Illustration of Head Coach Dave Cowens on the cover of a 1984-85 Bay State Bombardiers program from the Continental Basketball Association

Bay State Bombardiers

Continental Basketball Association (1983-1986)

Tombstone

Born: March 1983 – The Maine Lumberjacks relocate to Brockton, MA
Moved: July 16, 1986 (Pensacola Tornados)

First Game: December 2, 1983 (W 97-95 vs. Lancaster Lightning)
Last Game: April 8, 1986 (L 119-117 vs. Tampa Bay Thrillers)

CBA Championships: None

Arenas

1983-1984: Brockton High School Gymnasium (3,30011983-84 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide)

1984-1986: Worcester Memorial Auditorium (3,066)21985-86 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide & Register
Opened: 1933

Marketing

Team Colors: Red, White & Blue31983-84 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide

Ownership

Owners: John Ligums

Attendance

Note that these Bay State Bombardiers attendance figures cover the team’s time in two different Massachusetts cities. 1983-84 games (21 dates) were played in Brockton, Massachusetts while 1984-85 and 1985-86 home games (24 dates each year) were played in Worcester.

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Sources:

  • 1984-85 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide & Register (1983-84 Bombardiers figures & league attendance rank)
  • 1985-86 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide & Register (1984-85 Bombardiers figures)
  • 1986-87 Continental Basketball Association Official Guide & Register (1985-86 Bombardiers figures and all CBA league figures)

Trophy Case

CBA Rookie of the Year:

  • 1985-86 Michael Adams

CBA Coach of the Year:

  • 1985-86: Mauro Panaggio

CBA Executive of the Year:

  • 1985-86: John E. Ligums (owner)

 

Background

The Bay State Bombardiers were a short-lived minor league basketball club in the Continental Basketball Association (1978-2009).  The CBA was the official developmental league of the NBA during the 1980’s and 1990’s, only one step removed but also million light years away from the bright lights of Madison Square Garden and The Forum.

The team originated in Bangor, Maine as the Maine Lumberjacks (1978-1983).  The club moved south in March 1983 when Lumberjacks investor John Ligums relocated the team to Brockton, Massachusetts, twenty minutes south of his home in the tony Boston suburb of Milton.

Brockton & Worcester

The Bombardiers spent one tumultuous season playing out of a high school gymnasium in Brockton.  Former ABA star Johnny Neumann was the team’s Head Coach.

In June 1984, Ligums moved the Bombardiers an hour west to Worcester, Massachusetts and hired recently retired Boston Celtics star and future Hall-of-Famer Dave Cowens to replace Neumann as coach.

Though Worcester had the brand new Worcester Centrum, a 13,000 seat downtown arena opened in 1982 at a cost of $25 million, the Bombardiers were unable to work out a lease to play there.  Instead the team played at the Worcester Memorial Auditorium, an historic Depression-era bandbox with a Kimball console organ.

Still, the Bombardiers did have some outstanding minor league players. And the team found its stride on the court during its third season in the winter of 1985-86.  Cowens was replaced by Mauro Panaggio, a minor league basketball warhorse who went on to become the CBA’s winningest all-time coach.  The Bombardiers went 30-18 and advanced to the CBA’s playoff semi-finals, where they lost to the eventual champions, the Tampa Bay Thrillers.  It would be the team’s final season in Worcester.

Head Coach Dave Cowens of the Bay State Bombardiers from the Continental Basketball Association
Photo courtesy of Steven Warshaw

Steve Warshaw:

We had probably one of the greatest players in the history of the CBA.  A guy named “Awesome” Joe Dawson.  He was clearly our John Henry, our mythical 6’ 5” CBA god.  But Joe could never make it in the bigs because he was a tweener.  Joe played football and basketball at Southern Mississippi.  He used to train with Walter Payton.  He was a really interesting character.

He was just an absolute gentleman and yet on the court he was absolutely vicious.  Vicious body, big sharp elbows, and tough.  I mean, no one messed with Joe Dawson.  There were a lot of brawls and nobody would go near this guy.

Michael Adams, in my opinion, was the most marketable, fantastic CBA All-Star and the league really didn’t do anything with him.  It was ridiculous.

His agents Frank Catapano and Larry Fleisher came to me.  They worked on Michael together and represented him.  I remember Frank said to me “Listen, I’ll let you beat me up in the salary negotiation so you look good in your boss’ eyes. I‘ll just need one favor”  We signed Michael for $450 a week.  That’s what this future NBA All-Star was making in the minors.

Anyway, Frank says, “The only thing I’d ask you to do is call the NBA GM’s for me every Friday when there’s a point guard that goes down to injury and let them know about Michael.”  He gave me a list of all their phone numbers.  I thought that was the greatest offer I’d ever gotten.  I was a 24-year old in the minors and I got to talk to NBA GM’s every week and send them stats.

Michael was just a great kid.  We’re the same age almost.  We would actually go out dancing together at the Best Western in Worcester.  I was the same age of a lot of these players, so it was a lot of fun for me.

Michael Adams was the most telegenic, the most interesting, thoughtful, caring guy that I knew in the CBA.  The media loved him.  He also got it done on the court.  This guy was a phenomenal talent.  His speed was even more obvious in the CBA.  His first step was just so good.  He absolutely dominated.  It was a pleasure to see and he didn’t last in the CBA too long.  He played for us for one season and then he stuck in the NBA for good after that, becoming an NBA All-Star in the process.

Demise

Like so many CBA franchises – the league churned through dozens of cities in the 1980’s and 90’s – the Bombardiers struggled financially in Worcester. John Ligums sold the Bombardiers to Pensacola, Florida interests in July 1986. The nomadic franchise became the Pensacola Tornados (1986-1991) and later played in Birmingham (AL), Rochester (MN) and Harrisburg (PA) before finally folding in 1995.

Pro hoops returned briefly to Worcester in 1989 with the Worcester Counts of the World Basketball LeagueYou can read the story of the Counts here.

 

Voices

“A former ABA star named Johnny Neumann was the Head Coach and he had just been fired after he failed his drug test.  That actually made Sports Illustrated.  The Sports Illustrated writer asked him what happened and Johnny Neumann said ‘Well, I had been clean, but on the way to take the test, I got so stressed out that I smoked a joint.'”

-Steven Warshaw, General Manager 1984-1986 (2013 FWiL Interview)

“We tried to go into the Centrum, but the GM at the time wanted no part of it.  He didn’t even want to let us play a game of the month there, or even one game.  I remember I even brought Cowens to the meeting and that didn’t help.  I thought, Jesus, I’ve got Dave Cowens here and you won’t even try one game with us.  That’s just hubris.  We do one night with Cowens and he could bring in all of his Celtics buddies, but this guy wouldn’t hear of it.  It was just a really foolish attitude by the management of the Centrum at that point, so, no, we never played a game there.

-Steven Warshaw

“We did as well as we could in Worcester for two years.  It just couldn’t work in Worcester.  It didn’t have its own television station.  It didn’t have it’s own identity.  It was always sort of in the penumbra of Boston and the Celtics were the kings there.  They were always winning, winning, winning and the people in Worcester thought of themselves as a Boston suburb.  Worcester is not a great sports city.  Or rather it’s not a great minor league city, I should say.

I remember Jim Drucker, the CBA Commissioner, came to me at the end of the second year and said “Can you squeeze any more blood out of this stone?”

And I said “Nope.  Time to sell it and get the hell out of here.”

Steve Warshaw

 

Bay State Bombardiers Shop

 

 

 

Downloads

2013 FWiL Interview with former Bombardiers GM Steven Warshaw

 

Links

30 years later, remembering the Bay State Bombardiers’ two fun-filled seasons in the CBA“, Bill Doyle, Worcester Telegram & Gazette, January 30, 2016

Continental Basketball Association Media Guides

Continental Basketball Association Programs

 

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Comments

3 Responses

  1. I met Steve when he was involved with the Russian Penguins and I was the radio guy for the IHL team in Indianapolis. Great guy.

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