Plymouth Raiders - Franchise History - 2004-2010: The BBL Years

2004-2010: The BBL Years

Having firmly established themselves as the dominant force in Division 1, the Plymouth board sought new challenges for the team and to expand the Raiders brand and during the summer of 2004 announced that they had been admitted into the top-tier BBL. Raiders were the first team to be added to the professional league since the inception of Edinburgh Rocks in 1998, due to the BBL’s operation as a closed league with a ‘buy-in’ policy. With the loss of Dean Williams and Roderick Wellington to Thames Valley Tigers, Coach Stronach strengthened the roster with Canadian Ryan French, American Gerrick Morris, and exercised the BBL’s import rules - allowing four instead of three in the EBL - to bring back former star Terrence Durham. The rest of the team was filled with local talent including new captain Gavin Love, Marjon standout Myron Riley and former development player Allister Gall, returning from four years at USA college Franklin Pierce. The season started positively, winning their opening game at home to Milton Keynes Lions, 63-46, but a hard season ensued for Raiders, who relied heavily on the scoring abilities of DeAntoine Beasley and Durham and the incredible blocking power of Morris, who set a BBL record with 12 blocks in a game against London Towers. Raiders finished the season at 12-28, missing out on the Play-off’s in 9th place, but the rookie campaign was a learning curve for the team and Coach Stronach, setting the standard required for competition at the top level. Forward Durham claimed his own personal accolade, finishing as the league’s top rebounder with 13.6 per game. His performances caught the eyes of many team scouts across Europe and left at the end of the season to sign for French ProA team Reims Champagne Basket.

With progress in mind and the exits of Durham, Morris and Ryan French, Stronach recruited three new American’s to take their place, namely Gaylon Moore from EBL’s Worthing, Andrew Lasker, and 6ft9, 300 lbs Centre Carlton Aaron from UMKC Kangaroos. A narrow 76-75 defeat to Chester opened the new season, and Raiders would play six more games before finding their first win of the season against new franchise Guildford Heat. However it was a one-off victory as six more losses followed and the loss of Carlton Aaron through injury was a further blow to the campaign, which saw Raiders languishing at 2-14 by Christmas. The New Year brought about a change of fortune as Raiders embarked on a 14 wins to 10 defeats run which pulled them into contention for a Play-off place but were pipped to the final spot by Brighton, ending in 9th position.

A largely untweeked roster entered the 2006-07 season, with the signing of Mark Woodhouse from Iceland the only notable difference. The opening weekend saw two defeats to Guildford and Leicester Riders, but a four game winning streak brought the season, and new aspirations, to life and by December Raiders found themselves top of the BBL for the first time in franchise history and greater success was to come in the BBL Trophy. Having topped a group that included Guildford, Worthing and Reading, Raiders swept aside Leicester, 83-64, at the Pavilions to progress to the Final, another first for the club. The Final was hosted by Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena on 4 March 2007, and coincidently the opponents were Newcastle Eagles who had won all four BBL trophies during the previous season and in the week before the Final defeated Raiders 99-75 in the league. Against all odds, Plymouth outmuscled and outclassed the hosts on the way to a historic 65-74 victory, just three years after making the jump from the EBL. Scoring a game-high 25 points and claiming 12 rebounds, Carlton Aaron was named as the game’s MVP, adding to his November Player of the Month award.

In the league, Raiders constantly held a Play-off position for the majority of the season and though qualifying with ease, just missed out on home advantage with a 5th place finish. A journey in to uncharted territory awaited the Plymouth team appearing in their first BBL Play-offs, however it was also a long journey to face opponents Scottish Rocks, as the league’s most Southern and Northern teams met in the one-off clash. A dream first appearance to the Finals Weekend for Raiders was dashed by a 6-point defeat, 83-77, but a huge worry was an in-game injury to captain Gavin Love’s Achilles tendon, which subsequently forced the Point Guard to miss a call-up to the Great Britain national team. At the end of season awards, Raiders “big-man” Aaron was named in the All-Star first team and 4th in the MVP ballot, finishing the season on 17 points-per-game, 12.4 rebounds-per-game and a field goal scoring average of 59%. On 1 May, the Raiders development programme was awarded with the prestigious Club Mark accolade by Sport England and England Basketball. Off court progress in building the club’s brand was also made during the same month with the appointment of a new Chief Executive, David Briggs.

With such an excellent season under his belt, star man Carlton Aaron departed the team during the close-season, trying out for teams in South Korea, before eventually signing for a Guildford side preparing for their first appearance in Europe’s ULEB Cup. Several bench players including Woodhouse and Jean Wakanena also followed Aaron out the door, and with empty slots and an extended budget from the board, Coach Stronach was looking to build a team to bring more silverware to the Southwest. An experienced game-winner was essential and with that in mind, Stronach wasted no time in bringing back Terrence Durham for his third spell at Raiders, as Aaron’s replacement. A stronger bench was also vital, and so speedy Guard Anthony Martin and hustler James Noel were signed from Chester and Worcester Wolves respectively. With Gavin Love still undergoing a long rehabilitation programme due to his injury, Canadian dual-national Brody Bishop was drafted in to provide extra cover at the key Point Guard position, and started with an MVP performance in a dream debut against Guildford in the Cup Winners' Cup. The inaugural Cup pitted the winners of the BBL Cup and the BBL Trophy from the previous season together in a two game series which Raiders lost 176-168 on aggregate. Further disappointment was added with First Round defeats in the Trophy and the Cup, following a shock home defeat to London Capital.

After committing over two decades of service to the Raiders, Coach Stronach was presented by the BBC with a Lifetime Achievement Award at a ceremony in November, honouring the success he has brought to Plymouth. On court, the team’s form in the Championship was exceeding all expectations and consistently occupied a spot in the top four positions, trailing Newcastle in second place for a several months. The league looked like going right down to the wire and only a late season defeat to Sheffield ruled out a second place finish, but a solid run of results in the final week against Rocks and Milton Keynes sealed the third place finish, Raiders’ highest placing in franchise history. A home Play-off tie against Sheffield was the reward, and despite missing key player Durham through injury, Raiders cruised to a 91-73 victory and to a place at the 2008 Finals Weekend at Birmingham’s National Indoor Arena. Unfortunately, Raiders couldn’t replicate the same performance and crashed to an 81-66 defeat at the hands of eventual winners Guildford. They went on to face Newcastle in the 3rd place game on 4 May 2008, and though losing 54-33 at half-time, edged out their opponents in a tight 96-92 victory taking 3rd place and rounding off the most successful season in the clubs history. With an average of 19 points-per-game, Plymouth’s top scorer Andrew Lasker was named in the All-Star team for the 2007-08 season . After being declined by Newcastle and Guildford - who both finished above Plymouth in the league - FIBA approached Raiders with an invitation to compete in the EuroChallenge for the 2008-09 season, which Raiders also duly declined.

After six years of sponsorship from Kularoos, the Raiders board announced during the summer of 2008 a major new deal had been reached with Plymouth-based chewing gum giant Wrigley’s Airwaves, reportedly “one of the biggest in basketball history”. The extra funds brought in allowed for a bigger budget in terms of recruiting, and within days the signing of Kwbana Beckles was publicised. Beckles came with plenty of pedigree having appeared in Sweden, Switzerland, Israel and spells for NBA teams Atlanta Hawks and Toronto Raptors. Veteran player DeAntoine Beasley took-up the new dual role as player/assistant coach, declining a coaching job in the USA while captain Gavin Love, who missed much of the previous season through injury signed a new one-year contract.

Raiders opened the season with an 80-104 demolition of the league’s new boys Worthing Thunder, who had just made the leap from EBL. Another defeat of London Capital followed but the first home game saw the visiting Scottish Rocks crush Plymouth 68-88, with further defeats to Everton Tigers and Newcastle, it was a woeful start for the Raiders. In October, the team was boosted with the visit of a FIBA inspection team that approved the use of the Pavilions for European competition matches, providing a top-two finish is achieved in the Championship. Though the team were struggling to find dorm in the league, the BBL Cup campaign was in full flow and following a 101-76 demolition of Leicester, Raiders found themselves in a two-game Semi-final series against Guildford. A 73-80 victory at the Spectrum and 74-69 win four days later in Plymouth booked Raiders’ place in only their second BBL Final. Their Final opponents were table-topping Everton, who Raiders managed to beat in an 89-85 thriller just weeks before, but it was the Tigers who stamped their authority on the game and inflicted the biggest Cup Final defeat recorded with a 103-49 victory at the National Indoor Arena. Raiders played without influential stalwart Beasley who had suffered a dislocated shoulder during a Trophy game with Worcester the week before, adding to the team’s injury woes that included Durham and Love. Reinforcement was needed, and at the end of January Coach Stronach announced the signing of Gerald Robinson, an American with a Dutch passport, from Spanish team Oviedo. A week later, Gavin Love announced he was to retire from playing after 13 years with the Raiders, citing multiple injuries as the reason. In honour of his services to the club, his number six jersey was retired at a ceremony on 14 February 2009 prior to a game with Guildford. Israeli Point Guard Haggai Hundert was drafted in from Slovenia to fill the void left by Love. The franchise expanded on its ambitions to play in Europe with the announcement on 16 March, of a co-operation deal with Spanish giants Unicaja Málaga. The alliance will see Raiders coaches going to Spain to gain experience and young players coming to Plymouth to improve their English and education. The team missed out on the chance of a second Final appearance with a two-game series defeat to Guildford in the Trophy, losing 187-161 on aggregate in the Semi-final, while in the league, an 75-82 win away to Leicester put them back in contention for a top-four finish. However an agonising 96-73 defeat at the hands of Sheffield Sharks dealt a huge blow, in a game that also saw Andrew Lasker, Anthony Martin and Terrence Durham sidelined by injury. A mixed run of results ended the regular season and with Plymouth finishing the campaign in 5th place, a road trip to Guildford Heat was on the cards in the Play-off Quarter-final. Raiders produced a stellar performance and secured their second successive Finals Weekend appearance with a 81-89 win with the help of Lasker’s 26 point haul. A day later, the BBL announced the season’s All-Star team including Lasker, who finished 8th in the MVP vote. Unfortunately for Raiders, their National Indoor Arena jink kicked in again and were trounced by Newcastle in the Semi-final by a 93-71 scoreline.

The franchise announced during the close season that the player’s budget would be slashed by 60-65% for the following season, citing the economic climate and a lack of sponsorship as the main reasons for the cuts. Though the entire roster - bar Terrence Durham who would remain injured for most of the year - were offered reduced contracts for the proceeding 2009-2010 season, there was a mass exodus with Andrew Lasker, DeAntoine Beasley, Kwbana Beckles, Gerald Robinson, Haggai Hundert, Anthony Martin and Gaylon Moore all heading for the exit. Only James Noel and new team captain Allister Gall stayed on and they were joined with several prospects promoted from reserve team Raiders II, including Jay Marriott, Jamie Burchell and Michal Czynienik. The reserves, playing under the banner of the Raiders development scheme produced many successful names, including Gall, former captain Gavin Love and the aforementioned three promoted to the first team. With progress in mind, the summer saw the unveiling of a restructured development programme following a merger with of Raiders development with local club Plymouth Marjon Cannons. The combination abolished a once strong rivalry between Raiders and the Cannons, now operating under one umbrella as Plymouth Marjon, and headed by former Cannons coach George Hatchell.

Eric Flato, a recent graduate of Yale University, was the first import player drafted in to the new-look roster and the news was soon followed by the capture of Terry Horton, another American, who was brought in from Germany. American-Irish Matthew Hilleary also joined the ranks from the Irish Superleague and the roster was completed with Puerto Rican Florentino Valencia signing up from Battle Creek Knights in the USA. With an almost entirely new line-up fielded, it was always conceivable that the team would take time to gel together, but after opening the new season with losses to Worthing, Cheshire, Milton Keynes and Sheffield, changes needed to be made. Anthony Martin was re-signed following a brief and unsuccessful spell at Worcester, having departed the Raiders just months earlier. He made an immediate impact and his 14 points aided Raiders to an 96-95 overtime win at home to Newcastle, only the second victory recorded by Plymouth. A premature exit of the Trophy came about with a 95-101 loss to Milton Keynes, and to add more firepower former Raiders development talent Anthony Rowe signed on a one month deal in November. Things worsened for Plymouth when starting Point Guard Eric Plato picked up a career-threatening injury ruling him out for the rest of the season, and so was subsequently released. His replacement was another familiar face in Andrew Lasker, the team’s top-scorer for the past four seasons, who was one of many to leave Raiders during the summer. He marked his return in a 69-84 loss to Everton on December 5, posting a game-high 23 points.

Rooted to the bottom of the league standings, Raiders managed to turn things around with a 71-78 away victory at Guildford, ending their eight-game losing streak, continuing the momentum into the new year and chalking-up a shock away win at Everton Tigers 74-87. In February it was announced that James Noel was released from his contract, due to a series of long-term injuries, allowing the team's bench players more opportunity. Form started to improve throughout the Spring, but a double loss to Glasgow and Worthing at the beginning of April ended any hopes of qualifying for the Play-offs with fives games left of the regular season. Two weeks later it was announced by the club that after 24 years of service Gary Stronach was to step down as head coach at the end of the season. Coming as a shock to many fans, Stronach cited the reason for his departure was that "it's time for me to move on, broaden the horizon and see what's out there." Disappointingly he marked his departure with a 99-108 loss to Worthing in the final game of the season, a result that secured the final Play-off place for Worthing.