Allentown Jets

The Allentown Jets spent more than two decades entertaining fans in Eastern Pennsylvania. The Jets were part of the Eastern Basketball Association, which for many years was a small part-time league with teams from PA, New Jersey, and New York. The league was founded in 1946 and Allentown had an original franchise as the Rockets, with teams nearby in Lancaster, Willkes-Barre, Reading, Hazleton, and Pottsville. The Jets would enter the picture in 1958 and be one of the league's most successful franchises. They were regular season champions 11 times and playoff champions 8 times. By 1980 the EBA rebranded into the CBA and expanded from small Northeastern towns to coast to coast with teams in Montana and Alaska. It was too much for the Jets, who operated successfully on a small budget for many years but couldn't afford the travel and operational costs of the quickly expanding league. The Jets dropped out after the 1980-81 season and hoped to start another league to no avail.