The Utica Olympics, known also as Mohawk Valley Thunderbirds, were an American
professional basketball team based in
Utica, New York
Utica () is a city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 in the 2020 U.S. Census. Located on the Mohawk River at the ...
that were members of the
Continental Basketball Association (CBA) from 1978 to 1980.
The team was previously known as the
Baltimore Metros. The team moved to Utica during the 1978–79 season and were renamed the Mohawk Valley Thunderbirds.
The franchise disbanded following the season, but another Utica CBA franchise was created. They were known as the Utica Olympics and finished last place in the CBA following the 1979–1980 season, with a 15–31 record.
The franchise was relocated to
Atlantic City,
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
and became the
Atlantic City Hi-Rollers. During their two seasons, the franchise had seven coaches:
Larry Cannon, Fred Keller, Freddie Lewis,
Nappy Doherty, James Klein,
Dick Frank and
Gary Mazza.
In 1979, the
Utica Police Department declined to renew a contract with the Utica public school system to serve as
hall monitors in their eight schools. Superintendent of schools Dr. Anthony Scolzo called his acquaintance James Klein, the Olympics coach, to discuss his predicament. Klein recommended the schools hire Olympics players as hall monitors. Eventually a total of eight players from Utica's roster served as hall monitors and two players, Bruce Lee and Ron McFarland, were promoted to
substitute teachers.
Year-by-year
References
Basketball teams in New York (state)
Continental Basketball Association teams
Defunct basketball teams in the United States
1978 establishments in New York (state)
1980 disestablishments in New York (state)
Basketball teams established in 1978
Sports clubs disestablished in 1980
Utica, New York
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