The Roanoke Dazzle were an

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

team based in

Roanoke, Virginia Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is ...

, U.S.. In operation from the inaugural D-League season of 2001–02 through the 2005–06 season, the Dazzle marked the return of professional basketball to Roanoke since the

Virginia Squires The Virginia Squires were a basketball team based in Norfolk, Virginia, and playing in several other Virginia cities. They were members of the American Basketball Association from 1970 to 1976. The team originated in 1967 as the Oakland Oaks, ...

called Roanoke home in the 1970s. Playing their home games at the

Roanoke Civic Center Berglund Center (originally called the Roanoke Civic Center) is a 10,500-seat multi-purpose arena located in the Williamson Road, Roanoke, Virginia, Williamson Road neighborhood of Roanoke, Virginia. It was built in 1971. It was the former home to ...

, their logo design featured a

star A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by its gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked ...

moving on

rail tracks A railway track (British English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleeper ...

around a basketball.

Franchise history

The NBDL initially announced that Roanoke was under consideration for one of the inaugural teams in August 2000. Competing with

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...

for Virginia's NBDL team, Roanoke was evaluated as a potential franchise location based on its population, arena size and lack of a major

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges ...

basketball program in the

Roanoke Valley The Roanoke Valley ( ) in southwest Virginia is an area adjacent to and including the Roanoke River between the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Appalachian Plateau to the west. The valley includes much of Roanoke County, as well as the ...

. After reaching an agreement to play home games at the

, the NBDL announced Roanoke as the league's fifth member on May 18, 2001. The announcement marked the return of professional basketball to Roanoke since the departure of the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major men's professional basketball league from 1967 to 1976. The ABA ceased to exist with the American Basketball Association–National Basketball Association merger in 1976, leading to four A ...

following the 1972–73 season. By June 2001,

Donna Daniels Donna may refer to the short form of the honorific ''nobildonna'', the female form of Don (honorific) in Italian. People *Donna (given name); includes name origin and list of people and characters with the name * Roberto Di Donna (born 1968), Ita ...

was named team president and

Kent Davison Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces th ...

was announced as the first head coach in franchise history. On July 18, 2001, Daniels announced the team nickname, the Dazzle. The name was chosen purposefully to not reflect Roanoke's railroad heritage as two other professional teams, the

Roanoke Express The Roanoke Express were a professional minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL from 1993 until 2004. Home games were played at the Berglund Center, Roanoke Civic Center in Roanoke, Virginia. The Express were owned by legendary coach John Brophy ...

and the

Roanoke Steam The Roanoke Steam was an arena football team that began as a charter member franchise of af2, the developmental league for the Arena Football League. They played their home games at the Roanoke Civic Center in Roanoke, Virginia. The Steam were ...

, already called the civic center home. The Dazzle would be victorious in the inaugural game on November 18, 2001, against the Mobile Revelers in the Roanoke Civic Center. After five seasons, and overall moderate success on the court, the Dazzle were one of the final two teams from the

NBDL The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

inaugural season to last through the 2005–06 season. The Fayetteville Patriots were the other. Both were owned by the NBA for their entire five season history. On May 1, 2006, the NBA Development League announced that the NBA would no longer operate the Roanoke Dazzle. League President Phil Evans briefly held out the possibility of a local ownership group operating the team. However, when a local ownership group failed to materialize, the team was disbanded.

Season by season results

Players of note

Cory Alexander Cory Lynn Alexander (born June 22, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player who is now an announcer for college basketball and the NBA on ESPN Radio since 2022. After a career at the University of Virginia (having graduated with ...

–

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

* Andray Blatche–

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

Will Bynum William Bynum (born January 4, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Arizona and Georgia Tech before going undrafted in the 2005 NBA draft. He was the 2007 Israeli Basketbal ...

–

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

* Matt Carroll–

Charlotte Bobcats Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...

* Anthony Grundy–

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

Mikki Moore Clinton Renard "Mikki" Moore (pronounced "MY-key"; born November 4, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Early life and college Born in Orangeburg, South Carolina, Moore graduated from Blacksburg High School at Blacksburg, ...

–

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

* Gabe Muoneke–

Saba Battery Tehran BC Saba Battery Tehran Basketball Club also known as ''Saba Mehr Qazvin Basketball Club'' was an Iranian professional basketball club based in Tehran and Qazvin, Iran. They competed in the Iranian Basketball Super League. The team was part of Saba ...

of the

Iranian Basketball Super League The Iranian Basketball Super League (IBSL) is a professional men's basketball league in Iran. It was founded in 1998. The current champions is Shahrdari Gorgan. The league follows the promotion and relegation system in which the worst two te ...

* Peter John Ramos–

Andreas Glyniadakis Andreas Glyniadakis (alternate spelling: Gliniadakis) (Greek: Ανδρέας Γλυνιαδάκης; born 26 August 1981) is a Greek former professional basketball player. He played center at a height of tall. His professional club playing caree ...

–

Maroussi BC Maroussi B.C. ( gr, K.A.E. Μαρούσι, link=off) alternately translated as Marousi, Amaroussi, or Amaroussion, is a professional basketball club that is based in Marousi, a northern suburb of Athens, in Greece. The club's full name is Gymnasti ...

of the Greek A1 League * Curtis Staples–

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 ...

* Jason Clark–

Virginia Cavaliers The Virginia Cavaliers, also known as ''Wahoos'' or ''Hoos'', are the athletic teams representing the University of Virginia, located in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers compete at the NCAA Division I level ( FBS for football), in the Atlantic C ...

NBA affiliates

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 ...

(2005–2006) *

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Ea ...

(2005–2006) *

(2005–2006)

Notes

{{Defunct D-League Basketball teams established in 2001 Basketball teams disestablished in 2006 Basketball teams in Virginia

Franchise history

Season by season results

Players of note

NBA affiliates

See also

Notes