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August 27th, 2005
All-Star Weekend
Slam Dunk Contest Judges
#1 Steve Peterson
#2 Kevon Duke
#3 Roger Starr
#4 Henry Jordan
#5 Clifton Banko
NOTE: Our judges this season were much more strict when rating the dunks than last season's were, with only 5 perfect scores for the entire competition!
ROUND 1
Mark Carr,COL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 10 9 10 10 10 49
2nd 10 10 10 10 10 50 99
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Jay Dickinson,BAL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 10 10 8 47
2nd 10 10 10 10 10 50 97
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Wayne Taylor,NEB #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 10 10 10 10 9 49
2nd 9 10 9 10 9 47 96
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Evilio Nunez,MEX #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 8 10 10 10 8 46
2nd 10 10 10 10 10 50 96
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Elvin Sanders,ARK #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 8 10 8 45
2nd 10 10 10 10 10 50 95
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Omar Jefferson,BRK #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 8 9 9 44
2nd 10 10 9 10 10 49 94
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Devonta Corrigan,AND #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 8 9 10 10 8 45
2nd 9 10 10 10 9 48 93
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Al Lee,PAR #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 8 10 8 45
2nd 9 10 10 10 9 48 93
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Harold Gil,SAC #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 8 10 8 10 9 45
2nd 9 10 8 10 10 47 92
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Jevon Carter,NY #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 8 10 8 45
2nd 10 9 8 10 10 47 92
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Emmett Yee,TOR #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 8 8 9 9 43
2nd 10 10 10 10 9 49 92
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Samir Sheth,COL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 7 8 7 9 7 38
2nd 9 10 9 10 9 47 85
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ELIMINATED: Devonta Corrigan,AND
Al Lee,PAR
Harold Gil,SAC
- last season's champ was dissapointing this time!
Jevon Carter,NY
Emmett Yee,TOR
Samir Sheth,COL
ROUND 2
Mark Carr,COL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 10 10 9 10 9 48
2nd 9 10 10 10 10 49 97
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Omar Jefferson,BRK #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 10 10 9 10 8 46
2nd 9 10 9 10 10 48 95
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Jay Dickinson,BAL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 8 10 10 10 9 47
2nd 10 10 10 8 9 47 94
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Elvin Sanders,ARK #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 8 9 8 10 10 45
2nd 10 10 9 10 9 48 93
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Evilio Nunez,MEX #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 9 9 10 8 45
2nd 9 10 10 10 9 48 93
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Wayne Taylor,NEB #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 7 9 8 9 8 41
2nd 10 10 10 10 10 50 91
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ELIMINATED: Jay Dickinson,BAL
Elvin Sanders,ARK
Evilio Nunez,MEX
Wayne Taylor,NEB - his perfect score with his 2nd dunk,
wasn't enough to save him and get him to the final.
ROUND 3
Mark Carr,COL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 10 9 10 10 10 49
2nd 10 10 9 10 9 48 97
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Omar Jefferson,BRK #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 TOTAL
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1st 9 10 9 10 8 46
2nd 10 10 10 10 9 49 95
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ELIMINATED:
CHAMPION: Mark Carr, COL - That's right! The Colorado rookie who is averaging a very respectable 15.5 points per game this season is our Slam Dunk Competition Champion!!!
He actually had the highest rated dunk total in every single round!
3-Point Contest Participants
Andorra: Zacharia Salera
Boston: Danny Hainge
Baltimore: Mike Ivey
Oregon: Bishop Stein
Charlotte: Abdulla Chanda
Cancun: Parker Mason
Gabon: John Devine
Colorado: Mark Carr
Omaha: Ramiro Watts
Capetown: Abdiel Gordon
Miami: Oman Fatafehi
Mexico City: Chad Nolan
Frankfurt: Branko Filipovic
Long Island: Paul Carroll
Toronto: Walt Jackson
NY: Jevon Carter
Alaska: Isaac Rice
Cincinnati: Dennis Evans
Paris: Charlie Meyers
Brooklyn: Omar Jefferson
Sacramento: Jaxon McCall
Nebraska: Wayne Taylor
Albacete: Tony DiMateo
Rochester: Dave Williams
Round 1
Zacharia salera 00112 11102 11012 11110 11012= 23
Danny Hainge 11110 11100 00110 11010 10102= 16
Mike Ivey 11112 00112 10102 01002 10112= 23
Bishop Stein 11010 01112 11112 11012 01012= 23
Abdulla Chanda 11012 11112 11000 01002 11000= 18
Parker Mason 11100 01112 11102 11112 11102= 24
John Devine 11012 10102 10012 01010 01102= 18
Mark Carr 10000 01002 11112 00010 11112= 17
Ramiro Watts 00110 00010 01102 00100 10012= 12
Abdiel Gordon 11110 11110 11112 01112 11112= 25
Oman Fatafehi 10012 00110 00012 00112 11012= 18
Chad Nolan 01010 10000 01102 01010 00100= 10
Branko Filipovic 11102 10112 00112 11112 11112= 26
Paul Carroll 11112 01110 11010 11010 10112= 20
Walt Jackson 11002 10110 11112 11112 11112= 25
This is where the pressure got on. From now on a player
must score atleast 20 points to make it to the second round.
Jevon Carter 00002 11112 10112 01110 10100= 18
Issac Rice 11102 01000 00002 00112 11000= 14
Dennis Evans 01112 00012 11102 00100 11112= 20
A heroic last rack keeps Evans in the competition. But,
will it hold up to the end of the first round?
Charlie Meyer 01010 10002 11110 11002 10010= 15
Omar Jefferson 00012 11012 11100 01112 11112= 22
With a strong performance by the streaky Omar Jefferson
the bar is raised to 22 knocking out Paul Carroll and
Dennis Evans and putting a lot of pressure on the four
remaining players.
Jaxon McCall 10100 10112 10110 10100 01110= 15
Wayne Taylor 01112 11012 01112 10112 01112= 25
This terrific performance knocked Omar Jefferson out of
the second round and makes it so a player needs to score
23 points to even have a shot at the second round.
Tony Dimateo 11110 11112 10010 11112 00112= 22
Dave Williams 10110 01010 11012 10110 01112= 18
Round 2
Zacharia Salera 11010 01012 11112 00112 11000= 19
This was a disappointing performance after a very strong
first round.
Mike Ivey 11112 01110 01112 00112 00112= 22
Bishop Stein 11102 11012 00012 11102 01110= 21
Parker Mason 11010 01000 11110 10100 01110= 13
Wow! No one expects Parker Mason to choke like this. Not
only did he get a terrible score but he didn't hit a
single money ball.
Abdiel Gordon 11012 00112 10110 11112 10100= 20
Branko Filipovic 11110 11112 11112 01112 11112= 27
This fantatic performance has been the highlight of what
so far has been a lackluster second round.
Walt Jackson 11100 10102 01102 01012 11112= 21
This solid performance assures Walt Jackson of at least a
shoot-off with Stein if Tayor scores 22 or better.
Wayne Taylor 11110 11112 10102 11112 11010= 23
Round 2 Shoot-off
Bishop Stein 11112 10112 11102 11112 01112= 27
Walt Jackson 01112 11112 11112 01012 11112= 27
The Shoot-off is making up for the lack of excitement in
the rest of the second round.
Bishop Stein 10110 01012 01012 10000 01012= 16
What a difference. Dropping from 27 points to 16 is a
radical difference. Jackson has to be feeling pretty
confident.
Walt Jackson 01100 11012 01112 10110 01110= 18
After two clutch performances is the first part of the
shoot-off both players choked and Walt jackson gets to
advance because he choked the least.
Round 3
Mike Ivey 11112 11100 01002 11100 00002= 17
Ivey had been playing over his head and it caught up to
him in this round.
Branko Filipovic 11012 11012 10012 10102 11112= 24
Another strong performance!
Walt Jackson 10100 10112 11112 11110 01110= 20
A decent performance but it doesn't pu tthe type of
pressue on Wayne Taylor that was hoped.
Wayne Taylor 11010 11112 11002 11112 11110= 23
Final Round
Branko Filipovic 10012 11112 11112 01112 11112= 27
Another huge performance by Filipovic puts the pressure
on Taylor. Whose best performance of the day is 25.
Wayne Taylor 11110 11112 01110 11100 11112= 22
Branko Filipovic of Frankfurt is the Champion
(21-31) Western Rookies 19 24 25 23 - 91 (Chad Nolan 24)
(22-30) Eastern Rookies 18 39 9 29 - 95 (Steve Carter 15)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Western Rookies FG FT 3P REB
MIN M-A M-A M-A O-T A PF BLK TO STL PTS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jervan Timmons 26 2- 5 0- 0 0- 1 0- 6 3 1 0 1 1 4
Bruce Banks 8 1- 2 0- 0 0- 1 1- 3 1 1 0 0 0 2
Davion Stahl 14 1- 4 2- 2 0- 0 0- 2 1 0 0 0 1 4
Mark Carr 27 3-14 4- 4 1- 2 0- 3 3 1 0 0 3 11
DaRond Lyons 26 8-14 6- 6 0- 2 0- 2 4 0 0 2 1 22
Joe Torney 27 3- 7 3- 4 0- 2 0- 3 4 2 0 1 2 9
Darryl Whittaker 28 1- 7 5- 6 0- 1 1- 5 2 3 1 5 0 7
Chad Nolan 29 10-18 4- 4 0- 1 0- 9 1 1 4 1 1 24
Tyrell Clay 28 1- 4 2- 2 0- 0 0- 4 3 4 0 2 1 4
Jalon Clair 28 2- 6 0- 0 0- 3 1- 9 1 4 4 6 0 4
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals 240 32- 81 26-28 1-13 3-46 23 17 9 18 10 91
39.5% 92.9% 7.7%
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Coached by:
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Eastern Rookies FG FT 3P REB
MIN M-A M-A M-A O-T A PF BLK TO STL PTS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Brice Bell 17 1- 9 2- 2 0- 0 0- 1 3 5 0 0 1 4
Luca McMillan 25 4- 8 0- 0 1- 2 0- 2 5 2 0 1 2 9
Geoffrey Caldwell 24 2- 8 1- 2 0- 1 0- 5 2 1 0 2 3 5
Jim Woods 24 3- 6 2- 2 0- 0 1- 4 5 0 0 1 1 8
Brenden Dawson 25 5-12 1- 2 0- 3 1- 2 4 1 1 0 2 11
Justus Rhodes 25 3- 8 2- 2 1- 3 1- 2 3 0 1 0 1 9
Steve Carter 26 5-11 5- 6 0- 0 3- 5 2 4 1 3 1 15
Kurt Beck 25 6-14 2- 2 1- 2 1- 6 1 1 2 0 1 15
Jarrod Roe 25 4-11 0- 0 0- 3 0- 7 4 2 2 1 1 8
George Faup 25 4-11 2- 2 1- 1 2- 8 2 3 0 2 1 11
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals 240 37- 98 17-20 4-15 9-42 31 19 7 10 14 95
37.8% 85.0% 26.7%
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coached by:
Lead Changes: 11 Ties: 9 (23-23)
Go-Ahead Shot: Brenden Dawson (73-72)
Largest Leads: Western Rookies -- 4 (4-0)
Eastern Rookies -- 16 (57-41)
Injuries: Western Rookies Eastern Rookies
Davion Stahl 3
==============================================================================
(19-32) Western All-Sta 24 26 28 29 - 107 (Kent Mercer 19)
(37-14) Eastern All-Sta 32 33 26 32 - 123 (Shane Strom 20)
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Western All-Stars FG FT 3P REB
MIN M-A M-A M-A O-T A PF BLK TO STL PTS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bishop Stein 21 3- 7 3- 4 0- 1 2- 5 4 1 0 1 1 9
Dave Troychak 19 5- 8 1- 1 0- 2 0- 0 2 1 0 0 2 11
Obafemi Mabruke 20 3- 9 3- 4 0- 0 2- 6 3 1 0 3 3 9
Kent Mercer 20 7-11 4- 4 1- 1 0- 1 1 1 2 1 0 19
Lou Gonzales 20 2- 5 3- 4 0- 0 3- 4 2 2 1 0 0 7
Parker Mason 20 2- 3 2- 2 0- 1 1- 1 3 1 0 2 0 6
Samir Sheth 19 3- 9 3- 4 0- 0 0- 2 1 3 0 1 0 9
Austyn Williams 17 3- 7 0- 0 0- 0 0- 1 3 2 0 0 0 6
Jaxon McCall 22 3- 7 0- 0 1- 3 1- 4 1 2 0 1 0 7
Wayne Taylor 21 3-11 4- 4 0- 0 1- 4 2 2 0 1 0 10
Cory Mosley 20 2- 6 2- 2 0- 1 1- 7 0 1 0 0 0 6
Craig Bradshaw 21 4- 8 0- 0 0- 1 2- 6 0 5 2 0 0 8
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals 240 40- 91 25-29 2-10 13-41 22 22 5 10 6 107
44.0% 86.2% 20.0%
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coached by:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eastern All-Stars FG FT 3P REB
MIN M-A M-A M-A O-T A PF BLK TO STL PTS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Anson Valente 21 3- 4 1- 2 1- 1 0- 2 6 1 0 0 2 8
Danny Hainge 22 3- 8 4- 4 0- 1 0- 3 2 3 0 0 3 10
Devonta Corrigan 21 6- 7 0- 0 0- 0 2- 8 2 2 1 0 1 12
Heiko Van Brandt 21 7- 9 0- 0 0- 0 0- 3 5 1 0 0 1 14
Jay Vasquez 21 7-11 1- 1 0- 1 1- 3 1 2 3 0 0 15
Yuri Vilasny 15 1- 3 2- 2 1- 2 1- 1 6 1 0 0 0 5
Oliver Doherty 13 2- 5 2- 2 0- 3 0- 1 2 1 0 1 1 6
Mario Bailey 22 3- 7 2- 2 0- 0 0- 0 2 2 0 2 0 8
Dave Williams 21 6- 9 1- 1 1- 2 0- 2 2 3 0 0 1 14
Shane Strom 22 10-18 0- 2 0- 3 2- 6 5 3 0 0 0 20
Jerry Bramson 22 1- 4 0- 0 0- 0 3- 5 0 2 2 3 0 2
Jim McCarthy 21 3- 9 3- 4 0- 0 0- 1 1 1 4 0 1 9
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals 240 52- 94 16-20 3-13 9-35 34 22 10 6 10 123
55.3% 80.0% 23.1%
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Coached by:
Technical Fouls: Danny Hainge 1
Lead Changes: 1 Ties: 2 (8-8)
Go-Ahead Shot: Jim McCarthy (10-8)
Largest Leads: Western All-Stars -- 2 (2-0)
Eastern All-Stars -- 21 (73-52)
Injuries: Western All-Stars Eastern All-Stars
Wayne Taylor 1
==============================================================================
August 25th, 2005
All-Stars Announced!!!
Eastern All-StarsStarters:
PG Anson Valente, Baltimore
SG Danny Hainge, Boston
SF Devonta Corrigan, Andorra
PF Heiko Van Brandt, Paris
C Jay Vazquez, Paris
Reserves:
Yuri Vilasny, Frankfurt
Oliver Doherty, Long Island
Mario Bailey, Brooklyn
Dave Williams, Rochester
Shane Strom, Brooklyn
Jerry Bramson, Gabon
Jim McCarthy, Rochester
Rookies
Brice Bell, London
Luca McMillan, Boston
Geoffrey Caldwell, Toronto
Jim Woods, Frankfurt
Brendan Dawson, Long Island
Justus Rhodes, Baltimore
Steve Carter, Baltimore
Kurt Beck, Rochester
Jarrod Roe, Gabon
George Faup, London
Western All-Stars
Starters:
PG Bishop Stein, Oregon
SG Dave Troychak, Miami
SF Obafemi Mabruke, Capetown
PF Kent Mercer, Cancun
C Lou Gonzalez, Oregon
Reserves:
Parker Mason, Cancun
Samir Sheth, Colorado
Austyn Williams, SLC
Jaxon McCall, Sacramento
Wayne Taylor, Nebraska
Corey Mosley, Alaska
Craig Bradshaw, Cincinnati
Rookies:
Jervan Timmons, Nebraska
Bruce Banks, Arkansas
Davion Stahl, Omaha
Mark Carr, Colorado
Darond Lyons, Arkansas
Joe Torney, Oregon
Darryl Whittaker, Miami
Chad Nolan, Mexico City
Tyrell Clay, Arkansas
Jalon Clair, Alaska
August 22nd, 2005
Around the WBA
Harry Jarvis has been playing a lot of minutes as he attempts to carry Albacete into the play-offs. Unfortunately, his body is beginning to rebel. He is having serious swelling and cramps and has suffered a minor groin pull. Team doctors are expecting it to be a week before he is up to playing again.
Cincinatti's Frank Rose is expected to miss a couple of games with sever athlete's foot.
Rochester's Jimmy Whalen had a minor heart attack whil ehaving dinner in Boston after their victory over Boston. Doctor's say that they expect a full recovery but they also are temporarily not allowing him to play basketball so that they can keep him under observation. Reports are that if all goes well Rochester fans could see him playing agai in three to four weeks.
In frustration Cincinatti's Trent Jordan took a swing at Paul Wilson who was keeping him completely off the boards. The Referees did not see the altercation but after a complaint was files by Paul Wilson who received a bloody nose the league has decided to suspend Jordan for 3 games.
August 20th, 2005
This report is as of Day 48, over the half-way point for the season. With the All-Star week lurking around the corner, we are forced to take a look at the playoff predictions as of now and projected finishes of teams.
Western Conference
Oregon 33-11
Cancun 33-11
Capetown 31-14
Nebraska 30-14
Colorado 28-16
Miami 24-22
Charlotte 21-23
Sacramento 19-25
--------------------------------
Salt Lake City 18-26 (-1)
Alaska 16-28; season record vs Mexico City 3-0 (-3)
Mexico City 16-28 (-3)
Cincy 15-30 (-4.5)
Arkansas 14-30 (-5)
Omaha 11-33
Many say the Western Conference has weaken this year and that may be true, with teams like Cincy falling hard and Defunct Washington now Arkansas out of playoffs contention as of now. There is hope, with Oregon and Cancun leading the way and Capetown and Nebraska not too far behind. And let us not forget Colorado… Yea Eugenie is back in the league but not with Colorado, would it even be different? We will just say this for the readers to dream about.
SAME SONG
OREGON- led by the strong play of Bishop Stein and Donavan Jones finds itself back on top of the Western Conference. Donavan just recorded his 4th Triple-Double of the season and I am sure he will finish with almost 7 this season. Oregon made a trade for the future by acquiring Marquez Houston from Alaska. These two players with their similar playing styles was and equal trade, well not for the future. But Houston is maintaining in Oregon with a nice 14.6 point average and 10.2 rebound a game. What needs to be said about Big Lou… He is him and we know who he is… Again this season he is shooting above 60% per game, while averaging 23.1 points. Oregon is also averaging a league best 114 points a game. Look for them to remain on top and be the number one seed in the West.
CANCUN- They are actually tied for the first spot, but because of point average, I placed Oregon as #1… Cancun isn't to take this as a slap to the face. They are and have been a tough team to beat. You could flip Oregon and Cancun depending on what you like. If you prefer Defense, then Cancun is your team. The league's stingiest team only allows 97 ppg while scoring just over 109 a contest. Kent Mercer is a major reason why Cancun is on top, he is averaging 23 ppg, 9.4 rpg, 2.6 bpg, and shooting 52% from the floor. He is on his way to MVP numbers. Parker Mason has always been a crowd pleaser. His numbers are as they use to be, but still he is a PG that is averaging 6.2 rebounds a game. That is more than some forwards and centers in the league. Enuff said. I really don't see Cancun finishing on top or even in the 2nd position. They are a solid team but there is another team that I just favor more.
DA SURPRISE
Surprises are not always good things… But when you take over a team that is an elite franchise and run them into the ground, I would say the league is surprised… You know who they are, the ARKANSAS Stingers… Defunct Washington post Sam Era… How about Sam in Charlotte, is he the Zen Master of the WBA? Arkansas' record last season was 48-32… Now I know Tim isn't Sam and this team isn't the Washington of old. But Tim was hand selected by Sam, and he was able to take this team into the playoffs last season. So what happened?! Um, I think Espo cursed him with the trading bug. This team has basically self destructed. The last time WA/ARK sucked was back in season 2 (22-58). Trade 1: Yee and Kruger for who? Dasher and Quintall Pitt and Dino's 1st round next season (may pay off)… Trade 2: AJ Schulz for Jack Berger and Bruce Johnson and the #9 pick. Then they gave the number nine pick to the Dinos for Buck Jones. And the final piece, bye bye Boom Boom… Hello Jack Spiegel and Harry Applegate. This team has finish the destruction. There is a bright spot in Elvin Sanders and the defense of Dasher… That is it… Remember that #9 pick, well Buck Jones is averaging 6.8 ppg and the #9 pick (Geoffrey Caldwell) averaging 8.5 ppg. Enuff said…
WHO'S IN AND WHO'S OUT
Well definitely Oregon, Cancun, Capetown, Nebraska, and Colorado are on the way to the playoffs and nothing will stop them. On the way out, Arkansas and Omaha. I don't see a way in hell for them to make the playoffs. Mexico City, Alaska, and Salt Lake City will battle for the final spot that Sacramento holds as of now! I do expect to see Sacramento to possibly hold on, but a combined record of 2-7 against those three teams, they could fall HARD. Alaska with a 7-4 record against Sac, Salt, and Mex City, have a good chance of taking the final spot. Salt Lake has yet to play Mex City…
Eastern Conference
Long Island 37-7
Paris 35-9
Rochester 27-17
Andorra 25-19
London 25-20
Boston 24-20
Brooklyn 24-20
Albacete 21-23
Budapest 21-24
Toronto 18-26
Baltimore 16-28
Gabon 16-29
New York 14-31
Frankfurt 8-36
SAME SONG
With the new look Eastern Conference, things just aren't the same. The old powerhouses like Washington, Brooklyn, Albacete, Boston, and Gabon have fallen off. The league is filled with new bright young players and these franchises have yet to really get there fingers on the new talent. The same song isn't the same song, its just the “Old School Lunch” for better Western teams. Now if we really look at it, there is still some teams that have actually gotten better like Rochester and London is picking it back up.
DA SURPRISE
Long Island… Has Espo finally done it… Remember Montana, Mon-who… Montana, the Western Conference meaning of mediocre. Well now they are the Eastern Conference Elite… The best team in the league and firing on all cylinders. Perkins, Doherty, and Sophmore Gorman are leading this team… Gorman is averaging just under 10 assist a game and scoring 15.6 points. Long Island is outscoring their opponents by 10 points a game and out rebounding them by 8 boards… Darn, its amazing what a move can do for a team. Stephenson is finally able to sit back and relax and let the others take control of this team… Expect Long Island to remain on top… But the playoffs will bring them heck. They aren't use to being a #1 seed. If the season would to end now, they would face Albacete, which could lead to a 1st round disappointment.
August 15th, 2005
Around the WBA
Marten Kurpeikis of SLC will miss just more than a week due to passing a kidney stone.
London's Garvin Wright tore a muscle in his arm and is expected to miss most of the rest of the season.
August 12th, 2005
WBA MID-SEASON REPORT CARDS-Part One Pacfic Divison
By Greg Ross
We have almost reached the mid point of the season and I thought I would take a look around the league and evaluate all of the teams. Each team will be graded in several areas along with an overall grade. We will also give a percentage so you can see how close to the next level a team was or wasn't. Here is a breakdown of what will be graded and the grade chart:
Offence
Defence
Player Moves(Trades and Wavier Claims)
Future(rest of the season and Beyond)
Expectations(Where this team is as relates to where it was thought to be)
Overall(Everything)
Grades
A+=95% or above
A=90-95%
A-=85-90%
B+=80-85%
B=75-80%
B-=70-75%
C+65-70%
C 60-65%
F Below 60%
NEBRASKA SUN WARRIORS
Offence: (B) Add a rookie of the year with a WBA legend and you get pure magic. Even better how bout TNT. Thats not turner network televison or the chessy show MR.T did after he long since left the A-Team. But to qoute Hanibal Smith" I Love it when a plan comes together". Taylor and Timmions are all that and a bag of chips. They have jump started Nebraska to an impressive start. Middle of the pack overall but they would be much worse without there TNT.
Defence:(A+) An Excellent defensive team they have that kind of championship type defence that will serve them well come playoff time. Again it is anchored by a true WBA Living Legend Wayne Taylor.
Player Moves: (A+) Outstanding leading up to this years draft Neberska did a great job to get a great young star in the end. Nebraska to me as always been one of the most proactive owners in the league. Knowing how to makes move to stay young and still be considered a top level team. After a ho hum season 10 nebraska is back and back strong.
Future: (A-) Timmions is a legit star and may have skills to be a great legend one day. Speaking of legends how many years can Wayne Taylor keep this up. I really don't know thats why the A-.
Expectations: (B+) Far ahead of where I though they might be. I thought this may have been a rebuilding year but it is anything but. Timmions has played like an experienced veteren. Adding new life to a team that had gotten stale.
Overall: (A+) I think Nebraska is doing the most with the least at least in the western conference. To say they are above many people perdicton is fair to say. They still are not better than top dogs Oregon but they seem as close as ever.
Oregon Bears
Offence:(A+) They lead the league in scoring and i'll give you to guesses as too why. If you didn't say Lou and Bishop shame on you. They together drove Oregon to a WBA Title and look good on being a top contender to defend it's title. After a slow start it's clear Oregon and it's high octane offence is back and a force to be dealt with.
Defence:(A) Only 8 teams in the WBA have held opposition to under 100 points on average and oregon is one of them. Add that with the best offence and Oregon out scores oppoents by an impressive 15 a night. This is what makes oregon on of the toughest teams in the WBA to match up against. The offence gets the attention but the defence gets them a lot of the W's on the standings.
Player Moves: (B+) I'm a big believer in not messing with a good thing. Oregon however still has the same foundation but made a lot of moves for the parts to go with that foundation. I have like some of the moves others I haven't in the end they are still wining so it doesn't matter much but this Oregon Team as a whole may not be as good as the team that won last year. However Stien is better and that may trump anything else. But the most interesting move is the recent trade with Mexico this may be the trade that will change my mind. But Oregon hasn't moved the 2 guys that get it done if they had i don't care what they got you would see an F in this section. Bishop and Lou are that good.
Future:(B+): Seems that Oregon has taken an active approach to defending it's title and that will serve them well long term. Short term they seem to have been able to keep it's great team chemistry so all looks good for this franchise still being a contender for the future. Locking up Stien really was key for this team and it gives them some major stability.
Expectation:(A-) To be the defending champs is tough. Part of the reason is high expectations. But on more nights than not Oregon lives up to thr hype and on some surpasses it. This is what great teams do. Oregon is definately one of those. Only reason the grade is what it was is based on a less than impressive start of the season.
Overall:(A) I think this team is definately a threat to defend it's WBA Title and win the west again. They don't seem to have many week points quite frankly and are a dominate force. If anyone picks Oregon to reeat has champions I am not going to argue with them.As we move along in this Oregon is really the measuring stick especially with teams in the west.
Colorado Pioneers
Offence:(B+) Once again this team is dependent on Samir Seth to provide the majority of the offence maybe even more than before. Although if Carr the second overall pick continues to improve seth may finally have someone to help with the offensive load. 8th overall would get most teams a high grade but we expect more from Colorado. Seth is however second in the league in scoring.
Defence:(A-) The team also ranks 8th in defence but we see this team as a more offence oriented team thus the higher grade for the equal rank on the defensive end of the floor. bad news is despite being ranked 8th in the league that makes them the third best in the divison. The Pacfic is no joke. The Pioneers know that though and need to rise to the level of neberska and oregon.
Player Moves (F) Please get Seth some help I am begging you. Sometimes making no move is a good move but not in this case for 2 years i have covered this league and I still am waiting to see Seth get some star power to help him lead this team. A whole team on your back every night is a lot to ask of any guy.
Future:(B+) Carr could turn out to be the guy we want to help Seth but the time is now. Carr is not there yet but could be in a season or two. Despite that you have to wonder if Devonte Sthal will get there faster. But Neither can help in a major way yet. Carr may not end up as good as Sthal but he still will be good enough to help Seth lead the team in the future.
Expectations(C+) We perhaps are being to hard on Colorado but its only cause we have such a high opinion of this team that we do.But having said that this team has basically stayed where it was or even a step behind. Look for them to pick it up in the second half of the season.
Overall(B) I think we have covered it to this point Colorado is still an elite team but could and probably should be better than where they presently find themseleves.
Sacramento Fighting Cocks
Offence:(A) Scoring is this teams stength 2 players averaging over 20 and 3rd best has 17. I mean thats good enough to lead a bad team in scoring. This team has the guns offence to compete with anyone in the league. There sub .500 record is not because they can't put the ball in the basket that is for sure.
Defence(F) For all the greatness on offence there defence is horrible. Maybe they are tired from all that scoring. But if Sacremento ever hopes to be a contender instead of a pretender in the toughest divison in the league they better find a few people that can play at both ends of the floor. Losing
120-112 ever night may make exciting basketball but it doesn't lead to wins and championships. So if you can defend your girlfriend in one on one than give Sactown a call you may be able to play on thier defence. They won't need you to score they have that covered.
Future( B-) If Sacremento commits to finding some defenders to add to its rotation this could be a very good team and be able to have a shot against some of the big dogs that rule the west. It's clear they have offence out the ying yang time to bring in some all defence players from the GCBA or Via Trade. Do that and you have a team that is ready to step to the next level.
Player Moves (C) Only one trade and they basically gave New York way to much for role players at best. If Jimmy Foster is worth that much than I'll eat my shorts. On second thought Barkley bashed Yao annd had to kiss a donkeys butt. Still New York legally robbed Sactown. If your only going make one trade than try making it a good one.
Expectation:(B+) I think this team is doing well given where they play if Sacremento was the captial of Rhode Island than the playoffs would be a no brainer. But being in Cali as it is that makes them perminant residents of the western conference. In that case they still should have a decent shot at being a playoff team but will likely get crushed in round 1 by a stronger challenger. Still coming into the season I think Sactown being a playoff team would be a little bit better than I may have seen them. So good job for now. Lucky that under .500 is good enough to make the playoffs in the west perhaps.
Overall: (C+) This team to me is all show and no go. Other than a great offence that can score there isn't much here. Not to say with some tweaking this could be a far better team because it can be. But we don't live in a world of what could be we live in a world of what have you done for me lately and in that regaurd Sactown has done little to impress other than wear out scoreboards on both sides home and away.
Salt Lake City Fanatics
Offence(B+) A team that has balanced scoring is a great thing. SLC has 5 guys averaging double figures. Give me 5 good scorers over 2 great ones any day of the week. At least your offence is not dependent on 1 or 2 guys getting it done. But many teams have been able to do that. I still say give me 5 that can score. But the problem lies in the bench after those 5 you have very little in production. This is a problem. A team usind such a short rotation like this is on injury from a nightmire.
Defence(C+) SLC has no D. They need to find one. this can also be attributed to the lack of depth. Guys logging heavy minutes get heavy legs especially on the defensive side of the court. In a conference and divison of high power offence you need to be able to defend. Many teams in this league suffer from this problem though its not something that is just in Salt Lake City.
Future(C) If you are running a tight rotation how do you build up your young talent? Well you don't really. I mean you can have a guy busting his butt in practice all year but if he never sees the floor how good can he be. Not to mention what kind of confidence and loyalty will this guy have to rely on? Not much. This is a style of coaching it would appear more than a lack of true talent. So I'm not confident this teams future will get brighter until they get a new way of using what it has. Will it happen? Ask Brad only he knows.
Expectation(B) We didn't expect a lot and well were getting a little better than not a lot. the team has at least made its fans think they have a shot at the playoffs but the honest answer is that shot seems slim to me. If they can do it than thats better than we thought for them.
Player Moves:(B) No players coming Via Trade but they have managed to secure some picks which could help in the long run address the depth issues on this team. Eric Manning was no Payton Manning and he may not even be an Eli Manning but he turned into a first rd pick for SLC. To bad some fans won't live to see the pic as it is not til Season 16.
Overall(B-) They really have just been in about same spot as last year at this time and with re-alignment and all that isn't horrible but It's far from good as well. This team seems to look like they will fall short of the mark again this year. SLC fans deserve better.
Alaska Snow Bears
Offence(F) The easy answer is Alaska changes players so often its hard to know who is out on the floor from night to night. Chemistry is an often over looked element to success. Alaska chemistry is performed by a mad scientist. 94.7 Points a game is not going to cut it. In fairness they have attempted to get scoring by acquiring league all time leading scorer Boom Boom Casey. But he is a shadow of himself and seemed to start falling in Arkansas. Even if he picks it up in Alaska the clock is ticking on him. The team is also paying buyouts to half the players in the league. I mean think what all that money could buy you in offence.
Defence(C+) They are not the worst defence in the league and acquiring Harry Kramer sould help for the rest of this season but expect him to be gone after this year. It's like putting a band-aid on a huge hole in the wall. Eventually the cracks will show through. The best thing we can say is there defence is better than there offence. Thats not saying much.
Future(F) It's clear this team lacks the vision to build success. Til that lesson is learned I don't see how this team can have any meaniful success. A win over Oregon to start the season is great but its just a good memory now fact is if any team was hurt by re-alignment more than Alaska you tell me who it is? With that said it's vital for this team to have a plan a stick too it for more than 10 games. This may seem harsh but reality can be that way.
Player Moves(B) 5 moves in all couple nice deals with Oregon but they trade some of that away to Toronto in the 3 way deal to get Casey and Kramer. Basically if you are batting 2 for 5 on trades than it may be time to look at them closer. In the end Alaska seems to be very reaction oriented when it comes to trades. Sometimes a lot can be said for passing on a deal just as much as for making one. Bottom Line is for all the moves Alaska is no better off in the standings where it counts.
Expectations(B+) I honest would have bet under 20 wins for this team at the begining of the year. This is Alaska it still could happen but it seems unlikely. They are better than expected but when you expected to be horrible thats not saying much at all. Another year in the draft lottery seems the safe bet still. The New York Liberty are banking on it as they hold that pick. A daily double for NY While Alaska will pick lower than they should and need too. Not good news as you look forward.
Overall(C+) Poor Snow Bears will they ever get it right thats what I wonder ever time I see an Alaska boxscore. They seem to take 2 steps back for every step forward. I am frustrated just writing about it. I can't imagine what it's like for that organization and more importantly it's fans. If you are a snowbears fan than you have the patience of God and I applaud you.
Omaha Wild
Offence(F) 4th from the bottom with only 95pg that is one of the many reasons the wild have been the worst team in the WBA this season. Davonte Sthal a guy I thought was ROY material is averaging ony 5.4 points per game. Watts leads the team with just a shade over 17. A complete mess may some up the Wild Season and its offence.
Defence(C) Not much better here. This team has struggled to stop anyone and is in need of help. If I was in Omaha I'd want to be Bobby Ewing and wake up and find out that this season was all a bad dream. But pinch yourself it is real. In fact real bad.
Future(C) There is hope if the scouts on omaha perform better than the team. Like New York and possibly Arkansas, Omaha will have 2 chances to win the draft lottery and probably the best 2 chances with Cincy pick and their own. Worst case seniero they probably have 2 top 5 picks. That can change the future greatly. But if you base it on whats on the floor now this team is in trouble.
Player Moves(B) They were able to trade down to 3 and still get the player they wanted first overall. But how good would Timmions look on this Wild team thats what fans will say for years and to trade the pick to state and Division Rival. Ouch!!! But still they got the guy they wanted and a lot more so just cause the took the wrong guy you can't fualt the trade.
Expectations(F) I think this has been shocking. This team was suppose to be a team on the rise but instead they are a car wreck. I don't claim to have the answers as to why but when you mention Omaha the first word that springs to mind is DISAPPOINTMENT!!!
Overall(F) Nightmire plain and simple. This has been one of the worst seasons in this franchises history I think thats fair to say.
Next we will be looking at the brand new southern divison till than this is Greg Ross saying chow.
August 11th, 2005
Why Long Island is the Best Team in the World.
By: Joe Spencer
When I heard that the Montana Knights planned on moving to Long Island this past off-season, I was wondering why New York needed another WBA franchise. Brooklyn and Rochester aren't getting old amongst fans, are they? However, Montana never seemed to have a large enough population to support a profession franchise, especially since the tourists in the area were more interested in seeing Glacier National Park than a basketball game. Also, seeing that Michael Esposito has been deemed as a threat to the security to the European Union, and most Asian countries, I decided the I might as well not complain that he was only able to move the team to his hometown in Long Island.
However, more surprising to me was that Long Island has, through almost the halfway mark of the WBA season, amassed the leagues' best record at 31-7. This seemed to be unexpected, at least to us in the Andorra media, as we never predicted that Michael Esposito would ever have a good team again after all of the lineup changes and trades that were made throughout the past few seasons. So I, Joe Spencer, was forced to take a look at what may be the reason for the team's success so far this year:
Could it be motivation? Sheldon Gorman, the #2 pick of the Season 10 draft, was reportedly was very upset, and even angered, by being overshadowed all of last season by the intense hype surrounding the #1 pick, Walt Jackson. Gorman was determined to show this year that he had a legitimate shot at being rookie of the year the previous season. Now, this year, Gorman is responding with all-star caliber numbers, averaging a double-double with his 16.2 ppg and 10.2 rpg, up from 12.9 and 7.6 in his rookie season, and is shooting nearly 50% from the field. At the same time, Walt Jackson is still struggling to find a consistent shot for a not-so-hot Toronto team, although he is scoring over 18 ppg.
Motivation can also apply to Oliver Doherty, who is having a career year this season, leading Long Island with 22.2 ppg, and shooting 45.4% from the field -- vast improvements from last season when he only shot 36.5% and averaged 14.5 ppg. This past week, I talked to Doherty to see what is making the difference for him this year. "Well, at the end of last season, Antawn Perkins quoted on a radio show that my shot was worse than K.D. Mobley's. I was seriously offended by those remarks, but K.D. Mobley later called me himself to tell me that nobody could ever shoot worse than him. He also told me that I need to try to work harder to be more aggressive towards the basket so I can get better shots, and that I should be utilizing the other players on my team when they’re open. This advice seemed to be somewhat odd coming from him, but nevertheless, I went into the season trying to follow it, and I believe its working."
Now lets look at the differences between Long Island this year and last year. Although Long Island, who at the time last season was still located in Montana, had a terrible start to the year, they were eventually were able to improve as the season went on. Pat Stephenson was always the star of the team, and put up solid numbers, even with the pressure he faced of trying to carry the team game after game. When young Jarius Miles didn't fit well in the team, they reacquired their former star player, Tom Perkins. Perkins was a solid veteran who was familiar with the antics of coach Esposito when he was on his team Seasons 3-7. Perkins was able to help the team win more games, as the team had another solid player to share the load with Stephenson. Montana wasn't dominating games, but at least was starting to win as many games as they were losing. Towards the end of last season, Paul Carroll was another key acquisition. Perhaps one the best passing SGs in the league, he allowed Doherty, although only an average passer, to be able to play his natural position of PG, in front of Kadeem Reed. The team went on to only finish the season 32-48, but they had pulled together some impressive winning streaks at the end of the season. Because of this, Coach Esposito felt that he had a group of players that could trust to play well for the next season. Perhaps this was the first time Esposito felt this way, because during the off-season, he only made four trades, none of team being major, only involving the shuffling of picks and getting rid of backup center Joe Cochran after acquiring a different one in Tyriq Lang. With there being no news of potential trades, players on the team that is now Long Island could focus on basketball and not about being on the trade rumor mill every other day.
Now that basically the some core group of players returned from a relative decent (but not yet great) team, Long Island has sudden emerged as one of the elite teams in the WBA, and is showing no signs of slowing down. After scouting several of their games, and checking the stats in the newspaper, I believe that the big rise for Esposito's franchise lies in the sudden rise of Gorman and Doherty, as mentioned early, as well as in Caroll, who is leading the team with 10.0 apg, which is 5th amongst all players in the WBA. Yes, Stephenson and Perkins are having solid years, as they always do, but these three players, in Gorman, Doherty, and Carroll, were young and good, but through a year of experience and training, they all improved their games to the next level. And each one of these players makes the others better -- Gorman getting points and rebounds, Doherty scoring points and getting to the foul line, and Caroll getting the ball to the open men. It is these reasons that I believe have been the key to the success of Long Island so far this season.
August 3rd, 2005
Around the WBA
George Foster just lost his 3 month old daughter in a car accident and will miss 3 games for the funeral and is batteling depression. But, he says that he will continue playing basketball. It is the only way he knows how to cope.
In his first practice with his new team, Alaska. Jerry Simms broke his index finger on his shooting hand and is expected to miss almost 5 weeks.
For unknown reasons Mario Bailey took a swing at former team mate Jay Dickenson after todays blowout victory. The League has suspended him for two games.
Dontae Evans will miss tomorrows game to under go some medical testing.