The Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets were a

professional basketball In professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, participants receive payment for their performance. Professionalism in sport has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought larg ...

team based in

Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids () is the second-largest city in Iowa, United States and is the county seat of Linn County. The city lies on both banks of the Cedar River, north of Iowa City and northeast of Des Moines, the state's capital and largest city. ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

from 1988 to 1991. They played in the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball m ...

(CBA), the defunct development league for the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA).

History

Cincinnati Slammers relocation

The franchise was purchased for an undisclosed amount by Krause Gentle, the parent company of

Kum & Go Kum & Go is a convenience store chain primarily located in the Midwestern United States. The company, started by William A. Krause and Tony S. Gentle, based in Des Moines, Iowa, operates 400 stores in 13 states—primarily in its home state of I ...

convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, corner store or corner shop is a small retail business that stocks a range of everyday items such as coffee, groceries, snack foods, confectionery, soft drinks, ice creams, tobacco products, lottery ticket ...

s. The company announced their intentions to relocate the team to

. The team's 1988-89 schedule was printed on soda cups that were sold at Kum & Go locations. The name "Silver Bullets" was chosen because the team was sponsored by

Coors Light Coors Light is a 4.2% (US) ABV light beer brewed in Golden, Colorado; Albany, Georgia; Elkton, Virginia; Fort Worth, Texas; Irwindale, California; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was first produced in 1978 by the Coors Brewing Company. The Canadia ...

, which marketed the "silver bullet can".

Cedar Rapids (1988–1991)

The Silver Bullets played their home games at the 7,200 seat

Five Seasons Center Alliant Energy PowerHouse (formerly Five Seasons Center and later U.S. Cellular Center) is a multi-purpose arena located in the downtown area of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was financed by the approval of a voter referendum to allocate special munic ...

(now U.S. Cellular Center). Kevin Krause, whose father owned the team through their parent company Krause Gentle, served as the team's president.

Lewis Lloyd Lewis Kevin Lloyd (February 22, 1959 – July 5, 2019) was an American basketball player. A 6'6" swingman from Drake University, he played most of his professional career for the National Basketball Association's Houston Rockets. Early life Nick ...

, who was banned from playing in the

(NBA) due to a violation of their drug policy, sought a court injunction in 1988 to allow him to play in the CBA after his contract with the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets was rejected by CBA commissioner

Jay Ramsdell Jay L. Ramsdell (January 30, 1964 – July 19, 1989) was the Commissioner of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), a professional men's basketball league in the United States, from 1988 until his death. Continental Basketball Association ...

. Lloyd had been participating in the league's rehabilitation program and qualified for reinstatement on March 19. 1989, but through his lawyer challenged the legality of the CBA's drug policy. On December 21, 1988

Linn County, Iowa Linn County is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa. As of the 2020 census, the population was 230,299, making it the second-most populous county in Iowa. The county seat is Cedar Rapids. Linn County is named in honor of Senator Lewis F. ...

District Judge William Thomas ruled that the CBA had a right to bar players who had a history of drug use. Ramsdell testified at the hearing that the CBA did not test for

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

during their drug screenings. Lipofsky-John Starks

On December 30, 1989,

Rockford Lightning The Rockford Lightning was a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association. They were based in Rockford, Illinois. History The Lightning were the oldest team in the CBA, originally existing as the Lancaster Red Roses fro ...

head coach

Charley Rosen Charles Elliot Rosen (born January 18, 1941) is an American author and former basketball player and basketball coach. Career The 6' 8" Rosen played college basketball at Hunter College in New York City for three seasons (1959–62), setting s ...

was arrested in Cedar Rapids for assaulting Silver Bullets head coach George Whittaker. Rosen was restrained from attacking Whittaker on the court by referees and ejected from the game. After Cedar Rapids posted a 119–98 victory over the Lightning, Rosen met Whittaker in the hallway outside of the Silver Bullets locker room and struck him in the neck and shoulder. According to the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

, Rosen was angry that Whittaker's team was

running up the score Running up the score occurs when a competitor continues to play in such a way as to score additional points after the outcome of the game is no longer in significant question and the team is all but assured of winning. Sporting alternatives inc ...

. As a result of the altercation, the CBA suspended Rosen eight games and fined him an undisclosed amount. In April 1990, Rosen pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor assault charge. The 1990 CBA All-Star Game was held in Cedar Rapids, Iowa on January 18. The game was sponsored by

LA Gear LA Gear (or L.A. Gear) is an American shoe company based in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1983, the brand is currently owned by ACI International. History LA Gear was started by Robert Greenberg, Ernest Williams, and Stephen Williams. Gr ...

, who announced on the broadcast that they were the official shoe of the CBA.

John Starks John Levell Starks (born August 10, 1965) is an American former professional basketball shooting guard. Starks was listed at 6'5" and 190 pounds during his NBA playing career. Although he was undrafted in the 1988 NBA draft after attending four ...

appeared in the 1990 CBA All-Star Game as a member of the Silver Bullets. During a game late in the season, Starks pushed a referee which led his suspension from the CBA. Starks would eventually become an

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Originally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of al ...

with the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associat ...

in 1994. Bimm Ridder Sportswear, an athletic apparel manufacturer, got its start making products for the Silver Bullets and the Minor League Baseball team, the

Cedar Rapids Reds Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

Relocation to Tri-Cities, Washington

In June 1991, the CBA approved the re-location of the Cedar Rapids franchise to

Tri-Cities, Washington The Tri-Cities are three closely linked cities ( Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland) at the confluence of the Yakima, Snake, and Columbia Rivers in the Columbia Basin of Eastern Washington. The cities border one another, making the Tri-Cities se ...

. The team would later be known as the

Tri-City Chinook The Tri-City Chinook were a professional basketball team based in Kennewick, Washington. They played 4 seasons in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the defunct minor league, development league for the National Basketball Association (N ...

who played their home games at

Tri-Cities Coliseum The Toyota Center is a multi-purpose arena in the northwest United States, located in Kennewick, Washington. Opened in 1988 as the Tri-Cities Coliseum, the arena's name was changed in 2004 to the Three Rivers Coliseum to match the Three Riv ...

Kennewick, Washington Kennewick () is a city in Benton County, Washington, Benton County in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. It is located along the southwest bank of the Columbia River, just southeast of the confluence of the Columbia and Yakima R ...

Season-by-season records

All-time roster

* Randy Allen * Anthony Blakley *

Boot Bond A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the human leg, leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel (shoe ...

* Mel Braxton * Brent Carmichael *

Ron Cavenall Ronnie Goodall Cavenall (born April 30, 1959) is an American retired basketball player. Career Cavenall played college basketball for Texas Southern University, and went undrafted in the 1981 NBA draft as a senior. After playing for the Sydney Su ...

* David Colbert * Tommy Davis * Joel DeBortoli * Calvin Duncan *

Pat Durham Patrick Wayne Durham (born March 10, 1967) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and several other top professional leagues. He was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the se ...

Ben Gillery Benjamin Gillery (born September 19, 1965, in Detroit, Michigan) is a retired American professional basketball player. A 7'0" center from Hutchinson Community College and Georgetown University, Gillery was mainly a "project" player for the Hoyas, ...

Terry Gould Terry Gould is an author and investigative journalist. Early life Gould was born in Brooklyn, New York, U.S. Gould's grandfather was a Jewish mobster in New York. Career Gould is an author of several books and articles on organized crime and ...

Orlando Graham Orlando Graham (born May 5, 1965) is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Miami Heat in the second round (40th pick overall) of the 1988 NBA draft. Graham was born in Montgomery, Alabama and graduated from Si ...

* Steve Grayer * Ken Green * Derrek Hamilton *Chris Harris * Steve Hayes *

Darryl Johnson Darryl, Daryl or Darrell Johnson may also refer to: Sports *Darryl Johnson (basketball) (born 1965), American basketball player * Daryl Johnson (born 1946), American football defensive back * Darryl Johnson (American football) (born 1997), American ...

Byron Larkin Byron K. Larkin (born December 12, 1965)1989-90 CBA Official Guide and Register, page 281 is a retired American basketball player who had spent six seasons playing professionally abroad, although he is best known for his collegiate career at Xavie ...

Gary Leonard Gary Francis Leonard (born February 16, 1967) is a retired American professional basketball player. At 7'1" and 295 lbs, he played center (basketball), center. Leonard played college basketball for the Missouri Tigers men's basketball, Miss ...

* Al Lorenzen *

Roy Marble Roy Lane Marble, Jr. (December 13, 1966 – September 11, 2015) was an American professional basketball player, 6'6" tall, who played as a swingman (shooting guard/small forward). After playing four seasons at the University of Iowa from 1985 t ...

*Anthony Martin *

Shawn McDaniel Shawn may refer to: *Shawn (given name) *Shawn (surname) See also * Sean * Shaun Shaun is an anglicized spelling of the Irish name Seán. Alternative spellings include Shawn, Sean and Shawne. Notable persons with the given name include: Peop ...

Jeff Moe Jeffrey J. Moe (born May 19, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the Continental Basketball Association for the Cedar Rapids Silver Bullets during the first part of the 1988–89 season before being released ...

Melvin Newbern Melvin Newbern (born June 11, 1967) is an American former National Basketball Association (NBA) player with the Detroit Pistons. He played in 33 games in the 1992 season for the team, averaging 3.6 points per game. Born in Toledo, Ohio, Newbern ...

* Reggie Owens * Ray Pugh * Jeff Rahilly *

Ron Roberts Ronald or Ron Roberts may refer to: * Ronald Roberts (basketball) (born 1991), American-Dominican basketball player * Ronald Roberts (swimmer) (1922–2012), British swimmer * Ronald Suresh Roberts (born 1968), British West Indian biographer, lawy ...

Ron Rowan Ronald Lewis Rowan (born April 23, 1962) is a retired American-Irish basketball player. Rowan, a 6'5" 200 lb small forward, played collegiately at the University of Notre Dame and St. John's University. High school and college career Born ...

Donald Royal Donald Adam Royal (born May 22, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player, a 6'8" small forward. He played collegiate basketball at the University of Notre Dame, and was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the third round (52nd ...

Everette Stephens Everette Louis Stephens (born October 21, 1966) is a retired American professional basketball player who was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2nd round (31st overall) of the 1988 NBA draft. A 6'2" guard from Purdue University, Stephens p ...

* Barry Stevens * Peter Thibeaux * Clarence Thompson * Damon Vance * Demone Webster *

A. J. Wynder A. J. Wynder (born September 11, 1964) is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach of the Nassau Community College men's basketball team. A former professional basketball player, during his playing career Wynder was a membe ...

::''Sources''

Awards

— CBA Player of the Week (January 5, 1989) *

— 1990 CBA All-Star and 1990 CBA Slam Dunk Contest runner-up

References

{{reflist Basketball teams in Iowa 1988 establishments in Iowa Continental Basketball Association teams Sports in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Basketball teams established in 1988 1991 disestablishments in Iowa Sports clubs disestablished in 1991