The Trenton Shooting Stars 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 in the

International Basketball League The International Basketball League (IBL) was a semi-professional men's basketball league featuring teams from the West Coast of the United States. In 2010 the Albany Legends became the first team in the Northeastern United States to join. The ...

(IBL) from 1999 to 2001.

History

The team was owned by Herb Greenberg and

Larry Keating Lawrence Keating (June 13, 1899 – August 26, 1963) was an American actor best known for his roles as Harry Morton on ''The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show'', which he played from 1953 to 1958, and next-door neighbor Roger Addison on ''Miste ...

was the president:

Kevin Mackey Kevin Mackey (born August 21, 1946) is a former head coach of men's basketball at Cleveland State University. His CSU Vikings upset the Indiana Hoosiers and the Saint Joseph's Hawks to make the Sweet 16 in the 1986 NCAA Division I men's basketbal ...

was named coach and director of basketball operations in May 1999, and the newly opened Sovereign Bank Arena was the home court. During the IBL inaugural draft the Shooting Stars selected the following players:

Kevin Ollie Kevin Jermaine Ollie (born December 27, 1972) is an American basketball coach and former player. Kevin is the head coach for Overtime Elite, a professional basketball league co-founded by Dan Porter and Zack Weiner for top players between 16 and ...

, Mark Baker,

Shawnelle Scott Shawnelle Scott (born June 16, 1972) is an American retired professional basketball player. A 6'10" center out of St. John's University, he was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers with the 43rd overall pick (second round) of the 1994 NBA dra ...

Todd Lindeman Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporate ...

Tyrone Grant Tyrone Jeremy Grant (born January 24, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player of Barbadian descent. At a height of 2.02 m (6'7 ") tall, he played at the small forward and power forward positions. He was en explosive scorer and go ...

, James Martin,

Willie Simms Willie Simms (January 16, 1870 – February 26, 1927) was an American United States Champion Jockey by wins, National Champion jockey in Thoroughbred racing and a National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, U.S. Racing Hall of Fame inductee who w ...

Moochie Norris Martyn Bernard "Moochie" Norris (born July 27, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player who played several seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as well as other leagues. He is the head coach of the Houston Push ...

LaMarr Greer LaMarr Vernon Greer (born May 16, 1976) is a high school McDonald's All American and retired American basketball player. After short stints in the United States Basketball League and the International Basketball League, he embarked on a professio ...

Ryan Bowen Ryan Cleo Bowen (born November 20, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently an assistant coach for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was a 6'9", power forward. College career ...

and Cassette Wesson. Mackey resigned on January 19, 2000 citing health issues, and he was replaced by his assistant coach John Carideo, who stayed as the head coach until the end of the 2000–01 season. In the first IBL season the team finished with a 32–32 record:

Ray Tutt Ray may refer to: Fish * Ray (fish), any cartilaginous fish of the superorder Batoidea * Ray (fish fin anatomy), a bony or horny spine on a fin Science and mathematics * Ray (geometry), half of a line proceeding from an initial point * Ray (gra ...

was the leading scorer with 19.4 points per game, while

led the team in rebounds with 8.8 and

Ryan Lorthridge Ryan Lorthridge (born July 27, 1972) is a retired American professional basketball player. Born in Nashville, Tennessee, he is and he played at the shooting guard position. He played college basketball at Jackson State University. Professional ...

was the assist leader with 8 per game. Lorthridge was also the league assist leader. The Shooting Stars qualified for the playoffs, finishing second in the East Division behind the Cincinnati Stuff, but lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Richmond Rhythm. In the second season, the team finished with an improved record of 27–25 (.519) and again qualified for the playoffs: they defeated the Cincinnati Stuff in the first round, but lost in the second round to the

Grand Rapids Hoops The Grand Rapids Hoops were a basketball team that played in the Continental Basketball Association based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Their first season was in 1989 and their final season was in 2003. Professional basketball later returned to Grand ...

. For the second year in a row, Ryan Lorthridge led the IBL in assists with 8.6 per game. The franchise ceased operations after the IBL folded in 2001.

Season-by-season records

All-time roster

Larry Abney Lawrence Abney (born May 19, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player and current player development coach/ basketball operations assistant for the Los Angeles Clippers. Born in Nyack, New York, he was nicknamed ''Birdman'' thro ...

Lloyd Daniels Lloyd Daniels (born September 4, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player who played parts of five seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Early life The shooting guard was one of the most sought-after recruits ...

* Nick Davis *

Dell Demps Delano J. Demps (born February 12, 1970) is an American professional basketball executive and former player who is currently a front office assistant for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Prior to that, he se ...

*Shane Drisdom *Dennis Edwards *

Jermaine Guice Jermaine Edward Guice (born September 2, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. He played high school basketball at Westerville South High School in Westerville, Ohio, and played college basketball with the Butler Bulldogs me ...

*Deon Hames *Greg Harris *

Kermit Holmes Kermit Leanell Holmes (born March 27, 1969) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. After sitting our his first year of college basketball due to Proposition 48, he played three years with the Oklahoma Sooners, being selec ...

*Antoine Hyman *Mike Jones *

Michael-Hakim Jordan Michael-Hakim Jordan (born June 24, 1977), is an American basketball coach and former professional player who was formerly the men's basketball head coach of the Lafayette Leopards men's basketball team. Playing career After starring at the Abing ...

Garth Joseph Garth McArthur Fitzgerald Joseph (born August 8, 1973) is a retired Dominican basketball player. At 7'2" and 315 pounds, his physique was often compared to that of Shaquille O'Neal, especially when he was a young and raw-skilled center at The Co ...

*Ray Kelly * Kirk King * Mike Lloyd *

*Michael Maddox *

Gabe Muoneke Nnadubem Gabriel Enyinaya Muoneke (born 7 February 1978, in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is a Nigerian American professional basketball player. Despite being born in the United States, Muoneke represents Nigeria internationally. Muoneke attended Cypress F ...

Damian Owens Damian ( la, links=no, Damianus) may refer to: * Damian (given name) * Damian (surname) * Damian Subdistrict, in Longquanyi District, Chengdu, Sichuan, China See also * Damiani, an Italian surname * Damiano (disambiguation) * Damien (disambiguation ...

Frantz Pierre-Louis Frantz may refer to: * Frantz (given name), a masculine given name (and list of people with the given name) * Frantz (surname), a surname (and list of people with the surname) * Frantz (''Coppélia''), a character in ''Coppélia'' * ''Frantz'' (fi ...

* George Reese * Antonio Reynolds Dean *

Terrance Roberson Terrance Roberson (born December 30, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player. At 6'7", he played as a small forward. Roberson played at California State University, Fresno, averaging 16.3 points per game during his senior seaso ...

*Marvin Rodgers *

Richard Mason Rocca Richard Mason Rocca (born November 6, 1977) is an American born Italian retired professional basketball player who played for the Italian National Basketball Team. Born in Evanston, Illinois, his father is of Italian descent. He stands 203 cm ...

* K'Zell Wesson *

Duane Woodward Duane Woodward (born June 4, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player and assistant coach for the Rhode Island Rams men's basketball, Rhode Island Rams. He played most of his career overseas. Playing career A four-year starter a ...

*Stephen Worthy *

Alvin Young Alvin Jerome Young (born November 12, 1975) is an American professional basketball player. Early life Young was raised in Brooklyn, New York, where he attended Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School. He learned to play basketball at the church wher ...

Awards

*All-IBL First team:

(2000),

(2001) *All-IBL Second team: Ray Tutt (2000)

References

{{reflist

External links

INTERNATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE HISTORY
on apbr.org Defunct basketball teams in the United States Basketball teams in New Jersey International Basketball League (1999–2001) teams Sports in Trenton, New Jersey