London Disco

Season 1:

Anytime you are the owner of the #1 overall pick there is a certain amount of pressure that you feel. You get to decide who you take, and there is nothing that anybody else can do to stop you. Do don't have to worry about somebody taking a player you wanted. You are the envy of the league and you must make sure you pick the best player for your team. With that all in mind, now compound the pressure when you have the #1 overall pick for the leagues inaugural season. Its enough to make a piece a coal into diamond over the course of a couple of weeks.

This is the position that London Management was in at the infancy of the WBA. With so many quality big men, do you take the best player right now, or take a player you believe will be the best player in a couple of years. London opted to go with the latter of the two. They selected Boom-Boom Casey the youngster who looked like he could dominate the league in a few years. Only a prophet could foretell is this would be the correct pick. Nick Barton was the 2nd pick for London. What is a top center with out his little white point guard to get him the ball? Jim Fox followed to give the team a quality swing man. And the team was well on there way to forming.

Prior to the start of the season London pulled off the franchises first trade. Sending their season 2 first round pick to Boston for Henry Jordan. They also sent Jim Fox to Cincy for Hick Hiller and Cincy's season 2 first and 2nd rounc picks. The season was going great for London, they were leading their division and were poised for the playoffs. Boom Boom Casey was dominating already averaging 26 points and 10 boards. And that is when the management did something that nobody expected.

They traded Boom-Boom. They picked up Mike Begley, Eddic Jackson, Buck Jones and a 2nd round pick from Roswell. Begley was a few years older then Boom Boom but was shooing better. He was a 20-10 guy for the year. Eddie Jacobson was consistently getting double doubles. While many fans hated to see BB sent away, no one could blame management for doing what it took to win. London lost a mere 10 games in the shorted season. Going 51-10 with amazing .839 winning percentage. They won their division by 14 games. Many people expected to see Los Angeles and London in the finals.

London would do its part as they hand a first round buy but would be taken to 7 games against Berlin. After getting past Berlin they were forced into another tough 7 game series against Varese. London simply couldn't keep up with the upstart Fernie team in the finals. London was respectable as they lost 4 games to 2.

It was a tough loss, but management felt they had a strong team that could contend for a few more seasons.

Season 2.

London selected Rick Schulz to help give them a scoring punch from the guard spot. Though Rick was big enough he could play at the small forward as needed. To say that London played poorly in season 2 simply wouldn't be fair. Other teams simply caught up with them. Mike Begely while leading the team in scoring his rebounding was not what it was the year before. Schulz was an immediate impact player averaging 17 ppg. He was on fire from beyond the arc at nearly 45%.

With the longer season up to 80 games, it appeared that many of the long players were simply struggling near the end of the year. They were dinged up and tired from the strenuous season. Despite that, they still finished as the 4th seed. And that is with them winning 56 games out of 80. it isn't common to win 70% of your games and still finish 4th. On the Boom-Boom watch, Roswell was clearly one of the top teams as they lost only 15 games all year.

London opted not to make any trades during the season. They were matched up with New York which was team many felt could easily defeat London in a short game series. However, the team was ready to play and averaged 121 points a game sweeping the Firestorm out of the playoffs. In the 2nd round they faced a surprising Albacete team who had upset #1 seed Brooklyn. Cinderella's shoe was shattered against London. London again swept their opponent in 4 straight games. They would next fact #2 seed Boston.

Against Boston they simply had their weaknesses exploited. Boston was on a mission and no team from across the pond was going to stop them. This was simply a reenactment of the Boston tea party in a modern day format. London was swept 4 straight games, and was forced to watch Boston win their 1st title over the Boom-Boom led Roswell team.

Season 3:

London was pleased to see that Abdullah Chanda was still available with the #20 pick. They quickly grabbed him, over such other notable names as Christobal Dasher, Magic Toby and Dexter Kodak. Abdullah would never play a game for London in his rookie season. Berlin came knocking with a whole lot of draft picks for half of London's team. London received the 1st and 2nd round pick of Berlin for season 4, plus Berlin's season 8 1st round pick and a season 5 2nd. Berlin would get Chanda, Begley, Al McCauley, a 2nd round pick, and cash. Overall, it appeared that London decided to try to rebuild even though they were one of the top teams from the previous year.

To further demonstrate the destruction of a strong team, they send Rick Schulz to Nebraska in exchange for Maury Foreman and Pierce Shea. Then early in the season London sent Eddit Jacobsen and their season 8 1st round pick in exchange for LA's season 6 and 8 1st round pick an Steve Foreman. It was no surprise that London had removed any possibility of making the playoffs for the 3rd consecutive year. Even after a last ditch effort to provide the team with some spark they traded 2 first round picks to Midland for Charlie Griffen. But his scoring ability wasn't enough. London also picked up Jim Donelly for a 1st round pick and a player. South Carolina offered Bill Andrews for Pierce Shea and a 2nd which London accepted. They also aquired Andruw Williams and a white guy for Chuck Jensen and Nick Barton. And finally they ended the year sending Charlie Griffin and Chris Connell away in exchange for Peter Langstraat, chuck O'Rourke, and a season 8 1st round pick. Which was one of the few good trades they made.

Finishing 33 games out of first place and missing they playoffs were not something that the London fans were accustomed too. They were out right livid. Luckily the ownership was intent on doing something good for the franchise. They sold it. Dave Song of the Song dynasty purchased the fledgling team. He was determined to right the ship and put London where it deserves. And were not talking about having it in a 2nd world country.

Season 4:

Dave Song wasted little time now that he had full control of the team. He traded Bill Lopez for the #27, 30 and 46 picks. And then the following day moved the 27th, 30th and a protected pick for season 5 or 6. Coming to London is Mr. Rebound himself in Paul Wilson. He also traded the London season 5 1st round pick for Colorado's season 5 1st and Washington season 6 1st. Initially this appeared to be a steal for Colorado considering the poor shape that London's team was in.

During the first week of the season London acquired Frank Rose from Charcarita while moving the Washington 1st round pick and Andruw Williams. The team was playing almost .500 ball when London shockingly sent their 1st round pick Gannon Moore and some cash to Varese. This brought them Ozzie Kramer, Luke Benner, and a 2nd round pick. Gannon was a popular player, but even the most violent fans had to like this deal. Even Further in another strong trade, Ozzie Kramer and 2nd round pick Bill Chaussee with cash were sent to New York. This brought solid center Peter Langstraat, The passing Bacheman and a 2nd round pick. London would also grab Carolina's season 5 1st round pick for Luke Benner.

Then the 1st of two truly terrific deals occurred. London took Eugenie LaMaire, and a pair of 2nd rounders for starting PG Bill Andrews, Peter Langstraat and 2 1st round picks. Almost immediately London started winning more. And then something of a controversial trade occurred that had some folks steaming hot. London had learned from SLC owners Brad Bangerter, that he had agreed in terms with New York to get Kelvin Davidson. Using that inside information, London sprang into action and upped the offer to bring in the All-Star Point Guard. It cost the Disco club Bernie Cobb, Dino Robbins, a 1st rounder and two 2nd round picks. With the combination of Kelvin Davidson and Eugene LaMaitre London possessed one of the top backcourts in the league. And it showed immediate results.

London finished just behind Gabon in the divisional race while grabbing the 4th seed in the conference. Having 3 players all averaging 22 points a game in LaMaitre, Davidson and Rose; London was indeed a difficult team to deal with. Paul Wilson was grabbing every missed shot at a league record 16 rebounds a game. London did lack a legitimate center, but you can't always have the cake and eat it too, unless you're a fat kid and get to it before your mom can stop you.

Unfortunately, London ran into the Yeager/Short tandem from Boston this long time frontcourt along with their support players were simply too much for London to deal with. LaMaitre had a strong series scoring nearly 30 a game, Rose and Davidson played incredibly well, but it simply wasn't enough and a 1-3 series record was the end result. London appeared to be poised to make a serious title run.

Season 5:

With no 1st round picks, London sat out most of the draft day experience. Having shown up just in time to select Haznor Kolvanis with the #48th pick. This is significant only because it sounds cool to say Haznor Kolvanis, but we shall not hear any more about him.

The season started off as many London fans expected. The team was winning and doing so in convincing fashion. Despite losing Rose to free agency, London was rolling, not unlike how they rolled the Germans after the Americans got involved in WW2. It would be a busy season for Dave Song as he continued to tinker and fine-tune the team. Some of the moves appeared questionable.

Nobody questioned the move to get Pedro Otis from Midland to fill the vacant SG position. It did cost Chuck O'Rourke and a 1st round pick, but Pedro added a certain nastiness to the team with his defensive abilities. Pedro made the mistake of buying a home in London as two weeks later he was exiled to Montana. London brought in Abdullah Chanda who would finally play for the team that originally drafted him. Abdullah had developed in to a solid PF. The first really bad trade that the ownership had made was in a 3-way deal with New York and Montana. London once again received Pedro Otis and Rafael Mahaffey along with a 1st round pick and some cash. But they sent Eugene LaMaitre. Not only was Eugene scoring over 20 points a game, but as a SG he averaged 6 boards, a block and 2.5 steals. Otis simply couldn't match those numbers from the perennial all-star.

Regardless of that poor trade, London was winning nearly every night out. Finishing with franchise record 65-15 record. They were the #1 seed in the east. And to really stake their claim on supremacy in the east, they finished the season with an 11 game winning streak. London's 1st victim in the playoffs was Rochester. London outscored Rochester on average of 114-76 in three quick blowout wins. London shot 56% for the series and dominated in every significant category. London was then put to the test against Budapest. In a long 7 game series that made you laugh, it made you cry it made you punch through your neighbor's door in frustration. In the end London survived taking the decisive 7th game.

With Disco mania at all time high, the hit single was once again Staying Alive from the 70's. With Harry Jarvis and the Albacete Burning Hell next up, the hype was intense. Unfortunatly the series didn't match the hype as London cruised through hell winning 4 of the 5 games in the series. Within a short amount of time London was in the finals, but they would be facing the leagues top team in Colorado. Colorado finishing its 3rd straight season with 70 wins or more, with no titles to show for it. Once again the hype machine was in full force, as it was clear each conference had its best time representing their peeps.

Some say this is when Disco died, others say that Disco was dead years ago. Whichever tale you believe, London ran into the one team it couldn't beat 9 times out of 10. Colorado was a machine like that Russian dude on rocky 4. Except London was the Apollo Creed and not Rocky, and they were broken.

London was still looking good for the future, Horace Colbert who had signed as a free agent at the beginning of the year made London a contender, and everybody else knew it.

Season 6:

With a team they were happy with, London selected PF Gabriel Keniry in the later portions of the 1st round. He wasn't expected to make an immediate impact, and they were right… he didn't.

Horace Colbert on the other hand continued to lead this team scoring nearly 25 points a game. Davidson and Chande continued to do their thing. Even Ozzie Kramer started earning his paycheck chipping in 13 points a game. The offense was there, and the defense matched the offense. What a difference a year can make. As other teams improved, London seemed to fall back into the pack.

London still won 52 games on the year, but that was only good enough for the 5th seed. The eastern conference was simply that good. London once again was matched up against Albacete in a rematch of the previous years conference finals. This time around the Disco didn't have quite as easy as a time. When London won, they won big, The Burning Hell was able to steal away two close games. London was able to stave elimination in the 5th game.

Then they ran into the Yeager/Short show again from Boston. Boston being the #1 seed did what #1 seeds do. They beat the snot out of London so badly that many Britains were tempted to brush their teeth for once. If there is any happy note, at least Boston lost out in the finals to Western Conference juggernaut Cancun. Yeah, there is no happy note.

Season 7:

London was able to select a nice player in Brian Collins with the 11th pick. They hoped he would be able to provide some quality minutes right away. Perhaps more important was their 45th pick in which they selected Shavlik Kuhnapfel. Shavlik of course falls under the Haznor reference, therefore verifying his significance.

David Song once again was reluctant to make any major changes. London averaged 1 trade for every 7 trades that Virgin Islands made for the season. London finished with about 4 trades.

While London once again had another quality year going 50-30, it seemed more evident with Colbert and Davidson starting to slow down. While they still made the all-star team, they were not dominating like they had only a few shorts seasons ago. Brian Collins was a breath of fresh air. And it wasn't because he was promoting the Mentos: The Freshmaker, even though he was. Collins who didn't have a great shooting percentage, was able to put up enough shots to score 12 points a night. He also averaged 4 boards and assists each game in only 28 minutes. Plus he was playing some defense, just not that well. It seemed evident that Collins was a keeper, and a find basketball player in addition to his Keeper duties with Manchester united.

Everybody knew that London would be coming home early, after suffering two blowout losses to Brooklyn in the never sleeping state. London did manage to win game 3, but Brooklyn was all the Rage as they took a bite out of Disco.

Season 8:

With no draft picks at all, not even one to quality for the Haznor reference, Dave Song utilized draft day like most from the United Kingdom, and he got sloshed.

Despite some minor trades, London appeared to simply be holding on to any last grasp. Brian Collins showed that his rookie year was actually a indication of more good things to come. Just like when you bite into a jelly filled donut, you feel the donut and you know there is more sweetness inside.

Colbert continued to lead the team in scoring and rebounding. He was no longer getting the true 20/10 that general managers fantasize about. But 20/9 is still worthy of yet another all-star nod. Davidson continued to slow down as his assists per game dropped to 8. But he was putting up 19 points, and getting 2.5 steals each game. Collins improved his scoring to 15 points a game, and the other parts of his game were coming along nicely.

With the loss of offensive scoring that London had been riding like a cowgirl in past seasons now slipping away. Even despite the general decay of regular season dominance enjoyed by the eastern conference. London was simply not making the moves they were willing to make that made this team a title contender. They would just happy to stand pat and win a decent amount of games knowing they would be gone by the 2nd round at least.

With a lower seed, London faced off against against 4th seeded Budapest. And like you would expect a bunch of tigers faced off against a bunch of guys dressed in disco gear. The tigers were able to claw past London in 5 tough games.

Season 9:

Many fans were excited that finally London would be able to draft a future star to help out their aging stars. With the 4th pick it was expected they were be able to get Edgar Kamara or Juwan Bixby, or even Paul Spagnoli who had led his Paris Colelge team to a GCBA title.

Unfortunately, after 8 wine sprizters too many, Dave Song traded the 4 pick to Albacete for a pair of 1st round picks in the low teens in addition to Nick Adams. With the 11th pick, the Disco snagged Reuben Sax. And with the 19th pick they selected Trenton Meehan again for the Haznor reference.

The team unfortunately was ravaged with internal turmoil. Brian Collins was not pleased that Nick Adams was brought on board. He felt that he was being pushed out despite having a great year. His points were down to 14 a game, but he was shooting 6% better. Colbert's ravaged body was still putting up 17/7 a night. Davidsons' numbers continued to decline. Peter Parker was earning his spot on the team with double digit scoring. You would like that with 8 players averaging double digit scoring would mean you have one of the top teams in the league. This was not the case for London. For London only had 7 players in double digit scoring so they were once again in the middle of the pack. Good enough to make the playoffs but no real shot to win a title.

Because of the locker room problems caused by Collins, it was this reason that he was traded to Omaha for a 1st rounder and Parker. But not even the man who they say has spider-like senses could save this team.

Having slipped to the 6th seed, they were no longer even competing in the first round of the playoffs. Facing against Albacete, they were three and done. Fans openly began to murmur about David Song who had brought them to the title game only a few years earlier. Now some felt he was more interested in the sauce then getting this team where it should be. And were not talking about being in a 2nd world country.

Season 10:

Going into draft day, there was high hope with two late round picks. Perhaps the Disco would trade both to move up several spots. David Song decided keep his picks and draft several players that aren't even good enough for the legendary Haznor Kolvanis.

Finally realizing that it was time to get some value for their top players to help the team rebuild. Colbert had already left due to free agency. London traded Kelvin Davidson to Oregon. It earned the disco two 1st round picks and three seconds. Peter Parker seemed to shine on a team that had been stripped of any real talent left. Although Chanda still played well, even though he is starting to show his age. Sergey Danilov played very nicely grabbing 10 boards and 9 points a game. But winning 22 games for the year doesn't get you much except for a chance to win the lottery.

With the lack of attention given to the team, the media began to speculate if perhaps David Song was looking to sell the team once he was allowed to leave the Betty Ford clinic. Mr. Song publically has stated that the only way someone will take over this team is if they can pry it from his cold dead hands. Which could be as early as next season.