📍 Winston-Salem, North Carolina
🏀 Home of Wake Forest Demon Deacons basketball

Just off Deacon Boulevard in Winston-Salem, North Carolina is the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Named for a local Medal of Honor recipient who served as an Army medic in Vietnam, the 14,000-seat arena is home of Wake Forest Demon Deacon basketball.

Before the inception of The Joel, the Deacs played at old War Memorial Coliseum, located on the same site as the current arena. Although old War Memorial was home to a lot of great moments, including Wake’s most accomplished season – the 1961-62 campaign in which the team made their first-ever Final Four – it was a run-down and uncomfortable arena that was detested by fans and visitors alike. For this reason, and several others, the Deacs played mostly at the Greensboro Coliseum from 1959 onward.

In 1989, the team moved back to the Winston-Salem Fairgrounds, opening a then state-of-the-art arena built just for Demon Deacon basketball – the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Today, this venue is also beginning to show its age, though it’s held up very well over the years and is still an exciting building to catch some ACC basketball.

Before every game, a tradition carried over from Wake football games takes place at The Joel: the Demon Deacon himself rides into the arena during player introductions on his motorcycle, the noise of which melds right in with the roaring crowd. It’s a truly one-of-a-kind spectacle that can only be seen right here in Winston-Salem.

Some notable players to see time at the coliseum include Chris Paul and Tim Duncan, widely regarded as some of the best basketball players of their generation. Although he attended Wake Forest prior to the opening of the Joel, the legendary Muggsy Bogues was also a part of the Demon Deacon ranks. Bogues later became an integral part of the original Charlotte Hornets, continuing his legacy just down I-85 from his alma mater.

At times, these future stars propelled Wake Forest into the national spotlight. It’s been a while since the Deacs have had any success on the court, but the draw of a top-tier school in a college basketball hotbed continues to attract players from across the country. Soon, a new generation of basketball talent will surely once again electrify the halls of the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.