Energy Looks to Clinch D-League Championship
The Iowa Energy, the NBA Development League affiliate of the Phoenix Suns and Chicago Bulls, can win their first NBA Development League Championship with a win over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers tonight in Game 3 of the NBA D-League Finals at 7 p.m. CT. The game, featuring many top NBA prospects, will be televised nationally on VERSUS on Saturday at 1 a.m. ET.
Iowa, led by NBA D-League Coach of the Year Nick Nurse, defeated the Vipers, 123-106, in Game 1. But Rio Grande Valley, the defending NBA D-League champion, evened the series with a 141-122 win in Game 2 in front of a record crowd of 14,036 at Wells Fargo Arena. Iowa features point guard Curtis Stinson, the NBA D-League MVP, who logged consecutive triple-doubles in each of the first two Finals games. Former Missouri star Stefhon Hannah added 20 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds. Iowa, which is affiliated with the Chicago Bulls and Phoenix Suns, also features Michael Haynes, who scored 24 points in Game 2, and Moses Ehambe, who scored 33 points on Wednesday.
Rio Grande Valley, meanwhile, is attempting to become only the second repeat champion in NBA D-League history. Leading the Vipers will be All-NBA D-League Third Team guard Jerel McNeal, who had 37 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in Game 2. The Vipers, affiliated with the Houston Rockets, also feature former Duke All-American Jon Scheyer, former Colorado standout Richard Roby, who scored 28 points in Game 2, and forward Mouhammad Faye, who led the team with 22 points and nine rebounds in Game 1. Rockets’ center Marcus Cousin is also currently assigned to Rio Grande Valley.
At the end of the NBA regular season, 23 percent of all NBA players had NBA D-League experience, including Chicago’s C.J. Watson and John Lucas III. In its 10th season, the NBA D-League saw a record 25 NBA teams assign an all-time high 39 NBA players to their NBA D-League affiliates, while 45 percent of the 2010 NBA Draft class played in the NBA D-League this season.
VERSUS’ NBA D-League Finals Schedule (subject to change):
Fri., April 29: Rio Grande Valley at Iowa, 8 p.m. ET (airs at 1 a.m. on Saturday)
For complete schedule information, visit www.VERSUS.com.
VERSUS
VERSUS prides itself on super-serving passionate sports fans across all platforms (VERSUS.com, VERSUS on Demand and VERSUS HD). Now in more than 75 million homes, the network is the cable television home of the National Hockey League (NHL), IZOD IndyCar Series, Tour de France, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and Professional Bull Riders (PBR). VERSUS also airs NASCAR, NBA, UFC, college football and college basketball programming. The network is home to the best outdoor programming on television and airs original programs not available anywhere else, including The T.Ocho Show. VERSUS, a wholly owned company of Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA, CMCSK), is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.
NBA Development League
The NBA Development League, founded in 2001, is the NBA’s official minor league. Featuring 16 teams with direct affiliations to NBA franchises, the NBA D-League is a proven developer of talent: 20 percent of players in the NBA at the conclusion of the 2009-10 season boasted NBA D-League experience, and the league continues to develop coaches, referees, and front-office staff for the NBA and its teams. In fostering the league’s connection to the community, its teams, players and staff promote health and wellness, support local needs and interests, and assist in educational development through NBA D-League Cares programs. The NBA D-League also advances the game of basketball as the research and development arm of the NBA. Throughout the league’s 10th season, fans can watch all NBA D-League games on NBA FUTURECAST, the free live Web-streaming initiative found at nba.com/futurecast.
