Bellingham's first-ever semi-professional basketball team is entering the new year with a win-loss record that has them confident about the rest of the season.

The Bellingham Slam is in fourth place in the Ron Boone Division of the American Basketball Association, with a record of 8-7.

The ABA began in 1999 and includes basketball teams such as the Bellevue Blackhawks, the Tacoma Navigators and the Hawaii Mega Force. The association has seven divisions with a total of 39 teams.

The ABA league requires each team to pay an expansion fee of either $10,000 or $20,000, depending on when the team registered.

Head coach Rob Ridnour said every game they lost has been close, but the team is working on pushing the ball on offense and playing full-court defense.

"We are a pretty solid team with really good guys that are easy and fun to be around," Ridnour said. "We are making the most out of what we have."

Ridnour has been coaching basketball for 23 years at high schools in Spokane and Whatcom County.

Slam assistant coach John Shaw was the head coach at Ferndale High School for seven years and was an assistant coach for four years.

Shaw said he enjoys coaching the Slam more than coaching high school students.

"There is no babysitting like there is at the high school level," he said.

Ridnour said although every coach wants to win the conference, he wants his team to walk out on the court with confidence.

Shaw said he didn't know much about the players' talent going into this season, but knew he wanted to make a competitive team that would be enjoyable for spectators.

"We have never gotten blown-out in a game and everyone tells me that it's pretty entertaining to watch," Shaw said.

Shaw said the team has started to play well because it is grasping defensive techniques and have started working as a team.

"The way the ABA game is played is fast-paced, which makes it easy to just score points instead of focusing on defense and rebounding," Shaw said.

Talented players with experience in other leagues contribute to the competitive atmosphere.

"There are some very good teams and some even have ex-NBA players which makes the game competitive," Shaw said.

He said the team is right where they want to be in the middle of the standings heading into the new year.

Brian Dennis, a 2002 Western graduate, plays forward and center for the Slam.

"We can win the ABA Championship," he said. "We have a team that can do that."

Dennis previously played for the Bellevue Blackhawks and the Tijuana Dragons.

When Dennis learned that Bellingham was starting a team he called Ridnour and told him he had to be a part of it.

Dennis said he is on a team that plays well together and knows how to put the points up on the scoreboard, but said the players always have other techniques and skills to work on.

The team needs to focus on offensive plays and rebounding more than anything else, Dennis said.

"I played games with some of the best players in the ABA," he said. "It's not the NBA by any stretch, but there are some good ballplayers. It's a challenge every night."

Shaw said if fans watched a Slam basketball game they would be entertained by the fast pace.

"If people can come out and watch it, I just think it is a lot different than community college and most (players) have played for Division I or II basketball," Shaw said.