Hammond Rollers, What do you think?

[MJHankel]

I am just curious if anybody has been to a Hammond Rollers game at the Hammond Civic Center.

If so what did you think? Was the game play professional or amateurish?

I am just asking cause I go to College in Dallas and am coming home for Christmas and want to catch a game while I am home.

I have heard a lot of bashing of them but I am curious if anybody knows first hand.

Do you think they will last another season?

Any thoughts would be welcomed.

Unless they play an exhibition with the Steelheads I have no problem supporting the Rollers.

[MJHankel]

Well it looks like that is pretty much over

http://nwitimes.com/articles/2006/12/07/sports/top_sports/08ae90252da7d8378625723d00144472.txt

Bye bye Rollers

[ABA06er]

So she admits to having no experience what so ever, no community support (she didnt even show up to sign the lease agreement with the hammond civic center until a few days before there first game in which the Hammond Parks Officer called her a joke) and she blames that on the ABA CEO ?

Teams in the North East Region are flurishing , Vermont, Rochester, Buffalo, Cape Cod ..... With Vermont and Rochester being two of the prime examples on how to run an ABA team in two different ways.

Rochester has a huge arena and draws about 4,000 fans on average for big games up to around 8,000.

Vermont plays in small gyms about 1,200-1,500 seating capacity and they pack the house every night or close to it proving that it doesent take a huge fan base to survive it just takes a steady fan base at a modest number which can only be achieved by acting like a responsible owner , which Denise failed to do and there for ruined her credibility........

Bottom line it can be done and done well but dont follow the Denise approach and bomb out and then say " but I had no experience in running anything so its not my fault " approach.

Lastley if anyone does wish to buy in to an ABA team.....

1. Make sure you can tie your own shoes

2. Buy into the North East Region , the Blue Conference North Division is the most strong region in the entire ABA all games are being played , fans are showing up and Rochester and Vermont are classing up the region to a new level.

[preeths]

And outside of Rochester and Vermont, who else in the nearly 50-team ABA is drawing decent crowds? With those two teams, you've accounted for about four percent of the league. What about the other 96 percent? If only four percent can make it work, aren't they the exceptions, rather than the rule?

This is not to say that Pulphus is blameless. She did about everything wrong that you could do, and if she had listened to at least one Steelheads fan on this board, she'd have a lot more money today. But just because she is 100 percent guilty of being naive, that doesn't mean someone else isn't 100 percent guilty of taking advantage of that naiveté.

[patmc16]

she blames that on the ABA CEO ?

It's her fault that the franchise is folding, but it is Uncle Joe's fault that the franchise ever existed to be able to fail.

Reading the article, this franchise is the model for why so many people are critical of Unc and his "league".

Who in their right mind would sell a franchise to someone who admitted, before buying the franchise, that they had no experience in running a team? She was obviously not in a position to do so?

Uncle Joe would, that's who, althought the whole "right mind" thing kinda leaves him out of the equation.

Uncle Joe could have never seen this as a potential successful franchise. He couldn't have seen it as anything other than a check for $15 grand to put in his pocket.

[sportsguy12]

It's her fault that the franchise is folding, but it is Uncle Joe's fault that the franchise ever existed to be able to fail.

Reading the article, this franchise is the model for why so many people are critical of Unc and his "league".

Who in their right mind would sell a franchise to someone who admitted, before buying the franchise, that they had no experience in running a team? She was obviously not in a position to do so?

Uncle Joe would, that's who, althought the whole "right mind" thing kinda leaves him out of the equation.

Uncle Joe could have never seen this as a potential successful franchise. He couldn't have seen it as anything other than a check for $15 grand to put in his pocket.

Hey, owners like DP can't cry foul after the fact. She should have been calling U Joe daily saying, "I don't know what the heck I'm doing." You can't wait til the damn bursts to start patching the holes.

They're both to blame. He's a crook and she shifts the blame. Again, the community is the one that is left to suffer ... with a trail of paid tickets and unpaid bills.

When the investors pulled out, she should have pulled the plug right then and there. If he didn't fulfill contractual obligations, then sue. Maybe that is what it will take to shut down the ABA.

That is the only re-course. Otherwise, this cycle will happen every year. It's obvious people can't stop forking over $$$ for a flawed product.

[nksports]

Like my pa used to say, you sleep with dogs, you get fleas. She drank from Uncle Joe's bongwater (that stuff ought to be patented for what it makes people do) and got stars in her eyes. I got no sympathy for her.
I do have sympathy for the players and staff, who I'm sure will be missing paychecks shortly, if that hasn't already happened. I think the fans have probably seen the light and are staying away. She already violated LaGuarida's rule (as in the former NYC mayor) "Never argue with a guy who buys ink by the barrell."

[Pounder]

If he didn't fulfill contractual obligations, then sue. Maybe that is what it will take to shut down the ABA.


There are times when I wonder if Unc DOES do background checks on potential clients...

...to ensure they can't afford to sue him.