Oakland County Cowboys embrace community roots
October 2, 2012 in Cover Story, Professional
When Giovanni Rogers launched the Oakland County Cowboys, an ABA franchise, he did so intending for the team to be a showcase for Oakland County basketball.
“Everyone always talks about Detroit basketball, but people in this area, we have game too,” said Rogers, who played at Oakland Community College, Marygrove and professionally in Mexico.
As his team enters its second season, the Cyclones will have even more of an Oakland County flavor. In addition to Rogers, the roster also includes Southfield native Marcus Hopkins, Marygrove’s all-time leading scorer, and Justin McKinney, Marygrove’s second all-time leading scorer. Brandon Matthews, who played at Oakland Community College and Spring Arbor and is an assistant coach at Schoolcraft Community College, joins the team this season, and Jason Trotter, a Bloomfield Hills native who played at Howard University is also on the roster. Rogers said the team will continue adding to the roster before the season opens Nov. 3.
The roster, however, is not the only aspect of the team that pays tribute to Oakland County. This year, the team will have three awards named after Oakland County legends — former OCC standout Gary Holt, Frank Russell (older brother of Campy Russell) and OCC coaching great Lynn Reed.
“We have a great basketball legacy right here in Oakland County and we want to show people that,” Rogers said.
Rogers, who also owned a team in his FIBA-sponsored league in Mexico, got involved with the ABA because he truly believes it is becoming a more and more viable league.
“There are former NBA players involved — Cedric Ceballos is playing for a team, Mitch Richmond is playing for a team, the league just got a national sponsor,” said Rogers, who said his goal for this season is to get the team into the playoffs. “It’s truly and up-and-coming league with a lot of talented players.”
The Cowboys will play their home games at Walled Lake Central High School. The season opener will be at 5 p.m. Nov. 3 when they host the Grand Rapids Cyclones. The team has two remaining preseason games in October.
Previously
- ABA’s Grand Rapids Cyclones getting ready for first season
[...] The Cowboys and Hoops will be playing each other in back-to-back games Nov. 10-11 at 5 p.m. The games will be at 5 p.m. each day. For more on the Cowboys, check out BallinMichigan’s story from earlier this fall. [...]