Texas Legends

Colorado 14ers

In 2006, Colorado businessmen Tim Wiens and John Frew, who were building the Broomfield Event Center as the centerpiece of the Arista development of Broomfield, Colorado, quickly sought to gain a new minor league basketball team for the venue and the surrounding community, believing minor league teams could be a hit in the northwest Denver-Boulder region. In February that year, the pair launched two sports teams, the Rocky Mountain Rage, a minor-league hockey franchise, and the Colorado 14ers, originally a Continental Basketball Association club. However, two months later, the 14ers entered the NBA Development League and began play in the 2006–07 season. The franchise was named after Colorado's famed 14,000-foot mountain peaks.

2006–07 season

Onetime Denver Nugget Joe Wolf was hired to be the 14ers' inaugural coach, as he and management put together one of the D-League's most formidable rosters. Finding quick success in their inaugural season, the 14ers shattered Colorado minor league basketball records of many kinds from scoring to fan attendance. Team leaders included Von Wafer and Louis Amundson, who were each permanently called up to the NBA by the end of the season. Nevertheless, the talented and resilient team overcame losing stretches and roster reorganizations, and qualified for the playoffs in their first season. The 14ers made an impressive run through the playoffs, winning the Western Division title before losing the championship game in overtime to the Dakota Wizards.

2007–08 season

The 14ers' second season began with an almost entirely new roster, with only Elton Brown and Eric Osmundson remaining from the team's inaugural year. Newcomers included area products Kaniel Dickens who quickly emerged as one of the top players on the team, as well as Eddie Gill, selected in the draft, who was called up to the NBA before even playing a game with the 14ers (and eventually returned to become a powerful force on the team). Kevin Hill, also picked in the draft, was the only Canadian selected in the 2007 draft. Despite considerable roster turnover, which included Brown's departure as well as an impressive five call-ups to the NBA (including the rare simultaneous call-ups of Dickens and Billy Thomas on February 22 by the Cleveland Cavaliers), the 14ers fared as well as they did in their first year, finishing the regular season with one more win than in 2006–07. The 14ers' six-game winning streak at the end of the season vaulted them into the playoffs as a wild card, but they lost in the first round to the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Despite this and a slippage in fan attendance, it was overall a successful season under at times challenging circumstances.

2008–09 season

Colorado's third season, the most of any minor league basketball franchise in the state, was a triumph over adversity. The season began with ownership increasingly falling upon hard times, having a new coach, Robert MacKinnon, after Joe Wolf had ascended to the NBA, and an almost completely remade roster with returnees Eddie Gill and Billy Thomas being joined by Jamar Brown, who previously played for the Colorado Crossover. Newcomers Dominique Coleman and Josh Davis were both major contributors, as was Sonny Weems, assigned from the Denver Nuggets three times to contribute during the regular season and playoffs. From the beginning, the 14ers were a formidable force in the D-League, pulling into the league lead for wins and setting the D-League record for points in a game with a 147–119 win over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on March 10, then breaking that record with a 155–127 win over the Albuquerque Thunderbirds on April 8. Finishing with a franchise-record 34 wins, the 14ers had home court advantage throughout the playoffs, soundly defeating the Erie Bayhawks, rallying to beat the Austin Toros, and sweeping the Utah Flash in the Finals to claim the 2008–09 D-League championship.

Texas Legends

On June 18, 2009, Dallas Mavericks executive Donnie Nelson purchased the 14ers franchise and moved the team to Frisco, Texas. They were slated to begin play in 2010–11 with a new nickname, colors and logo. On November 5, 2009, women's basketball pioneer Nancy Lieberman was introduced as the Legends' head coach, becoming the first woman to lead a men's professional basketball team. Earning the name of Texas Legends, the team began play in the 2010–11 D-League season out of the Dr Pepper Arena. Along with Lieberman, the Legends hired a few other notable basketball names for the front office in their inaugural campaign, including President of Basketball Operations Spud Webb (1986 Slam Dunk Champion) and General Manager Del Harris (1995 NBA Coach of the Year).

The Legends were one of the main attractions in the 16-team league, as they we seen on national TV on VERSUS three times to go along with their two appearances on Fox Sports Southwest. Texas played their first game in franchise history in front of a nationally televised crowd on VERSUS against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. After dropping the opener, the Legends picked up their first victory in team history on November 26 against the Idaho Stampede, 108–100. Texas returned to Frisco for the much-anticipated inaugural home-opener on November 30. They dazzled the sold-out crowd by scoring a league record 84 points in the first half of basketball on their new home floor on the way to a 135–112 win over their cross-state rival Austin Toros. Texas began the season with a 5–1 record, the best six-game start for an expansion team in league history. They finished the regular season with a 24–26 record, as Nancy Lieberman guided Texas to the playoffs, becoming only the third expansion team in league history to make it to the postseason. There they were eliminated in the first round by the Tulsa 66ers.

On October 4, 2011, Del Harris was announced as the Legends' new head coach following the departure of Nancy Lieberman. In his lone season with the Legends, Harris guided the team to a 24–26 record for the second straight year, this time not good enough for a playoff berth. Between 2012 and 2015, the Legends were guided by former NBA player Eduardo Nájera. However, he was unable to lead the team to a playoff berth in either of his three seasons. On July 8, 2015, the Legends appointed Nick Van Exel as the team's new head coach. His stint lasted just one season after being hired as an assistant coach by the Memphis Grizzlies in June 2016. He was replaced by Bob MacKinnon Jr., who had previously been the head coach when the team won a D-League championship in Colorado.

Ownership

The team is owned by Texas D-League Management, LLC, which is principally owned by Donnie Nelson, general manager and President of Basketball operations for the Dallas Mavericks and son of former NBA head coach Don Nelson. The ownership group also includes Evan Wyly and Eduardo Nájera.

NBA call-ups

Source: 2015–16 Texas Legends Media Guide

Affiliates