The St. Louis Swarm was a

professional basketball In professional sports, as opposed to amateur sports, participants receive payment for their performance. Professionalism in sport has come to the fore through a combination of developments. Mass media and increased leisure have brought l ...

team based in

St. Charles, Missouri Saint Charles (commonly abbreviated St. Charles) is a city in, and the county seat of, St. Charles County, Missouri, United States. The population was 65,794 at the 2010 census, making St. Charles the ninth-largest city in Missouri. Situated on t ...

from 1999 to 2001. They were members of the

International Basketball League The International Basketball League (IBL) was a semi-professional men's basketball league featuring teams from the West Coast of the United States. In 2010 the Albany Legends became the first team in the Northeastern United States to join. The ...

and won the league's only two championship series in 2000 and 2001. The Swarm played home games at

Family Arena The Family Arena is a multi-purpose arena in St. Charles, Missouri, built in 1999. The arena seats 9,643 for hockey, 9,755 for football, 10,467 for basketball, 6,339 for half-house concerts and up to 11,522 for end-stage concerts. In addition ...

History

In 1999, an ownership group with the name RiverCity Basketball announced their intentions to purchase an expansion franchise 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 m ...

(CBA), however, after the creation of the

the ownership group announced they would be joining the fledgling league instead of the 53-year-old CBA. In response, CBA officials filed a lawsuit against RiverCity Basketball for breach of contract. As a condition of joining the IBL, the team would have to be named

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, not St. Charles, which is where their home arena—

Family Center Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

—was located. In February 1999, the Swarm announced the hiring of

Butch Beard Alfred "Butch" Beard Jr. (born May 5, 1947) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He was the starting point guard with the 1975 NBA champion Golden State Warriors. Career Early years Beard played high school basketba ...

head coach A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other Coach (sport), coaches. In some sports, the head coach is instead called the "manage ...

St. Louis University Saint Louis University (SLU) is a private Jesuit research university with campuses in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and Madrid, Spain. Founded in 1818 by Louis William Valentine DuBourg, it is the oldest university west of the Missi ...

alumni

Erwin Claggett Erwin Claggett (born 1973) is an American former basketball player best known for his collegiate career at Saint Louis University between 1991–92 and 1994–95. Claggett, a combo guard, played for the Billikens for four seasons and scored 1,91 ...

was the first player signed by the Swarm as announced by team president Michael Mannion on February 16, 1999. The team's nickname "Swarm" was announced before an audience at the

Regal Riverfront Hotel Regal may refer to: Companies * Regal Beloit, usually referred to as Regal, an American manufacturer of electric motors * Regal Cinema (disambiguation), several cinemas of that name * Regal Cinemas, a major American theater chain * Regal Cine ...

Downtown St. Louis Downtown St. Louis is the central business district of St. Louis, Missouri, the hub of tourism and entertainment, and the anchor of the St. Louis metropolitan area. The downtown is bounded by Cole Street to the north, the river front to the eas ...

. The Swarm's logo was also unveiled and was described by the ''

St. Louis Post-Dispatch The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a major regional newspaper based in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, serving the Greater St. Louis, St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpass ...

'' as "a bee grasping a basketball with its left hand as it prepares to slam the ball through the hoop in its right hand". In April 1999, the Swarm hired St. Louis native

Lee Winfield Leroy "Lee" Winfield (February 4, 1947 – February 4, 2011) was an American professional basketball player. A 6'2" guard from North Texas State University, Winfield played in the National Basketball Association from 1969 to 1976 as a member of t ...

assistant coach A sports coach is a person coaching in sport, involved in the direction, instruction and training of a sports team or athlete. History The original sense of the word ''coach'' is that of a horse-drawn carriage, deriving ultimately from the Hung ...

. St. Louis held a try-out camp from May 21 to May 23, 1999 on the campus of

Lindenwood University Lindenwood University is a private university in St. Charles, Missouri. Founded in 1827 by George Champlin Sibley and Mary Easton Sibley as The Lindenwood School for Girls, it is the second-oldest higher-education institution west of the Missis ...

. A $125 pre-registration fee was required. Twenty-four players form the tryout were recommended by the team for the IBL draft out of the 110 people who registered. The Swarm were awarded the second pick in the IBL draft. The IBL held a preliminary draft in early July 1999 for players who were selected in the second round 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 ...

draft Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a ves ...

. The Swarm selected

Chris Herren Christopher Albert Herren (born September 27, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player and motivational speaker. He played in the NBA and several leagues overseas. Youth and high school Herren attended B.M.C. Durfee High Sch ...

from

Fresno State University California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California. It is one of 23 campuses in the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers bac ...

, who was also selected by the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

in the 1999 NBA draft. They also selected St. Charles native

Ryan Robertson Ryan Ashley Robertson (born October 2, 1976) is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Sacramento Kings in the 2nd round (45th pick) of the 1999 NBA draft. He played college basketball at the University of Kan ...

, who was selected by the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

, and

Antwain Smith Antwain Smith (born May 1, 1975) is an American professional basketball player in the small forward position. He attended Saint Paul's College from 1995 to 1999. Upon college graduation, Smith was selected with the 51st pick of the 1999 NBA Dra ...

, who was picked by the

Vancouver Grizzlies The Vancouver Grizzlies were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Vancouver. They were part of the Midwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1995, along w ...

. In July 1999, it was reported by the ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' that Swarm head coach Butch Beard was negotiating to join the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays ...

as an assistant coach to

Gar Heard Garfield Heard (born May 3, 1948) is an American retired professional basketball player and coach. He played collegiately at the University of Oklahoma and was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the third round of the 1970 NBA draft. He had a ...

. Beard was hired by the Wizards in August 1999. During the IBL's territorial draft, the Swarm selected former

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 ...

basketball players Doug Smith and

Derek Grimm William Derek Grimm (born August 3, 1974) is an American professional basketball player. A 6'9" forward from the University of Missouri, Grimm was never drafted by a National Basketball Association (NBA) team but did play for the Sacramento King ...

. The team held a draft night party on July 19, 1999, which featured Swarm assistant coach Lee Winfield. The Swarm selected

Robert Werdann Robert Werdann (born September 12, 1970) is an American former professional basketball player and coach. Career Born in Sunnyside, Queens, New York (state), New York, he attended Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, New York, graduating in 19 ...

in the first round of the draft. Their other picks were

Kermit Holmes Kermit Leanell Holmes (born March 27, 1969) is an American basketball coach and former professional player. After sitting our his first year of college basketball due to Proposition 48, he played three years with the Oklahoma Sooners, being selec ...

Evric Gray Evric Lee Gray (born December 13, 1969) is an American former professional basketball player. He was a small forward. College career Gray played college basketball at UNLV. Professional career Gray played in the National Basketball Associa ...

Jamal Robinson Jamal Tyrone Robinson (born December 27, 1973) is an American retired basketball small forward who played one season in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Miami Heat during the 2000–01 season. Born in Queens, New York ...

and Versile Shaw. After Butch Beard was hired by the Washington Wizards, the Swarm opened their search for a new head coach. Swarm president Michael Mannion announced the team was considering a bevy of candidates including

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 ...

Kurt Rambis Darrell Kurt Rambis (born February 25, 1958) is a Greek-American former professional basketball player and coach who is a senior basketball adviser for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a player, he won fo ...

, Kiki Vandeweghe,

Brian Winters Brian Joseph Winters (born March 1, 1952) is an American former basketball player and coach. Career Winters attended academic and athletic powerhouse Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, New York, graduating in 1970. He then played collegi ...

and

Brad Greenberg Brad Howard Greenberg (born February 24, 1954) is an American basketball coach. Early life and college playing career Greenberg was one of three sons of Marilyn and Ralph Greenberg of Plainview, New York, on Long Island. One of his brothers, Set ...

. On August 31, 1999 the Swarm announced that

Bernie Bickerstaff Bernard Tyrone Bickerstaff (born February 11, 1944) is an American basketball coach and front office executive, currently serving as the Senior Basketball Advisor for the Cleveland Cavaliers. As a coach, he previously worked as the head coach for ...

was hired as head coach and

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all ...

. Swarm president Michael Mannion told the ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' that Bickerstaff was not on the list of candidates, saying, "Honestly, I didn't think someone like Bernie would be interested". The announcement of Bickerstaff of coach was delayed as he finished his role as coaching advisor to the

Harlem Globetrotters The Harlem Globetrotters are an American exhibition basketball team. They combine athleticism, theater, and comedy in their style of play. Created in 1926 by Tommy Brookins in Chicago, Illinois, the team adopted the name '' Harlem'' because of ...

, an American

barnstorming Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in ...

team. The Swarm also announced that former

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ma ...

player

John Outlaw John L. Outlaw (born January 8, 1945) was a former American football defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Boston/New England Patriots and the Philadelphia Eagles. He also played in the American Football League (AFL) for t ...

had been hired as assistant coach. In September 1999, the Swarm announced they had signed a contract with

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

KFNS-FM KFNS-FM (100.7 FM, "The Viper") is a radio station broadcasting a mainstream rock format. Licensed to Troy, Missouri, United States, the station serves the St. Louis Metropolitan area, with an effective radiated power of 6,000 watts and new stud ...

to broadcast live IBL games during the 1999–2000 season. The Swarm on-air broadcasting team consisted of Dave Greene doing

play-by-play In sports broadcasting, a sports commentator (also known as sports announcer or sportscaster) provides a real-time commentary of a game or event, usually during a live broadcast, traditionally delivered in the historical present In linguis ...

and former Saint Louis University basketball assistant coach

Jay Spoonhour Jay Thomas Spoonhour (born October 14, 1970) is an American basketball coach. He was the head men's basketball coach at Eastern Illinois University, a position he had held from 2012 until 2021. Previously, Spoonhour served as the head coach at M ...

as the

color commentator A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and th ...

. The Swarm held an open house at Family Arena in October 1999 that featured three St. Louis players Erwin Claggett, Doug Smith and Versile Shaw in which 5,000 people attended, 3,000 more than the Swarm's anticipated attendance. The Swarm sold 200 ticket packages at the event, worth an aggregate of $40,000. Individual game tickets went on sale on October 18, 1999 and ranged from $7 to $25.

Awards

*2000 International Basketball League Champions *2001 International Basketball League Champions *1999–2000 IBL Coach of the Year —

*1999–2000 IBL Most Valuable Player — Doug Smith *1999–2000 IBL Defensive Player of the Year — Doug Smith *1999–2000 IBL Rookie of the Year — Danny Johnson *1999–2000 All-IBL First-Team — Danny Johnson (

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

) and Doug Smith (

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

)

References

{{reflist

External links

*''

Riverfront Times The ''Riverfront Times'' (''RFT'') is a free progressive weekly newspaper in St. Louis, in the U.S. state of Missouri, that consists of local politics, music, arts, and dining news in the print edition, and daily updates to blogs and photo galle ...

'' �
"Best of St. Louis 2001: Sports & Recreation; Best Minor-League Team: St. Louis Swarm"
1999 establishments in Missouri 2001 disestablishments in Missouri International Basketball League (1999–2001) teams Basketball teams in St. Louis Basketball teams in Missouri Sports in St. Charles, Missouri Basketball teams established in 1999 Sports clubs disestablished in 2001

History

Awards

See also

References

External links