Key additions have transformed NBADL's Texas Legends

These aren’t the same Texas Legends that started the year with two straight losses, finished their first 12 games at 2-10 and tripped out to an 11-16 stretch through early February.

As a result of the constant rush of player movement to and from the NBA Development League, head coach Del Harris’ team doesn’t bear a whole lot of resemblance to the one that labored through the first three months of the season. They are still, however, the same Texas Legends that haven’t yet had a player called up to the NBA this season, in a year that’s shattered the all-time single-season GATORADE Call-Up mark and had 14 teams lose a player to the NBA—some as many as five times.

But if the past few weeks are any indication, that should change soon.

Ever since a loss to Springfield on Feb. 11, the Legends have turned into one of the hottest teams in the NBA D-League. After rattling off eight straight wins following the loss to the Armor—including a 130-97 win over Lone Star State rival Rio Grande Valley and three consecutive wins over the powerhouse Austin Toros—Texas catapulted back into playoff position. The Legends have lost just three times since Feb. 11 and now, with just nine days left in the regular season, stand in seventh place in the NBA D-League playoff race.

On Thursday night, when they take on Top Prospect Edwin Ubiles and the Dakota Wizards at 8 p.m., you can watch live on SportingNews.com.

The turnaround started in mid-January.

First came Antonio Daniels, who’d played 13 years in the NBA—including a 30.4 minutes-per-game average as recently as 2007-08—and signed a contract on Jan. 15.

Then came Alando Tucker, who’d gone No. 2 in this year’s NBA D-League Draft before buying out of his contract in November and hopping a flight to Spain for a stint with CB Gran Canaria. On Feb. 3, the veteran of 53 NBA games re-signed with the Legends.

Chris Roberts came a week later. Longtime NBA center Dan Gadzuric signed in early March. And all of a sudden, the Legends had a cast built around star guards Dominique Johnson and Booker Woodfox, who’d dragged Texas through the first three months of the season.

Since then, the parts have clicked.

Daniels has become one of the best—if not the premier—distributors in the league, averaging 8.8 assists per game (although that total’s dragged down by his first four games, when he was playing fewer than 30 minutes a night). Since those first four, he’s put up double-digit assists in eight of 16 games, including a 14-dime night against Dakota on Wednesday.

Tucker, meanwhile, has done a little bit of everything. The former Suns and Timberwolves swingman is averaging nearly 16 points, four rebounds and two assists per game since his return, providing the Legends with some lineup flexibility they’d been missing.

Gadzuric’s averaging close to a double-double every night, with 10.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game. Roberts has added some size to the Legends’ perimeter defense while chipping in 13 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

On Thursday, he’ll have the challenge of guarding Ubiles, who’s back in the D-League after a trip to the Washington Wizards.