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Seven Year Ache?

by Ed Gross
November 29, 2007 - American Basketball Association (ABA)


Seven years after its reincarnation, the American Basketball Association may have only succeeded in committing a "Minor League" personal foul.

Growing up in a major league city, minor and semi-pro leagues were seemingly unheard of. It wasn't until my high school years that, with the advent of cable television and national newspapers, that all changed. Interest in leagues that I never knew existed burgeoned. Cities that I had never heard of possessed teams. These leagues had their rivalries, traditions, and small contributions to the sports world.

As a business manager, I was impressed by the business models that these leagues had to form. The blueprints of these leagues and teams, seemed to be more finely tuned than for a major sports league. Success on the field wasn't a guarantee that a franchise was stable. Having a star player meant that you might only lose him to a major league scout. But with the instability, I was never fazed. Sometimes, I think a Great Falls Continental Basketball Association championship or Wheeling ECHL win would have more meaning for me than if the teams in my major league city won their respective championships.

Then along came the ABA, or as it referred to itself, ABA2000. Conceived in 2000, this ABA brought a blueprint that has seemingly complicated minor league sports. Frustrating fans, players, and anyone else who dares to follow what has become more of a circus than a sports league. After its first few modest seasons with a handful of franchises and only regional interest, the ABA embarked on a greater plan. Saturation with franchises was the new ABA philosophy. "Bigger isn't only better, it's best...and with this, we will be recognized," the league seemed to say with its rapid expansion. If it was recognition they wanted, it increased. But unless one believes that any press is good press, the ABA may have only struck fools gold.

Today, the league sees cancelled games, franchise dropouts and virtually empty seats in most gyms. This season alone, three franchises played one game, then mysteriously dropped out of the league. Most of today's ABA followers seem to be cynics waiting for the crash to meet the thud. Devoted fans have lost any reason to follow the league. The simple truth is the niche of misplanning was carved out years ago. A league that has boasted having over 70 teams is down to less then 30 active squads. Play on the court is back page news compared to it leaders signing another marketing deal. The league will often boast it is adding another franchise for next season, while some of today's teams haven't played a scheduled game in over two weeks.

Further serving to alienate interest in the ABA product, the playoff format lacks sense, beginning with seeding based on the league's arbitrary, and secret, power ranking formula. Teams have folded during the playoffs, refused to travel, or been added (though weak on court but with travel dollars). Of the six championship teams that the league has seen, only last season's, the Vermont Frost Heaves, still play in the league. One month into the season, the ABA still refuses to disclose its playoff format for 2008 to its fans.

Whether the league will make it through this campaign is a question that only time can answer. With each cancelled game, suspended team and failed marketing gimmick, the ABA seems to be moving itself into more dire straights. For many observers, it is now less about "who won," and more about "who's still playing." Honestly, how the league made it this long is a complicated enough question to ask. League brass insists on moving forward wearing blinders. Even if the ABA regrouped, it may be too late, and that's too bad. This league had potential at one time.

The bigger question may be what has the ABA done to minor league sports in general? In its seven years, the trail that the league is leaving behind is a negligible one -no real statistics, no history, no stable franchises. With the exception of a small group of teams in the northeast, and a smaller contingent in the southwest, this league is failing, over and over again. It has left players unpaid, fans standing at the door, and cities and arenas with unpaid leases. Should any other league or team try to move in, one wonders how apprehensive a potential fan base would be.

Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.



American Basketball Association Stories from November 29, 2007


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.


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