Bandits ready for opener against defending champs

Victoria Sun

Friday, Dec. 8, 2000 | 10:42 a.m.

Before the Las Vegas Bandits play their season opener at St. Louis Saturday, the Swarm will receive the International Basketball League championship rings it earned last summer by beating Richmond.

That won't provide any extra motivation for Bandits first-year head coach Lionel Hollins.

"It's a new season," Hollins said. "It doesn't matter what happened before.

"Whatever they did last year, they'll have to put forth the same sweat and tears as they did last year. We will have to put the same sweat and tears into this year to get what they have."

The Bandits were 5-7 against St. Louis during the regular season and were swept by the Swarm, 2-0, in the IBL playoffs.

The Bandits return four players led by former UCLA star J.R. Henderson, who led the league with 22.6 points a game. Las Vegas point guard Isaac Burton led the league with 144 steals and was second in assists with 6.8 per game.

Also back for the Bandits are DeeAndre Hulett, a second round draft pick of the Toronto Raptors, and Doug Swenson, a physical player who gives the team good size in the middle.

Hollins trimmed the roster from 12 players to 10 on Monday. When training camp opened in November, there were 20 players competing for the maximum 10 spots allowed on each IBL roster.

Former Utah guard Tony Harvey and Jamaal Livingston did not make the team.

"It was very difficult," Hollins said of the cuts. "It really hurt.

"We had a couple players who played hard, and played well enough to be on the team. It's a travesty to go lower than 12 players on the roster, but that's the way it is."

Because Hollins spent most of last season coaching in the NBA, first as an assistant and then as head coach of the Vancouver Grizzlies, the first game of the year will give him a glimpse of what the rest of the league has to offer.

St. Louis returns IBL player of the year Doug Smith, guard/forward Chris Hollander, Antwain Smith, Lazarus Sims, Derek Grimm and Byron Houston.

"We're obviously going down there to win the game, but I don't know how we'll play," Hollins said. "But I'll get a feel for what work we need to do to get better.

"The first game is that way for whoever we're playing against. Not being in a situation where you've played an exhibition game, I'm basing every judgment on practice. Seeing them in games is better than seeing them in practice."

Though Hollins wasn't here last season, he has been given a scouting report by director of player personnel and assistant coach Barry Hecker, who served as head coach after Rolland Todd retired during the middle of last season.

"They were a very physical team, but they also shot the ball from outside a lot," Hollins said. "They have some good players, players that were NBA caliber, and a good team."