Greensboro Swarm Get Ready for 5th Anniversary Season

By carolinianweb on October 26, 2021 • ( 0 )

Jamario Williams

Staff Writer

The Greensboro Swarm are awaiting the start of their fifth anniversary season on Friday, Nov. 5 at the Greensboro Coliseum Fieldhouse. The Charlotte Hornets affiliate Swarm are looking to have a big season after many moves during the off-season. Hiring Jordan Surenkamp as the new head coach was the Hornet’s most notable move. The Swarm has also been involved in multiple trades with a few teams around the league.

There were a plethora of trades throughout the whole NBA G League, The Greensboro Swarm traded several picks and players. Greensboro was part of a five-team trade completed on Oct. 15, with the Lakeland Magic (Orlando Magic affiliate), Raptors 905 (Toronto Raptors affiliate), South Bay Lakers (Los Angeles Lakers affiliate), and the Long Island Nets (Brooklyn Nets affiliate). The Swarm received a first-round pick in the 2021-22 draft from South Bay, and they also got the second-round pick of the Lakeland Magic in the 2022-23 draft. Greensboro sent the returning rights to Admiral Schofield, who was the swarm’s No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 G league Draft to the Magic. Schofield played in 14 games and started in 11, where he averaged 10.1 points and 5.8 rebounds.

In another trade, the Greensboro Swarm acquired the returning rights to Luke Maye from the Wisconsin Herd (Milwaukee Bucks affiliate) in exchange for the returning rights to Javin DeLaurier. Luke Maye has North Carolina roots; he was born in Cary and played his collegiate basketball at the University of North Carolina. The 24-year-old Maye is currently playing for BAXI Manresa in the Liga ACB in Spain. It remains to be seen whether or not Maye will report to Greensboro at the moment.

Delaurier, 23, played in seven games, averaged only 2.9 points and 3.3 rebounds. He was undrafted in 2020 out of Duke University.

On Oct. 22, the Swarm completed a three-team trade with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Houston Rockets affiliate) and the Westchester Knicks ( New York Knick Affiliate). Greensboro obtained Westchester’s first-round pick in the upcoming 2022 G League Draft. The swarm gave up the returning rights to Kahlil Whitney to the Vipers. Whitney played nine games and averaged 3.0 points and 1.3 rebounds. He was undrafted out of the University of Kentucky in 2020.

A lot of fans were looking forward to seeing LiAngelo Ball, brother of Hornets superstar guard Lamelo Ball, on the court for either the Swarm or Hornets. Due to procedural issues that prevent him from being a Hornets affiliate player, Liangelo Ball is eligible to be selected by any team in the upcoming G League draft. Ball averaged 9.6 points and 2.0 rebounds in five games during the summer league.

Before the season kicks off the Greensboro Swarm will be hosting an open practice on Saturday, Oct. 30 at the Fieldhouse. Fans can start coming in at 10:00 a.m. and the practice will start at 10:30 a.m. Fans that go to the practice will receive a free T-shirt, as well as other gifts and prizes. There will also be autograph opportunities throughout the event. This event is part of the celebration of the Greensboro Swarm’s fifth season.

New head coach Jordan Surenkamp said, “The biggest thing is to lay the foundation of the culture here in the same ways that we have in Charlotte.” He is very optimistic about the team and the task at hand. The Swarm is looking to end their playoff drought this year and have a winning season. Coach Surenkamp is one of many new additions to the team, but he is the most important.

The Greensboro Swarm will start the season going back-to-back against the Birmingham Squadron, the new name for the New Orleans Pelicans affiliate. This should be a good early battle for the Swarm as they try to kick off their fifth-anniversary campaign. After that two-game series, the next two are against the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (Houston Rockets affiliate). The Swarm will play in one last homestand against the Lakeland Magic (Orlando Magic affiliate) before going on the road to face the Texas Legends (Dallas Mavericks affiliate).