from 1977 to 1982. During this period, Guaiqueríes had three MVP winners: Venezuelan forward Cruz Lairet in 1977 and Americans Gerald Cunningham and Lewis Linder in 1980 and 1981, respectively. In 1983 the league saw the highest number of participants yet, with 9 teams: Caribes de Anzoátegui, Colosos de Carabobo, Gaiteros del Zulia, Guaiqueríes de Nueva Esparta, Panteras de Lara, Taurinos de Aragua, Telefonistas de Caracas, Universitarios de Mérida and the Venezuela national team, which participated as a preparation for the 1983 Pan American Games. In the 1983 Liga Especial Panteras won the title, ending the winning streak of Guaiqueríes. In 1984 and 1985 Gaiteros del Zulia won two consecutive titles, led by American forward Michael Britt, a second round selection in the 1983 NBA draft who was named the 1985 MVP. Between 1986 and 1989 Trotamundos de Carabobo won four consecutive titles, with Alfonso "Al" Smith winning three MVP awards in a row (1987, 1988 and 1989). Trotamundos had several players from the Venezuela national team such as Rostyn González, Luis Jiménez, Iván Olivares and Alexander Nelcha, and import players such as Al Smith, Sam Shepherd and Leroy Combs. The 1987 season saw the debut of Víctor David Díaz, who played for Panteras de Miranda and went on to become the all-time league leader in games played, minutes played and points scored. In 1990 Bravos de Portuguesa won the title, ending Trotamundos' winning streak, with the contribution of MVP Carl Herrera, who had just graduated from the University of Houston, where he played basketball in the NCAA Division I. In 1991 Marinos de Oriente won the league title, and Marinos forward Charlie Bradley, a former player of the University of South Florida, won the MVP award. In 1992 the league title went to Cocodrilos de Caracas, who had debuted the previous season replacing Halcones de Caracas. This was the second time a team from Caracas had won the championship following Ahorristas de Caracas in 1974. Liga Profesional de Baloncesto (1993–2019) In 1992 the Venezuela national team had participated in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. This had brought increased interest to basketball in Venezuela, and started a clash between the teams of the Liga Especial and the Basketball Federation for the division of broadcasting rights. This led to the creation of the Liga Profesional de Baloncesto (Professional Basketball League), which was a league owned by the teams and