Glasgow Rocks

2012/13: 3rd place

The Glasgow Rocks are a professional basketball team from Glasgow in Scotland. The Rocks were founded in 1998 as a franchise of the closed professional league British Basketball League (BBL ) in Edinburgh and took a vacant license that was available through the merger of Crystal Palace and London Towers. Four years later they moved to Glasgow and competed under the name Scottish Rocks. After a long-term agreement with the City of Glasgow was changed the name in 2009 in Glasgow Rocks.

History

Edinburgh Rocks (1998 to 2002)

At the start of the BBL in 1987 there was with the BC Murray Livingston a Scottish club in the BBL, which grew by the relocation of the Kingston Kings as Glasgow Rangers to Glasgow on two teams in the second season 1988/89. The two teams played in the 1988/89 BBL season in the play- off final the title among themselves. David E. Murray, owner of both teams, but then lost interest in the sport of basketball and concentrated its activities on the football club Glasgow Rangers, which he chairs had taken over in 1987. While the basketball team the Rangers returned as Kings to Kingston upon Thames, Murray BC has been deregistered from the BBL and BBL played from now on as a league in which only teams from England competed.

After the 1997/98 season, the two London clubs Crystal Palace and Towers joined forces in the London Towers. This was a welcome opportunity to bring a BBL franchise to Scotland with the assistance of a consortium of Scottish businessmen again. As home ground the Meadowbank Arena was selected in Edinburgh and the team got the name Edinburgh Rocks. In its premiere season, the Rocks won a third of the season games and were in ninth "best of the rest", but missed the eighth and final qualifying spot for the play- offs clear. Already in its second season threatened the Rocks the money to go out, but Ian Reid as one of the directors bought the franchise and was able to initially stabilize financially. In the BBL a regional breakdown was introduced and the Rocks reached in the "Northern Conference " with a positive season record of more victories than defeats a third place. At their first play-off participation they lost the semi-final against eventual winners Manchester Giants, against whom they had previously lost the semi-finals in the National Cup.

The economic difficulties were joined the following season 2000/ 01 also sporting turmoil that led to the dismissal of the new and highly controversial coach Greg Lockridge. Successor as player-coach of the future Scotland manager Iain McLean, who was already as a former player of Murray BC since the beginning of Rocks franchise in the squad. However, he could hardly alleviate the chronic Erfolgslosigkeit first and the team finished the season after only five wins in 36 league games with the worst record of all teams in the BBL. The following season, 2001/ 02 it was not much more successful, reaching 13 wins this season in the league 's third- worst record of all BBL teams. As fourth in the Northern Conference this still handed to participate in the play-offs, while two South teams with a better balance was finished the season. Perhaps this was one reason that the BBL scheme of the Conferences and abolished again in the following season again led a common table; for the Rocks took the season then only slightly longer than you eliminated in the very first round.

Scottish Rocks (2002 to 2009)

The 2002/03 season began with the move from the Meadowbank Arena in Edinburgh at the Braehead Arena in Renfrew on the edge of the most populous Scottish city of Glasgow. The Paisley Renfrewshire BC there was already a team that had participated in European club competitions in the 1970s. After moving from the Scottish capital Edinburgh, the association called around and took as his time only Scottish BBL franchise the name Scottish Rocks. In the new hall, the Rocks had to first build a new fan base, but sporty knew the Rocks convince. In the course of the season could increase and reached with a positive record this season again the play-offs, where they then presented itself at its best and successively defeated the teams with the three best balance sheets of regular time. With the victory in the BBL play-offs in 2003 it won the first title success for the club. Subsequently, a native of the United States coach Kevin Wall again left the Rocks and returned to his home country.

Although the Rocks with Jerry Williams presented the "Most Valuable Player " ( MVP ) of the BBL in the season 2003/ 04, they could not build on the success in the preseason. Although it was enough to finals in the BBL Cup, which was however lost against the Sheffield Sharks, who won the play-offs of the BBL, where " thrown off " the Rocks as the main round in fourth and defending champion in the first round. In the 2004/05 season the team missed with, among others, LaMont McIntosh, who later played in the German Basketball Bundesliga, in re- finals in the BBL Cup title success this time against the Brighton Bears. In the league it was enough despite a negative balance in sixth season to participate in the play-offs. Again as in the previous year were the Chester Jets, the team who took care of the premature end of the season the Rocks. This time, however, the issue was only in the semi-finals after the Rocks, somewhat surprisingly, the London Towers had defeated in the first round. In the season 2005/ 06 they were in the league as league runners just one win from the best record of the Newcastle Eagles away, but eventually dominated and won all titles awarded to the BBL, including the play-offs with a 83:68 - victory over the Rocks.

For the season 2006/ 07 the Rocks committed by Thorsten Leibenath Germany's first coach in the BBL. While Leibenath the Rocks could lead to the final of the BBL Cup again, this time it went lost by three points difference against the Guildford Heat, up to fourth place in the championship. In the semi final they won against the main round First Heat, lost in a rematch of last year's final, again against Newcastle Eagles. Leibenath was then head coach of the casting 46ers, who had already brought 2003 Chris Finch as a coach from the BBL, the Leibenath had assisted in casting. Successor of Leibenath at the Rocks was as player-coach Sterling Davis, who, however, after the fifth place in the championship, a play-off from the first round had to accept. Moving to the Kelvin Hall, and a longer- term agreement with the Glasgow City Council in the following season brought no athletic improvement. Instead, they reached a negative record this season only seventh nor the play-offs, which ended early with the off in the first round.

Glasgow Rocks (since 2009)

By binding to the city of Glasgow and the move within the city limits was called up for the 2009/ 10 in Glasgow Rocks to. The new name also new sporting success was established. So they reached the play-offs this time as a third party and suggested Cup Winners Sheffield Sharks in the semifinals. In the play- off final the Rocks a triumph was again denied, this time when they lost against Everton Tigers. The following season, they could not follow up on this, especially since Kieron Achara the Rocks left after season start for the more affluent southern European leagues, instead, would retire as a sixth championship in the first play-off round. The 2011/12 season had no noticeable success for the Rocks, although you could improve in the final table for a place and the play-off from this time only took place in the semifinals. The following season saw the move to the much larger Emirates Arena, which was built for the Commonwealth Games in 2014 and in the fit 6,500 spectators for basketball matches. In the first round of the BBL Trophy 2013 we defeated the visiting team Edinburgh Scottish Kings, but different as in the BBL Cup in the next round. In the championship in 2012/13 they finished third place, but in the knockout games of the playoffs, they lost in the first round return match against the Plymouth Raiders, so that the 2012/13 season a unsatisfactory end took.