Leicester Riders are set to tip-off their 2024 pre-season campaign against USA Select!
The newly built roster, with seven new faces ready to be welcomed by the Riders faithful, looks to find chemistry and understanding in the upcoming pre-season campaign, before for the debut season of Super League Basketball in September.
Their first test: a USA Select team featuring the next generation of American talent, looking to showcase their ability on their way to their first professional contracts.
Here’s everything you need to know about the fixture.
Fixture information
Fixture: Leicester Riders vs USA Select
Date: Friday, September 6
Tip-off: 7 pm
Leicester basketball is back!
It has felt like a long wait, but Leicester are ready to take to the court for their first action of 2024-25. It’s a pivotal pre-season for the Riders roster, who make their preparations for the debut season of Super League Basketball.
The seven new additions look to settle into Head Coach Rob Paternostro’s system quickly before competitive action begins, but the roster is blessed with experience to ease that process.
Among the summer signings is returning Rider Zach Jackson. His familiarity with both coach and club will be a valuable asset throughout pre-season. Jackson returned to the Club having spent three seasons with the Riders between 2020 and 2023. He played an integral role in the Riders’ 2022 treble, winning four trophies during his time in the East Midlands.
“It’s been great seeing Coach Rob and some familiar faces on the team again,” said Jackson. “I’ve always loved playing for Rob, and I can’t wait to see the fans again.
“Everyone on the team always got along during my time here, which is a big thing in professional basketball. Everyone on this team seems to have good character.
“We haven’t gone live yet to see how each other plays, but hopefully over the next few weeks we’ll start building chemistry and get to know one another.”
This game presents an opportunity for exactly that. It will be the first test for the new team to suit up alongside one another in competitive action.
With four rookies joining the Riders ranks over the offseason, Charles Thompson, Jaylin Hunter, J’Raan Brooks and Riley Abercrombie, that is especially important. These are key minutes early in the professional careers of the rookies especially, as they look to grow quickly accustomed to the team against USA Select.
Our opponents: USA Select
Leicester Riders meeting with USA Select has become annual tradition, having established a relationship with the programme over previous decades.
USA Select are in the midst of a busy European tour, hoping to secure their players their first professional contracts. The programme has produced household names in British basketball over its 40 year existence, including Sheffield Sharks Head Coach Atiba Lyons.
The Riders have established a thriving relationship with the programme.
“Leicester Riders, like so many other clubs in the UK, has been phenomenal for us over the decades, which is why I never miss the UK out on these tours,” said Head Coach and General Manager Sean Kilmartin.
“The club, and its vision in a sport that was always under the radar and never truly appreciated in the UK, has changed the way people look at basketball in the country. Their venue is the first of its kind, and it set the bar for the other clubs in the league.
“When my players can see all that, they see what professionalism looks like. They see how professionals put pride in their job, and their humility when they put their jerseys on for the fans.
“The Riders fanbase is amazing. The love and respect we get from those fans is humbling. They really get it.”
Join the cavalry
Tickets are still available for tonight’s action! Standard tickets are £10, courtside seating is £25.
