Hackney White Heat was an English basketball team from the district of Hackney in London. The club were members of the top tier of the former National Basketball League before the competition was reformatted into the current English Basketball League.
History The team originally began as the "B" team of the London Towers, largely consisting of the Towers' under-23 players. The club joined NBL Division 2 in 1996, and quickly earned promotion to Division 1 in 1998 by claiming 3rd place in the league and the runner-up position in the playoffs. After a single season in Division 1, they were forced to break away from their link to the Towers, following a ruling banning 'reserve' teams from the division. The newly independent team competed for a year as the Islington White Heat, and were almost removed again when the NBL rebranded their upper rank as the NBL Conference. Following an appeal, the team were allowed to continue in the new league, and took the name Inter-Basket London to try and appeal to a wider community.
The club's time in the short-lived NBL Conference saw little return for their efforts, never finishing above the bottom three. By the time the English Basketball League was formed in 2003, the club had rebranded themselves again, becoming the Hackney White Heat. The new league saw new, tougher rules for their upper tier, leaving Hackney no choice but to drop from the new EBL Division 1 into EBL Division 2 before a single game had tipped off. Further decline was to follow, as they finished next to bottom in Division 2 in 2005, leading to relegation to Division 3.
Season-by-season records
Season Division Played Won Lost Points League Playoffs National Cup National Trophy Patron's Cup National Shield London Towers 'B'1996-97D226224442ndSemi-final1st RoundDNEDNE1997-98D224195383rdRunner-upQuarter-finalDNEDNE London Towers 'A'1998-99D126179345thQuarter-final3rd RoundDNEDNE Islington White Heat1999-00D1241212246thQuarter-finalQuarter-finalDNEDNE InterBasket London2000-01Conf21714146thQuarter-finalRunner-upDNEDNE2001-02Conf18513108thQuarter-final1st RoundDNEDNE Hackney White Heat2002-03Conf22319611thDNQQuarter-finalDNEDNE2003-04D220128245thSemi-final1st RoundDNERunner-upDNE2004-05D2195141010thDNQ3rd RoundDNE1st RoundDNE2005-06D3 SE1697185thDNQ2nd RoundDNEDNE1st Round2006-07D3 S1697184thSemi-final1st RoundDNEDNE2nd Round2007-08D3 S221012207thDNQ2nd RoundDNEDNE3rd Round2008–09D3 S22913188thDNQ1st RoundDNEDNE2nd Round2009–10D3 S17512108thDNQ2nd RoundDNEDNE2nd Round2010–11D3 S205151011thDNQ2nd RoundDNEDNE2nd Round2011–12D3 S20119186thDNQ1st RoundDNEDNE2nd Round2012–13D3 S1789166thDNQ1st RoundDNEDNE3rd Round2013–14D3 S20128244thSemi-final1st RoundDNEDNE2nd Round
Notes: From 2000 to 2003 the NBL Conference operated as the second-tier league, ahead of Division One. In 2003 the NBL was replaced by the EBL, which reinstated Division One as the second tier.
Former players Pops Mensah-Bonsu Perry Lawson Serhat Urkut A.K.A Haribo
References