The Toronto Tornados were a professional basketball team in the

Continental Basketball Association The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) (originally known as the Eastern Pennsylvania Basketball League, and later as the Eastern Professional Basketball League and the Eastern Basketball Association) was a men's professional basketball mi ...

that played in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

from 1983 to December 1985. The team was owned by

Ted Stepien Theodore J. Stepien (June 9, 1925 – September 10, 2007) was an American businessman who owned the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1980 to 1983. Born in Pittsburgh in 1925, he became wealthy as the founde ...

who had threatened to move his

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central ...

team of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

to Toronto in 1983 (where they would have been renamed the Towers, with a logo similar to the one used by the Tornados), but instead sold the team to new owners in Cleveland. He then bought a franchise in the CBA in May 1983. Stepien hired former Cavaliers assistant coach Gerald Oliver as the first coach and general manager of the Tornados. Team publicist Malcolm Kelly briefly took over the GM role in December 1984 but quit within weeks in frustration with Stepien. He was succeeded by Keith Fowler, who was also assistant coach and would replace Oliver as head coach later that season. The team played its home games at

Varsity Arena Varsity Arena, located at 299 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontarioretrieved from http://rrs.osm.utoronto.ca 2007-10-22 is an indoor arena that opened on December 17, 1926, and is primarily home to the ice hockey teams of the University of Toronto, ...

. In its first season (1983–84), it averaged average 1,224 fans at 22 home games.Garth Woolsey, "Tornados to get new look," ''Toronto Star'', November 16, 1984, p. B4. That fell to 850 in second seasonChristopher Young, "1,000 season tickets target for Tornados," ''Toronto Star'', March 27, 1985, p. F3. and had fallen again in the third season when Stepien decided in mid-season to move the team to

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal c ...

where it became the

Pensacola Tornados The Pensacola Tornados was a basketball team that played in Pensacola, Florida in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) from 1985–1991. 1985–1986 season Ted Stepien bought a CBA franchise for Toronto in 1983 after threatening to mov ...

. Stepien estimated the team lost US$700,000 over its first two seasons. First season players for the Tornados included Carl Nicks, Peter Thibeaux, Bobby Cattage, Dudley Bradley,

Larry McNeill Larry McNeill (January 31, 1951 – December 29, 2004) was an American National Basketball Association player. College career McNeill played at college basketball at Marquette University, with the Warriors. Professional career McNeill was draf ...

, Robert Smith,

Tracy Jackson Tracy Cordell Jackson (born April 21, 1959) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He attended Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville, Maryland, and was named to the inaugu ...

, Ron Crevier,

Walter Jordan Walter Lee Jordan (born February 19, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'7" small forward born in Perry, Alabama and from Purdue University, Jordan played one season ( 1980–81) with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the NBA ...

, Wayne Abrams, Greg Hines, and Calvin Roberts. In its first season, the team had a record of 16-28 and finished last in its division. The Tornados improved to 26-22 in their second season—including a 15-2 run at the end of the season—good enough for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Division. Stepien fired coach Oliver just before the first playoff game and replaced him with Fowler after Walter Jordan declined a player-coach role.Chris Young, "Tornados fire winning coach," ''Toronto Star'', March 14, 1985, p. H1. In the first round of the playoffs (Eastern Division semi-final), the team was eliminated three games to two by defending champions

Albany Patroons The Albany Patroons are a professional basketball team that plays in The Basketball League (TBL). Previously, the team competed in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) and in the United States Basketball League (USBL). The Patroons won ...

, coached by

Phil Jackson Philip Douglas Jackson (born September 17, 1945) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive. A power forward, Jackson played 12 seasons in the NBA, winning NBA championships with the New York Knicks in 1970 a ...

. It was the Tornados' only playoff appearance. The team started the 1985-86 season with a 2-7 record and then moved to Pensacola. After finishing the season there, the franchise moved to

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which th ...

and became the Jacksonville Jets.

References

Basketball teams established in 1983 Defunct basketball teams in Canada Tornados Continental Basketball Association teams Sports clubs disestablished in 1985