FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 14, 2014
Contact:   Craig Fata, Vice President
(844) THE-MPBA / craig.fata@theMPBA.com

ST. LOUIS – An accomplished collegiate player with an extensive record as an assistant coach and clinic instructor has accepted an offer to become the first head coach in the history of the Gateway Steam, the team announced today.

                    Durrell Robinson, a native of Danville, Illinois, will lead the Steam in its inaugural season.

                    Robinson was an all-state player for Danville High School in 1995, and went on to become a National Junior College Athletic Association All-American for Danville Area Community College.  He then transferred to the University of Missouri-St. Louis, where he was all-Great Lakes Valley Conference in 1999.  Robinson completed his playing career at Union College, earning NAIA Division 1 All-American honors in 2001.

                    Robinson began his coaching career in 2005 at Danville Area Community College as an assistant under Hall of Fame coach John Spezia.  Following four years at DACC, Robinson was hired as an assistant at Bethany College in Lindborg, Kansas.

                    For the past three years, Robinson has served as an instructor in dozens of camps and clinics, helping to develop aspiring youth, collegiate and professional players, including at the Kevin Durant Youth Camp and the Oklahoma City Thunder D-League team youth camp.  He also currently works as a collegiate scout for Netscouts.

                    “We’re excited to have a young coach like Durrell join our league,” said John Spezia, a consulting director for the MPBA.  “He’ll be in a perfect situation in St. Louis, where he can be mentored by the veteran coach of the RiverSharks and develop his skills as a head coach.  Durrell fits our model of finding the right young talent and developing them, whether as a player or as a coach,” Spezia said.

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The mission of the MPBA is to attract the top minor league basketball players, coaches, owners and staff members from across the United States, and to provide that talent with the opportunity to develop their skills in a professional environment; the MPBA will also provide its fans and supporters with a fun, value-based entertainment experience, as well as incorporate community outreach programs into its members’ operations.