Halifax Hurricanes

The Halifax Hurricanes are a professional basketball team playing based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and competes in the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL). The Hurricanes were founded to replace the Halifax Rainmen, who declared bankruptcy in July 2015 ultimately leading to the club folding.

Halifax Hurricanes
2019–20 NBL Canada season
LeagueNBL Canada
Founded2015
HistoryHalifax Hurricanes (NBL)
2015–present
ArenaScotiabank Centre
Capacity11,093
LocationHalifax, Nova Scotia
Team coloursNavy blue, sky blue, white
              
PresidentMike Leslie
Head coachRyan Marchand
WebsiteHalifaxHurricanes.ca

History

Following steadily declining attendance and fallout from the 2015 NBL Canada Finals brawl the Halifax Rainmen folded in July 2015, with owner Andre Levingston citing bankruptcy with the franchise falling into a debt of nearly $700,000.[1][2] The Rainmen folding disappointed fans and left a void in the Halifax professional basketball market, and the league had lost one of its founding franchises and second largest market. Soon after, efforts began to replace the Rainmen.

On September 3, 2015, it was officially announced that professional basketball would be returning to Halifax. The new ownership group was expanded from just Andre Levingston to a 25 member investors group from the Halifax business community to stabilize ownership and reduce financial risk.[3] Andre Levingston was named General Manager of Basketball Operations. Hugo López was hired to be the franchise's first head coach, as announced on September 30, 2015.[4] On October 20, 2015, the franchise unveiled its name, logo, and introduced their head coach. The Hurricanes also announced their first two signings. Former Rainmen member Cliff Clinkscales returning to Halifax with newcomer Mike Glover.[5][6]

In their first season, the Hurricanes won both preseason games, before winning their first-ever regular-season home game 129–113 against the Moncton Miracles in front of approximately 2,000 fans on December 26, 2015.[7]

Coach López and the Hurricanes were unable to come to terms for a second season and Kevin Keathley was hired as head coach and general manager for the 2016–17 season.[8] Unfortunately, coach Keathley had to leave the team before his first season for personal reasons. He was replaced by Mike Leslie.[9] After three seasons, Leslie moved up to be the Hurricanes' president and general manager, with Ryan Marchand taking over as head coach.[10]

Home arena
Main article: Scotiabank Centre

The Scotiabank Centre is a multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The arena has a basketball capacity of 11,093. The Hurricanes share the arena with the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, and The Halifax Thunderbirds of the National Lacrosse League. The building is next to the World Trade and Convention Centre in Downtown Halifax, at the foot of Citadel Hill and it is the largest arena in the maritimes by seating capacity.[11]

Current roster

Halifax Hurricanes roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.NameHt.Wt.Age
F 15 Arseneault, Kyle 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 25 – (1994-10-24)24 October 1994
PG 12 Clinkscales, Cliff (C) 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) 185 lb (84 kg) 36 – (1984-03-11)11 March 1984
PF Hall, Carl 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 238 lb (108 kg) 31 – (1989-03-29)29 March 1989
SF 1 Johnson, Chris 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 205 lb (93 kg) 31 – (1988-07-13)13 July 1988
F 20 Johnson, Tremayne 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 200 lb (91 kg) 30 – (1989-08-20)20 August 1989
G 13 Kindred, Joel 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 194 lb (88 kg) 29 – (1991-01-07)7 January 1991
SG 14 Mason, Antoine 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 210 lb (95 kg) 28 – (1992-05-24)24 May 1992
G 10 Scott, Calvin Tyler 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 28 – (1992-03-10)10 March 1992
PG 4 Sibley, Devin 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 174 lb (79 kg) 24 – (1996-02-09)9 February 1996
PF 22 Waithe, Marvell 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 216 lb (98 kg) 32 – (1987-10-20)20 October 1987
PF Washington, C. J. 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 219 lb (99 kg) 28 – (1992-02-28)28 February 1992
G 2 Zimmerman, Ta'Quan 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 200 lb (91 kg) 28 – (1991-12-02)2 December 1991
Head coach
  • Mike Leslie
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured
Updated: January 9, 2020

Season-by-season record
SeasonCoachRegular seasonPost season
GPWonLostWin %FinishAvg AttendanceGPWonLostWin %Result
2015–16 Hugo López402911.7251st in Atlantic Division192914113.786League Champions
2016–17Mike Leslie402713.6751st in Atlantic Division19261596.600Lost in Finals
2017–18Mike Leslie402812.7001st in Atlantic Division195816106.625Lost in Finals
2018–19Mike Leslie402515.6252nd in Atlantic Division20951266.500Lost in Division Finals
Totals16010951.6813 division titles1977573621.6321 League Championship

Notable players
To appear in this section a player must have either:

- Set a club record or won an individual award as a professional player.
- Played at least one official international match for his senior national team at any time.

See also
  • Sports teams in Halifax, Nova Scotia

References
  1. Joseph, Rebecca. "Halifax Rainmen file for bankruptcy". Global News. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  2. Lipscombe, Kristen. "Return of pro basketball to Halifax 'looks promising'". Metro Halifax. Archived from the original on 18 November 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  3. "Professional basketball returning to Halifax for 2015-16 NBLC season with local ownership" (PDF). HalifaxHurricanes.ca. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-11-23. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  4. "Halifax NBL Canada team names Hugo Lopez as Head Coach" (PDF). HalifaxHurricanes.ca. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  5. Lipscombe, Kristen. "'The storm is coming': Local pro basketball club renamed Halifax Hurricanes". Metro Halifax. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  6. Zaccagna, Remo. "Halifax's new NBL team dubbed the Hurricanes". The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  7. "Hurricanes open season with split". The Chronicle Herald. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  8. "Hurricanes Appoint New Coach/GM". OurSports Central. 28 September 2016.
  9. "Hurricanes Welcome New Head Coach and General Manager". OurSports Central. 28 November 2016.
  10. "Hurricanes Announce Front Office Moves". OurSports Central. 20 December 2019.
  11. "Facility Information". Scotiabank-Centre.com. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
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