Colorado 14ers

The Colorado 14ers are a team in the NBA Development League which began play in 2006-07. They are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets and New Jersey Nets of the NBA. The 14ers play their home games at the Broomfield Event Center in the Denver suburb of Broomfield, Colorado. They are named for the many high 14,000-foot mountain peaks for which Colorado is famous.

Media

Colorado 14ers games are broadcast on radio at Mile High Sports Radio 1510 AM KCKK in Denver, and Mile High Sports Extra 1570 AM KSXT in Loveland.

Current roster

Final 2007-08 Roster (subject to offseason changes)

Head Coach: Bob MacKinnon Jr.
Assistant Coach: Casey Owens
Athletic Trainer: Mark Morrissey

#		Pos.	Ht.	Player	Acquired	College
0		C	6'11	Roderick Riley	2008	Prairie View
10		G	6'0	Eddie Gill	2007/08	Weber State
15		G/F	6'6	Justin Cage	2007	Xavier
21		G	6'4	Eric Osmundson	2006/07	Penn
22		G	6'6	Luke Anderson	2008	Minnesota State
23		G	5'11	Derrick Stevens	2008	Colorado State
34		G	6'4	Damien Lolar	2007	West Texas A&M
42		F	6'9	John Thomas	2008	Minnesota
50		F	6'8	Kaniel Dickens	2007/08	Idaho

Season-By-Season

Year	GP	W	L	Pct.	Finish	Playoffs
2006-07	50	28	22	.560	2nd, West	Won WC Semifinal (Albuquerque) Won WC Final (Idaho) Lost Finals (Dakota)
2007-08	50	29	21	.580	2nd, West	Lost WC Semifinal (Los Angeles)
2008-09	--	--	--	--	--	--

All-Stars

Players

2007

• Louis Amundson, Forward
• Elton Brown, Forward
• Pooh Jeter, Guard
• Rick Rickert, Forward/Center
• Von Wafer, Guard

2008

• Elton Brown, Forward
• Kaniel Dickens, Forward
• Eddie Gill, Guard
• Billy Thomas, Guard

Coaches

2007

• Joe Wolf, Head Coach
• Kent Davison, Assistant Coach
• Mark Morrisey, Trainer

Honors

• Louis Amundson, 2006-07 D-League Rookie of the Year, 2006-07 All D-League 1st Team
• Elton Brown, 2006-07 All D-League 1st Team
• Kaniel Dickens, 2007-08 All D-League 2nd Team
• Eddie Gill, 2007-08 All D-League 1st Team
• Pooh Jeter, 2006-07 All D-League Honorable Mention
• Billy Thomas, 2007-08 Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award, 2007-08 All D-League 3rd Team
• Von Wafer, 2006-07 All D-League 1st Team

Franchise history

In 2006 Colorado businessmen Tim Wiens and John Frew, who were building the Broomfield Event Center as the centerpiece of the Arista development of Broomfield, Colorado, quickly sought to gain a new minor league basketball team for the place and the surrounding community, believing minor league teams could be a hit in the northwest Denver-Boulder region. They created the Colorado 14ers, to play alongside the Central Hockey League Rocky Mountain Rage. The team was originally scheduled to play in the Continental Basketball Association. However, agreement was soon reached for the team to play in the NBA Development League, and the 14ers were quickly slated to become the minor league affiliate of the Denver Nuggets, Toronto Raptors and New Jersey Nets. The new franchise, named for Colorado's famed 14,000-foot mountain peaks, was born.

2006-07 season

Onetime Denver Nugget Joe Wolf was hired to be the 14ers' first coach, and what would become one of the D-League's most formidable teams was assembled. Finding quick success in their inaugural season, the 14ers shattered Colorado minor league basketball records of many kinds from scoring to fan attendance. Team leaders included Von Wafer and Louis Amundson, who were each permanently called up to the NBA by the end of the season. Nevertheless, the talented and resilient team overcame losing stretches and roster reorganizations, and qualified for the playoffs in their first season. The 14ers made an impressive run through the playoffs, winning the Western Division championship before finally falling to the Dakota Wizards in the league championship.

2007-08 season

The 14ers' second season began with an almost entirely new roster, with only Elton Brown and Eric Osmundson remaining from the team's inaugural year. Newcomers included area products Kaniel Dickens who quickly emerged as one of the top players on the team, as well as Eddie Gill, selected in the draft, who was called up to the NBA before even playing a game with the 14ers (and eventually returned to become a powerful force on the team). Despite consider roster turnover which included Brown's departure (but not before scoring his 50th career double-double with the 14ers) as well as an impressive five call-ups to the NBA (including the rare simultaneous call-ups of Kaniel Dickens and Billy Thomas on February 22, 2008 by the Cleveland Cavaliers), the 14ers fared as well as they did in their first year, finishing the regular season with one more win than in 2007-08. The 14ers' six game winning streak at the end of the season vaulted them into the playoffs as a wild card, but they lost in the first round to the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Despite this and a slippage in fan attendance it was overall a successful season under at times challenging circumstances.

Past affiliations

• Toronto Raptors (2006-08)

Past coaches

• Kent Davison, Assistant Coach (2006-07)
• Joe Wolf, Head Coach (2006-08)

Past players

• Julius Hodge, G, 6'7, North Carolina State University (2006-07)
• Manual Navarez, C, 6'10, Southern Nazarene University (2007)
• Jason McKrieth, G, 6'4, Rice University (2007)
• Louis Amundson, F, 6'9, University of Nevada at Las Vegas (2006-07)
• Bakari Hendrix, F, 6'9, Gonzaga University (2006-07)
• P.J. Tucker, F, 6'5, University of Texas (2007)
• Mile Ilic, C, 7'2, Serbia (2007)
• Von Wafer, G, 6'5, Florida State University (2006-07)
• Mike Harris, F, 6'6, Rice University (2006-07)
• Antoine Hood, G, 6'4, Air Force (2006-07)
• Pooh Jeter, G, 5'11, University of Portland (2006-07)
• Mark Jones, G, 6'6, University of Central Florida (2007)
• Rick Rickert, F/C, 6'11, University of Minnesota (2006-07)
• Chad Bell, C, 7'0, University of Nevada (2007)
• Chuck Davis, G, 6'3, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania (2007)
• Julian Sensley, F, 6'9, University of Hawaii (2007)
• Brandon Dean, G, 6'2, University of Arkansas (2007-08)
• Mo Charlo, F, 6'7, University of Nevada (2007-08)
• Tony Bobbitt, G, 6'4, University of Cincinnati (2007-08)
• Terrence Crawford, F, 6'7, Oklahoma State University (2006-08)
• Brian Greene, F, 6'9, Colorado State University (2008)
• Elton Brown, F, 6'9, University of Virginia (2006-08)
• Milone Clark, G/F, 6'4, Tennessee Tech (2008)
• Davin White, G, 6'1, California State University, Northridge (2008)
• Paul Butorac, F, 6'10, Eastern Washington University (2008)
• Lou White, G, 6'4, Voorhees College (2007-08)
• Taurean Green, G, 6'0, University of Florida (2008)
• Billy Thomas, G, 6'5 University of Kansas (2007-08)

Players assigned from NBA Teams

• Julius Hodge - assigned by the Denver Nuggets on December 1, 2006
• P.J. Tucker - assigned by the Toronto Raptors on January 5, 2007
• Mile Ilic - assigned by the New Jersey Nets on February 26, 2007
• P.J. Tucker - reassigned by the Toronto Raptors on March 5, 2007
• Taurean Green - assigned by the Denver Nuggets on April 5, 2008

Players recalled to The NBA

• Julius Hodge - recalled by the Denver Nuggets on January 2, 2007
• P.J. Tucker - recalled by the Toronto Raptors on February 5, 2007
• Mile Ilic - recalled by the New Jersey Nets on April 3, 2007
• Taurean Green - recalled by the Denver Nuggets on April 16, 2008

Players Called Up To The NBA

• Louis Amundson - called up by the Utah Jazz on February 5, 2007
• Von Wafer - called up by the Los Angeles Clippers on February 21, 2007
• Louis Amundson - called up by the Philadelphia 76ers on March 8, 2007
• Von Wafer - called up by the Denver Nuggets on April 13, 2007
• Eddie Gill - called up by the New Jersey Nets on November 15, 2007
• Billy Thomas - called up by the New Jersey Nets on December 24, 2007
• Billy Thomas - called up by the Cleveland Cavaliers on February 22, 2008
• Kaniel Dickens - called up by the Cleveland Cavaliers on February 22, 2008
• Eddie Gill - called up by the Seattle SuperSonics on March 24, 2008
• Billy Thomas - called up by the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 16, 2008

Coaches Hired By The NBA

• Joe Wolf - hired as assistant coach by the Milwaukee Bucks on April 16, 2008

External links

• Colorado 14ers