Category: Basketball

The city of Birmingham’s latest professional basketball season began October 14, 2022, when the New Orleans Pelicans squared off with the Atlanta Hawks in an exhibition game at Legacy Arena. It ended on Saturday when the NBA teams’ G league affiliates – the Birmingham Squadron and College Park Skyhawks – played their season finales in the same building.

Man, it was fun … all of it.

The Squadron’s final mission of 2022-23 was contested on Fan Appreciation Night in front of 4,119 spectators, who saw Birmingham take a 122-120 victory. The Pelicans’ understudies finished 6-12 in the preseason Showcase Cup competition and 11-21 in the regular season.

College Park closed out at 15-17.

Birmingham got 27 points from guard Kelan Martin, followed by Malcolm Hill (23), Dereon Seabron (19), James Kelly Sr. (15) and Feron Hunt (13). Seabron added 11 rebounds for a double-double in a matchup the hosts led from wire-to-wire.

Brandon Williams had a huge night for the Skyhawks, hitting for 40 points, while Donovan Williams added 25.

“It felt good to end up on a high note,” Martin said. “We’ve won a lot in the last few games, so it was nice to end the season like this. It was fun out there playing one last time.”

Heading into Saturday’s finale, Martin was the club’s top scorer for the year, popping for 20.1 points per game. His Saturday performance cemented his status as stat leader in the category.

“This season I just worked really hard on playing my game, and the work that I put in over the summer paid off,” he said. “I was consistent all year, so it was a good feeling.”

From a wins and losses perspective, it wasn’t what Squadron players, coaches or fans hoped for; Birmingham finished well below the playoff cut line. But the NBA G League is about getting players ready to step up to the next level, and in that regard, plenty was accomplished.

“I commended them on their character, which is how we put the team together, and it really showed the last 10 or so games this season,” Squadron head coach T. J. Saint said after the game. “They stuck together. Hard times create strong men, and I’ve told them that the whole season. And even though we didn’t make the playoffs and the record wasn’t what we wanted, this season will in some way pay dividends in their future.”

And if you were among the 65,682 fans who showed up for a game in Birmingham’s house, you were certainly entertained – regardless of the outcomes. This is what a developmental league is supposed to be; fast-paced, high-quality play, night in and night out.

Hunt, a forward, and guard Javonte Smart suited up for more Squadron regular season games than any other players on the roster, making the most of their minutes 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.

Seabron – a two-way player who averaged 18.4 points per G League game – was called up to New Orleans for five games, but parlayed 27 appearances with the Squadron into 497 points as well as 932 minutes of court time. Immediately after Saturday’s win, he flew out to join the Pelicans on their West Coast swing.

The former North Carolina State guard has been a standout for the Squadron all season long, and in his penultimate regular season game had a triple-double (21 points, 15 assists and 10 rebounds) in a 139-131 road loss to the Iowa Wolves.

And before joining FC Bayern Munich in the EuroLeague, forward Zylan Cheatham was a crowd favorite, scoring 12.2 points and snatching 8.9 rebounds per game in 23 appearances.

For fans who wanted some local flavor with their pro hoops, they got it in a pair of guards – University of Alabama product and Huntsville native John Petty Jr. and UAB’s Jordan Swing, who graduated from Vestavia Hills High School.

Arguably the high point of the season came on March 7 when 7,013 fans – mostly youngsters – were at Legacy Arena for the Literacy Day showdown against the Santa Cruz Warriors. Birmingham rewarded the largest crowd of 2022-23 with a 127-112 victory.

“They got to 110 decibels that game, and we needed all of them,” Saint said.

Attendance was solid as the team averaged 2,737 fans per game. Aside from the huge Literacy Day turnout, the Squadron drew 4,000-plus fans on three home dates – including the season finale – and more than 3,000 customers twice.

Completing a second season is a first for a professional basketball team in the Magic City. Franchises in the Professional Basketball League of America, Southern Professional Basketball League and Continental Basketball Association were one-and-done, while the Squadron has been part of the city’s sportscape since 2021.

Saint hopes for even better things to come.

“Every coffee shop I go in I say, ‘Hey, are you guys going to the Squadron game?’” Saint said. “Some people knew about the team but now more people know, and all the credit goes to (general manager) Leslie Claybrook and her staff. They have been monumental in trying to spread the word, and it’s going to grow even more this summer.

“This is one of the greatest places to play basketball in the entire G League, and I’m really excited about the future.”

Like other college basketball standouts, North Carolina State’s Dereon Seabron was hoping to hear his name called during the 2022 NBA Draft.

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.

Two teams were quite familiar with his name, though, and that prompted a call from his agent.

“On draft night, when it got to the later part of the second round, my agent called me and said there were two teams that would offer me a two-way contract if I didn’t get drafted – the (New Orleans) Pelicans and the (Philadelphia) 76ers,” remembers Seabron, who was voted the Atlantic Coast Conference Most Improved Player and second team All-ACC for the 2021-22 season. “But I never worked out with the 76ers. New Orleans liked me a lot and things went well when I got there, so I took the two-way from them. I flew in, we had training camp for summer league, and that’s how it all started.”

Seabron, a 6-6 guard, signed with the Pelicans last September, setting the stage for a season that has him spending some time with the parent club and the rest with New Orleans’ G League affiliate, the Birmingham Squadron.

Playing overseas can be a lucrative alternative for undrafted players, but Seabron said he never considered that an option, especially after scoring 17.3 points and pulling down 8.2 rebounds per game in his final (redshirt sophomore) season with the Wolfpack.

“For me, personally, playing overseas wasn’t something I thought about,” he said. “The NBA was the only thing on my mind because I dreamt of it as a kid and felt like I was good enough to make a team.”

Two-way contracts date back to January 19, 2017, when the NBA reached a collective bargaining agreement which went into effect for the upcoming season. Part of the deal meant that teams could retain rights to two players who were part of what was then called the NBA Development League.

It would allow big league clubs to effectively expand their rosters from 15 to 17 players.

Then, it was an experiment, with 53 players signing two-way deals for 2017-18.

Today, such contracts are standard practice in the NBA/G League dynamic. And for Seabron, the benefits of being in the system are already paying dividends.

“It’s a good experience,” Seabron said. “When I went to work out with New Orleans, it just felt like a family atmosphere. I really like the organization.”

Players who have fewer than four years of NBA experience can sign a two-way contract, and are limited to two years with the same team. They’re eligible to play in 50 of the parent club’s regular season games (but are ineligible for the postseason) and can still practice with the team when not playing. Of course, NBA down time usually means active time with the G League team.

Two-way players are paid a flat rate equal to half of the league’s minimum salary, and there are no salary cap implications.

Seabron is the only active two-way player in the Pelicans’ organization; the other, E.J. Liddell out of Ohio State, is currently recovering from a torn right ACL.

And while a player can be cut at any time, his contract can also be converted to a regular NBA contract (point guard Mike James was the first to get the contract upgrade, that coming on December 7, 2017, when he was with the Phoenix Suns). Once this happens, another two-way contract spot opens.

Seabron led the Squadron in scoring in two of the first three regular season games, then was transferred to New Orleans prior to Birmingham’s West Coast trip. On January 9, during the Pelicans’ 132-112 road victory against the Washington Wizards, he scored his first NBA points and was presented the game ball by New Orleans coach Willie Green.

Last Sunday in the Squadron’s 122-104 loss to the Stockton Kings, Seabron shared high-scoring honors with Javonte Smart by hitting for 22.

Entering the two-game road swing at Raptors 905, Seabron had suited up for Birmingham 17 times (averaging 14.3 points per game), and has four appearances with New Orleans. In his 18th and 19th games with the Squadron, he totaled 40 points, leading the team with 25 points in a 115-95 victory on Thursday.

“I really like the concept of two-way players, and I really like our guy,” Birmingham coach T.J. Saint said. “I told him after (Saturday’s win over Stockton) that it was one of the best games I’ve seen from him as far as controlling the game at the end. Not forcing it, getting organized … I was very proud of him.”

Seabron hopes to make his way to a full-time roster spot with the Pelicans sooner than later, of course, but his time in Birmingham has been time well spent.

“I definitely think playing in Birmingham has helped me a lot, especially on the defensive end,” he said. “I can go out and get the reps and make reads, and we do the same things here they’re doing in New Orleans, so it makes it easier when you make the move.”

Saint agrees.

“We have some non-negotiables and defense is one, so if he didn’t (play defense), I’d pull him right away,” Saint said. “But again, he’s getting it done, and I’m very proud of how he’s playing.”

On paper, it looked like a major mismatch.

In one corner, you had the Stockton Kings, owners of the best record in the league (9-1) and riding a four-game winning streak.

In the other was the Birmingham Squadron, sitting at 1-10 and reeling from 10 consecutive losses.

The Kings topped the Squadron in almost every statistical category coming into Saturday’s clash at Legacy Arena, so it was a solid bet they’d add to the home team’s misery.

If you made that bet, however, you lost.

Birmingham took the fight to Stockton from the outset, and even though they trailed at the end of the first, second and third quarters, a steady push over the final 12 minutes led to an exciting 112-111 victory.

The teams swapped leads nine times in the fourth stanza, but it was Zylan Cheatham’s bucket with 33 seconds remaining that accounted for the winning score.

“These guys work behind the scenes so hard,” Squadron coach T.J. Saint said. “We had an off day after the RGV game (a 132-105 loss to Rio Grande Valley on Tuesday) – didn’t even show the film, just threw it away – and then had two really good days of practice. Then they came back and beat the No. 1 team in the league.

“They deserve it.”

Entering the game, the New Orleans Pelicans affiliate was 0-8 when down after the first quarter, 0-10 when behind at the half, and 0-8 when on the short side of the scoreboard after three.

But despite trailing 30-28, 61-56 and 88-86, Birmingham had the most points at the final buzzer, snapping the franchise’s longest losing streak.

Cheatham led a balanced Squadron attack with 21 points and seven rebounds, while James Kelly Sr. had a double-double with 17 points and 11 boards.

Other double-digit scorers for the winners were Javonte Smart (16), Feron Hunt (15) and two-way player Dereon Seabron (12). The Birmingham bench accounted for 50 points.

“It feels good,” Seabron said. “We needed this.”

Wes Iwundu and Deonte Burton provided a potent 1-2 punch for the Kings, scoring 24 and 23 points, respectively.

Iwundu added 12 rebounds to the cause.

Still, none of it was enough to take down the Squadron, who kept their composure while playing with controlled aggression.

“That starts with our front office originally identifying guys with super high character,” Saint said. “They’ve always had it and we’ve been through hard times and that’s what I told them. Hard times make strong men.”

Birmingham and Stockton play again Sunday at 6 p.m. at Legacy Arena.

“We went through a lot, we have a lot of season left, and hopefully this propels us, but we’ve got to do it again in 22 hours, this same team,” Saint said. “This could really be a boost to us, but we have to have the maturity to do it again tomorrow.”