FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
DATE: October 15, 2012
FORT WALTON BEACH, FLORIDA
ABL’s Emerald Coast Knights Hire Former Division I Head Coach Larry Lessett
Former University of Maryland Eastern Shore head basketball coach Larry
Lessett has been hired by the American Basketball League as the General
Manager and Head Coach of the Emerald Coast Knights. In addition to his
head coaching duties as UMES, Lessett brings to the American Basketball
League over 30 years worth of coaching stops at Mercer, Georgia College,
Loyola Marymount University, and Western New Mexico University. In
1999, he served as the Director of Scouting for Magic Johnson International
Basketball.
Lessett’s hiring is one of many recent high profile moves from the American
Basketball League, which has been anointed by the mainstream U.S.
basketball media as a league set to challenge the existence of the NBA’s
Development League.
The American Basketball League will commence its inaugural 24 game season in January 2013 and will
field a 12 team league set to challenge the recent economic and rather public failings of current minor
league basketball organizations. Initial ABL markets include; San Antonio, San Marcos, Sugarland,
College Station, Fort Lauderdale, Davie, West Palm Beach, Fort Walton Beach, Sebring, and Corpus
Christi. Future expansion is scheduled for California, New York and Puerto Rico. Never before in
American sports history has a professional league been developed for the purpose of operating as an
international farm club, or feeder league, for global basketball.
“Larry Lessett is as well-respected a coach as you will find in professional basketball” said ABL found
Steve Haney “He has a deep basketball network that reaches well in to the NBA and International
leagues and will be a huge asset to our platform of developing young players to play internationally”.
Haney previously represented NBA Hall of Famers “Magic” Johnson and Dominique Wilkins.
“I can’t wait to get started,” Lessett stated “I am looking forward to visiting with community leaders and
residents in and around the Fort Walton and Destin area so we can start weaving the Knights in to the
fabric of the Emerald Coast”. The American Basketball League will commence its inaugural season
January 19th, 2013.
For more information about the ABL, please refer to its website, http://www.abl-hoops.com, or contact
the ABL in the manner below.
Phone 517.614.2304
Email: ablhoops1@gmail.com