USBL'S Power debut in Philadelphia

For the third time in United States Basketball League history, Philadelphia had a team to brag about. Well, they had a team at least. The inaugural season for the Philadelphia Power did not turn out as promising as co-owners Gerald "Chip" Mitchell, Keith Taylor, and Fred Colon had hoped originally. The team finished in next to last place, but for a few of the players, the exposure was valuable. After the season, both point guard Billy McCaffrey, who played high school basketball in Allentown, Pa., and shooting guard Bernard Blunt, a St. Joseph's product, were selected by a Korean basketball league to play overseas. For the players on the USBL team, the new franchise means a chance to hone their skills and gain that valuable exposure in an effort to ascend to the next level -- whether that be the National Basketball Association or the Continental Basketball Association or one of the numerous European leagues. "Everybody is trying to get to the next level. This [league] is my stepping stone, my springboard to the next level," Power guard and recent Drexel graduate Jeff Myers said. Their goals are not unattainable. Ten current NBA players -- from Muggsy Bogues to Anthony Mason and Charlie Ward -- have passed through the ranks of the USBL. The success of such USBL alumni -- certainly not the $300 to $500 a week paycheck from the league -- is part of the dream that every one of today's USBL players shares. "It is not about money, it's about opportunity," Power head coach Jerry Powell added. Powell is an advance scout for the Hawks, but took the Power job for the challenge of coaching, not as a scouting scheme. The USBL garners support for their teams (much like the women's American Basketball League) by linking a competitive product to a hometown flavoring. The local players on each team are supposed to provide the sort of attachment between the team and its neighborhood. The Power play their games at Drexel's Physical Education and Athletics Center, nicknamed "the Powerhouse" for USBL games. "We wanted to get as many local guys out as possible for the fans," Powell said. The Power's roster includes Blunt, Myers, and one other local collegiate player -- Ron Wilson, a Villanova graduate. Of the three, Blunt has the brightest credentials. He has played the past two years in Europe, and may be returning if he does not sign with the Korean club. Wilson and Myers are both looking for CBA tryouts. The Power also has one celebrity player, Simeon Rice. Rice starred this past fall for he Arizona Cardinals, and he led all rookies with 12 sacks. He is serious about his basketball as well, though there is already one Charles Barkley in the NBA. This year, Rice and the local talent struggled against the rest of the league. A late run at the end of the season came to an abrupt end in the playoffs -- won by the closest thing to a rival, the Atlantic City Seagulls. The Power will have to wait until next summer for another shot at a title, and another group of young talent looking for a bigger shot...at NBA stardom.

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