Leagues NBB President Maria Florêncio League Novo Basquete Brasil | Location Macaé, Brazil Head coach Léo Costa Founded 2001 | |
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Arena Ginásio Tênis Clube de Macaé
(capacity: 3,000) Team colors White, Royal Blue and Light Royal Blue Profiles | ||
Associa o maca de basquete
Associação Macaé de Basquete, or simply Macaé Basquete, is a Brazilian basketball team headquartered in Macaé, Brazil. The team was founded with the priority to reach a place in the main league in the country, Novo Basquete Brasil.
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History
The team was founded with great support from the population of Macaé, who welcomed the team with much affection and crowded the Ginásio Juquinha in all team games during the difficult campaign toward the NBB.
To get to the NBB, Macaé had to play first Copa Brasil Sudeste de Basquete, where the top three teams in the tournament is classified for the Super Copa Brasil de Basquete. In the first phase, the team got the first place, with 8 wins and 2 defeats. Macaé managed to reach the semi-finals, but was eliminated by Rio Claro, team that won the tournament. In the end, Macaé, Rio Claro and along with Fluminense, qualified for the national tournament, which brought together the best teams from regional tournaments.
In the Super Copa Brasil de Basquete, Macaé finished the first phase in the first place, with two wins and no losses. In the semifinal, the team faced Rio Claro again, but this time got the win, qualifying for the final and, consequently, for the Tournament Access/Descent to NBB. Macaé was defeated in the final by Fluminense, but both teams earned the right to play in a group of three teams in a Tournament Access/Descent to the NBB with the penultimate set of the 2012–13 NBB season, Tijuca Tênis Clube. With 1 win and 1 loss, the team finished the tournament in second place behind the Tijuca, which managed 2 wins in 2 games. Thus, the Tijuca managed to stay in the elite of Brazilian basketball, while Macaé got a place for his first season at NBB.
After getting the rating for the NBB, the board of Macaé began a series of renewals of contracts of the major players in heroic campaign team: the American point guard Jamaal Smith, the Argentine forward Pablo Espinoza, the experienced center Atilio de Mello and the young promise João Phyllipe Bernardi. In addition, the team began to invest heavily in hiring other players with a high budget, and the intention to make a nice rookie season. The first player hired was the experienced Márcio Dornelles, champion of FIBA Americas League with Pinheiros, in 2013, and one of the key players in that title. Besides him, the Argentine center Juan Manuel Torres was hired, coming from Fluminense. But the hiring greatest impact was undoubtedly the shooting guard Duda Machado, sixth man of the Flamengo, team who had just been NBB champion.