The Austin Spurs are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cedar Park, Texas, and are affiliated with the San Antonio Spurs. The team plays their home games at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park. The team has made the postseason in 8 out of 14 seasons in the NBA Development League.
| Austin Spurs | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Western |
| League | NBA G League |
| Founded | 2001 |
| History | Columbus Riverdragons 2001–2005 Austin Toros 2005–2014 Austin Spurs 2014–present |
| Arena | H-E-B Center at Cedar Park |
| Location | Cedar Park, Texas |
| Team colors | Black, silver, white[1][2] |
| General manager | Josh Larson |
| Head coach | Scott King |
| Ownership | Spurs Sports & Entertainment |
| Affiliation(s) | San Antonio Spurs |
| Championships | 2 (2012, 2018) |
| Conference titles | 4 (2005, 2008, 2012, 2018) |
| Division titles | 5 (2005, 2008, 2015, 2016, 2018) |
| Website | austin |
On October 15, 2014, after the San Antonio Spurs purchased the franchise, the team colors and logo were changed to reflect the silver and black motif used by the Spurs.[1]
The Spurs are coached by Scott King. Their general manager is Josh Larson.
Franchise history
editThe Austin Spurs were established in Columbus, Georgia, as the Columbus Riverdragons. The franchise in 2005 was sold to Southwest Basketball, LLC, and were relocated to the city of Austin, Texas. Following the relocation, the franchise changed their name and logo becoming the Austin Toros, which was unveiled on August 10, 2005. The Toros name was the only NBA-associated team and first D-League team to possess a nickname of Spanish origin. The Toros began play during the 2005–06 season.
On June 28, 2007, the Toros were acquired by the San Antonio Spurs, becoming the second D-League team to be owned by an NBA team, after the Los Angeles D-Fenders were purchased by the Los Angeles Lakers in 2006.[3]
On August 9, 2010, the Toros announced they would move to the Cedar Park Center from the Austin Convention Center and for the 2010–11 season.
On April 28, 2012, the Toros defeated the Los Angeles D-Fenders in Game 3 of the NBA D-League Finals to capture their first championship in franchise history.[4]
On October 15, 2014, the team announced that they would be changing their name to the Austin Spurs, in reference to their parent team.[1]
On April 10, 2018, the Spurs defeated Raptors 905 to secure their second G League championship.[5]
In 2019, the Spurs played in the 2019 FIBA Intercontinental Cup in Rio de Janeiro, as the first G League team to play in the tournament.[6] Austin lost in the semi-final to Flamengo.
In 2020, the Spurs named Tyler Self, son of Hall of Fame coach Bill Self, as the Austin Spurs' general manager and Matt Nielsen as the head coach.[7] Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the team played an abbreviated 2020–21 bubble season in Orlando.
Prior to the 2021–22 season, Petar Božić was named Austin's head coach after Nielsen was moved over to San Antonio as an assistant coach.[8][9]
Prior to the 2022–23 season, Brent Barry was named Austin Spurs' general manager.[10]
Home arenas
edit- Columbus Civic Center (2001–2005)
- Austin Convention Center (2005–2010)
- H-E-B Center at Cedar Park (2010–present)
Season-by-season
edit| Season | Division | Finish | Wins | Losses | Pct. | Postseason results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus Riverdragons | ||||||
| 2001–02 | 3rd | 31 | 25 | .554 | Lost Semifinals (Greenville) 1–2 | |
| 2002–03 | 6th | 23 | 27 | .460 | ||
| 2003–04 | 6th | 18 | 28 | .391 | ||
| 2004–05 | 1st | 30 | 18 | .625 | Won Semifinals (Roanoke) 96–89 Lost NBDL Finals (Asheville) 67–90 | |
| Austin Toros | ||||||
| 2005–06 | 6th | 24 | 24 | .500 | ||
| 2006–07 | Eastern | 5th | 21 | 29 | .420 | |
| Austin Toros | ||||||
| 2007–08 | Southwestern | 1st | 30 | 20 | .600 | Won Semifinals (Sioux Falls) 99–93 Lost D-League Finals (Idaho) 1–2 |
| 2008–09 | Southwestern | 2nd | 32 | 18 | .640 | Won First Round (Idaho) 119–116 (OT) Lost Semifinals (Colorado) 111–114 |
| 2009–10 | Western | 2nd | 32 | 18 | .640 | Won First Round (Dakota) 2–1 Lost Semifinals (Rio Grande Valley) 1–2 |
| 2010–11 | Western | 8th | 22 | 28 | .440 | |
| 2011–12 | Western | 2nd | 33 | 17 | .660 | Won First Round (Erie) 2–1 Won Semifinals (Canton) 2–1 Won League Finals (Los Angeles) 2–1 |
| 2012–13 | Central | 2nd | 27 | 23 | .700 | Won First Round (Bakersfield) 2–0 Lost Semifinals (Santa Cruz) 0–2 |
| 2013–14 | Central | 6th | 19 | 31 | .380 | |
| Austin Spurs | ||||||
| 2014–15 | Southwest | 1st | 32 | 18 | .640 | Won Conf. Semifinal (Bakersfield) 2–1 Lost Conf. Final (Santa Cruz) 1–2 |
| 2015–16 | Southwest | 1st | 30 | 20 | .600 | Won Conf. Semifinal (Rio Grande Valley) 2–1 Lost Conf. Final (Los Angeles) 1–2 |
| 2016–17 | Southwest | 4th | 25 | 25 | .500 | |
| 2017–18 | Southwest | 1st | 32 | 18 | .640 | Won Conf. Semifinal (Rio Grande Valley) 117–91 Won Conf. Final (South Bay) 104–93 Won League Finals (Raptors) 2–0 |
| 2018–19 | Southwest | 3rd | 20 | 30 | .400 | |
| 2019–20 | Southwest | 2nd | 24 | 18 | .571 | Season cancelled by COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2020–21 | — | 5th | 10 | 5 | .667 | Lost Quarterfinal (Delaware) 103–124 |
| 2021–22 | Western | 11th | 13 | 19 | .406 | |
| 2022–23 | Western | 14th | 8 | 24 | .250 | |
| Regular season | 536 | 483 | .526 | |||
| Playoffs | 26 | 21 | .553 | |||
Current roster
edit| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Roster |
Head coaches
edit| # | Head coach | Term | Regular season | Playoffs | Achievements | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | Win% | G | W | L | Win% | ||||
| 1 | Jeff Malone | 2001–2005 | 200 | 102 | 98 | .510 | 5 | 2 | 3 | .400 | |
| 2 | Dennis Johnson | 2005–2007 | 98 | 45 | 53 | .459 | — | — | — | — | |
| 3 | Quin Snyder | 2007–2010 | 150 | 94 | 56 | .627 | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 | |
| 4 | Brad Jones | 2010–2012 | 100 | 55 | 45 | .550 | 9 | 6 | 3 | .667 | D-League Champion (2011–12) |
| 5 | Taylor Jenkins | 2012–2013 | 50 | 27 | 23 | .540 | 4 | 2 | 2 | .500 | |
| 6 | Ken McDonald | 2013–2017 | 200 | 106 | 94 | .540 | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 | |
| 7 | Blake Ahearn | 2017–2020 | 100 | 52 | 48 | .520 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | G League Champion (2017–18) |
| 8 | Matt Nielsen | 2020–2021 | 15 | 10 | 5 | .667 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .000 | |
| 9 | Petar Božić | 2021–2023 | 64 | 21 | 43 | .328 | – | – | – | – | |
| 10 | Will Voigt | 2023–present | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
NBA affiliates
editColumbus Riverdragons
edit- None
Austin Toros
edit- Boston Celtics (2006–2007)
- Denver Nuggets (2005–2006)
- Houston Rockets (2005–2007)
- Los Angeles Clippers (2005–2006)
- San Antonio Spurs (2005–2014)
Austin Spurs
edit- San Antonio Spurs (2014–present)
In international competitions
editFIBA Intercontinental Cup
editChampions Runners-up Third place Fourth place
| Year | Round | W | L | W% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Fourth place | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| Total | 0 | 2 | .000 |
References
edit- ^ a b c Chandler, James (October 15, 2014). "Spurs Sports & Entertainment Austin-based NBA Development League team has been renamed the Austin Spurs". Spurs.com (Press release). NBA Media Ventures, LLC. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
- ^ "Austin Spurs Reproduction Guideline Sheet". NBA Properties, Inc. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
- ^ "Spurs Purchase Austin Toros of NBA Developmental League".
- ^ "Austin Toros Win 2012 NBA Development League Championship". Archived from the original on 2014-08-17. Retrieved 2013-09-18.
- ^ "Spurs Win NBA G League Championship". NBA G League. April 10, 2018.
- ^ "NBA G League champions Austin Spurs highlight revamped four-team FIBA Intercontinental Cup". FIBA. 17 January 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
- ^ "AUSTIN SPURS NAME MATT NIELSEN HEAD COACH AND TYLER SELF GENERAL MANAGER". Austin Spurs. November 10, 2020.
- ^ "Austin Spurs Name Petar Božić Head Coach". OurSports Central. September 17, 2021.
- ^ "Spurs name Matt Nielsen assistant coach". NBA.com. September 8, 2021. Retrieved September 8, 2021.
- ^ "Brent Barry Named Austin Spurs General Manager". austin.gleague.nba.com. September 23, 2022.
