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Florida Flame populate 2005 NBA Summer Leagues

July 7, 2005 - NBA G League (G League)
Florida Flame News Release


FORT MYERS, Fla.-Eight current and former members of the Florida Flame have earned spots on 2005 NBA Summer League rosters and will perform in front of NBA general managers, coaching staffs, and scouts in their efforts to win roster spots for NBA training camps that begin in late September.

Players and head coaches from the NBDL's first four seasons are participating at four sites for NBA Summer League action: the Minnesota Summer League in Minneapolis, Minn., Reebok Vegas Summer League in Las Vegas, Nev., Southern California Summer Pro League in Long Beach, Ca., and the Reebok Rocky Mountain Revue in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Eight members of the 2004-05 Flame squad participating in NBA Summer League action include: Smush Parker, Carl English, Hiram Fuller, Kirk Haston, Tim Pickett, Darius Rice, Kendall Dartez, and Kevin Braswell.

Parker, the three-year NBA veteran point guard who led the Flame in scoring (19.1), assists (3.0), and steals average (3.0), has been signed to play for the Los Angeles Lakers squad at the Southern California Summer Pro League, July 8-21 in Long Beach, California.

English, who finished his second season in the NBDL as the league's #2 three point shooter (45.7 percent) and #9 scorer (14.6 ppg), will compete with the Cleveland Cavaliers squad at the Reebok Vegas Summer League, July 6-15 at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Fuller will suit up for the Washington Wizards during the Reebok Vegas Summer League. The 6-9, 240 lb. veteran from Fresno State ('03) finished the 2004-05 NBDL campaign second overall in double-doubles (19), third in rebounding average (8.5), fifth in blocked shots (68, 1.7 pg) and eleventh in scoring (13.9).

Haston, the Flame's leader in total points (754) and rebounds (363) this past season, joins the Miami Heat for action at the Southern California Summer Pro League. The 6-10, forward and NBA veteran finished the 2004-05 NBDL season among league leaders in four different categories; finishing second overall in minutes (1672, 36.3 pg), fourth in scoring average (16.4) and rebounding average (7.9), and sixth in blocked shots average (1.6).

Pickett, the former Florida State Seminole, will compete with two different NBA clubs; the Miami Heat and the Toronto Raptors. With Miami, Pickett will team up once again with Haston for action at the Southern California Summer Pro League. With Toronto, the former second round draft pick of the New Orleans Hornets ('04) will participate at the Minnesota Summer League in Minneapolis, July 15-19. The 6-4, guard appeared in 23 games with one start for Florida during the 2004-05 NBDL season, averaging 9.3 points, 2.5 assists, and 1.4 steals per contest.

Rice, the former Miami Hurricane, is set to play for the Dallas Mavericks squad at the Vegas Summer League, Southern California Summer Pro League, and the Rocky Mountain Revue in Salt Lake City, Utah July 14-22. The 6-10, forward made 38 starts for the Flame this past season, averaging 10.5 points per contest while ranking fourth in the NBDL in free throw shooting percentage, at 86.7 percent from the foul line.

Dartez, who appeared in 26 games for the Flame prior to a season-ending injury, will suit up for the San Antonio Spurs at the Rocky Mountain Revue. The 6-11, forward from Louisville ('04) made eight starts for Florida this past season, averaging 6.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game.

Braswell, who appeared in 15 games to begin the 2004-05 campaign for Florida, will join Pickett as a member of the Toronto Raptors summer squad at the Southern California and Minnesota summer leagues.

The NBDL, the NBA's Development League, will tip off its fifth season in November 2005. The league includes the Fayetteville Patriots (N.C.), Florida Flame (Ft. Myers), Roanoke Dazzle (Va.), Arkansas RimRockers (Little Rock), as well as Albuquerque (N.M.), Tulsa (Okla.), Austin and Fort Worth (Texas).

The league offers players the opportunity to develop their talent in a highly competitive atmosphere under the NBA's umbrella. Thirty-four (34) players have been called up the NBA on 50 separate occasions. Ten (10) former NBDL coaches, five athletic trainers, 11 referees and 29 front office executives have also been called up since the start of the league's inaugural season in November 2001. Six additional front office executives have earned positions with other major league sports.

Designed to help grow the sport of basketball both domestically and internationally, the league also offers fun, family entertainment at affordable prices. The NBDL is a source of on-court talent for the NBA's 30 teams and is a diverse human resources pool for the NBA and its teams by training employees in management, operations, public relations, sales and marketing positions.

For more information about the Florida Flame and their upcoming 2005-2006 NBDL season, contact Tim Becwar at (239) 561-8130, tbecwar@nba.com, or log onto www.floridaflame.com.

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