Category: League Direction
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SLB Officiating Looks More Settled
This season tipped off without any of the referees from last season. In those early weeks, officiating looked unsettled at times as the league’s opening games tested a completely new group. Early reported explanations for those absences focused on referees being uncertain about officiating in an unsanctioned league. But referees remained absent after SLB was…
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What Should an SLB Club Be?
When Bristol Flyers were founded, the ambition was bigger than simply putting a professional team on the floor. Speaking on The Bristol Flyers Podcast last season about the club’s early days, former director of basketball Danny James made clear that the idea was there from the start. We set out a platform for what basketball…
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SLB Cup Final Preview
The Great Britain Men’s long list for the most recent FIBA World Cup qualifiers included 20 names. Five were from London Lions. Two were from Manchester Basketball. Only one other Super League Basketball player made the squad — Bristol Flyers guard Jonathan Brown. London and Manchester have both spent the season competing in Europe with…
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When National Rankings Decide Domestic Value
Governing Body Endorsements (GBE) were impossible to ignore last summer. Visas, eligibility, and league recognition became flashpoints that shaped roster construction and even the start of the season. What has received far less attention is how the GBE criteria quietly shape recruitment choices long before a player ever steps on court. This article explains how…
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Making the SLB Table Mean More
European basketball isn’t a rarity in the SLB. Four clubs have been competing in two different European competitions this season. Club Competition London Lions EuroCup Bristol Flyers ENBL Manchester Basketball ENBL Newcastle Eagles ENBL The important point is not who those clubs are, but how they got there. European participation is decided by club choice…
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Funds Can’t Play Basketball
The day after the NBA brought a regular-season game to the O2, a different room in London hosted a different kind of audience. 250 invite-only guests gathered at the Raffles Hotel for private briefings on the NBA’s plans for Europe. In one sense, the event worked. Not because a league was announced, or because clubs…
