Tombstone
Formed: 1984
Disbanded: 1985
First Game: October 7, 1984
Last Game: December 16, 1984
Seasons: <1
States & Provinces: 5
(GA, IL, OH, TX, VA)
Leadership
Founder: Bill Byrne
President/Commissioner
- 1984: Bill Byrne
Attendance
Attendance data from the Women’s American Basketball Association is spotty, but there are a few anecdotal sources.
The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported in December 1984 that the Dallas Diamonds franchise averaged 1,861 fans for all regular season home games at the Moody Coliseum and that this figure led the 6-team league.
The paper further reported that the “rest of the league” averaged 783 fans per game, though it’s not clear whether that number is inclusive of the Diamonds numbers or not. 1Hovatter Jr., Stan. “Lieberman working to help Diamonds, league improve”. The Star-Telegram (Fort Worth, TX). December 16, 1984
Background
The Women’s American Basketball Association was a short-lived second attempt to start a national pro women’s basketball league, after the earlier failure of the Women’s Professional Basketball League (1978-1981).
The WABA was poorly organized and financed and lasted just two months from October to December 1984. Three of the league’s six clubs – Atlanta, Columbus and Virginia, disbanded shortly after Thanksgiving leading to the league’s early demise. A handful of hastily re-scheduled games were played among the surviving Chicago, Dallas and Houston clubs in early December.
Eventually, league owners decided that the previously scheduled WABA All-Star Game at Dallas on December 16th, 1984 would serve as the final game of the season. The Dallas Diamonds were far and away the league’s best club, rolling up a 21-2 record. In that final game, the Diamonds defeated a WABA All-Star team consisting of players from each of the other five clubs by a score of 101-94 in front of an estimate crowd of 1,500 at Moody Coliseum.
The WABA would never take the floor again. As late as August of 1985, Dallas Diamonds owner Ed Dubaj was quoted in The Tennessean newspaper, seeking to secure a Nashville expansion franchise for a 1985-86 WABA season. Dubaj cited confirmed franchises in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston and “Northern Indiana”, November training camps and an opening day of December 5th, 1985 for the WABA’s second year.2Jones, Mike. “Nashville May Get Women’s Pro Club”. The Tennessean (Nashville, TN). August 9, 1985 But we can find no further press references to the WABA after this point and none of these plans ever came to pass.
Notable early women’s stars that played in the WABA included Nancy Lieberman and 1984 U.S. Olympian Pamela McGee of the Dallas Diamonds and Molly Bolin of the Columbus Minks.
Women’s American Basketball Association Franchise List
| FRANCHISE | YEARS ACTIVE | WABA CHAMPIONS |
|---|---|---|
| Atlanta Comets | 1984 | Never |
| Chicago Spirit | 1984 | Never |
| Columbus Minks | 1984 | Never |
| Dallas Diamonds | 1984 | 1984* |
| Houston Shamrocks | 1984 | Never |
| Virginia Wave | 1984 | Never |
Interviews
- 2011 FWiL Molly Bolin Interview
- 2011 FWiL Barbara Kennedy-Dixon Interview
- 2013 FWiL Kara (Haun) Rehbaum Interview
WABA Downloads
1984 Women’s American Basketball Association Media Guide (.PDF)
1984 WABA Media Guide##
6 Responses
7/19/13
I worked in the Women’s Leagues from 1978 to 1981 & in 1984. (Houston Angels & Dallas Diamonds 2x)
I have notebooks of articles & information, plus my own written notes from the years in the league.
Antime you’d like access to past info contact me I’ll see what I can do.
I’m looking forward to looking more at your website.
Tom Davis – asst coach Dallas Diamonds
I coached the Chicago Spirit during the 1984 season. It was great to run across your site on my iPad. I still have memories of our game in Dallas in ‘84 i still have my practice notes, a picture and a game ball in my garage.
Hi Coach Maack, I played on that team. I would love to connect with you. I still keep in contact with a few young ladies from our team. I also remember the game in Dallas., we won and spoiled their party. We love to see some pictures. Kandy Crosby. [email protected]
Kandy, great to hear from you I was just visiting a site on the WABA and I read your post. I’m in Philadelphia now living in a independent living facility I’m doing fine playing golf three times a week. I still have a ball from the WABA and on course the media guide. What a
Other team members are you in contact with ? Where are you located?
Please share this information with the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame! We were the pioneers of the sport! They only have a one case of history of the pioneer league, no memorabilia, I’m donating please reach out to them? It’s history! I played for the Virginia Wave! My daughter is at TexasAM!
Back in 1998, I curated an exhibit of the history of women’s professional basketball for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. We collected a lot of items from the early leagues. I’m guessing it’s all still in their collection.