Virginia Squires
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Virginia Squires | ||||
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Location | Norfolk, Virginia Hampton, Virginia Richmond, Virginia Roanoke, Virginia | |||
Team colors | 1970–74: Red, White & Blue 1974–75: Orange, Seal Brown & White 1975–76: Blue and Orange | |||
Head coach | Al Bianchi (1970–1975) Mack Calvin (1975) Bill Musselman (1975–1976) Jack Ankerson (1976) Zelmo Beaty (1976) | |||
Ownership | Earl Foreman 1970–1975 | |||
Division titles | 1 (1971) | |||
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The Virginia Squires were a basketball team based in Norfolk, Virginia, and playing in several other Virginia cities. They were members of the American Basketball Association from 1970 to 1976.
The team originated in 1967 as the Oakland Oaks, an ABA charter franchise based in Oakland, California. They moved to Washington, D.C. as the Washington Caps in 1969 but moved to Norfolk the following year, becoming the Squires. A regional team, they played home games in Richmond, Hampton, and Roanoke as well as Norfolk. The team folded in 1976, just a month before the ABA–NBA merger.
In Oakland
The Squires were founded in 1967 as the Oakland Oaks, a charter member of the ABA. The team colors were green and gold. An earlier
The Oaks were owned in part by pop singer
However, even with Barry the team proved to be a very poor investment for Boone and his co-owners. Despite winning the ABA championship, the Oaks were an abysmal failure at the box office, due in large part to the proximity of the NBA Warriors who at the time were also playing some home games in Oakland (and would eventually move to Oakland in 1971). At one point they only drew 2,500 fans per game.
In Washington
Facing foreclosure on a loan from
In Virginia
The Squires played most of their games at
In 1971, the Squires made their biggest draft pick ever by drafting
The 1972–73 season marked the beginning of the end for the Squires. Although blessed with a combination of Julius Erving ("Dr. J") and a young George Gervin, the duo only played together late in the season. The Squires lost to their division rival Kentucky in the first round of the playoffs. During the summer of 1973, Dr. J was traded along with Willie Sojourner to the Nets for George Carter and cash.
During the 1974 ABA All-Star Weekend, rumors abounded that Gervin was about to be sold to the San Antonio Spurs. These rumors became fact on January 30, when the Squires sold Gervin to the Spurs for $225,000. ABA commissioner Mike Storen tried to block the sale on the grounds that selling the team's last true star was not in the best interest of the league. However, the sale was eventually upheld.
While the trades may have provided enough short-term financing to keep the Squires in business, the loss of so much talent angered the fans. The Squires' attendance fell through the floor and never recovered. The Squires' final two seasons in the ABA were forgettable as losses mounted and popular coach Al Bianchi was fired. The 1974–75 and 1975–76 teams only won a total of 30 games, the worst winning percentages in ABA history. The team was coming unraveled off the court as well. In 1974, Barry Parkhill sued the team after his paychecks bounced. The Squires nearly shut down for good in February 1976, but only managed to stay afloat by a sale of advertising banners and a $250,000 loan from a local bank.
As it turned out, this only bought the franchise three more months of life. On May 11, 1976 — only a month after the end of the season — the ABA canceled the franchise after it missed a $75,000 assessment.[1] The Squires had no chance of being included in any merger. Regional franchises were not considered viable, and none of their home cities was anywhere near large enough to support an NBA team. Nevertheless, the Squires’ premature contraction cost them a chance to be compensated as part of the merger, which closed only a month later.[2]
Basketball Hall of Famers
No. | Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted |
---|---|---|---|---|
32 | Julius Erving | F |
1971–1973 | 1993 |
44 | George Gervin | G/F | 1972–1974 | 1996 |
33 | Charlie Scott | G | 1970–1972 | 2018 |
— | Zelmo Beaty | Head coach | 1975–1976 | 2016 |
Season-by-season
Note: W = wins, L = losses, % = win–loss %
Season | W | L | % | Playoffs | Results |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Virginia Squires | |||||
1970–71 | 55 | 29 | .655 | Won Division Semifinals Lost division finals |
Virginia 4, New York 2 Kentucky 4, Virginia 2 |
1971–72 | 45 | 39 | .536 | Won Division Semifinals Lost division finals |
Virginia 4, Floridans 0 New York 4, Virginia 3 |
1972–73 | 42 | 42 | .500 | Lost Division Semifinals | Kentucky 4, Virginia 1 |
1973–74 | 28 | 56 | .333 | Lost Division Semifinals | New York 4, Virginia 1 |
1974–75 | 15 | 69 | .179 | Did not qualify | |
1975–76 | 15 | 68 | .181 | Did not qualify |
Home venues
Arena | Seating | Location |
---|---|---|
ODU Fieldhouse | 5,200 | Norfolk |
Hampton Roads Coliseum | 9,777 | Hampton |
Roanoke Civic Center
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9,828 | Roanoke |
Norfolk Scope | 10,253 | Norfolk |
Richmond Coliseum | 12,500 | Richmond |
See also
References
- ^ Goldaper, Sam (May 11, 1976). "A.B.A. Drops Squires For a Lack of Funds". The New York Times. Retrieved November 12, 2021.
- ^ Harrison, Don (April 7, 2014). "A League of Their Own". Virginia Living. Cape Fear Publishing. Retrieved June 27, 2016.
- Pluto, Terry, Loose Balls: The Short, Wild Life of the American Basketball Association (Simon & Schuster, 1990), ISBN 978-1-4165-4061-8
- Pattison, Dan, Count Dracula Has Struck, Basketball Weekly, January 1976
- Remember the ABA: Virginia Squires