Over the years, the CBA has used several basketball manufacturers for their game balls. The following is a short look at some of the more notable basketballs used by the CBA in their history.
OFFICIAL MANUFACTURERS OF CBA GAME BASKETBALLS (1979-present):
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In this 1964 photo, John Richter of the Sunbury Mercuries holds a basketball manufactured by Sonnett. Although hard to see from the photo, the ball was branded "Eastern Professional Basketball League" and contains the signature of then-commissioner Harry Rudolph. |
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History was made on February 15, 1992, when Quad City defeated Rockford 104-101 in a regular-season CBA game. On that night, Quad City's Dan Panaggio guided his men in a game against his own father, Mauro Panaggio, who at that time coached the Lightning. This was the first time in professional basketball history where a father and son coached against each other in the same game. This ball is part of the holdings of the Basketball Hall of Fame, Springfield, Mass. |
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No, you're not looking at an old ABA ball. For the 1985-86 season, the CBA's 40th anniversary season, the league used a red-white-blue game ball. Unlike other red-white-blue balls used by the ABA (and later, by the NBA in their "Long Distance Shootout" at the All-Star Game), the CBA red-white-blue ball groups the colors together on consecutive panels. This ball was manufactured by MacGregor, who supplied the official CBA basketballs that year. |
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Because the NBA players were on strike in 1998, they did not participate in the FIBA World Basketball championships that year. However, a team of CBA stars played on the World team, and won the bronze medal. This official basketball was signed by all the players on the team, including Ashraf Amaya (Idaho Stampede), Kiwane Garris (Grand Rapids Hoops), Jimmy King (Quad City Thunder), Jason Sasser (Sioux Falls SkyForce), and David Wood (Rockford Lightning). All have autographed this ball. |
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This basketball, signed by members of the 2001-02 Sioux Falls SkyForce, features blue and white panels and was manufactured by Báden. This team was one of eight franchises to re-form the new Continental Basketball Association; the SkyForce lost in the semifinals to the Rockford Lightning. |
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This souvenir basketball features white, gold and light blue panels, and was manufactured by Báden especially for the 1993 CBA All-Star Classic, hosted that year by the Oklahoma City Cavalry. That game achieved the highest attendance record of any CBA contest up to that time, as 11,382 people watched the game at Oklahoma City's Myriad Convention Center. That 1993 game still holds the record for highest attendance for an All-Star contest today. |
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Season ticket holders for Gary's 2004-05 campaign received a special bonus - this limited-edition autographed basketball, signed by the entire Steelheads team. This ball is from the collection of Kenneth Parr, who operates a Steelheads tribute page at this link. |