Birmingham Bullets
 | This article needs more citations. (August 2026) |
| Birmingham Bullets | ||||
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| League | British Basketball League | |||
| Established | 1974 | |||
| Folded | 2006 | |||
| History | Coventry 1974-1980 Team Fiat 1980-1982 Birmingham Bullets 1982-2006 | |||
| Location | Birmingham, West Midlands | |||
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The Birmingham Bullets were a British professional basketball team from Birmingham, England who competed in the British Basketball League (BBL). The club was founded in 1974 as Coventry Granwood before moving to Birmingham in 1980 as part of the team's sponsorship agreement with Fiat. The Bullets achieved some success in the BBL, mostly in the late 1990s and early 2000s, including winning the Playoffs in 1996 and 1998. They also achieved a 2nd place League finish in 1998 and were runners up in the 2000 Playoffs and 2002 Trophy. In latter years, the club struggled both on and off the court. The club officially resigned from the BBL in the summer of 2006 and soon after went into liquidation. Since then both the Birmingham Panthers and Birmingham Knights have endured short-lived and unsuccessful spells in the BBL.
Notable former players
[edit]Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
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To appear in this section a player must have either:
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Season-by-season records
[edit]| Season | Division | Tier | Regular Season | Post-Season | Cup | Trophy | Head coach | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Played | Wins | Losses | Points | Win % | |||||||
| Coventry Granwood | ||||||||||||
| 1974–75 | NBL | I | 5th | 18 | 8 | 10 | 16 | 0.444 | - | - | ||
| 1975–76 | NBL | I | 4th | 18 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 0.556 | - | - | ||
| Coventry Team Fiat | ||||||||||||
| 1976–77 | NBL | I | 5th | 18 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 0.556 | - | - | ||
| 1978–79 | NBL | I | 4th | 20 | 13 | 7 | 26 | 0.650 | Runners Up, losing to Crystal Palace | - | ||
| 1979–80 | NBL | I | 3rd | 18 | 14 | 4 | 28 | 0.778 | Runners Up, losing to Crystal Palace | - | ||
| Birmingham Team Fiat | ||||||||||||
| 1980–81 | NBL | I | 1st | 18 | 17 | 1 | 34 | 0.944 | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | - | |
| 1981–82 | NBL | I | 5th | 22 | 15 | 7 | 30 | 0.682 | Did not qualify | Semi-finals | - | |
| Birmingham Barrett Bullets | ||||||||||||
| 1982–83 | NBL | I | 4th | 24 | 17 | 7 | 34 | 0.708 | Semi-finals | Runners Up, losing to Solent | - | |
| Davenports Birmingham | ||||||||||||
| 1983–84 | NBL | I | 9th | 36 | 16 | 20 | 32 | 0.444 | Did not qualify | 2nd round | - | |
| 1984–85 | NBL | I | 12th | 26 | 6 | 20 | 12 | 0.231 | Did not qualify | 1st round | - | |
| Birmingham Bullets | ||||||||||||
| 1985–86 | NBL | I | 6th | 28 | 15 | 13 | 30 | 0.536 | Runners Up, losing to Kingston | 1st round | - | |
| 1986–87 | NBL | I | 9th | 24 | 8 | 16 | 16 | 0.333 | Did not qualify | 1st round | - | |
| 1987–88 | BBL | I | 7th | 28 | 14 | 14 | 28 | 0.500 | Quarter-finals | 1st round | Pool Stage | |
| 1988–89 | NBL 1 | II | 3rd | 20 | 16 | 4 | 32 | 0.800 | Quarter-finals | - | ||
| 1989–90 | NBL 1 | II | 8th | 22 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 0.364 | 2nd round | - | ||
| 1990–91 | NBL 1 | II | 8th | 22 | 10 | 12 | 20 | 0.455 | 2nd round | - | ||
| 1991–92 | BBL | I | 8th | 30 | 11 | 19 | 22 | 0.367 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Pool Stage | |
| 1992–93 | BBL | I | 5th | 33 | 17 | 16 | 34 | 0.515 | Quarter-finals | 3rd round | Pool Stage | Peter Mintoft |
| 1993–94 | BBL | I | 6th | 36 | 21 | 15 | 42 | 0.583 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Pool Stage | Peter Mintoft |
| 1994–95 | BBL | I | 8th | 36 | 18 | 18 | 36 | 0.500 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Pool Stage | Steve Tucker |
| 1995–96 | BBL | I | 3rd | 36 | 26 | 10 | 52 | 0.722 | Winners, beating Towers | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Nick Nurse |
| 1996–97 | BBL | I | 4th | 36 | 26 | 10 | 52 | 0.722 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Nick Nurse |
| 1997–98 | BBL | I | 2nd | 36 | 29 | 7 | 58 | 0.806 | Winners, beating Thames Valley | Semi-finals | Quarter-finals | Mike Finger |
| 1998–99 | BBL | I | 7th | 36 | 21 | 15 | 42 | 0.583 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Mike Finger |
| 1999–00 | BBL S | I | 3rd | 34 | 17 | 17 | 34 | 0.500 | Runners Up, losing to Manchester | 1st round | Pool Stage | Mike Finger |
| 2000–01 | BBL S | I | 4th | 34 | 18 | 16 | 36 | 0.529 | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Pool Stage | Lance Randall |
| 2001–02 | BBL S | I | 5th | 32 | 15 | 17 | 30 | 0.469 | Did not qualify | Runners Up, losing to Chester | Pool Stage | Lance Randall |
| 2002–03 | BBL | I | 9th | 40 | 11 | 29 | 22 | 0.275 | Did not qualify | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Tony Garbelotto |
| 2003–04 | BBL | I | 10th | 36 | 2 | 34 | 4 | 0.056 | Did not qualify | Quarter-finals | Pool Stage | Steve Tucker |
| 2004–05 | BBL | I | 11th | 40 | 5 | 35 | 10 | 0.125 | Did not qualify | 1st round | Pool Stage | Charlie Adams |
| 2005–06 | BBL | I | 11th | 40 | 9 | 31 | 17 | 0.225 | Did not qualify | 1st round | Pool Stage | Skouson Harker |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]Sources
[edit]- "BASKETBALL: Bullets fail to kill off leaders; Scots power through in last quarter BIRMINGHAM BULLETS 70 SCOTTISH ROCKS 74 in the BBL". Birmingham Mail. 21 November 2005. Retrieved 31 August 2026 – via The Free Library.
- "BBL Championship final preview". BBC Sport. 4 May 2001. Archived from the original on 31 August 2026. Retrieved 31 August 2026.
- "Clive Allen refuses to give up on basketball in Birmingham". Birmingham Mail. 25 June 2008. Archived from the original on 22 April 2009. Retrieved 31 August 2026.
- "Tony Dorsey feature Dynamite". BBC Sport. 2 May 2007. Archived from the original on 31 August 2026. Retrieved 31 August 2026.
- O'Callaghan, Eoin (16 June 2019). "Nick Nurse: the NBA champion coach who learned his trade in ... Britain?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 June 2025. Retrieved 31 August 2026.
External links
[edit]- Birmingham Bullets at Represent Sports
- Birmingham Bullets news archive from icBirmingham