2006: The Idaho Stampede fought through the Isaiah Thomas CBA debacle and helped keep that league afloat. Then came a big opportunity.
This Day In Sports…April 6, 2006, 20 years ago today:
After eight seasons in the CBA, the Idaho Stampede announce a move to the NBA Development League (now the G League). The CBA had struggled with franchise stability despite the best efforts of the then Boise-based circuit, and the D League was poised for expansion, with the goal of eventually becoming a 30-team league with one-for-one franchise affiliation (the goal was finally reached last season). The Dakota Wizards, Sioux Falls Skyforce, and expansion Colorado 14ers joined the Stampede in the CBA exodus. Only the Sioux Falls franchise remains today in its original form.
In 2008, the Stampede would wrap up their 10th anniversary season with the only championship in franchise history, taking the D League crown with a 108-101 win over the Austin Toros. The Stampede, who had the best regular season record in league history at 36-14, were coached by Bryan Gates and featured local favorites Cory Violette, Roberto Bergersen and Jason Ellis, and all three played key roles in the D League Finals. The Gates years were the Stampede’s peak years—he was 100-50 in three seasons with Idaho and won two D League Coach of the Year awards.
With the NBA pushing the D League affiliate model for its franchises, the Utah Jazz purchased the Stampede in 2015 and signed a one-year extension with what was then CenturyLink Arena to play in Boise at least one more season. Jazz president Randy Rigby was non-committal on the team staying here beyond that season. “We’re taking it a step at a time,” said Rigby. But Utah’s general manager, Dennis Lindsey, sounded a bit more hopeful. “We want to take this next year to show the Boise market that we can be good partners,” Lindsey said.
But alas, one year later the Jazz announced a move of the Stampede from Boise to Salt Lake City. They’d be known as the Salt Lake City Stars, a nod to the old Utah Stars’ run in the ABA from 1970-76, and to the Utah Starzz, who played in the WNBA from 1997-2002. This was a calculated move by the Jazz—otherwise they wouldn’t have been ready to unveil the Stars’ new uniforms and even new corporate partners simultaneously when they dropped the announcement. The Stars remain the G League affiliate of the Jazz today.
The Stampede always put forth the highest level of athlete of any minor league pro franchise in Boise. Players were literally one call away from the NBA. But it was always difficult putting bodies in the seats. The club was founded as a CBA franchise in 1997 by a group headed by managing investor Bill Ilett. “It’s a sad day for a lot of folks,” said Ilett of the move on Idaho SportsTalk. He feels the Jazz could have worked out a new lease with CenturyLink Arena, and vice versa. But all NBA teams want is instant access to their G League affiliates. They don’t much care about building far-off fan bases.
(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday)