Women's Basketball Development Association

The Women’s Basketball Development Association (WBDA) is a professional development female basketball league.

Women's Basketball Development Association

Sport	Basketball
Founded	2004
Inaugural season	2005
President	William Kelly
No. of teams	30
Country	United States
Continent	FIBA Americas (Americas)
Most recent champion(s)	Orlando Boom (2019)
Most titles	Conyers Conquers, Rock County Robins, and St. Louis Surge (2)
Official website	WBDApro.com

The season typically operates from late April until early August and concludes with a league championship hosted by one of the WBDAs member teams.

History

Founded in November 2004 as the Women's Blue Chip Basketball League (WBCBL) by Willie McCray with the assistance of co-founders Cortez Bond and Prentiss Broadway, the league provides players with top rate competition and exposure to professional scouts from around the world.

The 2017 WBCBL championship game was won by the Georgia Soul over the St. Louis Surge, 64-63, after the Surge missed a last-second attempt to win the game.

Willie McCray stepped away from the league in September of 2018 handing off the day-to-day operations to William Kelly.[1] The league was rebranded as WBDA.

Teams

WBDA teams

Eastern Conference	City
All Army Team	San Antonio, TX
Atlanta Monarchs	Atlanta, GA
Baltimore Lions	Baltimore, MD
Cleveland Crush	Cleveland, OH
Dade County Lady Bulls	Miami, FL
Detroit Dodgers	Detroit, MI
Fort Myers Bobcats	Fort Myers, FL
Greensboro Havoc	Greensboro, NC
Jacksonville Lady Panthers	Jacksonville, FL
Lake Erie Strive	Irving, NY
New Jersey Sting	Cherry Hill, NJ
Orlando Boom	Orlando, FL
Philadelphia Reign	Philadelphia, PA
Riviera Beach Heatwave	Riviera Beach, FL
Toledo Threat	Toledo, OH
Toronto Lady Elite 1s	Toronto, Ontario
Western Conference	City
AS1 Hoops	San Luis Potosí, México
Birmingham Legends	Birmingham, AL
Chicago Lady Rage	Chicago, IL
Dallas Crest	Dallas, TX
Finesse Flight	Tucson, AZ
Grand Rapids Galaxy	Grand Rapids, MI
Kansas City Royal Heirs	Kansas City, MO
Killeen Force	Killeen, TX
Las Vegas Gems	Las Vegas, NV
Milwaukee Aces	Milwaukee, WI
Oakland Rise	Oakland, CA
Phoenix Lady Elite 1s	Phoenix, AZ
Shreveport-Bossier Lady Knights	Bossier, LA
SoCal Splash	Fullerton, CA
TC Queen Elite	Minneapolis, MN

Former teams

• Arkansas Ballers
• Arkansas Starz
• Atlanta J.C. Crew
• Atlanta Flames
• Atlanta Riverhawks
• Baltimore Cougars
• Beaufort Bison
• Calgary Storm
• Capital City Cougars
• Carolina Lady Rush
• Charleston Lowcountry Fire
• Charlotte Invasion
• Chicago Lady Steam
• Conyers Rockets
• Dallas Diesel
• Detroit Black Hawks
• D.M.V. Bucks
• Elgin Rim Rockers
• Fayetteville Lady Rush
• Fayetteville Lady Xpress
• Florida Lady Knighthawks
• Georgia Soul
• Georgia Stampede
• Gulf Coast Tropics
• Illinois Starlights
• Jacksonville Tigers
• Johnstown Super Stars
• Kansas City Majestics
• Lakewood Lady Panthers
• Long Island Wave
• Louisiana Bayou Angels
• Louisville Fillies
• Maryland Queens
• Memphis Tigers
• Midwest Flyers
• Minnesota Black Ice
• Music City Icons
• Nebraska Strikers
• New Orleans Riders
• Orange Park Crusaders
• Orlando Extreme
• Orlando Stars
• Palm Beach Sabers
• Rock County Robins
• San Antonio Crusaders
• San Diego Sprint
• Savannah Warriors
• Shreveport Sting
• St. Louis Surge
• Tampa Five Star
• Tampa X-Factor
• Texas Storm
• Virginia Lady Supremes
• Virginia Lady Warriors
• Winston-Salem Lady Warcats

Champions

Season	WBCBL Champion	Runner-up	Result	Host city
2005	Conyers Conquerors	Dallas Diesel	67-59	Dallas, TX
2006	Conyers Conquerors	Atlanta Flames	57-53	Atlanta, GA
2007	Arkansas Ballers	Shreveport Sting	90-50	Memphis, TN
2008	Tampa X Factor	Savannah Lady Warriors	73-71	Mobile, AL
2009	Savannah Lady Warriors	Chicago Lady Steam	74-72	Tampa, FL
2010	Rock County Robins[2]	Gulf Coast Storm	71-67	Miami Gardens, FL
2011	Rock County Robins	Orlando Extreme	85-73	Atlanta, GA
2012	Louisiana Bayou Angels	St. Louis Surge	90-80	Miami Lakes, FL
2013	Auburn Flyers[3]	Louisiana Bayou Angels	95-73	St. Louis, MO
2014	St. Louis Surge[4]	Auburn Flyers	81-69	New Orleans, LA
2015	Charlotte Invasion[5]	St. Louis Surge	98-86	Greenville, SC
2016	St. Louis Surge	Midwest Flyers	77-62	San Antonio, Texas
2017	Georgia Soul	St. Louis Surge	64-63	St. Louis, MO
2018	Atlanta Monarchs	St. Louis Surge	80-79	Charlotte, NC
Season	WBDA Champion	Runner-up	Result	Host city
2019	Orlando Boom	Phoenix Lady Elite 1’s	87-82	Kansas City, MO

WBCBL Professional Basketball Trailblazer Award

In honor of the Women’s Blue Chip Basketball League’s 10th anniversary, the 2015 Women’s Professional Basketball “Trailblazer” Award was given on August 2, 2015 to ten female basketball icons, including Cynthia Cooper, Nancy Lieberman, Sarah Campbell, Dr. Robelyn Garcia, Lynette Woodard, Kandi Conda, Lisa Leslie, E.C. Hill, Dr. Geri Kay Hart and Tamika Catchings.[6] The award recognizes some of the most influential people in professional women’s basketball, specifically those who helped blaze the trail, shape the overall landscape and pave the way for women’s professional basketball.[7] These 10 women have prevailed to greatness in a male dominated sport and give hope to young girls who inspire to be professional players, coaches, and team owners.[8]

References

1. "WBCBL retirement". WBCBL. September 24, 2018.
2. "Rock County Robins Win 2010 WBCBL National Championship". Women's Basketball Buzz. 24 August 2010.
3. "Auburn Flyers are the 2013 WBCBL National Champs". USbasket. 6 August 2013.
4. "St. Louis Surge win WBCBL National Title". St. Louis Basketball News. 6 August 2014.
5. "Charlotte Invasion capture 2015 WBCBL National Title". WBCBL News. 6 August 2015.
6. "WBCBL to Honor 10 trailblazers in Women's Professional Basketball". WBCBL News. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
7. "Woodard and Garcia Honored as trailblazers in Women's Professional Basketball". WBCBL News. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
8. "2015 WBCBL Trailblazer Award in Women's Professional Basketball". Arizona Athletics Official Website. Retrieved July 9, 2015.

External links

• Official WBDA website