The Basketball League (TBL) bringing pro basketball back to Fayetteville
Represented in the NBA, ACC and professional leagues all over the world, Fayetteville is known for producing basketball talent.
That talent will soon have another place to play.
The Fayetteville Stingers pro basketball team is looking to begin play in 2023 as a member of The Basketball League (TBL), a national minor league basketball program in operation since 2018.
“We’re coming to bring pro basketball to the community,” team market owner Ken Bishop said in an interview with The Observer on Tuesday.
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The Stingers will start building a roster with a series of combines beginning in September, leading into team camps and then the regular-season, which tips in March 2023.
“We’ll be looking for players that fit the system and give us the chance to win games,” Bishop said.
He’s toured Crown Arena as a potential home court for the Stingers, which would play a 24-game regular season with 12 games in Fayetteville and 12 on the road.
Fayetteville would be a member of the league’s Eastern Conference, which currently fields 16 teams from Syracuse, New York, to Tampa Bay, Florida.
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The league also has Central, Midwest and Western conferences for a total of 44 franchises. According to the TBL Wikipedia page, player salaries range from $1,500 to $6,500 per month.
“It’s one of the best leagues out there,” Bishop said, pointing out that former NBA players Kendrick Perkins, Steve Francis and Ricky Davis own teams in the TBL.
A pair of TBL players — Xavier Moon and Lindy Waters III — have made it to the NBA with 10-day and two-way contracts from the Clippers and Thunder, respectively.
TBL was formerly North American Premier Basketball (NAPB), which operated for two years, and it emphasizes community.
“We have several community initiatives rolling out as soon as August,” Bishop said. “We’re going to make sure the community is part of everything.”
To learn more about the Stingers, follow their social media accounts on Twitter (@StingersTBL), Instagram (fayettevillestingers) and Facebook.
Sports editor Monica Holland can be reached at mholland@fayobserver.com.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Fayetteville Stingers will represent North Carolina in TBL
