Join the newest ABA team The South Florida Gold! Developed and started in the summer of 2013 they are quickly becoming a force within the ABA rankings.
Follow along as we begin our journey to dominate the league. Coached by Robert Reid of the Houston Rockets and NBA Fame and joined by a hard working, ambitious, and enthusiastic group of players from across the country and world.
The original ABA was founded in 1967, competing with the well-established National Basketball Association, until the ABA-NBA merger in 1976. According to The NBA Encyclopedia, its long-term goal was to force a merger with the more established league. ABA officials told potential owners that they could get an ABA team for half of what it cost to get an NBA expansion team at the time. When the merger occurred, ABA officials said, their investment would more than double.
Ultimately, four ABA teams were absorbed into the older league: the New York Nets, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers and San Antonio Spurs. Two other clubs, the Kentucky Colonels and the Spirits of St. Louis were disbanded upon the merger. A third, the Virginia Squires, had folded less than a month earlier, missing out on the opportunities that a merger might have provided.
The ABA distinguished itself from its older counterpart with a more wide-open, flashy style of offensive play, as well as differences in rules (a 30-second shot clock - as opposed to the NBAs 24-second clock. The ABA did switch to the 24 second shot clock for the 1975-76 season - and use of a three-point field goal arc. Also, the ABA used a colorful red, white and blue ball, instead of the NBAs traditional orange ball. The ABA also had several "regional" franchises, such as the Virginia Squires and Carolina Cougars, that played "home" games in several cities.
The freewheeling style of the ABA eventually caught on with fans, but the lack of a national television contract and protracted financial losses would spell doom for the ABA as an independent circuit. In 1976, its last year of existence, the ABA pioneered the now-popular slam dunk contest at its all-star game in Denver.
One of the more significant long-term contributions of the ABA to professional basketball was to tap into markets in the southeast that had been collegiate basketball hotbeds (including North Carolina, Virginia and Kentucky). The NBA was focused on the urban areas of the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast. At the time, it showed no interest in placing a team south of Washington, D.C.
With the SFLGold app you can purchase tickets, follow our rankings, check on score updates, follow the roster, enjoy the solid gold dancers and so much more!
Be apart of history!
The SFL Gold app features:
• Purchase game day tickets
• Give donations to the ABA organization
• Check out the schedule & add games to your calendar
• Review the players stats & bios
• Keep up to date with the SFL Gold news
• Submit photos of highlights from the games
• Collect points to earn free prizes
• Talk about the game & players on our Fan Wall
• Connect with us on social media
• And so much more!