Leeds LDM Basketball End of Season Wrap Up 2024!

We are pleased to announce, after a lengthy hiatus that we will be returning to regular updates on the LDM Basketball website as of May 2024!

With another excellent season in the bag, it is great that we can reflect on what has been an overall positive year for the organisation, as we progress to our 5 year anniversary!

Division Three Men’s Triumph

Where else to begin other than the fantastic achievement of our NBL Division Three Men’s team who finished as league winners in an extremely tight Division Three North League. It was our first season entering a men’s team into the NBL, a decision that was taken primarily to provide an extra outlet for our talented junior players, alongside filling an evident void in the Leeds basketball landscape for Men’s National League opportunities. The year was by no means perfect, with the team suffering defeats in their first two games of the season to Tees Valley Mohawks and Team Sunderland, followed by the disruption caused by a mid season venue change. Despite this, the team battled through and confirmed themselves as Champions in the final game of the season after a win against City of Leeds at The Edge Sports Centre. It was a great way to finish the year and although the team could not replicate this success in the Playoffs, it is a season that far exceeded all expectations and one that all involved can be proud of. A special mention of course must be given to Coach Bash and Jake Chilver who were awarded NBL Division Three North Coach of the Year and Player of the Year respectively for their efforts this season.

Basketball Academy Success

Our Basketball Academy partnership with Leeds City College has been one of the biggest success stories in our success laden five year existence. Initially created to provide more opportunity for post 16 players to play the game whilst studying, it has flourished year on year, developing some of the most talented players in the region and providing the Leeds and wider West Yorkshire area with essential coaching and officiating personnel. After another hard fought season, Norman Francis led his team to promotion, with a runners up finish being followed by promotional playoff success against Birmingham’s Aston Manor Academy. The victory means that the 24/25 cohort can look forward to testing their skills in the more challenging CBL tier 2 and providing Coach Francis with another exciting opportunity to support our next generation of talent. Alongside this, there were successes in the Collegiate 3x3 tournament as four of our senior players qualified for the EABL finals in May; a successful trip to America for Warren Priso and Eseosa Arthur and another trip to the National Championship, which was a great weekend away for the team. There were also some great performances for the development LCC II team in the AOC Yorkshire League, their improvements as a team have been phenomenal.

Good times for our Junior Teams!

We have added even more junior teams to our programme this season and once again they did not disappoint! It was our first year entering the u13 boys and u14 girls local league with Coach Jonnie and Coach Charlotte providing exceptional experiences for their players, most of whom were taking part in competitive basketball for the first time. The u12 Boys led by Yorkshire Region Coach of the Year Coach Mo, won their development league after only one defeat in 22 games, a testament to the exiting talent we have progressing through the younger ranks. Coach Shaq’s u14 boys team went from strength to strength this year after a 3rd place finish in the conference division. There were some massive performance throughout the season including an incredible victory on the last day of the season against a talented, undefeated Doncater team - laying the foundations for a very good group coming through next year.

Both u16 Boys teams had strong finishes in their respective leagues with 2nd and 3rd places for Coach Jimmy and Coach Jule’s players. It was a year of learning for our young u18s men team, who will be in the JR NBL conference for 2425 after a difficult year in the Premier Division this season; there is however a lot to be excited about for next year!

NEXT YEAR

The plans for next year are big, the expectations are high and the LDM Team are READY. We have learnt a lot this season and will work even harder to ensure we provide the best opportunities for our participants in the safest, most enjoyable environment possible. We expect to enter a record number of teams once again into National and Regional Competition and look forward to adding to our talented coaching and administration staff to accommodate this increase. As Director of LDM Basketball, I will be taking a back seat on day to day delivery and will instead be focusing my efforts to ensure that we are in the best position to grow as an organisation and basketball club. I am incredibly excited by what the next few years have to offer - the last twelve months have been encouraging, yet with plenty of work left to do there is no room for complacency. We stay focused. #aspireforgreatness.