IBL Off-season news and notes
by Jeff Duncan
Published on January 20, 2008 under International Basketball League (IBL)
The International Basketball League (IBL) tips off its fourth season March 2008 and commissioner Mikal Duilio expects this season to be the best yet.
As with most minor leagues there were changes during the off season. Some teams left the IBL, some just changed their names. The IBL added new teams for 2008 and some teams will be taking the 2008 season off to re- group and come back in 2009. A major development is the organization of the expansion department which includes Japan, Philippines and China. A sign that the league is growing and strong is there were over one hundred players from the IBL who signed contracts to play over seas-more than any other league.
Let's begin with the teams not returning to the IBL. Colorado, Chico, Hub City and surprisingly, Marysville, will not part of the IBL for the 2008 season. These teams paid their bills, offered their fans a good product on the floor, but chose not to return. Marysville, Chico and Colorado had been members of the IBL since 2006. I was surprised Maysville decided to leave. They were a very competitive franchise with a two year record of 40-8.
Teams that decided to take the 2008 season off to re-tool and come back in 2009 are Seattle, Salem and Arizona. I was surprised to hear that Salem will be taking the 2008 season off. They were one of the most entertaining teams to watch regardless of league. They finished the 2007 campaign 18-4 and were upset in the IBL West division playoffs by the Portland Chinooks. Look for Salem, Seattle and Arizona to come stronger than ever in 2009.
A team from Vancouver B.C. is slated for expansion in 2009. An article written by Gary Ahuja of the Langley Times indicted the new, yet to be named team, will play at their homes games at the Langley Events Centre which is under construction in Willoughby.
Sticking with the Canadian theme, one of the two new expansion teams for the 2008 season is the Edmonton Chill. The Chill will play their home games at the Macewan City Centre Sports and Wellness.
The other expansion team in 2008 will be glitzy and a lot of fun to watch. "Showtime" comes to the IBL in the name of the Los Angeles Lightning. Mark Harwell, the GM and Owner, brings a wealth of experience from his past dealings with other minor leagues. He also helped get the Santa Barbara Breakers off the ground last season. (More on this team later) Look for Harwell to use his Hollywood contacts to make the Lightning home games an experience you won't forget. (I wonder if Jack will show up courtside?)
Two franchises join the IBL from failing minor leagues. The Gary Steelheads left the defunct, at least for 2008, USBL. The Bellingham Slam join the IBL from the joke of a league, (my opinion only) the ABA. Gary and Bellingham were two of the stronger franchises in their respective leagues and are a welcome addition to the IBL.
Three teams underwent name changes. The Chicago Heights Soldiers are now the Windy City Soldiers. The Everett Explosion changed cities and will now be called the Snohomish County Explosion. The Explosion left Everett, WA and now call Monroe, WA home. The Lewis County Raptors are still based in Lewis County, WA but will now be called the Washington Raptors.
In a strange move, the Santa Barbara Breakers recently left the IBL to join a start up minor league. I am sad to see the Breakers go. They put on one heck of a show last season. Such name players as Toby Bailey, Fred Vinson, Samaki Walker and Lamond Murray dotted the Breaker roster.
Huge additions to the IBL this season are the Shanxi Kylins of the Chinese Basketball League. Two players you have heard of used to play for Shanxi, Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets and Yi Jianlian of the Milwaukee Bucks. The Kylins will be based in Springfield, Oregon at the USBA facility. (I have been to this facility and it is top notch) The Kylins will be a full fledged IBL member playing an 18 game road schedule. I am interested to see how Shanxi will adapt to the high octane-up temp style of the IBL.
With the addition of China-Shanxi, the IBL will restructure the divisions a bit. There will be a USA/Asia side and USA/Canada side with nine teams in each.(1)
The USA/Asia side will include the Portland Chinooks, Vancouver, (WA) Volcanoes, Eugene Chargers, Central Oregon Hotshots, (My old stomping grounds) Bellingham Slam, Tacoma Jazz, Washington (Chehalis) Raptors, Snohomish County Explosion and Shanxi. The USA/Canada side will include the rest of the league and the Edmonton Chill.(2)
As you can tell the IBL had a very eventful off season. I can't fit everything into one column! To read about all the off season developments check out the IBL website, www.iblhoopsonline.com.
As always, if you have any feedback to me, my email address is www.sportsmammal@nwlink.com
(1)(2)- Jesse Severson of the Portland Tribune.
International Basketball League Stories from January 20, 2008
- IBL Off-season news and notes - OSC Original by Jeff Duncan
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
