Professional British Basketball has not been back in Birmingham since the early days, we're talking 1980 to 2006, a healthy 26 year presence. Back then, they were the Birmingham Bullets and were led by GM at the time, Bob Hope who is now the BBL Commercial Director.
Now, a potential resurgence could be on the way for the 0121 as The City Of Birmingham Rockets along with investors are aiming to become a part of the British Basketball League in time for the 22'/23' season.
Currently, the Rockets' highest level of play is National League Division 2, but have an established pathway all the way from the grassroots level up to the men and women's level, with plenty of basketball available for boys and girls of all ages. They also had a brand new court built specifically for their team and even got to play in the Utilita Arena which was home to the BBL Finals just gone.
🎥 Take a look at the scenes from within the Rockets camp the moment we secured yesterday’s massive victory!#WeAreRockets pic.twitter.com/HSBva1YDjl
— City of Birmingham Rockets (@cob_rockets) January 31, 2022
The consortium of investors includes BBL Commercial Director, Bob Hope as well as NBA Hall Of Famer, Hakeem Olajuwon.
This comes a few weeks after investment group 777 Partners announced they are aiming to introduce 4 new franchises into the BBL within the next 5 years with a £7 million investment.