Slam Returning Five from 2013 Championship Team
March 12, 2014 - International Basketball League (IBL)
Bellingham Slam News Release
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - The Bellingham Slam has announced the first five names that will make up part of the team's roster for the 2014 International Basketball League season, with all five players returning from the squad's championship-winning squad in 2013.
Headlining the list is center Blake Poole, who is currently competing in Germany but will coming back to Bellingham for his third stint with the Slam.
Since his rookie in 2011, Poole has established himself as one of the IBL's premier big men, consistently finishing amongst the league leaders in points and rebounds. He averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds per contest for the Slam in 2013, and was named Most Valuable Player in the league championship game.
Helping to shore things up in the post will be veteran IBL forward Nick Moore, who will return for his second season with the Slam. The former Evergreen State product saw limited minutes as a backup to Poole and center Evan Matteson in 2013, but came up big when needed. He finished as the team's second-best field goal shooter at 56.4 percent and posted season highs of 22 points and 17 rebounds against the Lone Star Strikers and East Bay Pit Bulls, respectively.
Forward Chas Kok will also be back with the Slam in 2014, hoping to build off of an impressive 2013 campaign that saw important contributions from the former Lynden prep star. Kok averaged 14 points per game last season, a sharp increase from the 6-point scoring average he posted in 2012. His best shooting night came last May in a game against the Japan Tornadoes, when he scored 34 points on 14-of-19 shooting, tying him with guard Rico Wilkins for the best single-game scoring performance of the 2013 season.
In the backcourt, guard Morris Anderson will be suiting up for his fifth season with the Slam. Anderson will continue to lead Bellingham's up-tempo offense, which averaged 125 points per game in 2013. The four-time IBL All-Star ranked first on the team in both assists and steals with 7 and 3 per game, respectively.
Rounding out the first group of roster additions is reserve guard Chris Ferguson, who will return for his third season with the club. Ferguson appeared in 11 games and posted a season-high 13 points in a big win over the Tornadoes last May.
With this first group of players signed on for the 2014 season, announcements regarding other veteran Slam players as well as newcomers will be forthcoming as team general manager Kip Leonetti works to build a roster to compete for an unprecedented fourth IBL championship.
The Slam will open the 2014 IBL season on Friday, April 25 at Whatcom Pavilion.
The team's full season schedule will be announced soon.
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International Basketball League Stories from March 12, 2014
- Slam Returning Five from 2013 Championship Team - Bellingham Slam
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