2007 IBL Preview

[The Magician]

With the IBL season just about to begin ... Do we have any IBL fans out there that who would like to give a 2007 Preview of their favorite team?

International Basketball League (IBL)

http://www.iblhoopsonline.com/index.html

Battle Creek
Central Oregon
Chicago Heights
Chico
Colorado
Elgin
Elkhart
Eugene
Everett
Grand Rapids
Holland
Lake County
Las Vegas
Lewis County
Ohio
Phoenix
Portland
Salem
Santa Barbara
Seattle
Tacoma
Tennessee
Tri Valley
Vancover
West Virginia

[BreakersFan]

Maybe it is just a glitch, but Tri-Valley and Lake County are no longer on the IBL website

[BreakersFan]

West Virginia has also dropped off the website, so the IBL is down from 25 to 22. I guess better now than mid-season.

[Dan K]

The IBL web site currently has 22 teams listed on its home page. From last season's 24 teams, it looks like the league lost 9 teams, but added 7 new teams.

Not listed from the West are the Aurora Cavalry, Oakland Slammers and Tri-Valley Titans (Tri-City Ballers). Not listed from the 2006 East are the Cedar Valley Jaguars, Cuyahoga Falls Cougars (to Akron of UBL), Lake County Lakers, Lansing Capitals, Macomb County Mustangs and West Virginia Wild.

The seven new teams are the Chicago Heights Soldiers, Everett Explosion, Las Vegas Stars, Lewis County Raptors, Phoenix Flame, Santa Barbara, and Tennessee (Hub City Hurricanes).

The Ohio team listed is the Marysville Meteors, formerly the Columbus Cyclones.

[Pounder]

I'll be damned. Centralia WA has a pro team.

http://www.epodunk.com/cgi-bin/genInfo.php?locIndex=24705

Thing is, while a town of 15,000, Chehalis is just south. Lewis County is bigger than the Casper WY market, and probably growing faster (though probably a bit more spread out). The outlet mall and location virtually halfway between Portland and Seattle doesn't hurt.

[AConcernedCitizen]

I periodically check the Santa Barbara website, but there is less than zero activity on it. I'm wondering if it's going to happen?

When does the season start?

My one email to the head of the league was returned to me because it said my format was Chinese or something that automatically rejected the mail. It was bizarre.:confused:

[BreakersFan]

You're right - that website is pretty weak.

Anyway, Santa Barbara tips-off on April 6:

http://www.iblhoopsonline.com/teamSantaBarbara.asp

[mammal]

Watch out for the Explosion this year. From what I have seen and heard they are one of the best run franchises in the IBL. Their roster is solid from top to bottom.

[Fez]

Is there any indication that the Phoenix Flames are playing this year? They haven't issued a press release in months. Will the Las Vegas at Phoenix game scheduled for April 6 happen? If so, I plan to attend.

[BreakersFan]

Is there any indication that the Phoenix Flames are playing this year? They haven't issued a press release in months. Will the Las Vegas at Phoenix game scheduled for April 6 happen? If so, I plan to attend.

With a few exceptions, most IBL teams seem to do a poor job issuing press releases. Unlike the ABA though, the league does have a good record of playing its scheduled games, so if the game is on the schedule it's probably a go.

There are several press releases on their website www.phxflame.com

[Shootmaster_44]

With a few exceptions, most IBL teams seem to do a poor job issuing press releases. Unlike the ABA though, the league does have a good record of playing its scheduled games, so if the game is on the schedule it's probably a go.

There are several press releases on their website www.phxflame.com

This is a good sign. I'm hoping that this trend continues this season and next year when the Saskatoon team comes in, that I don't end up with an ABA style schedule.

Out of curiosity, why do the teams all seem to play different amounts of games? Is there a reason for this or is it all down to if the owners want to squeeze in more games they can?

[BreakersFan]

The IBL has some sort of pod system they use to make schedules which I think results in an uneven number of games. But I agree that it makes the league look kind of amateurish and takes away from their otherwise-good presentation. By the same token, having the past standings on the front page of the site also looks goofy. Put them on a history page or something.

[mammal]

The IBL uses "cluster" scheduling and no team will fly more than once a season. Since travel costs are the largest expense in the minors, this "cluster" scheduling is a great move by the IBL.

When the IBL makes it's schedule, it's solid, unlike the ABA. It's a solid minor league with improving talent.

[Shootmaster_44]

Oh I like the fact that all IBL teams complete their schedule. Just I would think no matter how many teams and clusters there are in the league, you would play the same amount of games. At the very least you'd think teams in the same division would have an even amount of games. So far in the 3 days I've been following the IBL, that's the only real concern I've noticed so far.

I have a few nitpicky things with the league, but nothing that makes me fear that a) the league will collapse before next spring or b) the league will die during the 2008 season. It seems the only way Saskatoon would lose its team, is if no one shows up for the games. I've had enough of these fly-by-night leagues coming into town, only to disappoint. The IBL looks solid to me.

Does anyone know if there's plans for expansion into "CBA" territory? I mean with Saskatoon, Calgary and Edmonton out on an island in the league, the only one flight rule seems to mean some very long bus rides to the coast from here.