Australian Basketball Association

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Australian Basketball Association (ABA)
Australian Basketball Association (emblem).jpg
FormerlySouth Eastern Conference
1965–1970
South Eastern Basketball League
1981–1987
South East Australian Basketball League
1988–1991
Continental Basketball Association
1992–1998
Australian Basketball Association
1999–2008
SportBasketball
Founded1965
Ceased2008
Country Australia
ContinentFIBA Oceania (Oceania)
Level on pyramid2
Related
competitions		Big V
Central ABL
QBL
SEABL
Waratah League

The Australian Basketball Association (ABA) was a semi-professional basketball entity based in Australia. The ABA was Australia's biggest basketball competition for many years. With over 120 teams participating across five leagues and six states, the ABA competition was the vital link between grass roots basketball in Australia and the elite NBL and WNBL leagues. The association provided a high standard of competition for local basketballers from across the country as well as an intense environment for professionals to use in their off seasons.[1]

Between 1965 and 2008, the ABA played an integral part in the development of Australian basketball with hundreds of former and active NBL and WNBL players honing their skills against world-class opposition. Many NBL and WNBL clubs also benefited from their involvement in ABA competition, including the Melbourne Tigers who competed in the SEBL before joining the NBL.[2]

In its heyday, the ABA incorporated five leagues – SEABL (south and east conferences), QABL (north conference), CABL (central conference), Big V (Victorian conference), and Waratah League (New South Wales conference). With the support of Basketball Australia, the competition consistently built upon the successful structure created by the well-respected Continental Basketball Association. The end result was a culmination of over 30 years of evolution, during which time the ABA had mushroomed from eight teams in the south-east of Australia to a competition that involved 135 men's and women's teams based in six states and territories. The ABA was representative of the huge number of junior-based associations across the country and was the endorsed national development league of the sport's peak body, Basketball Australia.[2]

History[]

The Australian Basketball Association's (ABA) roots can be traced back as far as 1965, when just eight clubs competed in the South Eastern Conference (SEC). The SEC continued until 1971 when the Australian Club Championships gained pre-eminence.[2]

In 1981, the SEC was reborn as the South Eastern Basketball League (SEBL) when the Australian Club Championships ceased to operate due to the rise of Australia's first truly national competition, the National Basketball League (NBL).[2]

The SEBL was divided into a South and East Conference format in 1986; the same year Queensland's State Basketball League was founded. In 1994, the bodies merged to create the long-standing North, South and East Conference concept of the National Continental Basketball Association.[2]

1998 saw further expansion with the inclusion of a Central Conference from South Australia. In that same year, the switch of NBL and WNBL seasons to Summer enabled the ABA to offer professional players a showcase for their skills during the Winter months.[2]

Extensive discussions and numerous meetings regarding the establishment of an Australian-wide association based basketball championship consumed considerable energy and time throughout 1998. This activity culminated in December 1998 with the Basketball Australia Council formalising the ownership and the national structure of an association based national competition. This competition was set to consist of representation from Basketball Australia's Constituent Associations in a series of regional geographic competitions and incorporating the existing CBA competition structure. The management of this competition was offered to the CBA. To accommodate this decision, it was agreed that a new company, CBA (National) Ltd, would amend its Memorandum & Articles and change its name to Australian Basketball Association Ltd. Basketball Australia and all participating conferences were equal shareholders in this management company. The competition was thus promoted under the Australian Basketball Association banner from 1999 with further enhancements to be applied the following year as envisaged in the approved guidelines for the establishment and conduct of the new competition.[3]

2000 saw the addition of Big V from Victoria and in 2001 the Waratah Conference from New South Wales was included for the first time.[2]

Starting in 2002, the champions of each of the six conferences and a number of wildcard entries competed at the annual ABA National Finals. This addition of a truly national ABA finals series marked the dawn of a new era of national basketball competition in Australia.[2] The ABA National Finals became known as the Australian Club Championships (ACC) in 2007 and continued on as such in 2008.[4]

The ABA was abandoned following the 2008 season, resulting in the Big V, Central ABL, QBL, SEABL and Waratah League continuing on as independent leagues.[4]

ABA National Champions[]

Main article: List of ABA National Champions

Men[]

Teams Win Loss Total Year(s) won Year(s) lost
Ballarat Miners 3 3 6 1989, 1994, 1995 1990, 1991, 1992
Cairns Marlins 3 2 5 1998, 2004, 2007 1994, 1997
Geelong Cats/Supercats 3 0 3 1981, 1999, 2006 —
Bulleen Boomers 2 3 5 1984, 1990 1983, 1985, 1988
Bendigo Braves 2 1 3 1988, 2005 1989
Hobart Chargers 2 1 3 2000, 2002 2008
Frankston Bears/Blues 1 3 4 1982 1981, 1995, 1998
Kilsyth Cobras 1 2 3 1985 1999, 2000
Sydney City Slickers/Sydney City Comets/Sydney Comets 1 2 3 1992 1986, 2005
Melbourne Tigers 1 1 2 1983 1982
Newcastle Hunters 1 1 2 1986 1987
Knox Raiders 1 1 2 1991 1996
North-West Tasmania Originals/Thunder 1 1 2 1996 2004
Adelaide Buffalos 1 0 1 1987 —
North East Melbourne Arrows 1 0 1 1993 —
Suncoast Clippers 1 0 1 1997 —
Mount Gambier Pioneers 1 0 1 2003 —
Rockhampton Rockets 1 0 1 2008 —
Dandenong Rangers 0 2 2 — 2006, 2007
Chelsea Gulls 0 1 1 — 1984
Murray Bridge Bullets 0 1 1 — 1993
Australian Institute of Sport 0 1 1 — 2002

Women[]

Teams Win Loss Total Year(s) won Year(s) lost
Bayside/Frankston Blues 3 3 6 1993, 1997, 2004 1991, 1992, 1994
Knox Raiders 3 2 5 1992, 1994, 1996 1998, 2005
Bendigo Braves 2 1 3 2000, 2003 2006
Townsville Sunbirds/Flames 2 1 3 2007, 2008 1997
Dandenong Rangers 2 0 2 1990, 1991 —
Kilsyth Cobras 2 0 2 1998, 2002 —
Ballarat Miners 2 0 2 2005, 2006 —
Launceston Tornadoes 1 1 2 1995 1996
Southern Districts Spartans 1 0 1 1999 —
Sturt Sabres 0 2 2 — 1990, 2002
Broadmeadows Broncos 0 1 1 — 1993
Adelaide Opals 0 1 1 — 1995
Norwood Flames 0 1 1 — 1999
Nunawading Spectres 0 1 1 — 2000
Forestville Eagles 0 1 1 — 2003
North Adelaide Rockets 0 1 1 — 2004
Hume City Broncos 0 1 1 — 2007
Sydney Comets 0 1 1 — 2008

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "2007 ABA Media Guide" (PDF). ABABasketball.net.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 September 2007.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "History of the ABA". ABABasketball.net.au. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012.
  3. ^ "Basketball Australia Annual Report 1998" (PDF). Basketball Australia. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 March 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2017.
  4. ^ a b "ACC National Finals 2009 and onwards". Basketball Queensland. 26 November 2008. Archived from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.

External links[]

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