The Halifax Rainmen were a professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

team based in

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and largest municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the largest municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of the 2021 Census, the municipal population was 439,819, with 348 ...

, Canada. They played in the Atlantic Division of the

National Basketball League of Canada The National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada; french: Ligue nationale de basketball du Canada) is a Canadian professional men's minor league basketball organization. The NBL Canada was founded in 2011, when three existing Premier Basketb ...

(NBL) and their home games took place at the

Scotiabank Centre Scotiabank Centre (formerly known as Halifax Metro Centre) is the largest multi-purpose facility in Atlantic Canada, located in the heart of downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The main entrances to the building are located on Brunswick Str ...

, formerly known as the Halifax Metro Centre.

Andre Levingston Andre Levingston is an American entrepreneur and basketball coach. He was formerly an auto detailer and schoolteacher. He is a co-founder of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL) and most recently served as the owner and president of th ...

was the owner of the Rainmen since he helped establish the team in 2006. The team played their first season in the American Basketball Association (ABA). However, after becoming unhappy with the ABA, they moved to the

Premier Basketball League The Premier Basketball League, often abbreviated to the PBL, is an American professional men's basketball minor league that began play in January 2008. The league folded after the 2017 season. It was announced that the league would be revived un ...

(PBL) for the next three seasons. In 2011, they joined the NBL Canada as one of the original seven teams. Despite showing success in the four seasons they spent in the Canadian league, making two

Finals Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

appearances, the Rainmen filed for bankruptcy in July 2015. The team was coming off a controversial loss in the 2015 NBL Canada Finals against the

Windsor Express The Windsor Express is a Canadian professional basketball team based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The Express are an expansion team of the National Basketball League of Canada that began play in the 2012–13 season. The Express play its home gam ...

and forfeited Game 7 after taking part in a pre-game brawl. The Halifax Hurricanes, with a larger ownership group than the Rainmen's single owner, replaced the Rainmen in NBL Canada for the 2015–16 season.

History

The American Basketball Association announced on August 23, 2006, that

, had been granted an expansion franchise for the 2007–08 season. A local contest was later held among fans to help name the team, and on December 19, 2006, the organization unveiled that they would be known as the Halifax Rainmen. The Rainmen hosted the 2007 ABA All-Star Game ten months before the team started play. Joe Newman, the league's chairman, figured it would be an excellent way to promote Canadian expansion. On May 30, 2007, the team announced their home venue, the

Halifax Metro Centre Scotiabank Centre (formerly known as Halifax Metro Centre) is the largest multi-purpose facility in Atlantic Canada, located in the heart of downtown Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The main entrances to the building are located on Brunswick Str ...

, and head coach, Kevin MaBone. Mabone later stepped down due to a family illness and was replaced as head coach by Rick Lewis. Shannon Hansen and Daniel Freiberg joined Lewis on the coaching staff as assistants. The Rainmen's first two player signings were Peter Benoite and Chad Eichelberger. Benoite was a former CIS standout for the

Memorial Sea-Hawks The Memorial Sea-Hawks are the athletic teams that represent Memorial University of Newfoundland in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. There are varsity teams in men's and women's basketball, cross-country, soccer, swimming, and volle ...

, and is currently the Sea-Hawks head coach. Days before their first game, the Rainmen announced the signing of star Canadian guard Jermaine Anderson, a veteran member of the Canadian National basketball team.

2007–08 season

The Rainmen played their inaugural season in the Northeast Division of the Blue Conference in the American Basketball Association. The team won its first-ever game on November 15, 2007 at the Metro Center, against the Boston Blizzard by a score of 136-103, in front of 4,343 fans. Halifax went on to lose seven straight before their next win, against the Montreal Royal. The Rainmen ended the season with a record of 12 wins and 20 losses. Eric Crookshank led the Rainmen during the season, averaging 20.5 points and 12.3 rebounds per game. He was also named to the All-ABA first team. Crookshank and Brian Silverhorn were both chosen to represent the Rainmen at the 2008 ABA All-Star Weekend, in Vermont. Halifax lead the American Basketball Association in attendance during the year. On March 19, 2008, the Rainmen withdrew from the ABA due to the ownership's dissatisfaction with the league's management. The team announced their intention to pursue membership in the NBA Development League. D-League president, Dan Reed, visited Halifax and the Metro Centre. While he stated was impressed with the city, owner, and arena, he said that for travel costs and other reasons, 2008–09 expansion would be unlikely, and a more likely expansion target would be the 2009–10 season. On June 23, the Rainmen joined the

2009 season

The Rainmen kicked off their inaugural PBL season by placing former Rainmen Eric Crookshank, Kadiri Richard, Brian Silverhorn and Jimmy Twyman on their protected players list, giving them exclusive PBL negotiating rights to the four. Halifax then received the second overall pick in the PBL Entry Draft, held in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. With the pick the Rainmen selected former

Acadia Axemen The Acadia Axemen and Axewomen are the men's and women's athletic teams that represent Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada. The on-campus sports facilities used by Axemen teams include Raymond Field for various field sports and A ...

all-star Walter Moyse. With their second-round pick, Halifax selected David Bailey, formerly of the

Maryland Nighthawks The Washington GreenHawks were a team of the Atlantic Coast Professional Basketball League (ACPBL) based in Washington, D.C. As the Maryland Nighthawks they were formerly part of the American Basketball Association (ABA) and a founding member o ...

. Ultimately, Moyse could not come to terms with the team. In early November 2008, the Rainmen signed Bailey for the 2009 season, along with former ABA All-Stars Rob Sanders, a former Manchester Millrat, and Cordell Jeanty, formerly of the Montreal Royal. Jimmy Twyman and Brian Silverhorn returned to the team along with newcomers Kevin Hammack and Tyronne McNeal. Forward Kadiri Richard was granted a release and was signed by PBL rival the Wilmington Sea Dawgs. On November 17, the Rainmen re-signed All-Star Eric Crookshank, who had turned down offers from the

Vermont Frost Heaves The Vermont Frost Heaves were a professional basketball team in Vermont, United States, that last played in the Premier Basketball League, last coached by Joe Salerno. History The formation of the team was announced in December 2005 by foundi ...

and various overseas teams to sign with the Rainmen. Later that month, the Rainmen signed Jason McGriff, Rodney Mayes and Canadian Jabulah Murray. McGriff and Murray failed to report to the team. With training camp underway, the Rainmen signed shooting guard Glen Dandridge, a former three-year member of the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System. MU was founded in ...

basketball program, to fill the void left by their departures. Halifax won in their

opener 110-108 versus the hosting

Quebec Kebs The Quebec Kebs (french: Kebs de Quebec) were a professional basketball team located in Laval, Quebec, formerly based in Quebec City, Quebec. The Kebs were part of the National Basketball League of Canada. They also played in the Atlantic Divisi ...

on January 2, 2009. Earlier in the day, the Rainmen signed guard Zach Ramey, formerly of the

Rockford Fury The Rockford Fury was a Premier Basketball League ( PBL) team based in Rockford, Illinois. Franchise History Inaugural Season - 2006-07 The team began existence as the Hammond Rollers of the ABA's current incarnation (based out of Hammond, I ...

. The Rainmen played their home-opener seven days later against the Kebs, winning in front of over 4,000 fans. On January 14, the team suspended star Eric Crookshank for the season, with pay, following a series of conflicts with Coach Rick Lewis. The Rainmen did not comment on the cause. On February 3, the team released Rick Lewis, the head coach and general manager, citing poor results in weekend games at

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

and

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. The team's record was 6-5 at that point, dropping the Rainmen a game behind in a tight divisional race with Vermont and Manchester. Rodney Mayes, one of the last of the players signed in late November, was also released. Assistant Shannon Hanson served briefly as interim head coach. Following Lewis' dismissal, Crookshank was reinstated. On February 5, the Rainmen announced Halifax native Les Berry as the new head coach. Berry previously led

Acadia University Acadia University is a public, predominantly undergraduate university located in Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada, with some graduate programs at the master's level and one at the doctoral level. The enabling legislation consists of the Acadia ...

within one win of the national CIS Men's Basketball championship. The team was then bolstered by the signings of guard Tony Bennett who played his college ball at

Bradley University Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,400 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in five colleges. Th ...

and PBL leading scorer A.J. Millien. Although Berry lead the team to a record of 6 wins and 3 losses, the Rainmen failed to qualify for the PBL playoffs. Following the season, Millien was named "PBL Newcomer of the Year" while Tony Bennett was named to the PBL All-Defensive team.

2010 season

The Rainmen's first move of the 2010 season was to re-sign coach Les Berry. Berry and team owner

began recruiting during the offseason and signed a number of players, including former NBA'er

Desmond Ferguson Desmond Ferguson (born July 22, 1977, in Lansing, Michigan) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He last played with the Halifax Rainmen of the PBL. He attended and played college basketball at the University of Misso ...

. Tony Bennett, Eric Crookshank, and John Strickland were all re-signed for the 2010 season.

2011 season

During the pre-season, the Rainmen added Kavon Jones, Josh Dollard,

Tajuan Porter Tajuan Marquis Porter (born March 9, 1988) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Lille Métropole of the LNB Pro B. He played college basketball for Oregon. High school career Porter attended Renaissance High School in ...

, Mike Mercer, Marshall Brown and Tommy Mitchell while welcoming back veteran players Eric Crookshank and Desmond Ferguson to the roster. The Rainmen also re-signed 6'1 point guard Taliek Brown, who joined the team during the 2010 season but did not play due to a family emergency. On January 14, the organization added former NBA Development League Forward/Centre James "Boo" Jackson to their lineup. On January 22, the Rainmen announced the addition of

Kirk Snyder Kirk Patrick Snyder (born June 5, 1983) is a former American professional basketball player. College Snyder grew up in Upland, California, and spent his college career at University of Nevada. In 2004, he led the Wolf Pack to its first Sweet 1 ...

to their roster but after playing three games between January 23–30, they waived him. On January 24, Les Berry’s tenure as Head Coach of the Halifax Rainmen ended by mutual consent. While the Rainmen had been pleased with Berry’s performance, the decision for his resignation came after he was presented with an opportunity to build his career outside of the sports arena. Two days later, former NBA player, scout and coach Mike Evans was named as head coach of the Rainmen for the remainder of the 2011 season. The Rainmen ended their 2011 season as the fourth place team in the PBL after falling to the Lawton Fort Sill Cavalry in the final game of their series (1-2). In the first game of the series, the Cavalry beat the Rainmen in Halifax by one point in overtime. Four days later, the Rainmen beat the Cavalry by ten points in Oklahoma, where the Cavalry had not lost in three years. After the controversy surrounding the Rochester Razorsharks's advancement through the PBL playoffs, the Rainmen joined the

Saint John Mill Rats The Saint John Riptide were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Saint John, New Brunswick, that had home games at Harbour Station. They were a member of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada) in the Atlantic Division ( ...

in disassociating themselves from the PBL within one hour after the playoffs ended. The decision to withdraw from the league was made upon the Rochester RazorSharks being crowned as PBL champions over the Lawton Fort-Sill Cavalry, with controversies over the officiating of games, as the RazorSharks and the league share a common owner. Rainmen owner Andre Levingston was quoted as saying, "I am appalled by the officiating that took place during the playoffs, and am ashamed of the PBL’s operations this season. I want nothing but the best for our city, our fans, our sponsors, and our players, and I can say with confidence that the best is no longer found in the PBL." The

followed suit one day later. On May 12, 2011, the Rainmen, Mill Rats, and Kebs founded the

2011–12 season

The Rainmen were one of seven teams competing in NBL Canada's inaugural season, joining past PBL rivals the Quebec Kebs and Saint John Mill Rats along with new teams the

London Lightning The London Lightning is a Canadian professional basketball team based in London, Ontario, Canada, with home games at the Budweiser Gardens. The team is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC) that began play for the 201 ...

, Moncton Miracles Oshawa Power, and

Summerside Storm The Island Storm is an inactive Canadian professional basketball team based in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. The team is a charter member of the National Basketball League of Canada that began play in the 2011–12 season. The Storm plays ...

. The head coach was Pep Claros. Before the season, the Rainmen signed Halifax native, 6'0 guard, Christian "T-Bear" Upshaw. Upshaw was the third-highest scorer in the

Atlantic University Sport Atlantic University Sport (AUS; french: Sport universitaire de l'Atlantique) is a regional membership association for universities in Atlantic Canada which assists in co-ordinating competition between their university level athletic programs and pr ...

the previous year, averaging 18.9 points a game for

St. Francis Xavier University St. Francis Xavier University is a public undergraduate liberal arts university located in Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a member of the Maple League, a group of primarily undergraduate universities in Eastern Canada. History St. Franc ...

(St. FX). In 2009–2010, Upshaw was named

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

of the AUS and was a CIS All-Canadian. Due to a violation of league and club policies, the Rainmen suspended centre DeAndre Thomas indefinitely and forward Eric Crookshank for one game. The Rainmen signed 6'1 Canadian guard Joey Haywood. Haywood attended Saint Mary's University in

and went on the become the leading scorer for three straight years in the CIS. The previous season he averaged 28.9 points a game and earned the title of MVP in the AUS. The Halifax Rainmen added former NBA players

Orien Greene Orien Randolph Greene II (born February 4, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. His first two professional seasons were spent with the NBA's Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers, respectively. He played briefly with the Sacra ...

and Richard Delk to their roster. The Rainmen also made their first trade of the season, trading former NBA player

Rodney Buford Rodney Alan "The Sheriff" Buford (born November 2, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player who last played for the London Lightning of the National Basketball League of Canada. He played college basketball for the Creighton Blue ...

to the

in exchange for 6'6" forward Tyrone Levett. The Rainmen signed 6'9 centre Stevy Worah-Ozimo, but waived him days after. They also activated 6'9 centre and former NBA player Eddie Robinson. The Halifax Rainmen added 5'9 guard Chris Hagan to the roster and released Richard Delk. Hagan played

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Div-1 basketball at

Midwestern State University Midwestern State University (MSU Texas) is a public liberal arts university in Wichita Falls, Texas. In 2020 it had 5,141 undergraduate students. It is the state's only public institution focused on the liberal arts. History Founded in 1922 as ...

and professionally in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The Halifax Rainmen released their 2011 draft pick, 6'4 Canadian Papa Oppong, and the ex-NBA player Orien Greene. The Rainmen signed 6'9 Canadian Troy Gottselig and placed Abdullahi Kuso on injury reserved. Gottselig was later released after the signing of forward Richard Anderson. The Rainmen continued to make moves as they released ex-NBA player Eddie Robinson and activated Abduhalli Kuso from the injured reserve list. The Halifax Rainmen signed Darnell Hugee as well as waiving guard Darrin Dorsey. Taliek Brown, Canadian Joey Haywood and Tyrone Levett were all selected to participate in the 2012 NBL All-star game. Lawrence Wright led the Rainmen in scoring with 15.41 ppg. Taliek Brown proved to be a true point with his team-leading 3.05 apg and fan favorite Eric Crookshank grabbed 6.88 rpg. By the end of the regular season, the Rainmen finishedsecond in the NBL Canada standings and were in good position to make a run at the title. They defeated the

in the first round of the playoffs. They then went on to face the

in the finals. Coming back from a 2-0 start which included a huge comeback in the last seconds of game 3, the Rainmen tied the series 2-2. They lost the series 3-2. After the season, Chris Hagan, Lawrence Wright and Abduhalli Kuso all chose to sign to other teams. On August 27, the second annual NBL Canada draft took place. The Rainmen did not have a first-round pick due to an early trade in the season but held the seventh pick in the second round. The Rainmen drafted 6'2 guard Courtland Bluford. After the draft, the Rainmen announced they traded Tyrone Levett and Christian "T-Bear" Upshaw to the Moncton Miracles for their first-round draft pick Anthony Johnson. The Rainmen also landed guard Brandon Robinson from the Oshawa Power for cash and a 2013 third-round pick. Robinson was the Rookie of the Year in 2011–2012 and averaged a league best 19.86 ppg. After the draft, owner Andre Levingston commented on the draft trades. "Robinson led our league in scoring last year and is probably the best two guard in our league. He’s a very explosive guy. He can score in different facets of the game. He’s definitely going to add an element to our game that we lacked last year, which was a guy that can get his shot any time he wants it." It was announced by the Rainmen that they had re-signed All-Star

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

guard Joey Haywood. The Rainmen also released fan favorite Eric Crookshank and traded Taliek Brown to

for a future first round pick. The Rainmen announced the trading of their 2012 first-round draft pick Anthony Johnson to the

Laval Kebs The Quebec Kebs (french: Kebs de Quebec) were a professional basketball team located in Laval, Quebec, formerly based in Quebec City, Quebec. The Kebs were part of the National Basketball League of Canada. They also played in the Atlantic Divisi ...

in return for All-Star guard Eddie Smith. They have also signed point guard Darren Duncan, forward Hillary Haley, guard Joel Smith and Halifax native and

("St. FX") alumnus Tyler Richards. Each player had attended Halifax’s pre-season camp.

2012–13 season

The Rainmen began their pre-season on Sunday, October 21 versus the

at the

. On November 13, 2012, the Rainmen ended the contract with head coach Cliff Levingston after a poor start to the season. Colter Simmonds filled in as interim head coach until the next head coach will be announced. On November 15, 2012, the Rainmen named former

head coach Rob Spon to the same position.

2013-14 season

2014–15 season

The Rainmen had the second-best record in the league and were the Atlantic Division champion. They advanced to the championship round vs the

, which was supposed to come down to a decisive Game 7 hosted by Windsor. Unfortunately, before Game 7 could even begin, the two teams brawled, police were summoned and the Rainmen left the Windsor Arena. Despite calls to the owner and team to come back by league officials, Halifax forfeited the game and the championship to the Express. Coach Pep Claros was nominated coach of the year, but also suspended by the league for life following an investigation of the brawl.

Bankruptcy, folding, and replacement NBL Canada team

Following the 2015 NBL Canada Finals brawl with the

, the Rainmen were fined a total of $90,000. While each player that participated in the altercation was forced to pay $5,000 each and serve an indefinite suspension along with the coaching staff, a $20,000 fine was also imposed on the organization itself due to "conduct detrimental to the league." Over two months later, the team filed for bankruptcy and was nearly $700,000 in debt, ultimately folding. Owner

said, "While it's disappointing to see this chapter end, I can hold my head high knowing that we did everything we could have done. I love this game and I love this city." The market, however, would not be left without a team as the Halifax Hurricanes, with a larger ownership group of local businessmen including Levingston (who joined the Hurricanes as its general manager), replaced the Rainmen in the market beginning with the

2015–16 NBL Canada season The 2015–16 NBL Canada season was the fifth season of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC). The regular season began on December 26, 2015 and concluded on April 30, 2016. There were 40 total games played by each team, eight more than ...

Home arena

The Scotiabank Centre multi-purpose indoor sporting arena located, in

, Canada. The arena has a capacity of 11,093. The Rainmen share the arena with the

Halifax Mooseheads The Halifax Mooseheads are a Canadian major junior ice hockey club in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The team was founded in 1994 and began play in the Dilio Division of the QMJHL from the ...

of the

Quebec Major Junior Hockey League The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The ...

. The building is next to the

Former World Trade and Convention Centre A former is an object, such as a template, gauge or cutting die, which is used to form something such as a boat's hull. Typically, a former gives shape to a structure that may have complex curvature. A former may become an integral part of th ...

, at the foot of Citadel Hill and it is the largest arena in Halifax.

Season-by-season record

References

External links

*
Fansite Covering Rainmen News

Halifax Rainmen Images (Nov 18, 2011)
{{NBLCdefunct Defunct National Basketball League of Canada teams Former Premier Basketball League teams Sport in Halifax, Nova Scotia