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Jayhawks unite to play in new basketball league

By Jesse Temple

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Fred Pohlman Fieldhouse can’t hold a candle to the recently built, 18,000-seat Sprint Center three miles up the road. It also pales in comparison to the 10,000-seat Municipal Auditorium gymnasium three miles in the other direction where the University of Missouri-Kansas City basketball teams play. And it doesn’t carry the history of Kemper Arena, the ancient, 19,000-seat structure four miles away where Danny Manning’s Kansas Jayhawks claimed a national championship 20 years ago.

But the fieldhouse, nestled in the heart of downtown Kansas City, Mo. between the three sporting complexes, is the perfect venue for the KC Pro-Am Hoops League, the city’s newest summer basketball showcase. The Pro-Am kicked off Friday night inside Pohlman’s gymnasium, which seats about 600. Running four nights a week until the end of July, Pro-Am Hoops features most of next year’s Kansas men’s basketball team, several European pros and a handful of former KU players.

The league, in its second year, saw former Jayhawks Billy Thomas and Nick Bradford each field teams on opening night. Current Jayhawks Conner Teahan, Travis Relaford, Cole Aldrich, Tyrel Reed, Tyshawn Taylor and Mario Little all took part in the evening’s festivities as well.

A disc jockey spun bass-thumping hip hop tracks between quarters and during time-outs inside the gym, home to the Penn Valley Community College Scouts. And an announcer narrated the game action from the scorer’s table. That backdrop, along with fast-paced play on the court and up-close views for fans, had Pohlman’s 11 rows of red bleachers were filled to capacity early while late entrants spilled along the court’s baselines, watching more than four hours of hoops.

The evening was exactly what league president Terry Nooner, a former KU basketball player, envisioned two years ago when he began his quest to bring back competitive, organized summer basketball to Kansas City.

Nooner, who hails from Raytown, Mo., grew up during a time when summer basketball in Kansas City was the must-see event in town — when the Bell League ruled.

“It was big time,” Nooner said. “You’re talking about really high-level competition.”

Legendary KU hoopsters Danny Manning and Calvin Thompson played in the league long ago. So did local college players Anthony Peeler and Tony Dumas. Peeler played for Missouri and Dumas for UMKC in the early 1990s, and both went on to careers in the National Basketball Association.

“I remember being a kid when Anthony Peeler played against Tony Dumas,” Nooner said. “They both scored 50 points against each other. It was scorching hot and you’ve got people standing outside looking through the windows. That’s what we’re trying to build.”

When interest in the Bell League dried up earlier this decade, Kansas City’s top ballers had no place to show their skills against others in town. Nooner sought the help of fellow Raytown product Tyronn Lue, an established player with 10 years of experience in the NBA.

Lue’s younger years were spent watching and playing in the Bell League downtown during the summer, like so many other talented local basketball players. And the opportunity to bring something like that back to the city in a small, accessible venue once again was something of interest to him

“For guys who come back from college and overseas, it’s just nice to come back and have the chance to play some good, competitive basketball,” said Lue, who plays in and helps fund the league, which costs about $30,000 per season. “You don’t have to scrounge up 10 guys. It’s something for the younger fans to come out and see some of their favorite players, especially the Kansas guys. They can come out to the gym and see it for free.”

The league, which is free to the public, contains all the rules of the NBA, albeit with 10-minute quarters instead of 12 to speed the two games each evening along. The longer NBA three-point line is taped to the court and a 24-second shot clock is also used.

KC Pro-Am Hoops is already off to a better start than in its inaugural season when many Jayhawk players were unable to attend opening night. Nooner intentionally moved the first games this summer to Friday so as not to conflict with KU coach Bill Self’s basketball camp. This year’s opening night also featured NBA players Chauncey Billups of the Detroit Pistons and Ronnie Brewer of the Utah Jazz to increase interest.

The league now includes 12 teams instead of the eight from last season, as well as an expanded schedule. League games will be played every Monday through Thursday night until July 31. A week of playoffs will follow.

Lue said it was important to get the Kansas players involved in the league.

“It definitely is a big draw, considering how big the KU fan base is in the area,” he said. “They’re a bigger draw than the pro players, but it’s good for the league. It’s also good for those guys to get some experience playing against pro competition.”

Self expressed his support for KC Pro-Am Hoops, calling it the bonus for his players, provided they work on their individual skill sets in the gym and the weight room, too.

“We’d love to see that thing be a success because it would be good for us,” Self said. “The biggest thing is guys are playing.”

Of course, the league isn’t going to be confused with a Big 12 conference game or an NBA finals contest. Friday night, the defense was minimal as Aldrich and Bradford’s “The Hawks” team reached 100 points before the end of the third quarter. Between the third and fourth quarter of that contest, Lue stopped the game to auction off autographed shoes and jerseys. It took so long, Lue — whose team was trailing by more than 30 points — decided to shorten the final quarter from 10 minutes to six, while allowing for a running clock.

Still, despite the relaxed nature of the league, the atmosphere in Pohlman Fieldhouse was rocking for much of the night. And that was all anyone cared about. No need for a state-of-the-art, mega-thousand seat arena with a playoff or tournament berth on the line to make that happen.

“It’s a fun thing to really come out here and play against guys you’re not normally used to playing against,” Aldrich said before his team’s 116-80 pasting of the “Team Lue” squad. “We’ve got a great crowd out here tonight. That’s really what it is about, just coming out here and having fun.”

— Edited by Deepa Sampat

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