SBL | IBL | Nate’s Notes | Season 8 | Division 2 | First Half of Season in Review

 

In Division 2, with Double Dribble folding after their embarrassing collapse in last season’s semi-finals, Primetime took the role of Alpha-dog in the division. They have distanced themselves from the rest of the division so far, and in the process they’re favorites to repeat. That is; if UNDFTD doesn’t have anything to say about it. The two teams met in Week 1 with Primetime escaping with a 61-60 win.

Primetime is 5-0 and is clicking on all cylinders, they are truly a team to fear. They look to run the table and enter the playoffs as the #1 seed, which is unfamiliar territory to this team. However they’re playing great basketball and I have a feeling they will sustain this momentum going forward as we enter the latter weeks of the season.

Special Delivery is the surprise sitting at #1 in the standings at 5-0. It’s strange to think about Special Delivery being #1 in the division seeing as they didn’t even make the playoffs in a lower division last season. Yet somehow they sit in the #1 spot in Division 2 through 5 games. That is a pleasant surprise.

Coming into the season, UNDFTD was nabbed as the favorites to become the Season 8 champions. The team is a fusion of UKnow and Double Dribble. Led By the Pickett’s (Derrick and Diahnte), Tray Caples and Buai Tut, this team is unstoppable when fully engaged. The team is at 5-1, with their only loss coming at the hands of Primetime in Week 1.

A team flying well below the radar would have to be the new free agent team known as “Them Guys“, the team is 3-1 through their first 4 games. Their schedule has been favorable to say the least and the team got their first real test in Week 5 when they met UNDFTD, the team was shorthanded but they went down swinging with the players that they did have. The chemistry and comradery is definitely there when the team has the full roster at its disposal, this team will go as far as its members take it.

The Secret Agents is one those teams, that gets better as the seasons go on, although their record sits at 3-2, this team is still a contender in the division. The addition of Gary McNelly’s has been key so far, McNellys is averaging 16.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg for the Agents. Look for this team to make a strong push in regards to seeding for the playoffs.

After a shaky start to their season, Wonton Soup has rebounded and are a game above .500. GM Ashwin Sharma has done a great job of having two sets of teams (D2 & D3) for “fatigue” purposes. This team is coming together at the right time and making a playoff push. They also have gained Aaron Sanchez back from what was thought to be a season ending injury. He probably wont be as effective as he was before but he may still be a factor.

The X-Men are the last 3-2 team in the Division, this is a quality team, who I find to be extremely underrated. They will make the playoffs no doubt about that, and I’m making a bold prediction now. This is my dark horse pick to make a deep run in the playoffs, they have solid team, with Gold Okolugbo (12.0 ppg) and Adrian Miles (20.3 ppg) leading the way, this team can kill you in a variety of ways. If this can come out of this bye week on a hot streak, it may be bad news for opposing teams.

 

A host of team’s sit at 2-3, Beatdown, Blacktop, Wesst, and Limitless all sit at (2-3) coming out of this Memorial Day bye week. A few of these teams will be matched up in the up coming weeks and at this point in the season, its win or your season may be over. Out of the teams listed above, the team most likely to drop out of the playoff picture in my opinion would have to be Beatdown. They haven’t played the top-tier teams and when they do, they’ll pick up an L.

GM Marcus Dillard always does a solid job of putting a competitive team on the court every season. This Goonz team is no different. Though this team sits at (2-3) through 5 games, you can credit their losses to the level of competition they play, they lose to the élite teams but beat the teams that they are supposed to beat, and that is why they are poised to make the post season. They still need to record at least two more wins to have a legitimate shot at making the post season, a couple of losses and they will most likely fall directly out of the playoff race.

Outside Looking In

Quiksilver sits at 2-4 through the teams first 5 weeks of play. This team goes as far as the divisions leading scorer Jordan Block (26.0 ppg) will take them. Block is a 20 and 10 guy every game but after Block the team really doesn’t have a second offensive option. If this team can win their next 2 games by a wide margin, they have a shot at creeping into the playoffs at a very low seed. This is strange to fathom, seeing as Quiksilver was last season’s runner-up after losing in the championship to Primetime. It seems as if the Division 2 and 3’s runner up’s are having a rough season, both teams are at 2-4.

On paper, Rail Splitters should be better than their record indicates. They are filled with players that have played and won championships in IBL’s highest division (Division 1) yet they sit a 2-4 and are tied for the #11 seed at this point. This team will go as far as Rich Cobarrubias takes them, and so far the keys are in the ignition for this team they just have no gas in the tank. If this team can gas it up, and end the season hot, they have a shot of sneaking in the post season. Another loss and they can kiss their post season dreams good-bye.

SBL | IBL | Nate’s Notes | Season 8 | Division 1 | First Half of Season in Review

My favorite to win the Division 1 championship this season is Washed Up, the team sits in the #1 spot through 5 games with a (5-0) record and they’ve found ways to win close games. Also Now that they’ve gotten rid of the pesky injury bug, the former Division 1 Champions are on the “road to redemption” looking to reclaim the throne after they were dethroned by the eventual runner-up Mile High in last seasons semi finals. The only setback for this team would have to be their big man André Lyons, who just can’t seem to control his emotions, he’s leads the division in technical fouls and was ejected from a game earlier this season before his second technical was rescinded. When Lyon’s is playing and NOT complaining about a “bad” call or lack of a call, Washed Up is pretty hard to beat, but when Lyons ride’s the officials he makes it hard on himself and his team. I commend GM Mike Criscione for having a team full of characters but making it work week in and week out.

A team on the rise in the division is Squad Up, they sit at 5-0 going into the bye week, and have potentially clinched a playoff berth. The team is led by Shawn Sawyer who is on his 3rd team in 3 season’s but this season looks really promising for him. He is averaging 25.4 ppg, which is good for 3rd in the division. Sawyer is on of the more versatile players in the league and week in a week out he shows you why.

Heading into the memorial day bye week, Respect the Struggle sits in the #3 spot with a (4-1) record. My evaluation of this team is that they are very athletic. If this team is having a bad offensive game, they have the ability to slow you down with their gritty defense. The teams help defense is the best I’ve seen in some time and if the team can sustain their level of play coming out of the memorial day bye week, they can hold on to the #3 spot and have a good shot of making a decent playoff run. Of course that’s all hypothetically speaking, looking at the box scores, this team doesn’t really blow you away with their numbers. Their 4 wins have been to teams that are on the outside looking in with their 1 loss coming at the hands of Washed Up. Johnny Bell (18.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.3 apg) must continue to play at a high level in order for his team to have any shot of succeeding,

After starting their season 3-0, the Dynasty has fallen off quite a bit in the past 2 weeks of play. They’ve lost their last two games. Their week 4 loss came at the hands of the reigning champs Dino’s Finest, which isn’t really a shocker, because both teams are evenly match, but Dino came away with the 1 point win. Their Week 5 loss to The Pack is more alarming than anything, The Pack executed their game plan perfectly and in the process cause problems on the defensive end for the Dynasty to get into their offensive groove. I believe Dynasty can rebound from these minor setbacks in the coming weeks; finish the season strong and end up with a decent seed entering the postseason which in only 2 weeks away.

Mile High (3-2) is another team that is in contention for a Division 1 Championship, they’ve kept last season’s team intact (Barkely, Creswell,Giordano, Jurado) and with the addition of Jon Kaker aka Baby Tyler Hansbrough (in regards to his resemblance to the Indiana Pacers forward) , the team seems poised for a playoff berth.   The team chemistry is always on point,  this team has already shown they are capable of hanging with the division’s elite.

The reigning Champs from “The Dino” have had a roller-coaster type of season, much like last season; this season has been filled with ups & downs. I think this team is really waiting for the playoffs to “flip the switch” and run through the teams like they did in season 7. However they have to pay attention to the regular season. Aside from all the other things, you must put into consideration that the scheduling gods haven’t been all that nice to Dino’s Finest, they’ve played quality teams leading up to this point. They’ve basically played 4 playoff bound teams, and a team that’s not been able to find that much success this season Blackout. I think Larry Dew, will rally his troops and get them ready for a late season run, and get them focused for their upcoming playoff run to potentially repeat.

Knicee is 2-2 through 5 weeks, meaning they have 3 games remaining in their season and their in the #7 spot. This team has a limited roster and with Kenneth Ubom’s play declining as the weeks go on, I see this team falling out of the playoff race as the season winds down. If they do make the playoffs I see them getting bounced in the first round. The team is not deep, and they’ll be exposed in an up-n-down game.

Led by former USC guard Donte Smith, Tha Dream hasn’t really had the type of season many expected. The re-branded “P.A.H.U.” team hasn’t improved nor have they gotten worse. Last season they were in the same position at this point in the season. If this team can hold onto this seed or possibly move up in the upcoming weeks, the possibility remains of them upsetting a higher seeded team in the first round.

Teams outside looking in

The Pack is in great position to climb out of the #9 spot and into the playoffs in the upcoming weeks. Their season has been “lackluster” to say the least but their Week 5 win over Dynasty may have potentially put the team in good spirits to possibly turn around their season.

The Rebels sit at 2-4, and with so much talent on their roster, you have to wonder what is going on with this team, they must win their next game to even have a shot at making the postseason.

 IDK has the divisions leading scorer Terrance Clark (26.0 ppg) the divisions leading rebounder Tre Fairman (13.0 rpg) and someone in the top 5 in assists Weldon Howlett (3.5 apg). You would think with these division leaders on their roster that, some wins would be the primary outcomes of their games. The team is 1-3 through 5 weeks and are tied for the second worse record in the division. They’ve played the least game through 5 weeks and control their own destiny with 3 games left in their season.

O-What!- A team with a lot of promise, if they win out they have a shot of creeping into the post season, with a little help from the scheduling gods.

The only win less team in the division, Blackout is basically eliminated from playoff contention, but in the upcoming weeks they can play spoiler to the teams that still have a shot at making the postseason.

SBL | IBL | Nate’s Notes | Season 8 | Division 3 | First Half of Season in Review

With the first half of Season 8 behind us, lets review the news and notes of the first half of the IBL season.

Entering the season, three teams had a bulls-eye on their back, those teams being : Division 1 Champions Dino’s Finest, the Division  2 Champions Primetime and the Division 3 Champions Wonton Soup. We all wanted to see how the reigning champions would defend their respective crowns with new teams entering the thicke of things and returning teams revamping their roster for an eventual title run. All three ball clubs opened up their seasons with big wins and have since been riding out the momentum of their early season wins.

The level of competition is beyond deep in all three divisions. I truly believe all champions will have their hands full trying to pull off a repeat this season as the champions from Season 6 did. My favorite to win the Division 3 championship this season would have to be Wonton Soup, they are a well oiled machine, they’ve played together for 5 seasons now, and with 4 championships under their belt, they are better than ever.  Things are looking great for the reigning champions Wonton Soup, they are 4-0 through 4 games and have blown teams away with their gritty play and consistent 3 point shooting, if there is any “team to beat” look no further than Wonton Soup.

An up-n-coming team to look at this season is HiiiPower, led by Sangone Niang, this team has flown under the radar so far and sit at the top of the division with the champs, with a 4-0 record. They will meet the reigning champions Wonton Soup in Week 5 and the winner will take sole possession of 1st place in the Division.

There are a host at teams who sit a 3-1 (Burger Kings, The Squad, A$AP, California Raisins, and Slaughterhouse). Some of these teams have had a favorable schedule while others have had to grind it out for their wins against élite teams, however I’m not taking away anything from these teams, out of the 5 teams named, one will have a late season collapse and fall out of the playoff picture as teams in the “middle-bottom” of the pack usually make a late season push. Veteran teams like the Filthy Elite, and the former Champions the California Swag Bears are poised for a late season playoff push. The Swag Bears won the championship in Season 6 and returned to the championship in Season 7 but a dramatic roster overhaul has caused this team to lose their once great chemistry and start this season this way.  So we will have to wait and see how the season plays out.

There are 7 teams battling for a shot to maybe sneak into the post season. Those teams are (Mixed Nuts, The Tropics, GMC, Show n Tell, Balls of Fury, and the Tune Squad). Well the Tune Squad has more of an uphill climb seeing as they are 0-4 with a point differential of -85 and the only team with a higher point differential the (Tropics) -101, have already faced off and beat them, so I would say even if the Tune Squad were to win their remaining games, it would be a long-shot that they would qualify for the post season, they are the Bobcats of the Division. Another team that is a long shot, is Balls of Fury, they are 0-3 with a combined 98 points as a team through 3 games. This is another team that is virtually eliminated from post season contention unless they have a miraculous turn around.