The Newfoundland Growlers were a Canadian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team based in

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North Ame ...

. Founded in 2021, they competed in the

Canadian Elite Basketball League The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL; ) is the premier men's professional basketball league in Canada, as recognized by Canada Basketball. The CEBL was founded in 2017 and began play in 2019 with six teams all owned and operated by owner ...

(CEBL) and played their home games at the Field House at

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, or MUN (), is a Public university, public research university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook ...

. They were owned and operated by Deacon Sports and Entertainment, the same organization that operated the professional hockey team that is also called the

Newfoundland Growlers The Newfoundland Growlers were a professional minor league ice hockey team in the East Coast Hockey League, ECHL based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. The team began play in the 2018–19 ECHL season, 2018–19 season with home games ...

. The Growlers are the third professional basketball team to be based in the St. John's area after the

St. John's Edge The St. John's Edge were a Canadian professional basketball team based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, that competed in the National Basketball League of Canada. From 2017 to 2020, they played home games at Mile One Centre. They were ...

of the

National Basketball League of Canada The National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada; ) was a Canadian professional men's minor league basketball organization. The NBL Canada was founded in 2011, when three existing Premier Basketball League teams joined with four new franchis ...

and the Newfoundland Rogues of the

American Basketball Association The American Basketball Association (ABA) was a major professional basketball league that operated for nine seasons from 1967 to 1976. The upstart ABA operated in direct competition with the more established National Basketball Association thr ...

History

On July 15, 2021, the

of the

(NBL Canada) were unable to secure a lease with St. John's Sports and Entertainment (SJSE), the group that owns

Mile One Centre Mary Brown's Centre (formerly Mile One Centre) is an indoor arena and entertainment venue located in downtown St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The arena opened in May, 2001, replacing Memorial Stadium. At full capacity the arena c ...

, and were announced as not returning to the venue for the 2022 season. The Edge's ownership had been negotiating with the arena alongside Deacon Sports and Entertainment (DSE), the majority owner of the arena's hockey tenant

, where DSE would have taken over as primary owner of the Edge upon the lease renewal. DSE chose not to sign the lease as SJSE had included terms that the Edge's debts for the installation of a 360 LED board must be rectified or taken on by DSE. SJSE instead awarded a lease to an outside ownership group, 2001 Investments Limited, and their

franchise. On September 10, the sale of the Edge to DSE was approved by the league if an arena deal could be settled. DSE stated they were committed to keeping the Edge in the region, but no home arena was announced at the time. The Growlers were also evicted from the arena in October 2021 leading an on-going lease dispute between SJSE and DSE, leading to their first six home games of the season being moved to

Conception Bay South Conception Bay South is a town in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The town is commonly called CBS. The town is located on the Avalon Peninsula which forms part of the southern shore of Conception Bay which is in turn part of ...

. The Edge were granted a leave of absence by the NBL in November 2021 in order to obtain a new lease but the sale of the team to DSE was never finalized. After the deal for the Edge fell through, DSE instead founded a new basketball team in the

(CEBL), which they also named the Newfoundland Growlers. The new Growlers began play in the 2022 CEBL season playing out of Memorial University's Field House. On November 11, 2022, it was announced the Growlers would be ceasing operations after the amenities at the

Memorial University Memorial University of Newfoundland, or MUN (), is a Public university, public research university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook ...

's Field House were deemed to be inadequate for long term use and the team was unable to obtain a lease at a new venue. The team said however it is open to discussion if an opportunity to play in a new professional arena presents itself.

Players

Roster

Notable past players

* Brandon Sampson (born 1997)

Honours

All CEBL Team Second Team All Star

Season-by-season record

References

External links

Official website
{{Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Canadian Elite Basketball League teams Basketball teams established in 2021 Sports clubs and teams in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador 21st-century establishments in Newfoundland and Labrador Basketball teams in Canada 2021 establishments in Newfoundland and Labrador