RealGM

This isn't new news but I figured in case anyone followed minor league basketball I'd post this. Joe Newman, when it comes to all things basketball, is the worst person on the face of the earth. The sooner he is no longer in basketball... the better. That being said the PBL owns a judgement against the ABA. The ABA (Joe Newman and Co.) have already been found guilty and the Judge will now determine the damages that will go to the PBL. During this process Joe Newman and the other executives of the ABA will have to go to court and present all their financials. One of the executives who was with the ABA is now with the PBL... so he has the inside scoop and that will really hurt the ABA. On the scary side Joe Newman made a serious mistake taking his company public because not only could the IRS get involved... but the SEC could as well.

So it is my opinion that the worst case scenario for Joe Newman would eventually be a white collar crime issue. Could Joe Newman be the Bernie Madoff of professional (well rec league basketball.. that they call professional) basketball? Here is the PBL's press release.

CHICAGO: After years of dodge and delay, the American Basketball Association (ABA) and its principal owners, Joseph Newman and Richard D Tinkham, Jr., will be called to account and required to pay the piper. In this case, the "piper" is the ABA Judgment Enforcement Company, LLC (ABA Judgment Enforcement Company). Effective immediately, the rights to enforce a judgment (Judgment) for accounting entered in Marion County, Indiana Circuit Court) have been assigned to ABA Judgment Enforcement Company, an entity controlled by Premier Basketball League, Inc. (PBL). ABA Judgment Enforcement Company has instructed its attorneys to aggressively enforce its rights and remedies under the Judgment against the ABA, Joseph Newman and Richard D. Tinkham, Jr., and all others acting in concert with them.

The Judgment was entered in July 2007, declaring that ABA, Newman and Tinkham violated the law and the terms of their ownership agreement, causing damage. They are required to account to the owners of the judgment for all funds .....

http://www.oursportscentral.com/service ... id=3887318

That's absolutely crazy. I haven't been following recently, but does the actual league hang in the balance? Or has it been shut down completely?

Well it is the ABA so most of what is announced (teams, games, games on tv) never happens anyways. Technically it still exists and nothing will come down for a ruling until next year. Joe Newman has avoided this and put this off for a long time. Certainly he's trying to do everything he can to get out of this. I don't think the PBL would take the league if he offerred it to him (he hasn't had the ABA license in years). This sounds like a situation where the PBL wants to stand over the ABA and shoot it in the face around 50 times just to make sure it is dead.

True. Do you think they would adopt any teams ABA teams?

The ABA has been an absolute joke for many years. Last season it was estimated that only 38% of games were actually played. This was an estimate because teams came and went so fast and the league schedule was a disaster. That being said, there are some good ABA franchises that can be absorbed by the PBL, IBL or even some other league.

Which ones specifically do you think could be absorbed? Anything in the Northeast? I have been to a few Jersey Express games and felt that they might be a viable candidate.