The 2018 JBA season was the only season of the

Junior Basketball Association The Junior Basketball Association (JBA) was an American basketball league that intended to be an alternative to the NCAA by allowing high school and junior college players to immediately play professionally. The league was first announced in Dece ...

(JBA), an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

men's professional basketball league. The JBA was designed as an alternative to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), allowing high school and

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

players to immediately play professionally. The season began on June 21 and concluded with the JBA Finals on August 12, 2018. After the season concluded, the JBA selected many of its top players to take part in what was originally a 28-game international season against teams from various countries in Europe and Asia. However, an incident in Lithuania lead to a shortening of the event, with teams dropping out of matches and Asian teams cancelling their matches for late 2018 and early 2019 altogether.

Teams

The 2018 JBA season consisted of eight teams, with each representing an American city and having the nickname "Ballers." Teams did not occupy a specified home arena; instead, every team faced each other in ten different arenas across the United States.

Regular season

Standings

Games

All-Star Event

On August 3, 2018, the JBA hosted their inaugural All-Star Event at the Quest Multisport in Chicago, Illinois. Prior to the All-Star Game, the league hosted a Three-Point Contest and Slam Dunk Contest. Two days before the event, event contestants and All-Star Game selections were officially revealed to the public.

Three-Point Contest

;Results

Slam Dunk Contest

;Results

All-Star Game

Game

LiAngelo Ball of the West All-Stars was named co-

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

(MVP) along with

Deon Lyle Deon Jay Lyle (born August 30, 1996) is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Cloud CC Thunderbirds and the UTSA Roadrunners. In 2018, he played for the Chicago Ballers of the Junior Basketball Associat ...

of the East All-Stars. Ball recorded 39 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists, while Lyle scored a game-high 51 points. LaMelo Ball also recorded a double-double with 42 points and 17 assists.

Playoffs

Championship bracket

Venue: Eagle's Nest Arena ( Los Angeles, California), Citizens Business Bank Arena ( Ontario, California)

Boxscores

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

JBA Finals

International season

After the JBA Finals, the league selected 14 players to play for the JBA USA Team, which will take part in 28

exhibition game An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

s against international competition. The international season began on September 22, 2018, when the JBA USA Team faced the

Svendborg Rabbits Svendborg Rabbits is a Danish professional basketball team, from Svendborg. The club currently plays in the Basketligaen, the top division of basketball in Denmark. The home ground of the club is the Svendborg Idrætscenter, nicknamed the ''Kaninh ...

from Denmark.

Los Angeles Ballers The Los Angeles Ballers were a professional basketball team based in Los Angeles, California. The team competed in the Junior Basketball Association (JBA), a league created for high school and junior college players as an alternative to the Nation ...

head coach Doyle Balthazar served as the JBA USA Team head coach, with Los Angeles assistant coach Rasul Salahuddin and

Seattle Ballers The Seattle Ballers were a basketball team based in Seattle, Washington. The team competed in the Junior Basketball Association (JBA), a league created for high school and junior college players as an alternative to the National Collegiate Athle ...

head coach Charles O'Bannon assuming assistant roles. The international season was expected to continue in 2019. However, due to a fight LaMelo Ball was involved with against Dzūkija Alytus on October 1, some of the teams that were previously scheduled for the event dropped out of the event, with the international event concluding earlier than the league anticipated. LaMelo later left the team and the league to enter his senior year of high school. In addition to him, a few other also left the team during the tournament.

JBA USA Team roster

International games

Media

For the 2018 season, the JBA aired games through Facebook Live, including All-Star festivities and playoff matches. Allen Bell and Brandon Williams were the official commentators for the season.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:2018-19 JBA season Junior Basketball Association seasons JBA