National Basketball League (Canada)

For other organizations with similar names, see National Basketball League (disambiguation) and NBL (disambiguation). For the 2011–2023 basketball league in Canada, see National Basketball League of Canada.

The National Basketball League was a professional basketball league based in Canada that lasted only one and a half seasons in 1993 and 1994.[1] It rose from the ashes of the World Basketball League which folded after the 1992 season, which had teams in various Canadian and American cities; the new league combined several former WBL teams based in Canada and new franchises.[2] The NBL's first game was played on May 1, 1993 when the Cape Breton Breakers visited the Halifax Windjammers. The Breakers won the regular season championship with a 30-16 record, but they lost the championship finals to Saskatoon three games to one.

During the 1994 season there were rumours that the Cape Breton team was going to move to Saint John in mid-season, which never happened before the league folded on July 9, 1994. Halifax, which finished last in 1993, was in first place at the time the league had folded.

The league's president was Sam Katz and the commissioner was Tom Nissalke.[3]

NBL teams

Team City Arena Seasons Notes
Calgary Outlaws Calgary, Alberta Jack Simpson Gymnasium (University of Calgary)
Olympic Saddledome		 1994 Expansion team
Cape Breton Breakers Sydney, Nova Scotia Centre 200 1993-94 Expansion team
Halifax Windjammers Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax Metro Centre 1993-94 Holdover from the WBL
Edmonton Skyhawks Edmonton, Alberta Northlands Coliseum 1993 (playoffs)-94 Moved from Hamilton
Hamilton Skyhawks Hamilton, Ontario Copps Coliseum 1993 Holdover from the WBL, moved to Edmonton
Montreal Dragons Montreal, Quebec Verdun Auditorium 1993 Expansion team
Saskatoon Slam Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Saskatchewan Place 1993-94 Holdover from WBL. Ownership changed the name of the franchise in the new league. Originally known as the “Saskatchewan Storm” in the WBL.
Winnipeg Thunder Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg Arena 1993-94 Holdover from the WBL

1993

1993 NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE
TEAM GP W L PCT GB
Cape Breton Breakers 46 30 16 .652 -
Winnipeg Thunder 46 29 17 .630 1
Saskatoon Slam 46 25 21 .543 5
Hamilton Skyhawks 46 24 22 .522 6
Halifax Windjammers 46 20 26 .435 10
Montreal Dragons 17 6 11 .353
Canadian National Team 24 9 13 .409
ACC All-Stars 6 1 5 .167
Big East All-Stars 6 0 6 .000
Athletes in Action 7 0 7 .000
  • Montréal Dragons folded in mid-season on June 10, 1993
  • Hamilton Skyhawks transferred to Edmonton prior to the start of the playoffs

PLAYOFFS - SEMI-FINALS

  • Cape Breton defeated Edmonton 2 games to 1; Saskatoon defeated Winnipeg 2 games to 1

FINALS

  • Saskatoon defeated Cape Breton 3 games to 1

Touring teams

In 1993, league teams also played games against some touring teams which counted in the league standings. These teams were:

1994

1994 NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE
TEAM GP W L PCT GB
Halifax Windjammers 21 15 6 .714 -
Calgary Outlaws 24 13 11 .542 3½
Cape Breton Breakers 21 11 10 .524 4
Saskatoon Slam 23 10 13 .435 6
Edmonton Skyhawks 24 10 14 .417 6½
Winnipeg Thunder 25 10 15 .400 7
  • National Basketball League disbanded on July 9, 1994

League champions

Year Winner Runner Up Result
1993 Saskatoon Slam Cape Breton Breakers 3-1 Series win
1994 Halifax Windjammers Calgary Outlaws Declared champions due to folding mid-season

References

  1. ^ Zwarun, Robert; and Anderson, Chris. National Basketball, The Association for Professional Basketball Research. Accessed February 4, 2024.
  2. ^ National Basketball League, From Naismith to Nash. Accessed February 4, 2024. "A short-lived primarily Canadian-based league that folded midway through its second season. It was comprised of the Canadian franchises of the World Basketball League, which folded after the 1991-92 season."
  3. ^ Morgan, T. Kent. "A breezy history of pro basketball in Winnipeg", Winnipeg Free Press, November 30, 2022. Accessed February 4, 2024. "Thunder then played in the National Basketball League, not to be confused with the NBA, in the 1993 season. The all-Canadian pro league with Katz as president and Nissalke as commissioner had teams from the Maritimes to the Prairies."