Patriots Set Opening Night Roster
November 20, 2003 - NBA G League (G League)
Fayetteville Patriots News Release
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C., November 20, 2003 â Three former NBA draft picks, three rookies, four returning players and one hometown product will try to help the Fayetteville Patriots repeat as NBDL Regular Season Champions.
The Patriots open the 2003-2004 season 7:30 p.m., Saturday against the Roanoke Dazzle at the Crown Coliseum. Patriots coach Jeff Capel and assistant Sam Worthen reduced the Patriots roster to the NBDL mandate of 10 on Thursday. The Patriots released guards Malcolm Fields and Ronald Blackshear to make it possible.
The Patriots did keep three players who are former NBA draft picks. Seven-foot Jason Collier highlights the group. The Milwaukee Bucks selected the former Georgia Tech product in the first round of the 2000 NBA Draft. He was traded to the Houston Rockets and spent three seasons there.
In October, the Minnesota Timberwolves released Collier from their veterans training camp, and the Patriots selected him with their first-round pick in 2003.
Omar Cook and Sam Clancy were second-round draft picks. The Orlando Magic took Cook in the second round of the 2001 draft and the Philadelphia 76ers drafted Clancy out of USC in 2002. Cook, a 6-2 point guard out of St. John's, was recently released by the Indiana Pacers. Injuries hampered Clancy during the 2002-2003 season with the Sixers.
Cook returns for his third season with the Patriots. Cook has compiled 540 assists in 85 games with Fayetteville. Junie Sanders and Bryan Lucas also return from the Patriots regular season championship team.
Both players came off the bench last season and made major contributions. Sanders averaged 8.8 in less than 17 minutes per game. Lucas led the Patriots in rebounding 13 times last season.
Center Darrell Johns did play on last season's 32-18 squad, but he did make the Patriots inaugural Opening Night roster. The Patriots drafted Johns in the second round of the 2001 NBDL Draft. He played for the Roanoke Dazzle last season before returning to Fayetteville this season.
Rookies Kueth Duany, Donnell Knight and Kent Williams also made the Opening Night roster. Duany helped Syracuse win a national championship last season. Knight is a 6-7 swingman out of Arizona State and Williams is a 6-3 guard out of Southern Illinois.
Hometown product Greg Stevenson rounds out the Patriots roster. Stevenson played high school basketball at Fayetteville Seventy-First. He played in North Carolina's East-West All-Star game as a senior.
NBA G League Stories from November 20, 2003
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