Austin Spurs: San Antonio Renames D-League Affiliate

The San Antonio Spurs have renamed their D-League Affiliate, the Austin Toros, to the Austin Spurs according to the Spurs official website.
[RELEASE] The Austin-based NBA Development League team has been renamed the Austin Spurs. Learn More >> http://t.co/48svGIcNbv
— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) October 15, 2014
In addition to renaming the Austin Toros the Austin Spurs, the San Antonio Spurs announced a partnership between the D-League franchise and SWBC, a San Antonio-based financial services company.
The Austin Spurs were founded in 2001 as the Columbus Riverdragons, based in Columbus, Georgia.
The franchise made it’s move to Texas in 2005 and has been in Austin ever since.
The San Antonio Spurs acquired the rights to the Austin D-League team in 2007, just two years after the franchise made it’s home in Austin. The Spurs acquisition of the Austin D-League team made the then Toros the second D-League franchise to be owned by an NBA team.
Since the acquisition of the Austin Toros, now Austin Spurs, by San Antonio, the team has won two conference titles (2007-2008 and 2011-2012) and an NBA D-League title (2011-2012).
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The Austin Spurs have become a model for other D-League franchises since the acquisition, having only two under .500 seasons after ownership was changed to the San Antonio Spurs.
San Antonio has been one of the better teams in utilizing a D-League affiliate, not afraid to send down some of their own players. Several Spurs on the current roster have played with the Austin D-League franchise including Kawhi Leonard, Austin Daye, Cory Joseph, and Aron Baynes.
The Austin Spurs head into this year’s D-League campaign coming off their worst season since being owned by San Antonio, finishing at 19-31. With strong ownership and much talent within the Spurs organization, the Austin Spurs will be looking to rebound and once again rise to the top.
What do you think of the San Antonio Spurs renaming the D-League team to the Austin Spurs? Will these re-branded bode well for the team? Do you like the re-branding? Let us know in the comments!
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