Utah Prospectors

Western Basketball Association (1978-79)

Tombstone

Born: June 29, 1978 – WBA expansion franchise
Folded: 1979

First Game: November 13, 1978 (L 121-108 vs. Washington Lumberjacks)
Final Game: March 13, 1979 (L 117-98 @ Reno Bighorns)

WBA Championships: None

Arena

The Salt Palace
Opened: 1969
Demolished: 1994

Marketing

Team Colors:

Ownership

Owners: Frank Nelson, et al.

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Background

The Utah Prospectors were a One-Year Wonder in the minor league Western Basketball Association (WBA) during the winter of 1978-79. The team was sometimes abbreviated as the “Pros”, as on the game program at the top of this post.

The WBA consisted of seven clubs located in Arizona, California, Montana, Nevada, Utah and Washington. The league was generally considered to be the best level of pro ball in North American outside of the NBA that winter, but it folded after only one season of play.

Former BYU All-American guard Dick Nemelka coached the Prospectors. Utah finished in 6th place in the 7-team WBA with a 19-29 record. That was still good enough for a playoff berth, but the Pro lost a best-of-three first round series to the Reno Bighorns in March 1979.

A few weeks later the NBA’s New Orleans Jazz announced they would move to Salt Lake City for the 1979-80 season. The moved effectively killed off the Prospectors in April 1979. The Western Basketball Association folded later on that same summer.

Trivia

The Prospectors debuted November 13, 1978 with a 121-108 loss to the Washington Lumberjacks before an announced crowd of 4,122 at the Salt Palace. It was the first pro basketball game in the state since the Utah Stars of the American Basketball Association folded three years earlier.