Manchester Magic

Manchester Magic
Manchester Magic logo
LeagueNBL D2 North
Established1997; 27 years ago (1997)
HistoryManchester Giants B
1997-1998
City of Manchester Attitude
1998-2000
Manchester Magic
2000-present
ArenaManchester Basketball Centre
Capacity1,000
Team colours   
WebsiteOfficial website

The Manchester Giants are an English basketball club from the city of Manchester in the northwest of England.

For the 2019-20 season, the Magic will compete in the National Basketball League Division 2 North. They play their home games at the Manchester Basketball Centre, which was part-funded by former NBA star John Amaechi. A sister team, the Manchester Mystics, compete in the top-tier Women's British Basketball League.

History

[edit]

The Magic were first established in 1997, originally as a reserve squad for the nearby Manchester Giants, entering the newly founded NBL Division 3 for the 1997/1998 season and winning immediate promotion as league runner-up and playoff champions. A change in direction from their one-time parent club saw the fledgling team become independent mid-way through their first season in Division Two, choosing the City of Manchester Attitude as their new name. A first league title was to follow at the end of the 1999/2000 season, with the club joining the top flight just as the national league was being restructured, forming the short-lived NBL Conference.[1]

After rebranding as the Manchester Magic, the club enjoyed over a decade of success in the top tier of the English Basketball League, with the highlight being a triple title success in the 2007/2008 season, claiming the National Cup alongside the league and playoff titles. The team then took the shock decision to play in Division 3 for the 2011/12 season, in order "to forge a much closer link between the youngsters... and the men's team",[2] in the words of club director Joe Forber. The club worked their way back up the English leagues in record time, winning Division 3 at the first attempt to earn a return to Division 2, and then gaining back-to-back promotions with a runner-up spot in Division 2 in the 2012/13 season.

Since returning to Division 1, the Magic have claimed both the National Cup and National Trophy in the 2014/15 season, alongside second-place finishes in both the league and the end-of-season playoffs.[3]

Club honours

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National Cup

  • 2007, 2008, 2015, 2016

National Trophy

  • 2015, 2016

EBL Division 1 League Champions

  • 2008

EBL Division 1 Playoff Champions

  • 2008, 2010

EBL Division 2 League Champions

  • 2000

EBL Division 3 League Champions

  • 2012

EBL Division 3 Playoff Champions

  • 1998

Season-by-season records

[edit]
Season Division Tier Pos. Played Won Lost Points Playoffs National Cup National Trophy Patrons Cup National Shield
Manchester Giants B
1997-98 D3 4 2nd 26 15 11 30 Winners 1st round DNE DNE
City of Manchester Attitude
1998-99 D2 3 3rd 24 18 6 36 Semi-Final 2nd round DNE DNE
1999-00 D2 3 1st 24 20 4 40 Runner-Up 2nd round DNE DNE
Manchester Magic
2000-01 Conf 2 4th 21 9 7 18 Semi-Final Quarter-Final DNE DNE
2001-02 Conf 2 5th 18 9 9 18 Semi-Final Semi-Final DNE DNE
2002-03 Conf 2 5th 22 12 10 24 Semi-Final 1st round 1st round DNE DNE
2003-04 D1 2 4th 22 16 6 32 Quarter-Final Quarter-Final 1st round DNE DNE
2004-05 D1 2 6th 22 12 10 24 Quarter-Final Quarter-Final 1st round DNE DNE
2005-06 D1 2 4th 26 19 7 38 Semi-Final Quarter-Final 1st round DNE DNE
2006-07 D1 2 3rd 22 17 5 34 Runner-Up Winners Semi-Final DNE DNE
2007-08 D1 2 1st 18 16 2 32 Winners Winners Semi-Final DNE DNE
2008-09 D1 2 2nd 18 15 3 30 Runner-Up Runner-Up Runner-Up DNE DNE
2009-10 D1 2 2nd 22 16 6 32 Winners Runner-Up Runner-Up DNE DNE
2010-11 D1 2 6th 18 7 11 14 Quarter-Final 3rd round 1st round DNE DNE
2011-12 D3 Nor 4 1st 22 19 3 38 Runner-Up 2nd round DNE DNE Quarter-Final
2012-13 D2 3 2nd 22 15 7 30 Runner-Up 3rd round DNE 1st round DNE
2013-14 D1 2 5th 26 16 10 32 Quarter-Final Semi-Final Runner-Up DNE DNE
2014-15 D1 2 2nd 24 17 7 34 Runner-Up Winners Winners DNE DNE
2015-16 D1 2 1st 26 23 3 46 Winners DNE DNE
2016-17 D1 2 2nd 26 21 5 42 Winners DNE DNE
2017-18 D1 2 8th 24 11 13 22 Quarter-finals DNE DNE
2018-19 D1 2 14th 26 2 24 4 Did not qualify DNE DNE
2019-20 D2 Nor 3 5th 18 10 8 22 Did not qualify 3rd round

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Manchester Magic History". pawprint75.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 March 2009.
  2. ^ "Manchester Magic to withdraw from EBL1". Manchester Evening News.
  3. ^ "League Table History". Basketball England. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014.
[edit]
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