Portland joins chase to host Celtics' minor-league club

PORTLAND, Maine – It appears the Manchester Millrats have serious competition in their quest to bring the Boston Celtics' Development League team to New Hampshire.

An investment group headed by former TD Banknorth president Bill Ryan and his son has launched an effort to bring a D-League team to Portland.

Ryan and his son, Bill Ryan Jr., who owns the Oxford Plains Speedway, are working with former Boston Celtics assistant coach and team executive Jon Jennings. They also have signed on former Celtics player and coach K.C. Jones as an adviser.

The team hopefully would be affiliated with the Boston Celtics and begin play in the 2008-09 season, Jennings said. League officials planned a visit to Portland next week.

The Millrats, too, have shown serious interest in a future partnership with the NBA's feeder league. Manchester, currently a member of the American Basketball Association, will be eyeing a membership in the D-League after the season ends in March.

Preliminary talks included a teleconference with D-League President Dan Reed last month. The Millrats, led by local owner Jason Briggs, didn't flinch at the D-League's franchise fee of $1,000,000.

Manchester General Manager Ian McCarthy said yesterday the team still plans to continue talks with the NBA and pursue a relationship with the Celtics.

"We were told by D-League President Dan Reed that (the NBA) would not be in any formal conversation with us until we're no longer a member of the ABA," McCarthy said.

The investment group in Portland is hoping to be affiliated with the Boston Celtics and begin play in the 2008-09 season, Jennings said. League officials planned a visit to Portland next week.

Jennings approached the Ryans after visiting other potential expansion cities in New England, including Worcester, Springfield and Lowell, Mass., Hartford, Conn., Providence, R.I. and Manchester.

"I immediately knew Portland was the place to be," Jennings said.

Portland has proven it has the fan base to support professional sports with the Portland Sea Dogs baseball team and the Portland Pirates hockey team, Ryan said.

The group is looking at both the Portland Expo and the Cumberland County Civic Center for a place to play.

The NBA Development League now has 14 teams, but most of those are in the Midwest and West. The league is looking to add expansion franchises in the East, Jennings said. The Celtics, along with the Utah Jazz, are now affiliated with the league's Utah Flash.

"We're interested in expanding to other regions, with the Northeast among them," league President Dan Reed said.

When looking at possible expansion sites, the league looks particularly close at the ownership group, the market and the arena where the team would play, Reed said.

New Hampshire Union Leader Staff Writer Kevin Gray contributed to this story.