While the Miami Heat dribbles an orange basketball up and down the court, the South Florida Gold will dribble a red, white and blue ball.
The Gold is a professional basketball team owned by the American Basketball Association. The team started playing last year and will call Boynton Beach home this November. Mayor Jerry Taylor hopes the team will benefit the city's economy, the Sun Sentinel reports.
What, you had no idea the South Florida Gold or the ABA even existed? It's one of several pro-ball leagues in the country other than the National Basketball Association, which the Heat play for.
Here are some facts about the somewhat obscure basketball league bringing a team to South Florida.
1. Technical differences
The ABA's shot clock is 30 seconds -- that's six seconds more than the National Basketball Association's.
2. The size and diversity
The ABA website says it's the largest, most diverse professional basketball league. More than 75 percent of the 93 teams are owned by minorities.
3. Playing locations
The ABA is large, but that doesn't mean its audience is. The Sun Sentinel's Attiyya Anthony says most ABA teams play in gyms, not arenas. The South Florida Gold will play at Boynton Beach Community High School’s gym, which seats 1,600 people.
4. It's a revamped version of a different ABA
According to Remember the ABA, the original ABA lasted from 1967 to 1976. After a feud with the NBA, both leagues compromised and the ABA sent four teams over to the NBA: the San Antonio Spurs, the Indiana Pacers, the New York Nets and the Denver Nuggets.
Jorge Rojas, sports editor for the Miami Herald, says the NBA became the major professional basketball league after the merge. The new ABA (to which the South Florida Gold belongs) formed in 2000.
The NBA also owns the Women's National Basketball Association and the National Basketball Development League, which can feed players to the NBA. Rojas says other basketball leagues, like the ABA, aren't as successful.
So will Boynton Beach Mayor Jerry Taylor's city see economic improvement from this team's permanent placement in Palm Beach County? Tell us in the comments if you'd follow ABA basketball now that a team lives in South Florida.
