Fort Wayne Mad Ants

Fort Wayne Mad Ants
League NBA Development League
Founded 2007
History Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2007–present
Arena Allen County War Memorial Coliseum
Location Fort Wayne, Indiana
Team colors Crimson, Black, Yellow, White
                   
Head coach Conner Henry
Ownership John D. Zeglis
Affiliation(s) Atlanta Hawks
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Hornets
Chicago Bulls
Denver Nuggets
Indiana Pacers
Los Angeles Clippers
Milwaukee Bucks
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
Portland Trail Blazers
Toronto Raptors
Washington Wizards
Championships 1 (2013–14)
Division / Conference titles 1 (2013–14)
Website www.nba.com/dleague/fortwayne

The Fort Wayne Mad Ants are a team of the NBA Development League, located in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Allen County War Memorial Coliseum is the home venue for the team. The team is the first minor league basketball franchise to play in Fort Wayne since the Fort Wayne Fury of the Continental Basketball Association. The Mad Ants won their first D-League championship in 2014.

History

The franchise held a name-the-team contest on their website where fans could vote on one of the four finalists: Lightning, Fire, Coyotes, and Mad Ants. The winning name of Mad Ants was announced June 18, 2007, chosen as a salute to the city's and fort's namesake, General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.[1]

On July 5, 2007, it was announced by the NBA that the Mad Ants would be affiliated with the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers. The Pistons were founded in Fort Wayne by Fred Zollner as the Zollner Pistons, before moving to Detroit in 1957. On September 3, 2008, the Mad Ants announced the Milwaukee Bucks as their third affiliate for the 2008-09 season. The Bucks were previously a parent club for the Tulsa 66ers until Professional Basketball Club, LLC (owner of the Oklahoma City Thunder), purchased the 66ers to be Oklahoma City's exclusive affiliate.[2] They waived Gage Daye on December 20, 2011.

On July 17, 2012, it was announced by the NBA that the Mad Ants, in addition to their affiliations with the Pistons, Pacers, and Bucks, would also be affiliated with the Charlotte Bobcats beginning with the 2012-13 season.[3]

On April 19, 2014, the Mad Ants made it through to NBA D-League Finals for the first time with a 126-118 victory over the Sioux Falls Skyforce, winning the second round series 2-0.[4] On April 26, 2014, the Mad Ants defeated the Santa Cruz Warriors 2 games to 0 to claim the franchise's first D-League title in their history.[5] Following that season, the Mad Ants were affiliated with the remaining NBA teams that did not have exclusive affiliates, after the Phoenix Suns and the Orlando Magic associated with the Bakersfield Jam and the Erie BayHawks, respectively, and after D-League teams were created for both the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks.

Season-by-season

Season Division Regular Season Postseason Results
Finish Wins Losses Pct.
Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2007–08 Central 4th 17 33 .340
2008–09 Central 5th 19 31 .380
2009–10 Eastern 5th 22 28 .440
2010–11 Eastern 3rd 24 26 .480
2011–12 Eastern 8th 14 36 .280
2012–13 Eastern 2nd 27 23 .540 Lost First Round (Santa Cruz) 0-2
2013–14 Eastern 1st 34 16 .680 Won First Round (Reno) 2-0
Won Semifinals (Sioux Falls) 2-0
Won Championship (Santa Cruz) 2-0
2014–15 Central 2nd 28 22 .560 Won First Round (Maine) 2-0
Won Semifinals (Canton) 2-0
Lost Championship (Santa Cruz) 0-2
Regular Season Record 185 215 .463 2007–2015
Playoff Record 10 4 .714 2007–2015

Current roster

Fort Wayne Mad Ants roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From
G 15 Bouldin, Matt style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1988–01–17 Gonzaga
G 21 Crawford, Jordan style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1988–10–23 Xavier
F 11 Fair, C. J. style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1991–09–13 Syracuse
G 17 Foster, Greg style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1989–06–08 Saginaw Valley State
F 22 Harris, Ramon style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1988–05–26 Kentucky
C 50 Hyman, Travis style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 245 lb (111 kg) 1987–07–12 Bowie State
G 12 McKinney-Jones, Trey style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1990–08–27 Miami (FL)
G 20 Simmons, Marcus style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1988–01–28 Southern California
G 10 Talton, Gary style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 1990–03–29 UIC
G 18 Thames, Xavier style="text-align:right; white-space:nowrap; | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1991–01–09 San Diego State
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Athletic trainer(s)
  • Matt Campbell
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • (NBA) On assignment from NBA affiliate
  • (I) Inactive
  • Injured

Roster • Transactions
Last transaction: 2015–04–27

Affiliates

In popular culture

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Ants Are Coming!". Retrieved 2009-09-06.
  2. ↑ "NBA Development League". Retrieved 2009-09-06.
  3. ↑ Greene, Dana (July 17, 2012). "Reno Bighorns new Jazz D-League affiliate". ABC4.com. KTVX. Retrieved July 17, 2012.
  4. ↑ NBA Development League: Skyforce at Mad Ants Game Info
  5. ↑ Fort Wayne Mad Ants Capture 2014 NBA Development League Title
  6. ↑ Warden, Steve (25 September 2008). "TV plot bringing team to 'Tree Hill'". The Journal Gazette. Retrieved 2008-10-01.

External links