Draft night and draft beer made for a smooth combination Thursday night at Back Forty Birmingham at Sloss Docks.
The brewery hosted Summer Slam 2023, the official NBA Draft watch party of the Birmingham Squadron. And while the breaking news concerned the New Orleans Pelicans – the parent club of the Magic City’s G League club snagged UConn sophomore Jordan Hawkins with the 14th pick – it was also a chance to put the Squadron back in the spotlight five months ahead of the 2023-24 season.
Birmingham coach T.J. Saint, as well as play-by-play announcer Blake Gardner and analyst Rick Moody, talked hoops while the draft played out on a big screen behind them.
“As this is all unfolding and we’re watching the draft, what I’m watching for and what the Birmingham front office is looking for, is who goes undrafted,” said Saint, who is entering his second year at the helm of the Squadron. “We talk to different players, and if certain guys in the second round aren’t selected, we’ll make calls to their agents and get them on our summer league team.”
Birmingham closed out the 2022-23 campaign with a 122-120 victory over the College Park Skyhawks in front of 4,119 fans at Legacy Arena in March.
The Pelicans’ developmental team finished 6-12 in the preseason Showcase Cup competition and 11-21 in the regular season, drawing 65,682 for home games in their second season in Birmingham.
Average attendance was 2,737 fans per game, 11th best among the 30 G League teams.
“Honestly, the arena we have here is NBA-level,” Saint said. “And if we can just get more people there … I think the weekends are pretty good, but on Tuesdays if you guys can come out, it helps a lot. It creates a better atmosphere.
“And the talent level of the G League, for people who don’t know, it’s just below the NBA and you have that right here in your city and it’s a very affordable ticket. And you’ll recognize most of the players. If you come out, I think it can help us build a contender for the title.”
The fact that the Squadron completed a second season and is set for a third also made some local history: Birmingham franchises in the Professional Basketball League of America, Southern Professional Basketball League and Continental Basketball Association were all one-and-out.
As is the nature of any G League squad, the roster promises to change dramatically when play begins. Last season forward Feron Hunt and guard Javonte Smart appeared in 32 outings. Hunt tallied 468 points and had 164 rebounds in 985 minutes, while Smart was good for 435 points and 110 assists in 930 minutes on the floor.
Dereon Seabron – a two-way player who averaged 18.4 points per G League game – was called up to New Orleans for five games. In 27 appearances with the Squadron, he scored 497 points and logged 932 minutes of court time.
He was re-signed to a two-way contract in April.
Two-way players are on the roster of both an NBA team and its G League affiliate.
“Did everybody like watching Dereon Seabron play here?” Saint asked the crowd. “Well, the G League has added a third two-way spot. So, imagine three Dereon Seabrons on your team. That’s the talent upgrade that the whole G League and the Squadron are looking at. One of our two-ways last year was injured and you never saw him. His name is E.J. Liddell. He’ll be on our team next year, and we’ll add another person.
“Dereon’s been working really hard in New Orleans this last month and he’ll play on our summer league team. We’re going to put some new guys around him and it’s going to be much more exciting than last year.”
Molding two-way players into NBA-level performers is a primary task of a G League coaching staff, as well as giving them a strong supporting cast.
“The main assignment for us is to develop the two-way players into better NBA players, so to surround them with veterans who can support them is the main focus of me and our staff,” Saint said.
Before the Squadron takes the floor in the Uptown the Pelicans will return to Legacy Arena for a preseason clash with the Houston Rockets on Oct. 12. Last year the Pelicans and Atlanta Hawks met at Legacy with a sellout crowd of 15,486 on hand to watch.
Saint hopes those who come for that one will decide to make Squadron games part of their entertainment plans as well.
“A lot of the best basketball experiences I’ve had as a player or coach is traveling overseas and playing in different countries, and our trip to Mexico City, I felt like being in that arena with those fans and that soccer atmosphere, I felt like I was coaching an NBA game,” Saint said. “There was just a moment in that game when I thought, ‘This is big time.’ It was just a great moment for our players and staff and to get a win down there was special. We’d love to have that kind of atmosphere here.”
For more information about the upcoming season, call the Squadron ticket office at 205-719-0850 or go to birminghamsquadron.com.