The La Crosse Bobcats were a Continental Basketball Association

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 located in La Crosse, Wisconsin, from 1996 to the league's bankruptcy in February 2001. The Bobcats were the second CBA team located in La Crosse; previously, the

La Crosse Catbirds The La Crosse Catbirds was an American basketball team based in La Crosse, Wisconsin and member of the Continental Basketball Association. The Catbirds were the 1990 and 1992 CBA champions. The team moved to La Crosse from Louisville in 1985, an ...

played from 1985 to 1994. The team hosted its matches at the

La Crosse Center The La Crosse Center is a multi-purpose arena in downtown La Crosse, Wisconsin, built in 1980. The arena can seat between 5,000 and 7,500, depending on the type of event. The center is also a convention center. In addition to the arena, which ...

Don Zierden Donald Casper Zierden, Jr. is an American basketball coach. From 2007 to 2009, Zierden served as the head coach of the Minnesota Lynx in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Early life and education Zierden, a Minneapolis native, ...

served as the Bobcats head coach during their inaugural 1996–97 season. The team held their first open tryouts at Viterbo College from October 25 to October 27, 1996. In 1997, the Bobcats marketing campaign featured commercials depicting La Crosse players hawking sub-par team endorsed products in a

home shopping Home shopping is the electronic retailing and home shopping channels industry, which includes such billion dollar television-based and e-commerce companies as Shop LC, HSN, Gemporia, TJC, QVC, eBay, ShopHQ, Buy.com and Amazon.com, as well as ...

parody. The team's tagline for the commercials were, "Lousy endorsements. Great basketball". No actual La Crosse players were in the commercials since they were filmed during the off-season, so actors were used. During the 1999 CBA draft, the Bobcats selected former

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin). They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level ( Football Bowl Subdivis ...

forward Sam Okey in the eighth round. Okey declined a contract from La Crosse, opting to play in a Turkish professional league. In September 2000, the Bobcats announced that Okey had signed a contract for the upcoming season. Okey first received basketball notoriety in Wisconsin while attending a Cassville prep school. He was a McDonald's High School All-American in 1995. In 2006, the City of La Crosse dedicated a

time capsule A time capsule is a historic cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy relics dates ...

which included objects from the city's 150-year history. Buried under a marble slab, the capsule is set to be opened for the city's

bicentennial __NOTOC__ A bicentennial or bicentenary is the two-hundredth anniversary of a part, or the celebrations thereof. It may refer to: Europe *French Revolution bicentennial, commemorating the 200th anniversary of 14 July 1789 uprising, celebrated ...

celebration in 2056. A Bobcats

pin-back button A pin-back button or pinback button, pin button, button badge, or simply pin-back or badge, is a button or badge that can be temporarily fastened to the surface of a garment using a safety pin, or a pin formed from wire, a clutch or other mechanis ...

and program from their inaugural season were included in the capsule.

All-time roster

Chucky Atkins Kenneth Lavon "Chucky" Atkins (born August 14, 1974) is an American former professional basketball player who played for nine different NBA teams throughout his career. Basketball career Atkins played college basketball at the University of Sout ...

* A. J. Bramlett * James Blackwell * Mark Blount * Gerald Brown *

Walter Bond Walter Thomas Bond (born February 1, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. A 200-pound, 6'5" shooting guard from the University of Minnesota, Bond was not drafted by an NBA team, but did manage to play in 3 NBA seasons. C ...

* David Booth * Lazaro Borrell * Mark Boyd * Jon Bryant * Adrian Caldwell * Jerry Carstensen * Robert Churchwell * James Collins * Joe Courtney * Corey Crowder *

Jason Crowe Jason William Robert Crowe (born 30 September 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a right back, and midfielder from 1996 to 2013. Crowe a former England Under-20 international started his career at Arsenal as a ju ...

Dennis Davis Dennis Davis (August 28, 1949 – April 6, 2016) was an American drummer and session musician best known for his work with David Bowie, playing on ten albums - including seven successive studio albums - during the singer's classic mid- and lat ...

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Todd Day Todd Fitzgerald Day (born January 7, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player and current head coach at Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas. Day is the all-time leading scorer at the University of Arkansas, and pla ...

* Tony Dumas * Nate Driggers * LaZelle Durden *

Acie Earl Acie Boyd Earl (born June 23, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player, who appeared in four National Basketball Association (NBA) seasons, as a , center. He also played many seasons in Europe. High school/college Born in P ...

* Neil Edwards *

Jo Jo English Stephen "Jo Jo" English (born February 4, 1970) is an American professional basketball player who starred at the University of South Carolina in the early 1990s and later played parts of three seasons for the National Basketball Association's Ch ...

* Sharif Fajardo *

Rob Feaster Robert M. Feaster (born May 15, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Holy Cross before playing professionally in Germany, Argentina, Australia and France, as well as playing two seasons in t ...

Isaac Fontaine Isaac Henry Sedric Fontaine IV
(born April 16, 1975) is an American former professional

Casey Frank Casey Frank (born October 23, 1977) is an American-New Zealand former professional basketball player who spent the majority of his 17-year career in the New Zealand NBL and Australian NBL. After playing four years of college basketball for Nort ...

Ronnie Fields Ronnie Fields (born February 28, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player. High school Born and raised in Chicago, Fields played at Farragut Academy in Chicago from 1992–1996 and was a teammate of Kevin Garnett during the 199 ...

Matt Fish Matthew Edward Fish (born November 18, 1969) is an American retired professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets, New York Knicks, Miami Heat and Washingto ...

* Sherell Ford * Ruben Garces *

Tim Gill Tim Gill (born October 18, 1953) is an American computer software programmer, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and LGBTQ rights activist. He was among the first openly gay people to be on the Forbes 400 list of America's richest people. He is the fo ...

Omm'A Givens Omm'A Givens (born 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. A high school basketball All-American, he was a center for the UCLA Bruins on their 1995 national championship team. High school Givens attended high school in Aberdee ...

Ronnie Grandison Ron Calvin Grandison (born July 6, 1964) is a former basketball player, who attended the University of California, Irvine and the University of New Orleans. He was selected in the fifth round of the 1987 NBA draft, 100th pick overall, by the Den ...

Jermaine Guice Jermaine Edward Guice (born September 2, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. He played high school basketball at Westerville South High School in Westerville, Ohio, and played college basketball with the Butler Bulldogs me ...

Jack Haley John Joseph Haley Jr. (August 10, 1897 – June 6, 1979) was an American actor, comedian, dancer, radio host, singer and vaudevillian. He was best known for his portrayal of the Tin Man and his farmhand counterpart Hickory in the 1939 Metro-G ...

Emmett Hall Emmett Matthew Hall (November 29, 1898 – November 12, 1995) was a Canadian lawyer, civil liberties advocate, Supreme Court of Canada judge and public policy advocate. He is considered one of the fathers of the Canadian system of Medicare, a ...

* Vince Hamilton *

Phil Handy Philip T. Handy (born August 24, 1971)1998–99 Official CBA Guide and Register, page 250 is an American basketball assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and player development trainer. He played ...

* Steve Hart *

Mark Hendrickson Mark Allan Hendrickson (born June 23, 1974) is an American former baseball and basketball player. Hendrickson was a pitcher in Major League Baseball (MLB) and played power forward in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Continental Bas ...

* Fred Herzog * Andrell Hoard * Reggie Jackson *

Stephen Jackson Stephen Jesse Jackson (born April 5, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the New Jersey Nets, Atlanta Hawks, Indiana Pacers, Golden State Warriors, Mi ...

* Keith Johnson *

Danny Jones Daniel Alan David Jones''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1984–2005'' (born 12 March 1986) is an English singer-songwriter and musician who is one of the lead vocalists and the lead guitarist for pop-rock band McFly. Jone ...

Dontae' Jones Dontae' Antijuaine Jones (born June 2, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player, formerly of the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Jones played college basketball at Northeast Mississippi Community ...

Tim Kempton Timothy Joseph Kempton (born January 25, 1964) is a retired American professional basketball who played the power forward and center positions. Born in Jamaica, New York, he played college basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish before havin ...

Bo Kimble Gregory Kevin "Bo" Kimble (born April 9, 1966) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Loyola Marymount Lions. As a senior in the 1989–90 season, Kim ...

* Chris King *

Jimmy King Jimmy Hal King (born August 9, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player. King played in the NBA and other leagues. He is most famous for his time spent on the famed University of Michigan Wolverines Fab Five along with Ray Ja ...

* Kirk King * Chris Kingsbury *

Jarvis Lang Jarvis Christopher Lang (born June 25, 1971) is an American former professional basketball player. A power forward, Lang had a lauded collegiate career at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte between 1990–91 and 1994–95 prior to pl ...

* Doug Lee * Martin Lewis * Jarrod Lovette * Marcus Mann *

Erik Martin Erik Martin (12 January 1936 in Neuss – 25 April 2017) was a German writer, songwriter and composer of songs. He was the founder and editor of the literature and art magazine ''Muschelhaufen''. Life and work Erik Martin was the first-born son ...

Sean Mason Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angliciz ...

* Clint McDaniel * Julius Michalik * Russ Millard *

Silas Mills Silas or Silvanus (; Greek: Σίλας/Σιλουανός; fl. 1st century AD) was a leading member of the Early Christian community, who according to the New Testament accompanied Paul the Apostle on his second missionary journey. Name and et ...

* Jason Miskiri * Tracy Moore *

Lawrence Moten Lawrence Edward Moten (born March 25, 1972) is an American retired professional basketball player. Moten attended Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. and the New Hampton School in New Hampton, New Hampshire before playing his colle ...

* Terquin Mott * Ruben Nembhard * Melvin Newbern *

Ed O'Bannon Edward Charles O'Bannon Jr. (born August 14, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was a power forward for the UCLA Bruins on their 1995 NCAA championship team. He was selecte ...

* Sam Okey *

Derrick Phelps Derrick Michael Phelps (born July 31, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. At 6'4" and 181 lbs., he played as a point guard. He was most recently the associate head coach at Washington State. High school Phelps attended Chri ...

* Rob Phelps * Mark Pope * Virginijus Praškevičius * Mark Randall * Mike Richardson * Chris Robinson *

Rumeal Robinson Rumeal James Robinson (born November 13, 1966) is a Jamaican-American former professional basketball player. Growing up in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Robinson graduated from Cambridge Rindge and Latin School and went on to play point guard for th ...

* Stan Rose * Yamen Sanders *

Mark Sanford Marshall Clement "Mark" Sanford Jr. (born May 28, 1960) is an American politician and author who served as the U.S. Representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district from 1995 to 2001 and again from 2013 to 2019, and also as the ...

Reggie Slater Reginald Dwayne Slater (born August 27, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player born in Houston, Texas. He played the power forward (basketball), power forward position and played college basketball at the University of Wyoming ...

* Charles Smith * Chris Smith *

Edward Smith Ed, Eddie, Edgar, Edward, Edwin, and similar, surnamed Smith, may refer to: Military * Edward H. Smith (sailor) (1889–1961), United States Coast Guard admiral, oceanographer and Arctic explorer * Edward Smith (VC) (1898–1940), English recipien ...

Andre Spencer Andre Devell Spencer (July 20, 1964 – August 4, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. He was a 6' 6" (198 cm) 210 lb (95 kg) forward and played collegiately for Bakersfield College, a junior college, and the Nor ...

* Joe Stephens * Ray Thompson * Keith Tower * Anthony Tucker * Donald Watts *

Jermaine Walker Jermaine Walker (born April 5, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player. Walker played college basketball for the Miami Hurricanes during the 1996–97 season. He was late to join the team as he failed his SAT twice before he ...

* Bubba Wells *

Donald Whiteside Donald Whiteside (born April 25, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. Listed as a 5'10", 160 lb point guard, he played college basketball for Northern Illinois University. In 1992, Whiteside had a brief stint with the Goldf ...

* Brandon Williams *

Trevor Winter Trevor Winter (born January 7, 1974, in Slayton, Minnesota) is am American former professional basketball player who played briefly in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The 7'0" center from the University of Minnesota played just one gam ...

::''Sources''

Season-by-season records

References

*{{cite news, title=La Crosse, other CBA teams harbor ill will; They feel betrayed by league management, last=Walker, first=Don, date=2001-03-07, publisher= Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Continental Basketball Association teams Defunct basketball teams in the United States Sports in La Crosse, Wisconsin Basketball teams in Wisconsin Basketball teams established in 1996 Basketball teams disestablished in 2001 1996 establishments in Wisconsin 2001 disestablishments in Wisconsin