Cincinnati Slammers
| Cincinnati Slammers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Division | Central (1982–83) Western (1983–87) |
| Founded | 1982 |
| Dissolved | 1987 |
| History | originally the Ohio Mixers |
| Arena |
Lima Senior High School (1982–84) Cincinnati Gardens (1984–87) |
| Location |
Lima, Ohio (1982–84) Cincinnati, Ohio (1984–87) |
| Team colors | red, yellow, black (1982–84) navy, white, silver (1984–86) magenta, orange, white (1986–87) |
| Ownership | Sawyer family (1982–87) Jerry Robinson (1984–86) Jerry Gordon (1986–87) |
The Cincinnati Slammers, originally the Ohio Mixers, were a professional basketball team based in Lima, Ohio from 1982 to 1984 and Cincinnati, Ohio from 1984 to 1987. They were members of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA). The team was admitted into the CBA as an expansion franchise in 1982. Team owner Tom Sawyer served as the Mixers' head coach during their two season. Jerry Robinson underwrote the re-location of the franchise to Cincinnati before the 1984–85 season. Sawyer stayed on as head coach to the newly re-branded Cincinnati Slammers, but resigned during their first season at which point assistant coach Tom Thacker took over the position. Herb Brown was hired as head coach before the 1985–86 season and led the team until they went defunct following the 1986–87 season.
The Continental Basketball Association (CBA) admitted an expansion franchise from Lima, Ohio on May 28, 1982, just before the CBA franchise fee increased from $100,000 to $125,000. They were designated to the Central Division of the CBA. They were branded as the Ohio Mixers.
The Mixers played their first game on December 3, 1982. Ohio's Center Rich Kelley was their first player in franchise history to get signed to a National Basketball Association (NBA) contract when he signed a 10-day deal on December 28, 1982 with the Denver Nuggets. Kelly went on to play the rest of the season with in the NBA, eventually joining the Utah Jazz after Denver traded him for Danny Schayes and cash considerations. On December 31, 1982 Mixers' guard Dwight Anderson was signed to a 10-day contract with Denver, but the deal was not extended so he returned to Lima on January 9, 1983.
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