Fukushima Firebonds

The Fukushima Firebonds (福島ファイヤーボンズ (Fukushima Faiyābonzu)) are a professional basketball team that compete in the second division of the Japanese B.League.[1]

Fukushima Firebonds
Fukushima Firebonds logo
LeaguesB.League
Founded2013
History2014–present
ArenaKoriyama General Gymnasium
(capacity: 7,056)
LocationFukushima Prefecture
Team colorsFuchsia
 
Main sponsorNiraku Pachinko
PresidentEiji Miyata
Head coachEnrique Zúñiga
OwnershipShikigaku Co., Ltd.
Championships0
Websitehttps://firebonds.jp/

History

In May 2013 Fukushima Prefecture was announced as the successful bidder for an expansion franchise to enter the 2014-15 season of the bj-league. The league management included the region's recovery from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and the long-term feasibility of the bidding company, Fukushima Sports Entertainment, as reasons for the successful bid.[2]

In June 2014, the team announced Hiroki Fujita as the inaugural head coach.[3]

As an expansion team, the Firebonds received the first pick in the 2014-15 rookie draft, selecting forward Shota Kanno, a Fukushima Prefecture native. Takumi Masuko was selected in the second round.[3] In July 2014 the team signed American players James Hughes and Nick Thompson as their two foreign players.[4]

2014-15 season

The team commenced play in the bj-league in October 2014 and had their first regular-season win in a match against the Aomori Wat's on 5 October 2015.[5] The team finished the season with a 21-31 record,[6] securing a playoff berth in the second-last game of the regular season.[7] They were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs 0-2 by the Iwate Big Bulls.[8]

2015-16 season

During the off-season, the team renewed the contract of Fujita as head coach [9] and signed Le'Bryan Nash, Joseph Taylor and Stephan Van Treese as import players.[10] Masaya Karimata was named team captain and Kenya Tomori was named vice-captain.[11]

Current roster

Fukushima Firebonds roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.Nat.Name
PF 0 Finland Erik Murphy Injured
PG 4 Japan Wataru Igari
G 5 Japan Kenya Tomori
SG 6 Japan Tomonobu Hasegawa
PG 7 South Korea Gibeom Cheon
PG 8 Japan Shinya Murakami (C)
SG 11 Japan Tsubasa Yamauchi
PG 12 Japan Daiki Tsuchiya
PG 13 Japan Ao Honda
PG 14 Japan Yuji Takahashi
G 16 Japan Naoaki Hashimoto
G/F 21 Japan Shota Kanno
G/F 24 United States Addison Spruill
F/C 55 United States Josh Harrellson
F/C 88 Venezuela Gregory Echenique
Head coach

Enrique Zúñiga

Assistant coach(es)

Takahiro Kurihara


Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured Injured

Updated: March 27, 2023

Notable players

Coaches

Results by year

Bj-League

SeasonRegular SeasonHead CoachNotes
WinsLossesWin %Placing
2014-15[6]2131.4047th (East)Hiroki FujitaEliminated in first round of playoffs[8]

Arenas

References

  1. B.League. "Bリーグ". Retrieved 3 December 2022.
  2. "2014-2015新規参入チーム決定" [Decision Concerning 2014-15 Expansion Team] (in Japanese). 27 May 2013. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  3. Odeven, Ed (6 June 2014). "Fukushima Firebonds draft forwards Kanno, Masuko". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  4. Odeven, Ed (31 July 2014). "Gunma hires longtime NBA assistant Parker as new coach". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  5. Odeven, Ed (11 October 2014). "Shiga outplays Gunma in first bj-league contest for ex-NBA coach Parker, center Ely". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  6. Odeven, Ed (30 April 2015). "Sixteen teams ready to battle for title in expanded playoffs". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  7. Odeven, Ed (25 April 2015). "Fukushima earns playoff berth as first-year franchise". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  8. Odeven, Ed (5 May 2015). "Fukushima makes great progress in first season". The Japan Times. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  9. "Firebonds renew Fujita's contract". The Japan Times. 23 May 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  10. "【ニュース】福島ファイヤーボンズ 選手契約締結のお知らせ" [[News] Fukushima Firebonds Contracted Players] (in Japanese). 1 October 2015. Archived from the original on 4 October 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  11. "【ニュース】2015-2016シーズン キャプテン・副キャプテン決定のお知らせ" [[News] 2015-16 Season Captain and Vice-Captain Announced] (in Japanese). 20 August 2015. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
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