Robinson’s Desire To Make A Difference Is “Bringing Professional Basketball Back To Pittsburgh”

Every few years a discussion is brought up about Pittsburgh potentially being an expansion city for the National Basketball Association. The discussion comes and goes as quickly as the Pittsburgh Xplosion. The Xplosion, an American Basketball Association (ABA) turned Continental Basketball Association (CBA) team played—remarkably—from 2004 through 2008 at the Mellon Arena and Peterson Event Center. That team was in the playoffs with a 29-19 record and was scheduled to host the CBA All-Star Game the next season, but couldn’t make a successful run of it in Pittsburgh.

However, young entrepreneur Marcus Robinson has a different idea. His Pittsburgh Bullets are a nonprofit Professional Development Basketball Team with a hometown, grass-roots approach. CEO and Founder Robinson says that the Bullets’ “Primary goal is to promote health and wellness as well as a sense of community in the City of Pittsburgh.”

This isn’t a team filled with selfish showboats. In fact, the teams’ “Give Back” program promotes the opposite. Robinson, a 2006 graduate of Taylor Allderdice High School, has plans for the team that includes basketball camps as well as access to professional basketball games, socials, play-days, and information expos “focused on instituting stronger families and healthier living.”

Members of the team visited with fans—new and old alike—at Local Bar + Kitchen on Pittsburgh’s South Side on Friday, November 15, 2013 for a “Meet & Greet” Happy Hour from 6:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m. Those in attendance learned about the team and generated buzz for the soon-to-tip-off season.

On Saturday, November 16, Robinson was scheduled to host the 1st Annual Marcus Robinson "Basketball Basic Skills Camp.” Dozens of children 8-13 years of age from local and youth organizations learned about the sport from Robinson and members of the Bullets. Through sponsorships, Robinson hopes to be able to provide T-shirts, breakfast, lunch and memorabilia to campers. Robinson says he’s always looking for corporate sponsors hoping to help make a difference. The camp was held at Allegheny Middle School from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Go to www.pittsburghbullets.webstarts.com for more information.

All of this is in preparation for the Bullets to start their third season. Originally in the 6-team Ohio Valley Basketball League, the Bullets are now part of the re-branded and re-envisioned 15-team North American Basketball Development League (NABDLA). The Bullets took on the Buffalo Blue Hawks on Sunday, November 17, 7:30 p.m. at Youthplaces Indoor Sports Complex, 711 West Commons Street on the North Side in an Exhibition game. Tickets were only $5 and a halftime dance show was being planned.

The Bullets have started modestly and for a modest league. At three years, the Bullets are the oldest team in the NABDLA.

According to the NABDLA’s website, the league has teams in six states; Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and New York. The New York State League has teams in Buffalo and Brooklyn with many more teams on the verge of joining in Queens, Bronx, and Lancaster. The league is also looking at expanding to Europe in the future.

The Washington, PA Warriors—which followed the Bullets from the Ohio Valley league—are scheduled to come to town on Sunday, February 16. The South Philly Avengers, which were announced to be a late addition to the league, are currently not on the schedule. Other teams from Cleveland, Columbus, Indianapolis, Chicago and other cities are scheduled to face the Bullets.

On October 6 the Bullets hosted a basketball camp as part of the “Midday Madness,” Harry B. Davis basketball clinic at the Squirrel Hill Jewish Community Center. The next day, Robinson was featured on the popular Pittsburgh Sportsline broadcast from Cip’s Bar in Dormont.

Robinson, who studied at Clarion as well as Point Park, promotes the Bullets about as well as any team in the league and is constantly networking for more support. With exhibition and regular-season contests, Robinson is (perhaps overly) optimistically hoping for “18 wins in 18 games.” If the team doesn’t run the table, Robinson hopes to entertain in a family-friendly way and “help support today’s dreams.”

The Bullets are already ahead of their most recent professional predecessor, the Pittsburgh Phantoms, who promptly folded in the 2010-2011 season after finishing 4th with a 6-2 record in the American Basketball Association’s North Central Division the season prior.