World Basketball League
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sport | Basketball |
|---|---|
| Founded | November 1987 |
| Founder | Mickey Monus |
| First season | 1988 |
| Ceased | August 1, 1992 |
| Countries | United States Canada |
| Last champion | Dayton Wings (1992) |
| Most titles | Youngstown Pride and Dayton Wings (2 Titles) |
World Basketball League (WBL) was a minor professional basketball league in the United States and Canada which operated from 1988 to 1992. It was founded as the International Basketball Association in November 1987, before changing its name prior to the 1988 season. One of the major differences between it and other leagues was that it had a height restriction. Players over 6 ft 5 in (1.95 m) were not allowed to play; this restriction was raised to 6 ft 7 in (2.0 m) in 1991.
The league was founded in November 1987. Basketball Hall-of-Famer and Boston Celtic great Bob Cousy (6'1" tall) was one of the league's founders. Norm Drucker, a 25-year veteran referee with the National Basketball Association and American Basketball Association, and a former supervisor of officials for the NBA, served as the WBL's supervisor of officiating. One of the league's founders, Michael Monus, was eventually convicted of having embezzled $10 million to finance the league, from a privately owned company he had founded, Phar-Mor. He was sentenced to nine (9) years in federal prison. The league was run from April to August each year.
In July 1988, the annual WBL All-Star Game was launched. In addition to games against other teams in the league, games were also played against international teams. The league had several of its games broadcast on television. In Canada, the games were broadcast on the CanWest Global System. In the United States, the games were broadcast on SportsChannel America. Mike Rice was the primary analyst for the SportsChannel broadcasts.
After the league folded in 1992, the surviving Canadian-based teams formed the National Basketball League. This league played two seasons before it folded as well.
Teams
Source:[1]
International Teams
| Team | City | Seasons | Notes |
| Abruzzo All-Stars | Abruzzo, Italy | 1992 | |
| Bahamas Nationals | The Bahamas | 1992 | |
| Estonian Nationals | Estonia | 1992 | |
| Finland | 1989–1991 | ||
| Greece | 1989–1991 | ||
| Holland | Netherlands | 1989–1991 | |
| Italy | 1989–1991 | ||
| Kyiv All-Stars | Kyiv, Ukraine | 1992 | |
| Norway | 1989–1991 | ||
| Soviet Union | USSR | 1989–1991 |
Champions of WBL
| Season | Winning team | Losing team | Series/score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Las Vegas Silver Streaks | Chicago Express | 102–95 |
| 1989 | Youngstown Pride | Calgary 88's | 2–0 |
| 1990 | Youngstown Pride | Calgary 88's | 3–2 |
| 1991 | Dayton Wings | Calgary 88's | 3–0 |
| 1992 | Dayton Wings | N/A | Dayton Wings were declared leaders of the regular season (due to league folding August 1)[2] |
Personnel
Awards
WBL Championship MVP
| Season | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Jamie Waller | Las Vegas Silver Streaks |
| 1989 | Barry Mitchell | Youngstown Pride |
| 1990 | ||
| 1991 | Perry McDonald | Dayton Wings |
Player of the Year
This award was established in 1991.
| Season | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | Tracy Moore | Florida Jades |
Rookie of the Year
This award was established in 1991.
| Season | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | J. J. Eubanks | Nashville Stars |
Sixth Man of the Year
| Season | Player | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Chip Engelland | Calgary 88's |
| 1989 | Keith Smart | Worcester Counts |
| 1990 | Troy Lewis | Youngstown Pride |
| 1991 | Kelsey Weems | Calgary 88's |
Coach of the Year
| Season | Coach | Team | GP | W | L | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Mike Thibault | Calgary 88's | ||||
| 1989 | Bob Patton | Youngstown Pride | ||||
| 1990 | Sonny Allen | Las Vegas Silver Streaks | ||||
| 1991 | Pat Haley | Dayton Wings |
Statistical leaders
| Year | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Jamie Waller, 26.7 | David Boone, 9.8 | Mark Wade, 12.8 | Mark Wade, 1.8 | Andre Patterson, 2.2 |
| 1989 | Jamie Waller, 21.7 | Alfredrick Hughes, 11.5 | Cedric Hunter, 11.0 | Darryl Johnson, 1.9 | Perry Young, 1.3 |
| 1990 | Jamie Waller, 26.5 | Vincent Askew, 9.8 | Mark Wade, 11.5 | Andre Turner, 2.4 | John Hegwood, 1.3 |
| 1991 | Jamie Waller, 26.3 | Willie Bland, 12.3 | Mark Wade, 8.7 | Darryl McDonald, 2.5 | Willie Glass, 1.7 |
Notable players
NBA players
These players played at least 1 game in the NBA
- Vincent Askew
- Dudley Bradley
- Scott Brooks
- Carlos Clark
- Fred Cofield
- Mario Elie
- David Henderson
- Alfredrick Hughes
- Cedric Hunter
- Darryl Johnson
- Anthony Jones
- Doug Lee
- Tim Legler
- Jim Les
- Sidney Lowe
- Kenny Natt
- Craig Neal
- Jose Slaughter
- Keith Smart
- John Starks
- Jim Thomas
- Andre Turner
- Mark Wade
- Milt Wagner
- Jamie Waller
- Perry Young
Other leagues
These players have won at least 1 individual award while playing in professional leagues
International players
- Keith Smart, USA National team (1987) - 7 appearances
- James Blackwell, USA National team (1999) - 5 appearances
- James Martin, USA National team (1999) - 4 appearances
- A.J. Wynder, USA National team (1995) - 6 appearances
- Jim Thomas, USA National team (1982) - 6 appearances
- Kelsey Weems, USA National team (1993–95)
- Aivar Kuusmaa, USSR and Estonia National team (1989–2001)