SYRACUSE - Syracuse will host a team in the American Basketball Association in the upcoming season as part of the league's expansion.
The Syracuse Bullies will be owned by 40-year-old Rochester businessman Nicholas Fritts.
“This is a basketball city,” he said. “I've been getting a lot of fan response saying they were dying for an ABA team.”
Syracuse was among the charter members of the National Basketball Association, but has not had its own professional basketball team since the Syracuse Nationals left for Philadelphia in 1963.
The ABA has 42 teams, including the Rochester Razorsharks and Buffalo Silverbacks, that compete from November to March. The Bullies will play in Syracuse's OnCenter.
Fritts said he's not concerned about competition from Syracuse University men's basketball, which has averaged nearly 24,000 fans a game since the Carrier Dome opened in 1980 and has been ranked one or two nationally in attendance during 22 of those 26 years. Last year, the Orange broke their own on-campus attendance record with 33,633 fans for a game against Villanova.
“I hope some people who support Syracuse will support the Bullies, too,” he said.
Current ABA players include former Orange players Lazarus Sims and Kueth Duany.
Fritts said he intends to keep close ties with the university. Sims and former Orangeman Roosevelt Bouie, a radio announcer for Razorsharks games, are two of the top candidates to coach the team, he said. He was also hoping to provide playing opportunities for former Syracuse players.
Fritts said he hoped to have the roster finalized by July. Training camp will start in October.
The ABA features unique rules intended to make the game more fan-friendly and encourage more scoring.
Teams have seven seconds, not 10, to get across halfcourt. Field goals from the backcourt are worth four points. There's a -D” rule that rewards teams for scoring (adding one point to the basket) when a red light is on in certain situations.
“This is a basketball city,” he said. “I've been getting a lot of fan response saying they were dying for an ABA team.”
Syracuse was among the charter members of the National Basketball Association, but has not had its own professional basketball team since the Syracuse Nationals left for Philadelphia in 1963.
The ABA has 42 teams, including the Rochester Razorsharks and Buffalo Silverbacks, that compete from November to March. The Bullies will play in Syracuse's OnCenter.
Fritts said he's not concerned about competition from Syracuse University men's basketball, which has averaged nearly 24,000 fans a game since the Carrier Dome opened in 1980 and has been ranked one or two nationally in attendance during 22 of those 26 years. Last year, the Orange broke their own on-campus attendance record with 33,633 fans for a game against Villanova.
“I hope some people who support Syracuse will support the Bullies, too,” he said.
Current ABA players include former Orange players Lazarus Sims and Kueth Duany.
Fritts said he intends to keep close ties with the university. Sims and former Orangeman Roosevelt Bouie, a radio announcer for Razorsharks games, are two of the top candidates to coach the team, he said. He was also hoping to provide playing opportunities for former Syracuse players.
Fritts said he hoped to have the roster finalized by July. Training camp will start in October.
The ABA features unique rules intended to make the game more fan-friendly and encourage more scoring.
Teams have seven seconds, not 10, to get across halfcourt. Field goals from the backcourt are worth four points. There's a -D” rule that rewards teams for scoring (adding one point to the basket) when a red light is on in certain situations.
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