basketball (NAPB), and resumed using the Washington Avenue Armory as their home court.

History

A CBA expansion franchise in the 1982–83 season, the Patroons won league championships in 1984 and 1988, defeating the Wyoming Wildcatters in both instances.

NBA head coach Phil Jackson won his first championship ring when he guided the Patroons to the 1984 CBA championship. Andre Gaddy was named MVP of the series. Jackson later won NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers.

In 1988, the Patroons won a second championship, this time under head coach Bill Musselman. Musselman later coached the Minnesota Timberwolves, and several Patroons from the 1987–88 championship year – including Scott Brooks, Tod Murphy, Tony Campbell and Sidney Lowe – played on those early Timberwolves squads.

In the 1990-91 season, the Patroons completed a 50–6 regular season, winning all 28 home games, with George Karl as head coach. Future NBA players Mario Elie and Vincent Askew were part of that squad.

The Patroons won two CBA championships and five Eastern Division regular season titles. For the 1992–93 season, they were renamed the Capital Region Pontiacs, as the team received sponsorship from local car dealerships. After that season, the franchise was relocated to Connecticut, where it played for 1½ years as the Hartford Hellcats.

Other notable basketball coaches who coached the Patroons are Bob Thomason and Bruce Brown.[3]

Rebirth

After a decade-long absence, the Patroons rejoined the CBA as an expansion team for the 2005–06 season with their original name, original colors (gold and kelly green), and a return to the old Washington Avenue Armory. Former NBA star Micheal Ray Richardson, who played for the Patroons in the 1987–88 season, became the head coach, while the Patroons' career scoring leader, Derrick Rowland, was named his assistant coach. In the Patroons' first year back, they finished with a 20–28 record, good for third place in the CBA Eastern Conference. Albany qualified for the playoffs, but lost in the first round of the CBA round-robin style playoffs. The Patroons were led by T. J. Thompson, who averaged a league-high 25.4 points per game, and local product James Thomas, who in two stints with the Patroons led the team in rebounds per game. On April 25, 2006, the CBA moved its league offices into the Patroon's home, the Washington Avenue Armory (News Brief).

In the 2006–07 season, the Patroons won the CBA American Conference championship and advanced to the best-of-five CBA Finals against the Yakama Sun Kings. The Patroons lost game one at the Armory, but this was overshadowed the next day, when coach Micheal Ray Richardson was suspended for the rest of the season for firing expletives at hecklers during games and saying in an interview with the Albany Times Union newspaper that Jews are "crafty [because] they are hated worldwide."[4][5] Without Richardson, the Patroons dropped the next two games of the finals, as the Sun Kings won their second consecutive championship. Three days after the conclusion of the series, it was announced that Richardson would not return.[6] Richardson, now the coach of the Oklahoma Cavalry, was replaced by Vincent Askew.[7]

On July 10, 2007, former Patroon Jamario Moon signed a two-year contract with the Toronto Raptors. Moon had a strong rookie campaign, averaging 8.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game.

On June 14, 2006, the Patroons purchased the rights to a United States Basketball League team, also to be called the Patroons, and play in the Washington Avenue Armory. The team replaced the Pennsylvania ValleyDawgs. After only two years of very low attendance at their home games, the Patroons ended their USBL affiliation on June 19, 2007,[8] and returned to the CBA.

In July 2008, arena management and the Albany Times Union revealed that the Patroons might not return for the 2009 season. Jim Coyne, general manager of the Armory and CBA commissioner, told the newspaper that if the team did not sell 600 season tickets by the end of July it would either fold or move. At that time the Pats had about 50 season ticket holders.

Both the league and the Patroons folded after the 2009 season, citing the economic recession, according to the Albany Times Union.

Second return and North American Premier Basketball

On August 30, 2017, it was announced that the Albany Patroons would return to the Washington Avenue Armory in January 2018 under the ownership of former players.[9] The new team became one of the inaugural members of North American Premier Basketball (NAPB). The Patroons' roster includes former NBA players Maurice Taylor, Smush Parker and Jamario Moon.

Current roster

Albany Patroons roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHt.Wt.Age
G 3 United States Johnson, Lloyd 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 185 lb (84 kg)
G 4 United States Moon, Xavier 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 23 – (1995-06-02)2 June 1995
G 5 United States Gallup, EJ 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 25 – (1993-09-18)18 September 1993
G 6 United States Pryor, Saije 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 185 lb (84 kg)
F 7 United States Moon, Jamario 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 38 – (1980-05-13)13 May 1980
SG 8 Puerto Rico Ubiles, Edwin 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 204 lb (93 kg) 31 – (1986-11-26)26 November 1986
G 11 United States Cunningham, Steven 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 29 – (1989-06-13)13 June 1989
F 12 United States Evans, Jalen 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 244 lb (111 kg)
C 15 United States Thomas, DeAndre 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 285 lb (129 kg) 32 – (1986-09-20)20 September 1986
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured
Updated: May 4, 2018

Year-by-year

Year League Reg. Season Playoffs
1982/83 CBA 4th, Eastern Did not qualify
1983/84 CBA 2nd, Eastern Champions
1984/85 CBA 1st, Eastern Eastern Division Finals
1985/86 CBA 4th, Eastern Eastern Division Semifinals
1986/87 CBA 2nd, Eastern Eastern Division Finals
1987/88 CBA 1st, Eastern Champions
1988/89 CBA 1st, Eastern Eastern Division Semifinals
1989/90 CBA 1st, American Eastern American Conference Finals
1990/91 CBA 1st, National Eastern National Conference Finals
1991/92 CBA 3rd, American Eastern American Conference 1st Round Shootout
1992/93 CBA 2nd, American Eastern Did not qualify
2005/06 CBA 3rd, Eastern 2nd in Eastern Round Robin
2006 USBL 4th, Eastern Lost First Round
2006/07 CBA 1st, American Eastern Lost CBA Finals
2007 USBL 2nd Withdrew from league
2008 CBA 4th, Eastern Did not qualify
2009 CBA 2nd Lost CBA Finals

References

  1. ↑ CBA Release
  2. ↑ "{title}". Archived from the original on 2006-07-02. Retrieved 2006-06-08.
  3. ↑ "Albany Patroons Head Coaches". Archived from the original on 2009-04-08. Retrieved 2009-04-20.
  4. ↑ CBA coach Richardson suspended for remarks, March 28, 2007
  5. ↑ Time for this coach to sit out Archived 2008-02-14 at the Wayback Machine., March 28, 2007
  6. ↑ Patroons, Richardson part Archived 2009-02-20 at the Wayback Machine., April 3, 2007
  7. ↑ http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3518459
  8. ↑ Patroons will not return to USBL, June 20, 2007
  9. ↑ "Washington Avenue Armory, Albany Patroons announce return of professional basketball in Albany". Medium.com. August 30, 2017.


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