CBA Attendance INCREASING!

[Chuck the Writer]

For all you CBA-bashers out there, who seem to think the league is on death's door, take a look at the following quotes from the local newspapers covering the four games played yesterday (12/29/06):

From the Great Falls Tribune, talking about the Explorers' win over Yakama:

The crowd of 1,674 spectators was the most at a CBA game in Great Falls this season, and they played a key role in the Explorers' second half comeback.

From the Albany Times-Union, discussing Player of the Week Jamario Moon and his scoring against Minot:

Fans who come out to the Armory -- and there 2,252 of them there Friday night (largest crowd of the season) -- have come to expect spectacular things from (Jamario) Moon.

And from the Montana Standard, commenting on Keith Closs' last-second overtime bucket to give the Butte Daredevils a home victory over Indiana:

Closs high-fived (Ron) Ross after the shot as the near 1400 Butte fans roared.

And as soon as there are home games in the new year in the Wigwam, Mellon Arena and the SunDome, you can be assured that attendance will increase in all those places as the season progresses.

[suge night]

If those number's are real then someone is doing a great job just to pull that many to a game,mean while in the D-League the league leading Flyers can't draw over 150 to a game as on last night even with four NBA SCOUT'S at the game there were less than 100 to see the Stampede come from 18 point's down and win.Will the D ever be taken serious by fans? or while they may have the direct track to the NBA the other league's are the big dog's on the block because they operate outside of the NBA Corporate machine and fans have had enough of the so called best league in the world when we all know those day's are behind us,the rest of the World has caught up and I think could defeat our Champion in a series of game's for the real World Championship.?

[heavesrock]

If those number's are real then someone is doing a great job just to pull that many to a game,mean while in the D-League the league leading Flyers can't draw over 150 to a game as on last night even with four NBA SCOUT'S at the game there were less than 100 to see the Stampede come from 18 point's down and win.Will the D ever be taken serious by fans? or while they may have the direct track to the NBA the other league's are the big dog's on the block because they operate outside of the NBA Corporate machine and fans have had enough of the so called best league in the world when we all know those day's are behind us,the rest of the World has caught up and I think could defeat our Champion in a series of game's for the real World Championship.?

I think the problem with the D-League is that it doesn't have enough dedicated fans, is too slow, and players change too much. You look at top ABA teams, CBA teams, and some other leagues teams and they have a pretty dedicated fan base. And a top foreign club will never be able to beat a top American club as long as the top foreign players keep coming to the NBA.

[mzracing76]

i posted the attendance figures for the NBDL, and we averaging 1860 fans per game as a league. Although, Sioux Falls (CBA), Dakota (CBA), Idaho (CBA), Bakersfield (ABA) are pretty much carrying the League on our own. So it appears that the D-League has to find better markets for themselves.

For one. the 4 CBA teams (Sioux Falls, Dakota, Idaho, Colorado) are all locally owned Franchises, while the NBDL Original teams are i beleive owned and operated by the NBA except for the LA team which is owned by the Lakers.

You dont need to blast the teams that have a Loyal Fanbase, just the 8 teams that dont. and i am talking about the teams that are averaging less than 1700 fans per game.

i also posted the CBA Attendance Figures, except for Yakima, the other 7 teams including Albany are averaging 1000 fans or less. well, Albany is averging 1300 or so.

its my beleif, that a Minor League Basketball team needs atleast 3000-3500 average attendance to break even. if you cant average atleast that much, your team is dead in the water.

[psbf]

I beg to differ, MZ. I admit that my team, the Pgh. Xplosion is not averaging what I would like to see, but even though we have been below that 1,000 average, I believe in them and I think they will survive. Indiana is a team with lower turnouts than us(as I've read). But I still see this league(CBA) with a promising future. Despite the fact that the Xplosion have yet to win, I'm still a proud season ticket holder for them and I'll stand by them. We have a long homestand coming up, so hopefully the crowds will pick up, for those of us who can't afford to go to the Pens games.

[suge night]

Heavesrock, ok I'll give you that on the championship but if those players were able to make the mad money the NBA teams giveaway then our NBA champ would be a (chump) even you would have to agree the Miami Heat would get there butt handed to them in a series.....there were some good point's made about the fan base of other teams and league's as well.....

[heavesrock]

I wasn't blasting anybody. I was making a point. And you most certainly do not need 3,500 to survive in minor league basketball. The CApe Cod Frenzy need only 330. And how many were the Flyers drawing in the attendance you listed? If according to suge night they are only drawing 150 per game, than the D-League is way overshooting their attendance.

[kg21obf]

Before you get too excited about the CBA attendance, notice every team in the Nba sold out last nite. Even The Hawks and BOBs, people are obviously looking for stuff to do. Yakima nearly folded a couple years ago, had the Indian tribe that purchased them not stepped in they would be defunct today. The tribal leaders did not go through the proper channels within the tribe and have all since been removed from their post as tribal leaders. I cant believe a team can survive under 2500 per game. The CBA teams are bussing around now to save cash. IE. Fly into Utah bus to GF,BUTTE,YAK, and fly home from there. Recently the EAGles Faced the S-kings In YaK, the next nite they played each other in SLC. Yakima caught a direct flite the next morning from Pasco To SLc, the eagles got a bite to eat, after the game and headed out on an 800 mile trip by bus back home. That saves tons of cash ,but makes the league less attractive to some of the more elite minor leaguers. I will stand by my prediction that the CBA is in deep trouble. That comes from someone who enjoys going to the games more than anyone.

[suge night]

Tonight's Flyers game had Lake Highlands Jr.College playing a pre game before them. Now no offense against Lake Highlands who don't draw when on campus ,at last night's game (Friday) after the game a Local Country Band performed after the game and not more than 20 people were there to see them which caused the band to play only 30 minutes and shut it down.Now all those big number's the league is putting out on Attendence is questionable,the local newspaper reporter's who have to come to the games don't want to be there now what does that tell you about the product as a whole .Now I'll tell you the games have been entertaining but to be told that most of these guy's are the future of the NBA now that is a reach I think if they sold the league for it really is players who can play at a certain level then most fans would buy it I think.

[bdaly]

The increases aren't surprising. Right after the holidays, teams always see a boost. We're certainly seeing it with all the teams here in Rochester, and it's consistent elsewhere in the leagues I follow. The Razorsharks, even without the 2K deeply discounted tickets, would have had just under 6K last game. Tonight, all paid, will be another strong one for them.

But, I don't think crowds under 2K are anything to get excited about. I don't see how anyone in a league filled with air travel can come close to breaking even. So while it's a good sign for the league that there actually is growth (from some pretty poor numbers), it definitely must continue to grow. If teams peak with crowds of 1,600 and 1,400 (or anywhere close to that), I wouldn't consider their long-term viability to be very promising...

Simply put, the CBA needs to make it through this season without losing anyone. Then they can focus on growing the league so the travel requirements aren't insane. Only having 1-2 teams that can draw over 2K with any consistency with hefty travel means almost everyone is in the red.

[heavesrock]

Attendance seems to be going up everywhere. Vermont drew 1,650 last night which is an official sellout, which must mean it was really packed as it looks full when you have 1,300 in there.

[panchess]

..generally December is a bad month for entertainment, unless it is related to the holidays. People are buying presents, going to their kid's concerts, travelling and the like. My kid's concert conflicted with one Patroons home date, for instance. After Christmas, it's the opposite. I stopped at the mall to do some returns before the Patroons game on Tuesday night, the place was dead. The Armory had a good crowd, though.

Starting the CBA on December 1 was a bad idea, in my opinion. Either before Thanksgiving, or immediately after Christmas, would be better. Games on the 26th, 27th, 29th and 30th this year would have been awesome, and the right way to play it, I think.

After a month of the "new" CBA, it is encouraging to note no teams have folded, and the Montana and Utah franchises are all gaining in attendance. Word of mouth generally must be positive then among the people who have seen the games, as these are generally small communities.

Rochester had a concert with a big-name local act at the game with 8K. A good idea, but it isn't a true test of the drawing power of the Razorsharks. People on this forum mocked this idea in the business plan of the Atlanta Krunk, for instance.

On the travel, sure it would be nice to have closer teams and less bus travel, but it is the way it has always been in the CBA. Home-and-home games involving long bus rides, though, need to be minimized. The schedule seems to have more than its share of them so far.

[psbf]

In a choice between starting the season in late November or late December, I'd go with November.
As for shortening the CBA season, I disagree with that. I feel the season is too short as it is. I was hoping it would start in October.

[psbf]

The CBA is what, 4 months long?

[bdaly]

Rochester had a concert with a big-name local act at the game with 8K. A good idea, but it isn't a true test of the drawing power of the Razorsharks. People on this forum mocked this idea in the business plan of the Atlanta Krunk, for instance.

Actually, the Razorsharks drew 7,800+ for the game on the 28th. There were 2K deeply discounted tickets to a targeted arena e-mail list for that one. But, from everyone I spoke to at the arena, the crowd was very legit. The concert drew 5,133 (where tickets started at $16.50). And, to my surprise, the crowd didn't get split between the game and concert. Everyone was there around tip off, and I was in the minority leaving after the game. The team got a lot of great exposure last week.

[heavesrock]

Bad News from Indiana. The Alley Cats have only been drawing around 75 per game.

[Letzplayball]

Bad News from Indiana. The Alley Cats have only been drawing around 75 per game.
WOW! Anyone been to an Indiana game to verify only 75 fans?? Can't imagine that small of a crowd. Must be like a morgue in their arena.

[bdaly]

There was an announced crowd of 752 was in Butte last night--their smallest of the season. Great Falls managed an announced crowd of 1,018, while Pittsburgh didn't announce their figure. So, there are still significant attendance issues, but this weekend should be an opportunity to get the numbers up a bit.

[psbf]

Keep in mind that the Xplosion have 500 season ticket holders(I'm one). I'd like to think that they are all as faithfull to the team as I am(I've never missed a game). So figure that number on average.

[rtz]

You might want to verify Utah attendence. I've been to some games. The numbers are not accurate.

[psbf]

Numbers? What numbers? I've not seen the Eagles give any anything related to turnout figures.

[panchess]

..is generally in their box scores on the CBA web site.

12/1 vs. Minot: 939
12/5 vs. Butte: 937
12/7 vs. Minot: 946
12/12 vs. Great Falls: 898
12/19 vs. Yakama: 1032
12/21 vs. Great Falls: 1084
12/23 vs. Utah: 1123
12/27 vs. Indiana: 1086
12/29 vs. Pittsburgh: n/a
1/2 vs. Yakama: n/a

I assume they report tickets sold like almost every other pro sports team.

[psbf]

Thanks. I kept looking at their website.

[kg21obf]

It looks like they must have a season ticket base of 900. Very sad that all those people dont go that have tix. I continue to worry about this league. Right now only Yakima and Albany are even close to viable franchises. These other teams drawing around 1000 per are dead in the water. Where did B Markson sign?

[utahstarsticketholder]

They folded so I guess 900 Utahans want their money back! I called a friend from the college... highest attendance 92, counting the officials. Hope Apex paid their bills or this might become ABA-Light.

Remember our troops, jack and cheryl.

[heavesrock]

I think opening night was more than 92.