NEW BRAUNFELS, TX — The American Basketball League’s River City Blues have selected a player to double his duties as head coach.
Antonio Eduardo Fernandez has agreed to join the club in that capacity.
The 30-year-old guard is a native of Chicago, IL, and wants his team to hang its hat on the defensive end of the court.
The Blues will take their first test on Saturday, October 31st, against the Houston Jets.
NEW BRAUNFELS, TX — The American Basketball League has appointed Nathaniel Rodriguez as the league’s lead official and Director of Officials.
In his new role, Rodriguez will oversee the ABL’s officiating operations and will be responsible for creating referee schedules for league games.
All ABL referees will report to Rodriguez regarding scheduling, questions, concerns, and other matters related to league officiating.
The ABL welcomes Rodriguez to his new leadership role and looks forward to his contributions as the league continues to build its officiating program.
New Braunfels, TX
*October 31st – 5 PM
**November 8th – 12 Noon
November 21st – 2 PM
**December 6th – 2 PM
December 12th – 2 PM
December 19th – 1 PM – ABL Championship Saturday
* Denotes Doubleheader. **. Denotes Sunday.
New Braunfels, TX – The ABL waited for about two weeks after deciding to push the start of the inaugural season back, before getting confirmaion of the new dates from the Mill Street Youth Center.
The dates are locked in.
The Texas Titanium will open against the Houston Valor before the River City Blues take on the Houston Valor aon Saturday, October 31st, and hopefully entertain a plethora of young ghosts and gobblins on Halloween Evening in the process. Tip off for the opener is scheduled for 5:15PM. The lesgue is keeping tight lipped about pre-game festivites to celebrate the historic event, but there will be a jump ball ceremony.
Beneath are the dates for the New Braunfels portion of the schedule:
*October 31st – 5 PM
November 21st – 2 PM
**December 6th – 2 PM
December 12th – 2 PM
December 19th – 1 PM – ABL Championship Saturday
Valor, Jets Open in Houston November 7th
In Houston, the Valor and the Jets are hopeful to receive confirmation of their home dates from the league office in a few days as well. The expected home opener is November 7th.
The scheduled games will likely be the Blues and Valor in the first gaqme, while the Jets play their first home game against the Titanium. League President Mac Claire says not everyone was notified about the New Braunfels dates becoming official before this article went to print, but that he will send out a blast email and a blast text before the the night. “This is getting kind of exciting and they all need to be notified so they can plan to bring friend and family to the games,” Claire said before adding, “It’s time. It’s been time. AndI’m looking forward to the season openers.”
Every professional sports league eventually develops its own history, traditions and legends. But the ABL also recognizes that its story is being written on the shoulders of those who came before it.
Some of those individuals are household names. Others may be less familiar to today’s basketball fan.
But each made an important contribution to the game.
For its inaugural season, the American Basketball League is proud to name four of its major individual awards after four distinguished basketball figures: Stan Albeck, Nevil Shed, Derrick Gervin and Mel Daniels.
Stan Albeck’s name may be familiar to basketball fans because of his long coaching career, which included stops with the New Jersey Nets, San Antonio Spurs and Chicago Bulls.
But there is another important chapter in Albeck’s career that is sometimes overlooked.
Before becoming an NBA head coach, Albeck served as an assistant coach with the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association under legendary head coach Hubie Brown. The Colonels captured the ABA championship in 1975. Albeck’s professional coaching career would span 46 years and include both the ABA and NBA.
He was a teacher, a leader and a coach whose career demonstrated the importance of preparation, leadership and commitment to his players.
It is for those qualities that the American Basketball League proudly names its Coach of the Year Award in honor of Stan Albeck.
As the ABL begins its own coaching history, the league believes it is fitting that its top coaching honor carry the name of a man who devoted his life to teaching the game.
Nevil Shed starred for Texas Western College, playing a key role on the team that made basketball history in 1966.
Led by legendary coach Don Haskins, Texas Western defeated Adolph Rupp’s Kentucky Wildcats, 72–65, in the NCAA Championship game. The Miners became the first team to win the NCAA championship with five African-American players in its starting lineup, a victory that became an important moment in both basketball and American history.
Shed was part of a remarkable Texas Western team whose players included Bobby Joe Hill, David Lattin, Willie Worsley and their teammates. The victory over Kentucky featured future basketball stars on the opposing side as well.
But Nevil Shed’s story didn’t end with that historic championship.
Known by many as “Coach Shed,” he has devoted countless years to giving back to young people through coaching and mentorship in the San Antonio community. His impact reaches far beyond points, rebounds and championships.
For the ABL, that makes his story particularly meaningful.
The American Basketball League proudly names its Regular Season Most Valuable Player Award in honor of Nevil Shed.
“Yes, I am friends with Coach Shed,” said ABL Commissioner and Founder Mac Claire, “but I challenge anyone to tell me who is a greater unsung hero in terms of not only basketball, but American history? They come no finer than Nevil Shed.”
The 1966 Texas Western team was later enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a team in 2007, further cementing its place in basketball history.
Derrick Gervin comes from a family with some serious basketball genes.
Everyone knows about “The Iceman,” George Gervin, Derrick’s older brother and one of the great scorers in basketball history.
But Derrick Gervin could score with the best of them, too.
A standout at the University of Texas at San Antonio, Gervin was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1985 NBA Draft. After beginning his professional career in the CBA, Gervin eventually got his NBA opportunity with the New Jersey Nets, playing two seasons in the NBA alongside players including Derrick Coleman and the late Dražen Petrović.
But the NBA was only one chapter of Gervin’s career.
He became a CBA Scoring Champion in 1990, helped win a CBA Championship in 1992, and became a two-time Israeli League scoring champion, leading the league in 1996 and 1998. He was also named Israeli League MVP in 1995.
There is also a special connection between Gervin and another ABL honoree.
Before their professional careers were complete, Nevil Shed and Derrick Gervin crossed paths at UTSA — Shed as coach and Gervin as player.
Today, Gervin, like Coach Shed, continues to devote time to young people, coaching basketball and mentoring youngsters in lessons that extend well beyond the court.
The ABL is proud to recognize a player whose career was defined by one of basketball’s most difficult skills: putting the ball in the basket.
The American Basketball League proudly names its ABL Scoring Champion Award in honor of Derrick Gervin.
Detroit native Mel Daniels was one of the great stars of the American Basketball Association and one of the foundational players in the history of the Indiana Pacers.
A fierce competitor, Daniels was a powerful rebounder who was tough around the basket. Perhaps his greatest presence, however, was felt on the defensive end of the floor.
Daniels was drafted by the NBA’s Cincinnati Royals, but chose instead to begin his professional career in the ABA with the Minnesota Muskies during the league’s inaugural 1967–68 season. He was named the 1968 ABA Rookie of the Year.
In 1968, Daniels joined the Indiana Pacers, beginning the defining chapter of his professional career.
He became a three-time ABA Champion, a two-time ABA Most Valuable Player, a seven-time ABA All-Star, and a three-time ABA rebounding champion. He also led the ABA in rebounding three times and was named to the All-ABA First Team four consecutive times.
Daniels later played for the Memphis Sounds and the New York Nets as the ABA era came to a close.
His No. 34 hangs proudly in the rafters of the Indiana Pacers’ home arena, and Daniels was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012.
For a player whose career was defined by toughness, competitiveness, leadership and winning, there may be no more appropriate name for the ABL’s ultimate individual honor on championship night.
The American Basketball League is proud to name its ABL Championship MVP Award in honor of Mel Daniels.
When an ABL player rises to the occasion on the biggest stage and helps lead his team toward a championship, he will have an opportunity to receive an award carrying the name of one of the ABA’s true champions.
The American Basketball League is beginning its own history.
But the league also believes that beginning something new does not mean forgetting those who came before.
Stan Albeck. Nevil Shed. Derrick Gervin. Mel Daniels.
Four men. Four different basketball journeys. Four different contributions to the game.
And now, four names that will become part of the ABL’s history.
The ABL isn’t just beginning a new era of professional basketball. We’re remembering the people who helped make that era possible.
That’s the finished version I’d use for the site. And the Mel Daniels paragraph now correctly says Cincinnati Royals. No wife-induced scolding required. 😂🏀
HOUSTON, TX — After years of waiting, false starts and plenty of patience, Keith Thompson is finally ready to see the Houston Jets take the court.
Thompson, originally from The Bronx, New York, has been one of the longtime believers in the American Basketball League and its vision. Now, with the ABL preparing for its upcoming season, Thompson is looking forward to finally seeing the league move from planning to playing.
Thompson played collegiately at Grace College in 2006 and 2007. Prior to his college career, he played prep basketball for Grace Academy, where he averaged 12 points and 1.2 steals per game.
For Thompson, the upcoming season represents more than simply the start of another basketball season. It represents the culmination of several years of waiting.
The ABL experienced several false starts over the past few years, but Thompson remained committed to the league and its vision.
During a recent phone interview, Thompson expressed his excitement about finally getting the season underway.
“I’m glad to finally kick this off. It’s been a long time coming.”
ABL Founder and President & CEO Mac Claire, who is also originally from The Bronx, said Thompson’s commitment to the league is something that deserves recognition.
“Keith is one of the true diehards who have stuck with the ABL and understood the league’s vision,” Claire said. “He is one of the guys who deserves thank-yous from me just for having that belief.”
That belief will now get its opportunity to become reality.
Thompson and the Houston Jets will open the ABL season on October 31st.
