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Season 59 Information and Predictions - Part 4
11. Żubr Białystok - whitestok took advantage of the complete weirdness that happened in the Great 8 last season with Hustlas shooting star and Tachenko's dramatic fall from grace to take 2nd in the standings...only to have me rank them and their actually pretty good squad at 11th in the entire group. We'll see what happens this season, but as they're currently constructed, they've got a solid starting 5 and probably a decent top 8, but as we've seen in the past few seasons, training regiments some times get in the way still, even at Div III. Big Man Clark Riggins leads the way for this group as they venture toward Season 60.

10. Miami Cleo - packer_22 had a pretty whirlwind season, starting out undefeated (and surprised) before then melting into a puddle and finishing outside of the playoffs but easily handling their relegation duties. No movement from them, either, they seem content to play it out, though changes could be in the wind. In terms of total salary, they're middle of the pack, but based on my screwy formula, they end up here at 9th. The two headed monstor of Maruin and Varpukevicius in their back court is nothing to sneeze at. They do have their three rookies listed for sale

9. The Beer Bellys - thatguy sold now 20-year old Polish SG Bonifacy Piotrkowicz for a tremendous $357k near the end of last season. They were able to sneak into the playoffs last season on backs of Sexy Segovia and Homey Homs, a good mix of youth and age. They should be decent, but just don't have a strong go to to push them consistently over the top.

8. Linndale - with all the tumult action at the top for Speedtraps, along with the sales of SG Musa Özol ($450k) and PF Arley Coronado ($500k), they're doing a bit of retooling after making the playoffs back-to-back. They've got a good one-two punch of Kyle Knowles and Bobbie Coenen along with a solid core group backing them up. They'll be good and have a shot to make the playoffs.

7. San Dominica Warriors - The sell off of aging backup guard Janaki Grcev late last season has been Coach Stephensen's move coming into Season 59, and after weathering last season so well, they look to stand pat, it seems. What makes them difficult is they don't have one or two over the top type of guys, but have 10 pretty solid pieces and together, they string 48 minutes together pretty seamlessly. Blanchet, Baião, Bégin, and Granja lead the way for the Warriors.

6. 209's MostWanted - Manager AlexFromThe209 has been here (well, not here, but you know what I mean) and ventures back into Div III with what should be a competitive crew, bringing with them three new transfers in the last several days, including Polish big man Joachim Smug who is relatively young and probably has more room for growth. He joins up with A solid group of starters including Gomes, Ziółkowski, THan Lin, and Azheli. They're going to be very well rounded and most definitely play-off contenders.

5. BKDogs - Another Div III retread, Wisdom comes in ready to eat ice cream and kick some ass (and he's all out of...). Having not made much in the way of changes, they come in with a solid group of 10 players, so I'd expect, if they can afford it, those 10 are rounded out a bit, but they do have one player (Rodriguez) listed for sale for this weekend and should probably get more than what they're asking for him. They also have a really nice 18-year old MVP rated prospect in Alva Atwood. Another round for new-comers expecting the play offs this season in the Big 8.

Season 59 Information and Predictions - Part 5
4. Lion Rebels - Once again, I'm certain my squad doesn't deserve this ranking, but with some home-grown growth, there's hopefully improvement from last season's awful season (also a shift in training regiment should help at some point!). The selling of Byron Lutz last season really put a kink in their ability to compete, but Kurt Brown looks to make up some ground in his absence along side Fabio Carrillo and The Terror Armstead. But I won't be surprised if I'm fighting to avoid relegation again, wasting yet another season of Armstead's beautiful career.

3. The Ashkickers - After three seasons of ridiculous predictions, Tylormade is probably like "FINALLY I'M GETTING SOME RESPECT!". Their big 3 look to dominate this season with Rojas, Gattoni, and Reine and hopefully they do as they're starting to get up there in age. I do expect them to clean up their rookie situation, but other than that, they'll be a force in the Great 8 and I expect, they'll be competing for the 'ship come the end of Season 59.

2. Hustlas - Got to be honest, while Reece has revamped, retooled, and retorched this roster and they're near the very top of this list, I have a hard time seeing this group of old guys being worthwhile at the next level (unless he's got Tom Brady's trainer signed to his staff). They'll be tough - but it seems like Reece has put himself in a similar situation as last season: an aging (good) roster. Hopefully the money situation has been sorted and we don't have another mid-season meltdown/blow-up. I'm just thankful I only have to face them once.

1. Philly Dribble - This has got to be Phil_wings year, I just believe it to be true (mostly because I somehow ended up in the same Private League as him last season and I hate myself for it - I had to play them like 6 times in Season 58!!). I'm jealous of their outside game and think it's really difficult to defend. They'll have their struggles, but their broadness and depth of skill is going to be tough to beat.

Conference Standings
Big 8
1. Philly Dribble
2. BKDogs
3. 209 MostWanted
4. Lion Rebels
5. San Dominica Warriors
6. Linndale
7. Carolina Rebels
8. BOBBBSBURGS

Great 8
1. The Ashkickers
2. Hustlas
3. The Beer Bellys
4. Miami Cleo
5. Żubr Białystok
6. The Philadelphia Spartans
7. Motor City Waddupdoe
8. Sweaty Socks

Playoff/Relegation Predictions
Great 8 Playoffs
Miami Cleo vs. The Ashkickers
The Beer Bellys vs. Hustlas

Big 8 Playoffs
Lion Rebels vs. Philly Dribble
BKDogs vs. 209's Mostwanted

Great 8 Semi-Final Matchup
Hustlas vs. The Ahkickers

Big 8 Semi-Final Matchup
209's MostWanted vs. Philly Dribble

Relegation Matchups
San Dominica Warriors over Motor City Waddupdoe in two
Żubr Białystok over Carolina Rebels in three
Lindale over The Philadelphia Spartans in two

Season 58 Championship
Philly Dribble over The Ashkickers in three.

And so, there you have it! Good luck this season and may the best team prove me wrong!

Final programming note: almost all of my quips and schticks are tongue in cheek meant to have a little fun.

Last edited by Baine at 11/04/2022 17:40:37

Happy Ourer: “Good evening folks, Happy Ourer back for another exciting season of Linndale basketball on WINO radio, flagship home of the Linndale Radio Basketball Network. Season 59 has begun and our favorite basketball team has begun the campaign with a 88-76 victory over league newcomers 209’s MostWanted. Now before we break the team’s performance down, let me remind longtime listeners that the beloved Linndale legend Pio Reina is now on the coaching staff for Linndale and is in fact the coach-in-waiting, as the esteemed Coach embarks upon his final season before retirement. We wish Pio well in his new and future role, and welcome the new member of our team, another former player, Marshall Richards. Welcome Marshall!”

Marshall Richards: “Thanks! It’s great to be here!”

Happy: “Let’s get to the basketball! What did you see out there tonight?”

Marshall: “I saw a team out there that had to slowly adjust to a defense they rarely if ever see, and it caused them trouble. 209 played a strong defensive game. They forced turnovers, they had more steals, they got to the charity stripe more, and most importantly they took away the 3 point shot. What surprised me was the battle of the boards went to Linndale. The rebounding troubles have been noted by more than myself, for sure, so that was good to see.”

Happy: “They’ve got a lot of talented guards over there and I was looking forward to that matchup.”

Marshall: “It was a good matchup, and early on it looked like 209 had the advantage, but after the first quarter, that matchup went to Linndale. The bigs were interesting as I thought we might see 209 attack inside more than they did. I was interested in seeing how Linndale’s bigs would hold up. As it is, when your starters at power forward and center both get double doubles, that’s something you hope you can build on. We’ll see moving forward if Linndale can.”

Happy: “Your takeaway from this game?”

Marshall: “Nothing. Neither team was at it’s best. Both are strong enough defensively that they showed they can win ugly. Both showed that offensively they both have work to do. My takeaway is that 209 has the guard play to do some things. This could get interesting. Or it could be nothing. First game of the season means it’s too early to tell.”

Happy: “Thanks Marshall. More Linndale Basketball after these commercial messages...”

"Guess who's back, back again. Hustla's back, go tell your friends." Screen goes to s person sitting behind a desk. " Hellooooo everyone, it's me, Cash Danger, with Jamison, and we are here on an episode of Hustlas TV. They actually made it to another season in III.11 by the skin of their teeth. They won only one game after the all-star break, and that was the last game. They had to forfeit multiple games last season due to a blow up of the roster. And then they fielded a subpar roster to finish the season, but one just enough to squeak by in the final game of the season, a game, mind you, that they were outplayed in."

"And don't forget Cash. They finished above .500 with a 12-10 record," says Jamison.

"That's right, above .500. But we won't talk about their lone playoff game. But since that point, the Hustlas themselves this time, blew up their roster and brought in a lot of players while getting rid of other players. Do you think they will compete this season Jamison?"

"I think they will compete, but not like they did before the all-star break. The Hustlas have a great roster, but they are all old. If this was 4 to 5 seasons ago with the same players, I'd say they would win easily, and go undefeated. But this is an old roster. These players are good, but they have aged past their prime. So they will probably be middle of the pack...."

"I think otherwise," says Cash. "If the game plans are sound, and the lineups are sound, I think they'll be upper tier. Top 6 teams and playoff bound. But, some changes can be made. A new, younger pg. But the Hustlas have no capital. But the moment they get some, they need a pg. Their backups are high scoring, at least the next game the backups are high scoring. But some nights they will be on, other nights they will not be. Same with their bigs. So I think upper tier, but it could be a toss up with this team. Last season they made changes after a few games and the team started tearing up the league. But, those changes resulted in the league disbanding the team due to finances. We shall see if this team has what it takes. This season is a real test, especially with the promotion of Bobby Sparks as Team President..What does this team have in store for us this season? So far, they are 1-0, but if the team plays like that throughout, it will be a very long season indeed."


Last edited by Reece at 11/06/2022 16:42:48

Great write-up as usual...feel free to swing by for complimentary drinks and grub at the many clubs and restaurants at The Keg anytime!

Mark me down for a nice stout! ;)

Day 1 (Saturday 5 November 2022) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Night results
Carolina Rebels 109 - Lion Rebels 103
Philly Dribble 112 - BOBBBSBURGS 66
209’s MostWanted 76 - Linndale 88
BKDogs 79 - San Dominica Warriors 113
Sweaty Socks 53 - The Ashkickers 111
The Philadelphia Spartans 78 - The Beer Bellys 97
Hustlas 95 - Miami Cleo 84
Żubr Białystok 122 - Motor City Waddupdoe 77

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 122 : Żubr Białystok
Rebounds : 70 : The Beer Bellys
Assists : 32 : Philly Dribble
Steals : 13 : San Dominica Warriors
Block Shots : 10 : Philly Dribble

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 37 : T. Begley (Carolina Rebels)
Rebounds : 18 : I. Homs (The Beer Bellys)
Assists : 10 : H. Šapiras (Żubr Białystok)
Steals : 4 : G. Gattoni (The Ashkickers), L. Baião (San Dominica Warriors), J. Bégin (San Dominica Warriors)
Block Shots : 4 : C. Riggins (Żubr Białystok)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : T. Begley (Carolina Rebels) (37 Points, 5 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 35
Shooting Guard : V. Sesamo (The Ashkickers) (21 Points, 2 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 1 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 27
Small Forward : C. McNutt (Żubr Białystok) (29 Points, 4 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 2 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 34
Power Forward : I. Homs (The Beer Bellys) (33 Points, 18 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 45
Center : C. Riggins (Żubr Białystok) (22 Points, 15 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 0 Steals, 4 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 41

MVP of the evening
I. Homs (The Beer Bellys) (33 Points, 18 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 45

The bad performance of the evening
A. Bueno (Sweaty Socks) (2 Points, 1 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots)J. Esposito (Hustlas) (8 Points, 1 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -6

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : Z. Elsneris (BKDogs), F. Sierra (BOBBBSBURGS) : 6 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : T. Medina (Lion Rebels), S. Hatch (Żubr Białystok), M. Köhler (BKDogs) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : G. Locus (Miami Cleo), W. Westmoreland (Sweaty Socks), M. Redman (Motor City Waddupdoe) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : F. Carrillo (Lion Rebels) : 6 Three points

The best performer : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 14.5

The worst performer : J. Billingsley (BOBBBSBURGS) : Rating : 3.0

Day 2 (Tuesday 8 November 2022) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Week 1 Power Rankings coming Thursday!

Night results
Lion Rebels 66 - Philly Dribble 103
BOBBBSBURGS 43 - 209’s MostWanted 109
Linndale 126 - BKDogs 107
San Dominica Warriors 86 - Carolina Rebels 94
The Ashkickers 112 - The Philadelphia Spartans 91
The Beer Bellys 103 - Hustlas 112
Miami Cleo 50 - Żubr Białystok 0
Motor City Waddupdoe 70 - Sweaty Socks 54

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 126 : Linndale
Rebounds : 62 : Philly Dribble
Assists : 22 : Carolina Rebels, 209’s MostWanted, Motor City Waddupdoe, Linndale
Steals : 12 : Motor City Waddupdoe
Block Shots : 8 : Sweaty Socks

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 37 : Č. Grbac (BKDogs)
Rebounds : 23 : M. Bowie (Motor City Waddupdoe)
Assists : 11 : P. Matkowski (BKDogs)
Steals : 4 : P. Cuellar (209’s MostWanted), I. Gamón (Motor City Waddupdoe)
Block Shots : 3 : J. Glicas (Philly Dribble), J. Medina (Motor City Waddupdoe)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : G. Denković (Hustlas) (26 Points, 2 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots), P. Matkowski (BKDogs) (12 Points, 4 Rebounds, 11 Assists, 1 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 24
Shooting Guard : T. Begley (Carolina Rebels) (15 Points, 7 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots), Č. Grbac (BKDogs) (37 Points, 1 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 22
Small Forward : P. Lutz (Linndale) (34 Points, 7 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 42
Power Forward : P. Huddleston (Philly Dribble) (16 Points, 18 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 24
Center : D. Allen (Carolina Rebels) (20 Points, 13 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 2 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 33

MVP of the evening
P. Lutz (Linndale) (34 Points, 7 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 42

The bad performance of the evening
K. Brown (Lion Rebels) (13 Points, 3 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -12

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : L. McKnight (Lion Rebels) : 6 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : J. Segovia (The Beer Bellys) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : W. Westmoreland (Sweaty Socks), M. Bowie (Motor City Waddupdoe), D. Harden (Lion Rebels), L. McKnight (Lion Rebels) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : P. Lutz (Linndale) : 8 Three points

The best performer : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 14.0

The worst performer : S. Bryant (BOBBBSBURGS), J. Aguilera (BOBBBSBURGS) : Rating : 2.5



Last edited by Baine at 11/09/2022 12:48:12

Week One Power Rankings
Week 2 Observations
Welcome to season 59's first official power rankings following games one and two of the regular season. As the season has gotten underway, we've got five players averaging 25 or more points per game (though, admittedly two of them were involved in a walkover match), four players are averaging 15.0 or more rebounds per game, and three players are averaging 7.0 assists or more per game. I won't do this every week, but just pointing a few key players out at the start of the season - BKDogs Čamil Grbac leads the way with 29.5 PPG on 50% shooting (although, they're posting a turrible 17.6% from three on 21 shots, including 1-10 last night and they still scored 37 points!). Meanwhile, Carolina Rebels Trent Begley has gone 18-18 from the free throw line partly from going 10-10 in the final 39 seconds of the Rebel Bowlto maintain their lead at the end after they almost blew it in the fourth quarter. Terry Armstead has hauled in 36 rebounds with Hustlas Giorgi Taktakishvili on his heels with 35. And The Beer Belly's Isidre Homs is leading the way with 33.5 average efficiency after two.

Not much transfer movement related to teams adding on this season, and by "not much" I mean none since the transition from Season 58 through today. Several more departures, but I'm sure with some passing time, we'll see a team or two (or seven) bring in some more salary as the standings start to take shape and we see who's who and what's what. BKDogs did sell the 32-year old Antonio Rodríguez a Spanish PG to the Greek D III club Psisasters for $166,500 on the 5th, but nothing else has been notable except for scrubs and rookies being moved on from*. And with that, here are this season's initial power rankings!

*And of course, I wrote that sentence yesterday (11/09) and since then we've had two new transfers come in. First up, Linndale brought in 19-year old American SF Art Reese who has some nice potential, but probably won't be much of an impact at first. The second addition was BKDogs acquisition of 21-year old Lithuanian SG/SF Dominykas Švarplys, who looks primed for some continued training.

For those of you who are new, my power rankings are based on a combination of average Efficiency Per Game (EFFG) rank and their Opponents EFFG (OPP EFFG). Week one ties are sorted by difference in EFFG and OPP EFFG (ensuing weeks will take into consideration previous week's rankings to sort ties).

Week 1 Power Rankings
1. Philly Dribble
Not a big surprise at the top, with Phil_Wings starting off strong with an easy matchup first thing against newcoming BOBBBSBURGS (salary difference of $290k between them). Philly had an incredible combined 160 EFF for the game and lead from beginning to end. They then faced the Lowly Lion Rebels and beat them just as handily with seven players scoring double-digits and P. Huddleston having a monstrous double double with 18 boards. Next up after their Cup matchup, on the road against San Dominica and then they play host to Linndale in an early season highlight game.

2. The Ashkickers
It's nice to see my two Championship Series team predictions in the top two after one week...here's hoping that sticks for the whole season (sorry everyone else!). Tylormade's crew also faced what should be the bottom feeder of their side of the league in Sweaty Socks and were just as dominant with a 58-point victory while notching 151 EFF for the game. They carried that on the road to face The PHiladelphia Spartans who put up something of a fight until really getting taken advantage of in the third quarter. Once again, The Ashkickers are well balanced and fierce, although PG Rojas struggled on Tuesday night with a -5 EFF on a 1-10 shooting night. Next up: an interesting matchup with Hustlas at home before traveling againt to take on Żubr Białystok - definitely not a walk in the park sort of week.

3. The Beer Bellys
What I love about using efficiency for a ranking system, especially early on in the season, is the potential for a wide variance in rankings. Does thatguy's group deserve to be this high? Probably not, but also, I don't think they're that far off from this mark. After 1 & 2 (both 1st and 2nd in EFFG and OPP EFFG respectively) the rankings start to vary, with more offensively efficient teams jostling with more defensively efficient teams for position. This week, The Beer Bellys are ranked 5th in EFFG and 4th in OPP EFFG, landing them slightly ahead of the next two spots in the rankings. With a 1-1 record and three other undefeated teams, how can this be?, you say. Well, in game one, they defeated the Spartans by 19, holding them to only 59 EFF while boasting a 130 for themselves. Their matchup visiting Hustlas ended in a 9-point loss after being in the lead after three quarters, and while they didn't play great, they weren't terrible and Hustlas weren't domineering in EFF, resulting in The Beer Bellys landing in this spot. Will they stick? Well, with a matchup against Żubr Białystok at home followed by a trip to Sweaty Socks, I don't think they'll be too far off of the mark, but we'll see if they can stay the course.

4. 209's MostWanted
AlexFromThe209 brought a strong defensive effort in the first week, and while their offensive EFF wasn't terrific, they're sitting on a 54 point differential at 1-1. Thanks, in part, to getting to face BOBBBS, they also arrive here because they hung with Linndale and put up a good fight, only losing by 12 after faltering in the 2nd quarter. But BOBBBS is where they made up a lot of ground, holding them to a 1 point EFF rating for the game with six of their players having a negative efficiency night, while they hit 151 with all but two of their players (who both only played 1 minute) hitting at least double digits in efficiency for the evening. Will they be able to stand their ground? As you well know, time will tell and they have a road trip to Daylis Stadium to face the utterly defeated Lion Rebels before hosting San Dom on the flip side.

Week 1 Power Rankings Continued
5. Linndale
Speedtraps probably has a right to be irritated with an undefeated record to be ranked 5th, but with their first two matchups coming against solid clubs, it's expected that their efficiencies might be a bit lower, thus the lower ranking. They come in with a ranking of 3rd in EFFG and 7th in OPP EFFG. But with two solid wins under their belt, they've got a promising start to the season, defeating 209 and BKDogs right out of the gate. 209 caused a little more fuss for them than the Dogs, but Linndale has got to be feeling themselves. Happy Ourer will do that do you. Next up they play host to the upstart Carolina Rebels (2-0) and then have to travel for a big test against Philly Dribble next Tuesday.

6. San Dominica Warriors
Coach Stephenson finds themselves in 5th after two games with a 1-1 record with a nice win against BKDogs and a suprising upset loss on the road against Carolina (who put in a necessary Crunch Time effort). They rank 4th in EFFG and 8th in OPP EFFG. It's going to get tougher before it gets easier, with a home game against Philly followed up with a road trip to the 209 (I hear it's nice this time of year), but I suspect, they'll still be at .500 after Week 2.

7. Hustlas
Reece's group finds themselves at 2-0 with a meager 20 point differential after two games. They've shown they can score, but also tend to let the other team score as well, but a game 1 win against Miami on the road followed up with a defeat of The Beer Bellys has them sitting pretty with their aging crew. They slot in at 8th in EFFG and 5th in OPP EFFG and I'll take just a moment to point out that ranks 4-8 in OPP EFFG are all within 6.5 points of each other, so they're all neck and neck. I'm sure there will be lots of adjustments to these rankings in this middle tier of teams. Following their Cup game tonight, they face a strident Ashkickers on the road before playing host to currently 5th seeded Motor City Waddupdoe - they should still be above .500 come week's end.

8. Miami Cleo
Packer_22's squad sits at 1-1 but seeded 3rd in the Great 8 after one week after losing a relatively close game to Hustlas before ending up in an unfortunate walk-over win against Żubr Białystok. Which brings up the trickery I'll have to sort out for efficiency ratings...Buzzer-Manager treats a walk over win/loss as NOT a game...so I had to do some trickery with Miami and Żubr's numbers for week one and I'm not certain how I'll handle it going forward to account for it, but here's what I did for Miami: they had an EFF rating of 85 and a 105 OPP EFF in their game one loss to Hustlas. I took 85 and multiplied it by 1.25 to get an average EFFG of 106.25 through two games for them and I took 105 and divided that by 1.125 to get 93.3 for their OPP EFFG. Which leaves them ranked 9th and 6th in each category respectively. Is that scientific? No, but it explains why last season Hustlas EFFG/OPP EFFG ratings didn't drop as much as I thought they would...they just had three or four games not count in their walk over losses. At any rate, Miami moves on to play host to Sweaty Socks before facing the Spartans on the road, both games I expect them to win.