Hemel Storm

Basketball team in Hemel Hempstead

Main sponsorVanaramaHead coach

Mark ClarkWebsiteOfficial website

Hemel Storm are a British semi-professional basketball club from Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. Founded in 2006, the Storm compete in NBL Division 1, the second tier of the British basketball system, and play their home games at the Everyone Active Hemel Hempstead Sports Centre. The club had been based in several locations across Hertfordshire and north London before settling into their current, long-term home in 2010.

The club has no formal links to the Hemel Hempstead Lakers, a basketball club formerly in the town which relocated to Milton Keynes in 1998. ^[1]

History

Originally formed in 2006 as a feeder club for the West Hertfordshire Warriors, the club finished in third place in EBL Division Four (Midlands/South) in their inaugural season, gaining immediate promotion to Division Three (South). Early in the following season, the parent team resigned from Division One due to financial difficulties, leaving the second team to carry on the name alone. The club continued to a fourth place finish despite the off-court upheavals.^[2]

The newly independent club moved their home venue to the Westfield Sports Centre in Watford for the 2008-09 season, the move bringing the club a new name (Watford Storm) and another third place finish. However, problems with the Westfield venue led to the club playing in Edmonton by the end of the season, leading to another short-term move for the 2009-10 season, and a further name change to the Edmonton Storm. Finally, the club moved one final time to Hemel Hempstead ahead of the 2010-11 season, renaming themselves the Hemel Storm and bringing basketball back to the town after a 13-year absence.^[2]

After settling into their new home, the club went from strength to strength. Over the following seasons, the Storm won the Patrons Cup in 2011, following up with a second placed finish in EBL Division Two in the 2011-12 season and successfully defending their Patrons Cup title. This gained the club promotion to EBL Division One for the 2012-13 season. Five years later the club claimed the National Cup for the first time after a 94-77 victory over Manchester Magic.^[3]

Undoubtedly their best season to date was 2022-23, becoming only the 2nd team in NBL History to win all 4 Trophies with an unbeaten record^[4] of 40-0. The National Cup was the first trophy of the season secured with a 81-102 win over Derby Trailblazers on 22nd January 2023 in Manchester,^[5] followed by the KitKing Trophy success against Worthing Thunder at Surrey Sports Park on 11th March 2023, winning 99-92.^[6] The NBL Division 1 League Title was secured with a 107-77 win at Team Newcastle University on 25th March 2023^[7] and the season wrapped up with the NBL Division 1 Playoff Final, beating Worthing Thunder in a close 69-63 victory in Manchester on 23rd April 2023.^[8]

Honours

National Cup

2018, 2023

Patrons Cup

2011, 2012

KitKing Trophy

2023

NBL Division 1 League Champions

2023

NBL Division 1 Playoff Champions

2023

Players

Hemel Storm roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.
G	0	Hawes, Kavell	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
F	1	Sylla, Hakeem	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
G	4	Newman, Sam	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
G	7	Burnell, Jack	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
F	9	Durand, Greg	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
F	10	Nelson-Henry, Darien	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
G	12	Johnson, Taylor	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
F	15	Inger, Brayden	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
G	20	Allen, Tez	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
F	21	Eze, Veron	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
G	23	Disu, Matthew	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
F	34	Atiba, Adeoluwa	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
F		Chater, Jarvis

Notable former players

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Criteria

To appear in this section a player must have either:

Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club
Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time
Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

Season-by-season records

Season	Division	Tier	Regular Season						Post-Season	National Cup
Season	Division	Tier	Finish	Played	Wins	Losses	Points	Win %	Post-Season	National Cup
West Herts Warriors II
2006-07	D4 Mid	5	3rd	16	12	4	24	0.750	Quarter-final	Did not compete
2007-08	D3 Sou	4	4th	22	13	9	26	0.591	Quarter-final	Did not compete
Watford Storm
2008-09	D3 Sou	4	3rd	24	18	6	36	0.750	Quarter-final	3rd round
Edmonton Storm
2009-10	D2	3	4th	20	13	7	26	0.650	Semi-final	2nd round
Hemel Storm
2010-11	D2	3	5th	20	12	8	24	0.600	Quarter-final	2nd round
2011-12	D2	3	2nd	20	16	4	32	0.800	Quarter-final	Quarter-final
2012-13	D1	2	10th	26	11	15	22	0.423	Did not qualify	Quarter-final
2013-14	D1	2	3rd	26	18	8	36	0.692	Quarter-final	3rd round
2014-15	D1	2	10th	24	9	15	18	0.375	Did not qualify	3rd round
2015-16	D1	2	4th	26	18	8	36	0.692	Quarter-final	3rd round
2016-17	D1	2	8th	26	13	13	26	0.500	Quarter-final	4th round
2017-18	D1	2	7th	24	12	12	24	0.500	Runners-Up	Winners, beating Manchester
2018-19	D1	2	9th	26	11	15	22	0.423	Did not qualify	Semi-finals
2019-20	D1	2	4th	23	16	7	35	0.696	No playoffs	Quarter-finals
2020-21	D1	2	3rd	19	14	5	28	0.737	Runners-Up	No competition
2021-22	D1	2	6th	26	16	10	32	0.615	Runners-Up	Quarter-finals
2022-23	D1	2	1st	26	26	0	52	1.000	Winners	Winners, beating Derby
2023-24	D1	2	3rd	24	19	5	38	0.792

Record in BBL competitions

Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away
2020–21	BBL Trophy	R1	Cheshire Phoenix		L 77-63
2021–22	BBL Trophy	R1	Thames Valley Cavaliers		L 86-78

References

^ "Hemel Storm, Club History". Hemel Storm Club Website.
^ ^a ^b "Edmonton Storm move to Hemel Hempstead under new management". Basketball England. Archived from the original on 24 February 2015. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
^ "National Cup Win". Basketball England.
^ "Invincible Company". Basketball England.
^ "National Cup Finals". Basketball England.
^ "KitKing Trophy". Hemel Storm.
^ "Hemel Storm claimed the 2022/23 regular-season title". Basketball England.
^ "NBL1 Playoff Finals". Basketball England.