2016 New York Empire season
| 2016 New York Empire season | |
|---|---|
| World TeamTennis | 6th place |
| Record | |
| 2016 record | 2 wins, 10 losses |
| Home record | 1 win, 5 losses |
| Road record | 1 win, 5 losses |
| Games won–lost | 195–254 |
| Team Info | |
| Owner(s) | NY TeamTennis LLC represented by Michael Coakley |
| President/CEO | Angela Martin |
| General Manager | Colleen Hopkins |
| Coach | Patrick McEnroe |
| Stadium |
Forest Hills Stadium (capacity: 2,500) |
The 2016 New York Empire season was the inaugural season of the franchise in World TeamTennis (WTT). The Empire finished last in WTT with 2 wins and 10 losses.
On February 17, 2016, WTT announced that the league would return to New York City for the 2016 season. The Empire announced it would play its home matches at historic Forest Hills Stadium. The 14,000-seat stadium was to be reconfigured to seat approximately 2,500 fans for Empire home matches. Concurrent with that announcement, the league also reported that the newly formed Empire had acquired the rights to former world number 1 male player Andy Roddick in a trade with the Orange County Breakers. Patrick McEnroe was named the team's head coach. McEnroe said when he received a call from WTT co-founder Billie Jean King and commissioner Ilana Kloss telling him the league was hoping to bring a team back to New York to play in Forest Hills, "That was a no-brainer for me. I'm excited to be back in the game." Speaking about Roddick, McEnroe added, "He and I have a great history. I think he still really loves to play. I'm super happy that he'll be part of the team." "As both a player and an owner I have always enjoyed all that encompasses Mylan WTT," said Roddick. "To be able to play on the legendary courts at Forest Hills and be involved with a team in a city that I love, New York, will make this even more special."
As an expansion team, the Empire had no returning players to protect in the 2016 WTT draft other than Andy Roddick, whom the team had acquired in a trade. Roddick was protected in the first round of the marquee player portion of the draft, and the Empire passed on making a second marquee selection. In the roster player portion of the draft, the Empire was interested in selecting Christina McHale, a resident of nearby Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, and traded up to do so. The trade with the Springfield Lasers gave the Empire the first overall selection in the roster player portion of the draft along with the first pick in the fourth round in exchange for the third pick in each of the first and third rounds. As expected, McHale was taken with the first overall selection. She had previously played in WTT in 2011, with the Kansas City Explorers. The Empire used its next two picks to take a pair of Argentines: Guido Pella and María Irigoyen, neither of whom has played in WTT in the past. Their final choice was the Austrian Oliver Marach, also a WTT rookie. The Empire elected not to choose a roster-exempt player in the fifth round.
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