The are a Japanese professional basketball team based in Fukushima, Japan. The Firebonds compete in the second division of the B.League as a member of the Eastern Conference.
In May 2013 Fukushima Prefecture was announced as the successful bidder for an expansion franchise to enter the 2014âÂÂ15 season of the bj-league. The league management included the region's recovery from the 2011 Tà Âhoku earthquake and tsunami and the long-term feasibility of the bidding company, Fukushima Sports Entertainment, as reasons for the successful bid.
In June 2014, the team announced Hiroki Fujita as the inaugural head coach.
As an expansion team, the Firebonds received the first pick in the 2014âÂÂ15 rookie draft, selecting forward , a Fukushima Prefecture native. Takumi Masuko was selected in the second round. In July 2014 the team signed American players and Nick Thompson as their two foreign players.
The team commenced play in the bj-league in October 2014 and had their first regular-season win in a match against the Aomori Wat's on 5 October 2015. The team finished the season with a 21âÂÂ31 record, securing a playoff berth in the second-last game of the regular season. They were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs 0âÂÂ2 by the Iwate Big Bulls.
During the off-season, the team renewed the contract of Fujita as head coach and signed Le'Bryan Nash, Joseph Taylor and Stephan Van Treese as import players. Masaya Karimata was named team captain and Kenya Tomori was named vice-captain.