The Texas Legends are an American professional basketball team in the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

based in

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

, and are affiliated with the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...

. The Legends play their home games at the

Comerica Center Comerica Center (previously Deja Blue Arena and Dr Pepper Arena) is a multi-purpose arena in Frisco, Texas. It is the home of the Texas Legends of the NBA G League and the Frisco Fighters of the Indoor Football League, as well as the executive o ...

. The team began as the Colorado 14ers in 2006, before relocating to Frisco in 2009 and becoming the Texas Legends for the 2010–11 season.

Franchise history

Colorado 14ers

In 2006, Colorado businessmen Tim Wiens and John Frew, who were building the Broomfield Event Center at the Arista development in

Broomfield, Colorado Broomfield is a consolidated city and county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. Broomfield has a consolidated government which operates under Article XX, Sections 10-13 of the Constitution of the State of Colorado. The Broomfield populatio ...

, acquired a new minor league basketball team to attract fans in the northwest Denver-Boulder region. In February, they formed two teams, the minor league hockey team Rocky Mountain Rage, and the Colorado 14ers, originally a

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 ...

club. In April, the 14ers entered the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

and began their first season. The team was named after Colorado's 14,000-foot mountain peaks.

2006–07 season

Joe Wolf Joseph James Wolf (born December 17, 1964) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. Professional career He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was the 13th overall pick of the 1987 NBA Draft, selected ...

, who played with the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

in the 1990s, was the 14ers' first coach, and put together the roster. The team won 28–22 in its first season, and broke various records for Colorado minor league basketball, from scoring to attendance. The team's leaders included

Von Wafer Vakeaton Quamar "Von" Wafer (born July 21, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles. Wafer has previously played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the ...

and

Louis Amundson Louis Gabriel Amundson ( born December 7, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball, UNLV and 12 years professionally, including 10 seasons in the NBA. Early life ...

, who joined the NBA by the end of the season. Despite losing streaks and roster reorganizations, the team qualified for the playoffs. The 14ers won the Western Division before losing the championship in overtime to the

Dakota Wizards The Dakota Wizards were an American professional basketball team based in Bismarck, North Dakota. They played in the NBA Development League from 2006 until 2012. After the 2011–12 season, the team relocated to Santa Cruz, California, and now pl ...

2007–08 season

The 14ers' second season began with an almost new roster, with only

Elton Brown Elton Gillett Brown (born May 22, 1982) is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. He played college football for the University of Virginia, and was recognized ...

and Eric Osmundson staying. New players included

Kaniel Dickens Kaniel Dickens (born July 21, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. He was selected by the Utah Jazz in the second round (50th pick overall) in the 2000 NBA draft. College career Dickens first played college basketball for ...

, a top player on the team.

Eddie Gill Edward Gill III (born August 16, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. Gill was born played college basketball at the College of Eastern Utah, Salt Lake Community College, and Weber State University. With the Weber State ...

was selected in the draft, joined the NBA before the first game, and returned to the team later. Kevin Hill, the only Canadian, was drafted. Five others joined the NBA, including the simultaneous call-ups of Dickens and Billy Thomas on February 22, 2008, by the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

. Despite turnover, the 14ers played well, finishing with one more win than the prior season. The 14ers' six consecutive wins at the end of the season put them in the playoffs as a wild card, but they lost in the first round to the

Los Angeles D-Fenders LOS, or Los, or LoS may refer to: Science and technology * Length of stay, the duration of a single episode of hospitalisation * Level of service, a measure used by traffic engineers * Level of significance, a measure of statistical significance ...

2008–09 season

The 14ers' third season had the most consecutive seasons played by any minor league basketball franchise in Colorado. The season began with financial issues for the owners and a new coach, Robert MacKinnon.

had moved to the NBA. The new roster included

, Billy Thomas, and Jamar Brown, who had played for the

Colorado Crossover The Colorado Crossover were a professional basketball team in the International Basketball League. Based in Lakewood, Colorado, the Crossover began play in 2006, and lasted 2 seasons, compiling an overall 18–21 record. The Crossover were owned ...

. New players, Dominique Coleman and Josh Davis, played well, as did

Sonny Weems Clarence "Sonny" Weems (born July 8, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Shanxi Loongs of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the University of Arkansas and the University of Arkansas ...

, assigned from the

three times to play during the regular season and playoffs. Early in the season, the 14ers led the D-League in wins and set the D-League record for points in a single game with a 147–119 win over the

Rio Grande Valley Vipers The Rio Grande Valley Vipers are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Edinburg, Texas, and are affiliated with the Houston Rockets. The Vipers play their home games at the Bert Ogden Arena. The Vipers have won f ...

on March 10. The 14ers later broke that record with a 155–127 win over the

Albuquerque Thunderbirds Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...

on April 8. Finishing with a record of 34 wins, the 14ers played at home for the playoffs, and defeated the Erie BayHawks,

Austin Toros Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, and

Utah Flash Orem, Utah Orem Orem, Utah Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Lindon, and Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake City. Orem is one of the principal ...

to become the D-League champions.

Texas Legends

On June 18, 2009, a

executive,

Donnie Nelson Donn Charles Nelson (born September 10, 1962) is an American basketball executive who previously held general manager and president of basketball operations roles for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is the s ...

, purchased the 14ers, and moved the team to

. They played in 2010–11 with a new nickname, color, and logo. On November 5, 2009, women's basketball pioneer

Nancy Lieberman Nancy Elizabeth Lieberman (born July 1, 1958), nicknamed "Lady Magic", is an American former professional basketball player and coach in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) who is currently a broadcaster for the Oklahoma City Thun ...

became the Legends' head coach, the first woman to lead a men's professional basketball team. The team played in the 2010–11 season out of the

. The Legends hired other notable basketball professionals for their front office, including 1986 Slam Dunk Champion

Spud Webb Anthony Jerome "Spud" Webb (born July 13, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. Webb, who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA), is known for winning a Slam Dunk Contest despite being one of the shortest players ...

as president of basketball operations and 1995 NBA Coach of the Year

Del Harris Delmer William Harris (born June 18, 1937) is an American basketball coach who is currently the vice president of the Texas Legends, the NBA G League affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks. He served as a head coach for the NBA's Houston Rockets, Mil ...

as general manager. Televised games introduced the Legends to fans of the 16-team league. They were on national TV during Versus three times, and appeared twice on Fox Sports Southwest. The game against the

on Versus was their first TV appearance. After dropping the opener, the Legends had their first win on November 26 against the

Idaho Stampede Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

, scoring 108–100. The Legends' first game in Frisco was on November 30. The Legends scored a league record of 84 points in the first half, and a 135–112 win over the

. They began the season with a 5–1 record, the best six-game start for an expansion team in the league's history. They finished the regular season with a 24–26 record, and went to the playoffs. They were the third expansion team to play in the postseason, but were eliminated in the first round by the

Tulsa 66ers Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

. After Nancy Lieberman,

was the head coach, starting October 4, 2011. He coached the Legends for one season, had a 24–26 record for the second consecutive year, but did not make the playoffs. Between 2012 and 2015, the Legends' head coach was former NBA player

Eduardo Nájera Eduardo Alonso Nájera Pérez () (born July 11, 1976) is a Mexican former professional basketball player who is currently a scout for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is also a pregame and postgame analyst o ...

. The team did not make the playoffs while he was head coach. On July 8, 2015, the Legends hired

Nick Van Exel Nickey Maxwell Van Exel (born November 27, 1971) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Van Exel played for six NBA teams from 1 ...

as the head coach. After one season, in June 2016, Exel left to be an assistant coach for the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

. He was replaced by

Bob MacKinnon Jr. Robert Charles MacKinnon Jr. (born September 24, 1960) is an American basketball coach. He is the interim head coach of the Raleigh Firebirds of The Basketball League. Previously, he served as the head coach of the Colorado 14ers, Springfield ...

, who had previously been the head coach when the 14ers won a D-League championship in Colorado.

Ownership

The team is owned by Texas D-League Management, LLC, which is principally owned by

, former general manager and President of Basketball Operations for the

and son of former NBA head coach

Don Nelson Donald Arvid Nelson (born May 15, 1940) is an American former professional basketball player and head coach. Nelson is second all-time in regular season wins of any coach in NBA history, with 1,335 (he held the record for most wins for almost 12 ...

. The ownership group also includes Evan Wyly, Barry Aycock and

Season by season

Players

Current roster

Coaches

NBA call-ups

Source
2015–16 Texas Legends Media Guide

Honor roll

Past notable players

Colorado 14ers *

Julius Hodge Julius Melvin Hodge (born November 18, 1983) is an American-Antiguan former professional basketball player and current assistant coach at Little Rock Trojans. Originally from Harlem, New York, Hodge played college basketball at NC State and was se ...

Lou Amundson Louis Gabriel Amundson ( born December 7, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for UNLV and 12 years professionally, including 10 seasons in the NBA. Early life and college Amundson was born i ...

Bakari Hendrix Bakari Akil Hendrix (born May 23, 1977) is a retired American basketball player. He was a standout player at Gonzaga University and played professionally in eleven countries. Hendrix, a 6'8" power forward from St. Patrick-St. Vincent High School ...

P. J. Tucker Anthony Leon "P. J." Tucker Jr. (born May 5, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Texas Longhorns. He was the 2008 Israe ...

* Mile Ilic *

Mike Harris Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a Canadian retired politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002. During his time ...

Pooh Jeter Eugene "Pooh" Jeter III (; born December 2, 1983) is an American-born naturalized Ukrainian professional basketball player for the NBA G League Ignite of the NBA G League. A tall point guard, he is a naturalized player for the Ukraine national ...

* Mark Jones *

Rick Rickert Rick Rickert (born February 11, 1983) is a former American professional basketball player. He is a 2001 graduate of East High School (Duluth, Minnesota), Duluth East High School where he was a basketball star and highly recruited college prospect. ...

* Chuck Davis *

Mo Charlo Dennard Maurice "Mo" Charlo (born July 22, 1983) is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball at the University of Nevada. He has previously played for the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, Colorado 14ers and Anaheim Arsena ...

Tony Bobbitt Tony Rachaun Bobbitt (born October 22, 1979) is a former American professional basketball player. Bobbitt played alongside National Basketball Association (NBA) player Vince Carter at Daytona Beach Mainland High School, where he graduated in 1999 ...

* Davin White *

Lou White Louis White (also known as Lou; born May 12, 1976) is an Americans, American basketball player who plays for Barreteros de Zacatecas in the Mexican Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional. He is tall and plays guard (basketball), guard. He gradu ...

Taurean Green Taurean James Green (born November 28, 1986) is a Georgian-American professional basketball player who last played for Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski of the Polish Basketball League (PLK). He is the son of former NBA journeyman Sidney Green. Green p ...

Roderick Riley Roderick Riley (born March 11, 1981) is an American former basketball player. He played the center position and had a listed height and weight of 6'11" and 327 lbs. In 2009, he won the Jordanian Premier League with Zain. Early life and col ...

* John Thomas *

Cheikh Samb Samb Cheikh Tidiane (born October 22, 1984) is a Senegalese former professional basketball player. He played at the center position. Basketball career In the 2005-06 season, Samb played for WTC Cornellá in the Spanish second division, averaging ...

Marlon Parmer Marlon Palmer (born September 28, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player. Career *2008-09: Colorado 14ers (NBA D-League) 15.0 ppg, 6.0 apg, 2.0 spg *2007: BC Kalev/Cramo (Est-KML) (9 games): 12.6ppg, 2.7apg, 4.2rpg 0.8spg *20 ...

Lamar Butler Lamar Edward Butler, Jr. (born December 21, 1983) is an American former basketball player and current boys basketball coach. He was a starting guard for the Patriots of George Mason University during the Patriots' surprising run to the Final F ...

* Josh Davis *

Trey Gilder George "Trey" Gilder III (born January 24, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for Indios de Mayagüez of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for McNeese State, Tyler Junior College and Northwester ...

* Vernon Hamilton *

John Lucas III John Harding Lucas III (born November 21, 1982) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is currently an assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketba ...

* Billy Thomas *

Texas Legends *

Joe Alexander Joe Alexander (ג'ו אלכסנדר; born December 26, 1986) is a Taiwanese-born American-Israeli professional basketball player for Maccabi Haifa B.C., Maccabi Haifa of the Israeli Liga Leumit (basketball), Liga Leumit. Alexander, who at plays ...

Kelenna Azubuike Kelenna David Azubuike (born 16 December 1983) is a British-Nigerian-American former professional basketball player and currently the Golden State Warriors television analyst on NBC Sports Bay Area. Born in London, England and raised in Tulsa, ...

Renaldo Balkman Renaldo Miguel Balkman (born July 14, 1984) is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player, who most recently played for the Mets de Guaynabo of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He also represents the Puerto Rican national team. He p ...

Antonio Daniels Antonio Robert Daniels (born March 19, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player who played 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is currently the television color analyst for the New Orleans Pelicans on B ...

Chris Douglas-Roberts Chris Douglas Roberts (born January 8, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis. High school career Douglas-Roberts played high school basketball at Cass Technical Hig ...

Devin Ebanks Devin Ebanks (born October 28, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for Al-Ahli Jeddah (basketball), Al-Ahli of the Saudi Premier League (basketball), Saudi Premier League. The Forward (basketball), forward was selected 43rd overall ...

Melvin Ely Melvin Anderson Ely (; born May 2, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who used to be an assistant coach for the Canton Charge of the NBA G League. A 6'10", , power forward–center from Fresno State, Ely was drafted ...

Dan Gadzuric Daniel Gadzuric (born February 2, 1978) is a Dutch-Serbian former professional basketball player. Gadzuric, a center, attended preparatory school at The Governor's Academy in Byfield, Massachusetts, before playing college basketball for the Bru ...

Reece Gaines Clifton Reece Gaines (born January 7, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player and former assistant coach at Austin Spurs. He is currently a video coordinator for Louisville. High school and college career Gaines, a 6'6", 205& ...

* Terrel Harris *

Bernard James Bernard Ronald James (born February 7, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Florida State University. He is also the oldest player ever to be drafted in the National Basketball Association ( ...

Damion James Damion Marquez Williams James (born October 7, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player who last played for Vaqueros de Bayamón of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for Texas. High school car ...

* Mike James * Ivan Johnson *

Dominique Jones Dominique O'Neal Jones (born October 15, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the Jilin Northeast Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). A noted scorer in college, Jones had the second-highest scoring average in th ...

Doron Lamb Doron Emmanuel Calvin Lamb (born November 6, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for Scafati Basket of the Lega Basket Serie A. He played college basketball for the University of Kentucky. High school career Lamb was born in Que ...

Ricky Ledo Ricardo Julio Ledo (born September 10, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Semt77 Yalovaspor of the Turkish Basketball League (TBL). He committed to play for the Providence Friars, but the National Collegiate Athletic Associat ...

* Didier Ilunga Mbenga *

Rashad McCants Rashad Dion McCants (born September 25, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player who has played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as well as overseas. He played for Trilogy in the BIG3 three-on-three league. High schoo ...

Fab Melo Fabricio Paulino de Melo (; June 20, 1990 – February 11, 2017) was a Brazilian professional basketball player. He played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics before returning to his home country and play ...

James Nunnally James William Nunnally (born July 14, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for KK Partizan Belgrade of the Serbian KLS, the Adriatic League and the EuroLeague. High school career Nunnally attended Weston Ranch High School in S ...

* Greg Ostertag *

Sean Singletary Sean Michael-Eli Singletary (born September 6, 1985) is an American retired professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and other professional leagues. He played college basketball at the University of Vi ...

Alando Tucker Alando Forest Tucker (born February 11, 1984) is an American former collegiate basketball coach and former professional basketball player who played for the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before joining the NBA, he played college basketba ...

Delonte West Delonte Maurice West (born July 26, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. He played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Boston Celtics, Seattle SuperSonics, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Dallas Mavericks. He als ...

* Sean Williams *

Yi Jianlian Yi Jianlian ( ; born October 27, 1987) is a Chinese professional basketball player for the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He has also played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Milwauk ...

Bobby Parks Jr. Bobby Ray Barbosa Parks Jr. (born February 19, 1993) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for Nagoya Diamond Dolphins of the Japanese B.League. A 6'4" guard, he played college basketball for the NU Bulldogs for three years bef ...

NBA affiliates

Texas Legends

(2010–present)

Colorado 14ers

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

(2006–2007) *

(2006–2009) *

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

(2006–2009) *

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

(2006–2008)

References

External links

Texas Legends official website
{{Texas sports Basketball teams established in 2010 Sports in Frisco, Texas 2010 establishments in Texas Basketball teams in Texas