Las Vegas Dealers

Western Basketball Association (1978-79)

Background

The Las Vegas Dealers were one of seven founding teams in the minor league Western Basketball Association (WBA) that began play in November 1978. The Dealers proved to be the league’s shakiest franchise and barely made it through the season. But the level of basketball was strong in the WBA. Despite the difficult circumstances of the season, Dealers players Jackie Robinson (Seattle SuperSonics) and Willie Smith (Portland Trail Blazers) earned call-ups to the NBA during the campaign.

The Settlement

Dealers founders James Speed and his wife Sylvia came to the ownership suite through unusual – and sad – circumstances. 6′ 7″ James Speed was a prized recruit for the University of Iowa basketball program in 1970. Before he ever took the floor for the Hawkeyes, complications from a sinus infection and tooth extraction during the Thanksgiving holiday in 1970 left him permanently blind in both eyes. Speed later won a landmark malpractice case against the State of Iowa in 1974. In 1978 Speed used part of his $750,000 malpractice judgment to buy into the Western Basketball Association. The franchise fee to buy into the WBA in 1978 was purportedly $25,000.⁴Greenberg, Alan. “Well, at Least It’s a Good Place to Nurse a Dream.” The Times (Los Angeles, CA). March 13, 1979

On The Floor

Larry Jones, a four-time All-Star in the American Basketball Association, coached the Dealers.  The Dealer roster included:

• A trio of guards – Willie Smith, Keith Starr and Bobby Wilson – who all had NBA service time with the Chicago Bulls teams of the mid-1970’s.
• Rookie small forward Jackie Robinson, a former UNLV star under Jerry Tarkanian
• Forward Greg Bunch out of Cal-State Fullerton was the New York Knicks 2nd round draft pick in 1978. He joined the Dealers a month into the season after playing 12 games for the Knicks.

After an 0-8 start, the Dealers found their form and emerged as a competitive entry in the league. The WBA planned a 60-game regular season that would run through the last day of March. But the WBA’s emerging financial problems forced the league to curtail the schedule to 48 games with playoffs beginning in mid-March. The Dealers finished even with a 24-24 record, good for the 5th place in the 7-team circuit.

Busted

Behind the scenes, the Dealers were the WBA’s biggest trouble spot. From the outset, Las Vegas had trouble finding an arena with suitable home dates. They were forced to split their home calendar between the Las Vegas Convention Center and a high school arena. By January 1979, two months into the season, James & Sylvia Speed said they were $180,000 in the hole on the Dealers.⁵Weston, Steve. “WBA won’t let Las Vegas Dealers fold.” The Citizen (Tucson, AZ). January 31, 1979

On January 30, 1979 the Speeds announced they were folding the team. WBA officials stepped in to prop up the team through the end of the season. But the Speeds kept the rights to the Dealers name, forcing the team to finish out the final weeks of the 1978-79 season in generic practice uniforms. According to Sports Illustrated scribe Curry Kirkpatrick, who happened to be preparing a rollicking feature on the Western Basketball Association just as the Dealers situation came to a head, James Speed also walked away with the team’s shot clock.

After playing the final game in early March 1979, the Dealers quietly went out of business for good. One-by-one the rest of the WBA franchises followed suit during the summer of 1979, bringing the developmental league to a close after only one season.

In Memoriam

Dealers owner James Speed passed away following a battle with liver cancer on September 14, 2011 at age 61. Quad City Times obituary.

Links

“Taking a Gamble on the Future“, Curry Kirkpatrick, Sports Illustrated, February 12, 1979

Western Basketball Association Programs

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