The Armor enter Thursday’s game against the Texas Legends having won two straight games and four of their last five.

Last week, the Armor brushed aside the Sioux Falls Skyforce with a pair of commanding victories. The highlight for the Armor last week came in Friday’s game, when Springfield raced out to a 13-0 lead and owned a 38-12 advantage after one quarter.

The Armor are currently 3-1 on their season-high six-game homestand.

Jerry Smith Honored

Jerry Smith became the first Armor player in franchise history to be named the NBA Development League Performer of the Week when he was recognized on Monday.

Smith was the catalyst in the Armor’s back-to-back victories over Sioux Falls, averaging 26.5 points, 11.0 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Smith recorded his second and third double-doubles of the season in the victories and continued to cement his place as one of the top guards in the D-League.

Texas Legends: At a Glance

The Texas Legends travel to Springfield this week for the first time in the two-year history of the Frisco, TX based franchise. The Legends are 13-16 on the season, but the team has been buoyed by the arrival of a variety of assignments from their parent club, the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks. Last season, the Legends snuck into the playoffs as the No. 8 seed behind first-year coach, Nancy Lieberman. This season, the Legends are led by longtime NBA coach, Del Harris, along with former Boston Celtic, David Wesley, among others (Harris will not be coaching in Springfield this week; Scott Flemming, one of the Legends’ assistants, will be at the helm).

Frontcourt

The Legends’ frontcourt is led by Dallas Mavericks assignee, Sean Williams. Williams, formerly of the New Jersey Nets and a product of nearby Boston College, is averaging 14.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in just 26.8 minutes per game.

Williams is joined upfront by Ramon Dyer (9.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game), as well as Matt Rogers (8.3 points, 4.7 rebounds per game) and Anthony Vereen (8.8 points, 3.6 rebounds per game). The Legends also recently acquired power forward Ibrahima Thomas, a rookie out of the University of Cincinnati.

Backcourt

Texas’ backcourt features former NBA guards Antonio Daniels and Alando Tucker. Daniels, an NBA veteran who earned a Gatorade NBA Call-Up to the Philadelphia 76ers last season, is averaging 11.5 points and 6.8 assists in six games (one start) this season. Daniels is joined by Tucker, a former first round draft pick of the Phoenix Suns who recently returned to the Legends after a stint in Spain. Tucker has played in just two games since rejoining the Legends, but a 16-point outing in a victory over Tulsa earlier this week suggests that Tucker will be a factor moving forward for Texas.

The Legends also have sharpshooting guard Booker Woodfox, the NBA D-League’s leading three-point shooter (.465 from behind the arc). Woodfox is averaging a team-high 16.6 points per game. A pair of small school guards, Dominique Johnson (Azusa-Pacific) and Vance Cooksey (Pikeville), along with former Michigan State guard, Drew Neitzel, have been integral members of the backcourt this season as well.

Looking Ahead

The two teams will square off on Thursday and Saturday (Burger King Friends & Family Night!). At 15-13, the Armor currently own the sixth best record in the D-League and sit in second place in the Eastern Conference. The Armor have defeated two Western Conference foes this season (Rio Grande Valley and Idaho) and will look to burnish their resume against Texas this week with 22 regular season games to go.