World Basketball League

Basketball league in the US and Canada

World Basketball League (WBL) was a minor professional basketball league in the United States and Canada which operated from 1988 to 1992. It was founded as the International Basketball Association in November 1987, before changing its name prior to the 1988 season. One of the major differences between it and other leagues was that it had a height restriction. Players over 6 ft 5 in (1.95 m) were not allowed to play; this restriction was raised to 6 ft 7 in (2.0 m) in 1991.

World Basketball LeagueSport| Basketball

|

Founded| November 1987
Founder| Mickey Monus
First season| 1988
Ceased| August 1, 1992
Countries| United States
Canada
Last
champion(s)| Dayton Wings
(1992)
Most titles| Youngstown Pride and Dayton Wings (2 Titles)

Basketball Hall-of-Famer and Boston Celtic great Bob Cousy (6'1" tall) was one of the league's founders. Norm Drucker, a 25-year veteran referee with the National Basketball Association and American Basketball Association, and a former supervisor of officials for the NBA, served as the WBL's supervisor of officiating. One of the league's founders, Michael Monus, was eventually convicted of having embezzled $10 million to finance the league, from a privately owned company he had founded, Phar-Mor. He was sentenced to nine (9) years in federal prison.

In addition to games against other teams in the league, games were also played against international teams. The league had several of its games broadcast on television. In Canada, the games were broadcast on the CanWest Global System. In the United States, the games were broadcast on SportsChannel America. Mike Rice was the primary analyst for the SportsChannel broadcasts.

After the league folded in 1992, the surviving Canadian-based teams formed the National Basketball League. This league played two seasons before it folded as well.

## Teams[1]

[edit]

Team | City | Arena | Seasons | Notes

|
|
|
|

Calgary 88's | Calgary, Alberta | Olympic Saddledome | 1988-1992 |
Chicago Express | Chicago, Illinois | Rosemont Horizon | 1988 | Moved to Springfield, Illinois following the 1988 season.
Dayton Wings | Dayton, Ohio | Ervin J. Nutter Center | 1991-1992 | Team folded July 31, 1992.
Erie Wave | Erie, Pennsylvania | Louis J. Tullio Center | 1990-1992 | Team folded July 20, 1992.
Florida Jades | Boca Raton, Florida | Florida Atlantic University Arena | 1991-1992 | Team folded June 15, 1992.
Fresno Flames | Fresno, California | Selland Arena | 1988 |
Halifax Windjammers | Halifax, Nova Scotia | Halifax Metro Centre | 1991-1992 | Joined the National Basketball League for 1993.
Hamilton Skyhawks | Hamilton, Ontario | Copps Coliseum | 1992 | Joined the National Basketball League for 1993.
Illinois Express | Springfield, Illinois | Prairie Capital Convention Center | 1989-1990 |
Jacksonville Stingrays | Jacksonville, Florida | Jacksonville Coliseum | 1992 | Team folded June 15, 1992.
Las Vegas Silver Streaks | Las Vegas, Nevada | Thomas & Mack Center | 1988-1990 | Moved to Nashville following 1990 season.
Memphis Rockers | Memphis, Tennessee | Mid-South Coliseum | 1990-1991 |
Nashville Stars | Nashville, Tennessee | Nashville Municipal Auditorium | 1991 |
Saskatchewan Storm | Saskatoon, Saskatchewan | Saskatchewan Place | 1990-1992 | Joined the National Basketball League in 1993. Franchise name changed by ownership to the "Saskatoon Slam."
Vancouver Nighthawks | Vancouver, British Columbia | BC Place | 1988 |
Winnipeg Thunder | Winnipeg, Manitoba | Winnipeg Arena | 1992 | Joined the National Basketball League for 1993.
Worcester Counts | Worcester, Massachusetts | Worcester Centrum | 1989 |
Youngstown Pride | Youngstown, Ohio | Beeghly Center | 1988-1992 |

### International Teams

[edit]

Team | City | Seasons | Notes

|
|
|

Abruzzo All-Stars | Abruzzo, Italy | 1992 |
Bahamas Nationals | The Bahamas | 1992 |
Estonian Nationals | Estonia | 1992 |
| Finland | 1989-1991 |
| Greece | 1989-1991 |
Holland | Netherlands | 1989-1991 |
| Italy | 1989-1991 |
Kyiv All-Stars | Kyiv, Ukraine | 1992 |
| Norway | 1989-1991 |
Soviet Union | USSR | 1989-1991 |

## Champions of WBL

[edit]

Season  | Winning Team  | Losing Team  | Series/score

|
|
|

1988  | Las Vegas Silver Streaks  | Chicago Express  | 102–95
1989  | Youngstown Pride  | Calgary 88's  | 2–0
1990  | Youngstown Pride  | Calgary 88's  | 3–2
1991  | Dayton Wings  | Calgary 88's  | 3–0
1992  | Dayton Wings  | N/A  | Dayton Wings were declared leaders of the regular season (due to league folding August 1)[2]

## Personnel

[edit]

League President

* Dr. John Geletka[3] 1991–1992

League Commissioner

* Steve Ehrhart[4] 1988–1992

## Awards

[edit]

### WBL Championship MVP

[edit]

Season  | Player  | Team

|
|

1988  | Jamie Waller | Las Vegas Silver Streaks
1989  | Barry Mitchell | Youngstown Pride
1990
1991  | Perry McDonald  | Dayton Wings

### Player of the Year

[edit]

This award was established in 1991.

Season  | Player  | Team

|
|

1991  | Tracy Moore | Florida Jades

### Rookie of the Year

[edit]

This award was established in 1991.

Season  | Player  | Team

|
|

1991  | J. J. Eubanks | Nashville Stars

### Sixth Man of the Year

[edit]

Season  | Player  | Team

|
|

1988  | Chip Engelland | Calgary 88's
1989  | Keith Smart | Worcester Counts
1990  | Troy Lewis | Youngstown Pride
1991  | Kelsey Weems | Calgary 88's

### Coach of the Year

[edit]

Season  | Coach  | Team  | GP  | W  | L  | Pct.

|
|
|
|
|
|

1988  | Mike Thibault | Calgary 88's  |  |  |  |
1989  | Bob Patton  | Youngstown Pride  |  |  |  |
1990  | Sonny Allen | Las Vegas Silver Streaks  |  |  |  |
1991  | Pat Haley  | Dayton Wings  |  |  |  |

## Statistical leaders

[edit]

Year | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks

|
|
|
|
|

1988 | Jamie Waller, 26.7 | David Boone, 9.8 | Mark Wade, 12.8 | Mark Wade, 1.8 | Andre Patterson, 2.2
1989 | Jamie Waller, 21.7 | Alfredrick Hughes, 11.5 | Cedric Hunter, 11.0 | Darryl Johnson, 1.9 | Perry Young, 1.3
1990 | Jamie Waller, 26.5 | Vincent Askew, 9.8 | Mark Wade, 11.5 | Andre Turner, 2.4 | John Hegwood, 1.3
1991 | Jamie Waller, 26.3 | Willie Bland, 12.3 | Mark Wade, 8.7 | Darryl McDonald, 2.5 | Willie Glass, 1.7

## Notable players

[edit]

### NBA players

[edit]

These players played at least 1 game in the NBA

* Vincent Askew
* Dudley Bradley
* Scott Brooks
* Carlos Clark
* Fred Cofield
* Mario Elie
* David Henderson
* Alfredrick Hughes
* Cedric Hunter
* Darryl Johnson
* Anthony Jones
* Doug Lee
* Tim Legler
* Jim Les
* Sidney Lowe
* Kenny Natt
* Craig Neal
* Jose Slaughter
* Keith Smart
* John Starks
* Jim Thomas
* Andre Turner
* Mark Wade
* Milt Wagner
* Jamie Waller
* Perry Young

### Other leagues

[edit]

These players have won at least 1 individual award while playing in professional leagues

* Joe Dawson
* Aivar Kuusmaa
* Darryl McDonald
* Igors Miglinieks
* Barry Mitchell
* Clyde Vaughan

## References

[edit]

1. ^ WBL Stats
2. ^ Dayton had the best record overall with 26 wins and only 7 losses
3. ^ "John Geletka (2000) - Hall of Fame". Youngstown State University. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
4. ^ "World Basketball League (1988-1992)". Fun While It Lasted. Retrieved 2025-01-11.

## External links

[edit]

* History of the league

* v
* t
* e

SportsChannel

Owned RSNs|

* Bay Area/Pacific
* Chicago
* Cincinnati
* Florida
* Los Angeles
* New York
* New England
* Ohio
* Philadelphia
* PRISM

Affiliate RSNs|

* Home Team Sports
* Midwest Sports Channel

Programming|

* American Basketball League
* Canadian Football League
* Ladies Pro Bowlers Tour
* Major Indoor Soccer League
* National Hockey League
* National Professional Soccer League
* NASCAR
* Premier League
* Pro Boxing Tour
* The Sportswriters on TV
* World Basketball League

| Professional wrestling|

* ECW Hardcore TV
* UWF Blackjack Brawl
* UWF Fury Hour
* Windy City Wrestling

|

Related television networks|

* Comcast SportsNet
* Fox Sports Net
* FanDuel Sports Network
* Hawkvision
* NewSport
* Prime Network
* PRISM
* Sportsvision
* Z Channel

Owners|

* Cablevision/Rainbow Media
* NBC

Related articles|

* Defunct television networks in the United States
* Regional sports network
* Sports Plus Network

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