ABA Championship

[WHAFAN]

Is winning the ABA Championship anything to really be proud of? Competing against misfit, ill-run rec-league teams and coming out on top doesn't really cause great joy does it?

If your team beat a team that included 2 guys in wheelchairs, 3 guys with Polio braces, and another guy with an eye patch, have you really accomplished great things? By being a champion, basically by default, is not very professional and certainly not a source of community pride. Ever beat up the "retarded kid" when you were in school? Does that make you a tough guy? Or just the strongest of the weak?

Teams taking over dead teams schedules, not having enough guys to field a team, no travel, unpaid salaries, a league office that cares less about anything but itself, fans you can count on both hands, no radio, tv or newspaper coverage, and no future. Good for you !! You can be proud of your title........Every team that survives this back alley abortion clinic of a "professional " basketball league should get a trophy for managing to survive the 6th year of nonsense. If Vermont, and Buffalo and so on are such professionally run organizations, why are they embarrassing themselves in the ABA? Is this the only league these guys could afford to be a part of?

I've been a sports fan for 30 years, and I have never seen so much praise heaped on a team because they might manage to complete their schedule or manage to survive until next season. Un-friggin-believeable!!

[waynemorrell13]

Whats are you talking about? The ABA has alot of teams that are poorly run and mis-managed and all of that but as you just mentioned there are two teams in Vermont and Buffalo that are well-run teams. Then when you look at Biejing and Arkansas and Texas and Minnesota and alot of the top teams, they are quality teams. And I know for a fact that the rimrockers d-league team would lose to the Aeros or the tycoons in a game. So when its all said and done, if the Aeros play Texas or if Texas plays Vermont, or if Vermont plays the Aeros in the championship that is not a win over a handicapped team it is a win over a very formidable opponent with good quality players. I don't understand all the backlash that everyone has with the ABA. It has great players. I've seen them and there are atleast 15 really good teams. They are in the ABA because its easier to get into than the d-league and if you win the championship you may move to the d-league anyway.

[The Magician]

Is winning the ABA Championship anything to really be proud of?

It does!

The last two Champions of Arkansas and Rochester have had pretty impressive rosters of exciting and competitive professional basketball players.

This year's champion should reflect some of the same fire and dedication ...

If it means something to them to go out and battle for a Championship ... then it means something to us too!

[WHAFAN]

How the hell would Texas ever play Vermont? Texas better start walking northeast, Vermont better start walking southwest, and they can meet in southern Illinois to play. With this lame duck rec-league, what team can afford to travel more than 3 miles to the nearest empty YMCA gym, or store front church gym? Please!!!!!!!!

[jamesaba]

How the hell would Texas ever play Vermont? Texas better start walking northeast, Vermont better start walking southwest, and they can meet in southern Illinois to play. With this lame duck rec-league, what team can afford to travel more than 3 miles to the nearest empty YMCA gym, or store front church gym? Please!!!!!!!!

Texas
Vermont
Rochester
Quebec
Montreal
Cape Cod
Buffalo
Wilmington
Maryland
Brooklyn
Newark
Jacksonville
Palm Beach
Orlando
Mississippi
Atlanta
South Alabama
Bellingham
Beijing
San Diego
Hollywood
Maywood
Quad Cities
Minnesota
Peoria
St. Louis
Detroit
Sauk Valley
Arkansas
Texas
Strong Island

[bdaly]

For all of the ABA's issues, I thought the final four teams were all very, very solid last year. Despite the league's many issues this year, there are several impressive rosters. Winning a division may not mean a lot given the realignments and whatnot, but winning a title does.

[waynemorrell13]

Dude, whether you know it or not these teams have more money than you think! Arkansas is paying some of its players more per month than almost all the players on the rimrockers D-League team. You are looking at the ABA as a whole and not at its parts. The Texas Tycoons have the same owner who put all of the players in apartments and hotels when they first started and he also flew them to every game over a 3 hour trip. He can easily buy tickets for them to fly anywhere in the U.S. You have the whole ABA on one level when it comes to ownership but it's not like that. The top teams can do whatever they need to do. Why do you even try to pay attention to the ABA. You only take the bad out of it.

[sportsguy12]

Whats are you talking about? The ABA has alot of teams that are poorly run and mis-managed and all of that but as you just mentioned there are two teams in Vermont and Buffalo that are well-run teams. Then when you look at Biejing and Arkansas and Texas and Minnesota and alot of the top teams, they are quality teams. And I know for a fact that the rimrockers d-league team would lose to the Aeros or the tycoons in a game. So when its all said and done, if the Aeros play Texas or if Texas plays Vermont, or if Vermont plays the Aeros in the championship that is not a win over a handicapped team it is a win over a very formidable opponent with good quality players. I don't understand all the backlash that everyone has with the ABA. It has great players. I've seen them and there are atleast 15 really good teams. They are in the ABA because its easier to get into than the d-league and if you win the championship you may move to the d-league anyway.

the reputation of the weak teams has tarnished the league overall. The ABA is only as strong as its weakest link. There might be 15 really good teams, but there are other teams out there who are floundering and even folding. Who knows how many teams are even in the league right now.

Lots of other leagues have bad teams or even teams that are losing big $$$. But at least they are playing their games as scheduled. All of the ABA teams were scheduled to play 36 games. Only 1 or 2 will accomplish that. No excuses! That is the problem with the ABA. Until they can get through several seasons where ALL of the games are played, the criticism will remain.

[jamesaba]

No one here is trying to make excuses for the ABA by answering "WHAFAN's" insincere, rhetorical question.

We all know there are many problems. The biggest one being that weak, financially incapable teams are being let into the league. This causes the other teams not to play 36 games. This year will probably be a record number of teams who reach 30 games however.

Yes, yes I agree its still not acceptable....

But, lets not criticize an individual team such as a Texas, Arkansas, etc and say that they are not doing a decent job if they play 30-34 games. And WHAFAN's assertion that the final four ABA team teams are a ragtag bunch of rec level players IS ABSURD.

There are some great players playing in the ABA and there are some really good teams (this year). I'd venture a guess to say that the top 15 teams in the ABA could compete with NBDL and CBA teams.

I suspect the top ABA teams (Rochester, Vermont, Jacksonville, Arkansas) could beat NBDL and CBA teams too. I don't see alot of teamwork in the NBDL games - I see alot of one on one guys trying to get big individual numbers.

[jamesaba]

Dude, whether you know it or not these teams have more money than you think! Arkansas is paying some of its players more per month than almost all the players on the rimrockers D-League team. You are looking at the ABA as a whole and not at its parts. The Texas Tycoons have the same owner who put all of the players in apartments and hotels when they first started and he also flew them to every game over a 3 hour trip. He can easily buy tickets for them to fly anywhere in the U.S. You have the whole ABA on one level when it comes to ownership but it's not like that. The top teams can do whatever they need to do. Why do you even try to pay attention to the ABA. You only take the bad out of it.

"He can easily buy tickets for them to fly anywhere in the U.S."

If what you said here is true, the why did you wait for the league to buy your tickets? You could've bought refundable Southwest Airline tickets right after you beat Beijing, and if Wilmington beat Vermont (which was never going to happen)...they you could've gotten a refund.

[teqkng]

Lets be honest, only 2 teams played all 36 games, Vermont and Jacksonville. Jacksonville had 10 or 11 games to fill due to no shows/bow outs in the league. They networked, called in other teams out of their area and in their area to complete their season without any changing of the contracted venue schedule. Why is it that 22 out of 24 top teams in the ABA could not do the same amongst themselves? I think there is some serious bickering and highschool attitudes within the ownerships, and calling no fair to the league office who should have the final say in either crediting a team with a forfiet win or penalizing them with a forfiet loss. Dont blame it on Brad I think he is dealing with 50 screaming babies among the 60 ownership groups that did not do their research and want the league to pick up the slack. With that pressing down on your head you would make teh best choices to placate as many as possible and let the real complainers out to dry. think about it.

[a1sports]

What a joke of a league. Two teams play all 36 games, BUT they were not the games scheduled in JULY. There is no credibility to the ABA, an owner must start calling 1 week prior to a game to make sure a team shows up. Why Have a schedule? Just announce in the paper... a "basketball game" will be played on a certain date. Dont pat yourselfs on the back too hard because you played 36 games, means absolutely zero. If you look at the 24 or 26 or what ever number of teams that lasted through February, NOT one played the schedule that was released prior to the season.

I guarantee it wont ever happen in the aba, no way will anyone play the 36 games that were scheduled prior to the season.

REAL pro Basketball fans know the ABA is a joke.

[Fells]

What a joke of a league. Two teams play all 36 games, BUT they were not the games scheduled in JULY. There is no credibility to the ABA, an owner must start calling 1 week prior to a game to make sure a team shows up. Why Have a schedule? Just announce in the paper... a "basketball game" will be played on a certain date. Dont pat yourselfs on the back too hard because you played 36 games, means absolutely zero. If you look at the 24 or 26 or what ever number of teams that lasted through February, NOT one played the schedule that was released prior to the season.

I guarantee it wont ever happen in the aba, no way will anyone play the 36 games that were scheduled prior to the season.

REAL pro Basketball fans know the ABA is a joke.

What I would be interested to see is what percentage of the league's games were played, and what percentage were played with the teams, and on the dates they were scheduled. The rough number I came up with for the percentage of games played was 72%. This was simply the number of teams left in the league, times 36, and divided by the number of scheduled games among those teams. (Crap, I think I just confused myself.)

72% is a HORRIBLE number!! As we have all stated ad nauseum, the only time a cancellation/postponment is acceptable is when it is due to weather and that is it. In a perfect world, I would like to see the ABA have a plan of action to correct the low percentage of games that were played. 99% is about the only acceptable number to any legitimate operation.