2011–12 NBA Development League season

2011–12 NBA Development League season
League	NBA Development League
Sport	Basketball
Duration	November 25, 2011 – April 7, 2012 (Regular season)
TV partner/s	Versus, NBA TV
Draft
Top draft pick	Jamaal Tinsley
Picked by	Los Angeles D-Fenders
NBA Development League seasons
← 2010–11	2012–13 →

The 2011–12 NBA Development League season is the 11th season of the NBA Development League (NBA D-League). The NBA D-League is the official minor league basketball organization owned and run by the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league was formed in 2001 as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL). The league adopted its current name in 2005 to reflect its close affiliation with the NBA. The 2011–12 season will be competed by 16 teams. The Los Angeles D-Fenders, after spending one season inactive, joined the 15 returning teams from the previous season. The Utah Flash ceased operation at the end of the previous season and would not be playing in the 2011–12 season. The New Mexico Thunderbirds relocated to Canton, Ohio and were renamed as the Canton Charge.

This season, an all-time high nine teams will have single-affiliation partnerships with NBA teams, up from four in the previous season.^[1][2] Five of them, the Austin Toros, the Canton Charge, the Dakota Wizards, the Los Angeles D-Fenders and the Tulsa 66ers, are owned by their NBA affiliates. Four teams, the Erie BayHawks, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Springfield Armor and the Texas Legends, have a hybrid single-affiliation partnership with NBA teams, where their basketball operations are controlled by their NBA affiliates. The other seven teams are affiliated with three NBA teams each.^[1][2]

Teams and coaches

Team	City	Arena	Head coach	NBA affiliate(s)
Eastern Conference
Canton Charge	Canton, Ohio	Canton Memorial Civic Center	Alex Jensen	Cleveland Cavaliers
Dakota Wizards	Bismarck, North Dakota	Bismarck Civic Center	Nate Bjorkgren	Golden State Warriors
Erie BayHawks	Erie, Pennsylvania	Tullio Arena	Jay Larranaga	New York Knicks
Fort Wayne Mad Ants	Fort Wayne, Indiana	Allen County War Memorial Coliseum	Joey Meyer	Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks
Iowa Energy	Des Moines, Iowa	Wells Fargo Arena	Kevin Young	Chicago Bulls, New Orleans Hornets, Washington Wizards
Maine Red Claws	Portland, Maine	Portland Expo Building	Dave Leitao	Boston Celtics, Charlotte Bobcats, Philadelphia 76ers
Sioux Falls Skyforce	Sioux Falls, South Dakota	Sioux Falls Arena	Morris McHone	Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic
Springfield Armor	Springfield, Massachusetts	MassMutual Center	Bob MacKinnon, Jr.	New Jersey Nets
Western Conference
Austin Toros	Cedar Park, Texas	Cedar Park Center	Brad Jones	San Antonio Spurs
Bakersfield Jam	Bakersfield, California	Jam Events Center	Will Voigt	Los Angeles Clippers, Phoenix Suns, Toronto Raptors
Idaho Stampede	Boise, Idaho	CenturyLink Arena Boise	Randy Livingston	Denver Nuggets, Portland Trail Blazers, Utah Jazz
Los Angeles D-Fenders	El Segundo, California	Toyota Sports Center	Eric Musselman	Los Angeles Lakers
Reno Bighorns	Reno, Nevada	Reno Events Center	Paul Mokeski	Atlanta Hawks, Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings
Rio Grande Valley Vipers	Hidalgo, Texas	State Farm Arena	Nick Nurse	Houston Rockets
Texas Legends	Frisco, Texas	Dr Pepper Arena	Del Harris	Dallas Mavericks
Tulsa 66ers	Tulsa, Oklahoma	Tulsa Convention Center	Nate Tibbetts (until December 5) Dale Osbourne (from December 5)[a]	Oklahoma City Thunder

Team changes

• On May 1, 2011, the Springfield Armor began a single-affiliation partnership with the New Jersey Nets. The Armor's basketball operation will be controlled by the Nets, who also became their sole NBA affiliate.^[3]

• On June 8, 2011, the Erie BayHawks began a single-affiliation partnership with the New York Knicks. The BayHawks' basketball operation will be controlled by the Knicks, who also became their sole NBA affiliate.^[4]

• On June 9, 2011, the Los Angeles D-Fenders, who suspended operation during the 2010–11 season, announced that they will return to play in the 2011–12 season. The franchise, which is owned and operated by the Los Angeles Lakers, relocated to El Segundo, California and resumed their single-affiliation partnership with the Lakers.^[5]

• On June 18, 2011, the Utah Flash announced that they would not play in the 2011–12 season as the team is up for sale.^[6]

• On June 28, 2011, the Dakota Wizards was purchased by the Golden State Warriors. The Wizards also began a single-affiliation partnership with the Warriors.^[7]

• On July 7, 2011, the New Mexico Thunderbirds was purchased by the Cleveland Cavaliers. The franchise relocated to Canton, Ohio and were later renamed as the Canton Charge. The Charge also began a single-affiliation partnership with the Cavaliers.^[8][9]

Affiliation changes

On July 7, 2011, the league announced the affiliation system for the season. Five teams, the Austin Toros, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Texas Legends and the Tulsa 66ers, continued their single-affiliation partnerships with their parent teams. The Los Angeles D-Fenders, who returned after one year hiatus, resumed their single-affiliation partnership with the Los Angeles Lakers. Four teams, the Canton Charge, the Dakota Wizards and the Erie BayHawks, each began a single-affiliation partnership with an NBA team. The Springfield Armor also began a single-affiliation partnership with the New Jersey Nets, their NBA affiliate for last two seasons. The other seven teams are affiliated with three NBA teams each. Only one team, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, retained the same affiliates from the previous season. Due to several team changes above and other circumstances, some affiliation changes occurred.^[2]

^	Denotes a single-affiliation partnership

Team	NBA team	Previous affiliate	Note(s)
Bakersfield Jam	Phoenix Suns	Iowa Energy (2008–2011)	—
Bakersfield Jam	Toronto Raptors	Erie BayHawks (2009–2011)	• The BayHawks began a single-affiliation partnership with the New York Knicks.
Canton Charge^	Cleveland Cavaliers^	Erie BayHawks (2008–2011)	• The Cavaliers purchased the New Mexico Thunderbirds and relocated them to Canton, Ohio as the Canton Charge.  • The BayHawks began a single-affiliation partnership with the New York Knicks.
Dakota Wizards^	Golden State Warriors^	Reno Bighorns (2010–2011)	• The Warriors purchased the Dakota Wizards.
Erie BayHawks^	New York Knicks^	Springfield Armor (2009–2011)	• The BayHawks began a single-affiliation partnership with the Knicks.  • The Armor began a single-affiliation partnership with the New Jersey Nets.
Idaho Stampede	Utah Jazz	Utah Flash (2007–2011)	• The Flash ceased operations.
Iowa Energy	New Orleans Hornets	New Mexico/Albuquerque Thunderbirds (2009–2011)	• The Cleveland Cavaliers purchased the Thunderbirds and relocated them to Canton, Ohio as the Canton Charge.
Iowa Energy	Washington Wizards	Dakota Wizards (2006–2011)	• The Golden State Warriors purchased the Dakota Wizards.
Los Angeles D-Fenders^	Los Angeles Lakers^	Bakersfield Jam (2010–2011)	• The D-Fenders, who are owned and controlled by the Lakers, returned after a one-year hiatus.
Maine Red Claws	Philadelphia 76ers	Springfield Armor (2009–2011)	• The Armor began a single-affiliation partnership with the New Jersey Nets.
Reno Bighorns	Atlanta Hawks	Utah Flash (2009–2011)	• The Flash ceased operations.
Reno Bighorns	Memphis Grizzlies	Dakota Wizards (2007–2011)	• The Golden State Warriors purchased the Dakota Wizards.
Sioux Falls Skyforce	Orlando Magic	New Mexico Thunderbirds (2010–2011)	• The Cleveland Cavaliers purchased the Thunderbirds and relocated them to Canton, Ohio as the Canton Charge.

Coaching changes

Coaching changes

Offseason
Team	2010–11 coach	2011–12 coach
Canton Charge	Darvin Ham (with New Mexico Thunderbirds)	Alex Jensen
Dakota Wizards	Rory White	Nate Bjorkgren
Iowa Energy	Nick Nurse	Kevin Young
Los Angeles D-Fenders	Franchise inactive	Eric Musselman
Maine Red Claws	Austin Ainge	Dave Leitao
Reno Bighorns	Eric Musselman	Paul Mokeski
Rio Grande Valley Vipers	Chris Finch	Nick Nurse
Springfield Armor	Dee Brown	Bob MacKinnon, Jr.
Texas Legends	Nancy Lieberman	Del Harris
Utah Flash	Kevin Young	Franchise inactive
In-season
Team	Outgoing coach	New coach
Tulsa 66ers	Nate Tibbets	Dale Osbourne

Offseason

• On July 21, 2011, the Maine Red Claws hired former college coach Dave Leitao as the team's head coach,^[10] replacing Austin Ainge who was hired as the Director of Player Personnel for the Boston Celtics on May 13, 2011.^[11]

• On August 3, 2011, the Dakota Wizards hired Iowa Energy assistant coach Nate Bjorkgren as the team's head coach, replacing Rory White who left the team after the 2010–11 season.^[12]

• On August 18, 2011, the Los Angeles D-Fenders hired Reno Bighorns head coach Eric Musselman as the team's head coach.^[13]

• On September 14, 2011, the Springfield Armor hired former Colorado 14ers and Idaho Stampede head coach Bob MacKinnon, Jr. as the team's head coach,^[14] replacing Dee Brown who was hired as the assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons.^[15]

• On September 19, 2011, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers hired Iowa Energy head coach Nick Nurse as the team's head coach,^[16] replacing Chris Finch who was hired as the assistant coach for the Houston Rockets on July 15, 2011.^[17]

• On September 29, 2011, the Reno Bighorns hired Rio Grande Valley Vipers assistant coach Paul Mokeski as the team's head coach,^[18] replacing Eric Musselman who was hired as the head coach for the Los Angeles D-Fenders on August 18, 2011.^[13]

• On October 4, 2011, the Texas Legends hired former NBA head coach Del Harris as the team's head coach,^[19] replacing Nancy Lieberman who was promoted to the front office as the Assistant General Manager for the Legends on July 18, 2011.^[20]

• On October 5, 2011, the Iowa Energy hired former Utah Flash head coach Kevin Young as the team's head coach,^[21], replacing Nick Nurse who was hired as the head coach for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on September 19.^[16]

• On October 11, 2011, the Canton Charge hired former college assistant coach Alex Jensen as the team's head coach.^[22]

In-season

• ^a On December 5, 2011, the Tulsa 66ers promoted assistant coach Dale Osbourne, replacing Nate Tibbets who was hired as the assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers.^[23]

Players

An NBA D-League team roster consists of draftees, returning, allocation and tryout players. In addition, NBA teams can assign players who are on their first or second NBA season to their D-League affiliates. The roster must consist of 10 D-League players, but the maximum roster size is 12 players, including NBA assignees. If a team had more than two NBA assignees, the team must reduce its roster to avoid having more than 12 players. In the D-League, all players sign a one-year NBA D-League Standard Player Contract with the league, not with the specific D-League teams.^[24]

Returning players are players who played in the league during the previous season and are retained by their respective teams. The D-League teams are allowed to invite a limited number of returning players. Players who signed a D-League contract but are not retained by their previous teams are placed on the draft pool, along with new players who also sign with the league.^[25] Tryout players are the players who are invited to join the D-League team from the open tryouts which are held by each teams in October, before the season began.^[24]

Regular season

Standings

Eastern Conference Team W L PCT GB Home Road Iowa Energy 7 3 .000 – 4–1 3–2 Springfield Armor 5 4 .000 – 2–2 3–2 Dakota Wizards 4 4 .000 – 2–2 2–2 Fort Wayne Mad Ants 4 4 .000 – 2–2 2–2 Canton Charge 4 5 .000 – 2–3 2 –2 Maine Red Claws 3 5 .000 – 2–2 1–3 Erie BayHawks 4 7 .000 – 1–2 3–5 Sioux Falls Skyforce 3 6 .000 – 3–3 0–3

Western Conference Team W L PCT GB Home Road Austin Toros 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Bakersfield Jam 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Idaho Stampede 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Los Angeles D-Fenders 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Reno Bighorns 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Rio Grande Valley Vipers 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Texas Legends 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0 Tulsa 66ers 0 0 — – 0–0 0–0

References

General

Specific

External link

• Official site

2011–12 NBA season by team 2011 NBA Draft • All-Star Game • Playoffs • Finals • Transactions • D-League • 2011 NBA lockout Eastern Atlantic Boston • New Jersey • New York • Philadelphia • Toronto Central Chicago • Cleveland • Detroit • Indiana • Milwaukee Southeast Atlanta • Charlotte • Miami • Orlando • Washington Western Northwest Denver • Minnesota • Oklahoma City • Portland • Utah Pacific Golden State • L.A. Clippers • L.A. Lakers • Phoenix • Sacramento Southwest Dallas • Houston • Memphis • New Orleans • San Antonio

NBA Development League seasons Yearly standings 2000s 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2010s 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12