As I do with other professional sports teams, I will count the Canton Charge's team history in other cities, under different names, for purposes of this review. If you trace back through the team's history, they are actually one of the original eight members of the NBA D-League which began play in 2001. At that time, the Charge were known as the Huntsville Flight.
To date, the Charge have been based in four different cities:
1. Huntsville, Alabama as the Huntsville Flight (2001-2005)
2. Albuquerque, New Mexico as the Albuquerque Thunderbirds (2005-2010)
3. Rio Rancho, New Mexico as the New Mexico Thunderbirds (2010-2011)
4. Canton, Ohio as the Canton Charge (2011-present)
As the Albuquerque Thunderbirds, the team won the 2006 D-League championship (the D-League didn't become the G League until 2017) under head coach Michael Cooper. Cooper, who coached the T-birds from 2005 to 2007, is probably the team's most famous coach. He was a five-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s.
In Canton, the team has done relatively well, qualifying for the playoffs more years than not. The Charge are owned by and a direct affiliate of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Dan Gilbert, who is chairman of both Quicken Loans and the Cavs, is also chairman of the Charge.
The Charge are one of 18 teams currently playing in the 2021 NBA G League Bubble at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando. If you live in Ohio or have access to regional sports networks through your TV account, you can watch several Charge games this month and next on Fox Sports Ohio: https://canton.gleague.nba.com/news/charge-2021-complete-broadcast-schedule/. It's great exposure for this minor league team. If you live in northeast Ohio, you can also listen to games on 99.7 The Drum (WKTX, Cortland serving Youngstown).
Opened in 1951, the Charge play in the Canton Memorial Civic Center, next to the Canton Museum of Art. The Civic Center has a maximum capacity of 5,200, but in the Charge's media guide for 2021, it lists the arena's capacity at just 3,902, making it one of the smaller venues in the league.
If you're an NBA fan, some names you might recognize who have played for the Charge include Quinn Cook, Tim Hardaway Jr, Joe Harris, Kendrick Perkins, and Quinton Ross. Eight-year NBA veteran Darvin Ham also coached the team for one season (their lone season as the New Mexico Thunderbirds in 2010-11).
Note: This Yelp listing for the Canton Charge already existed (and was claimed too). I didn't have to create it. read more