Here I am the day after a grueling mid week practice, feeling the effects of 1 1/2 hours of straight physical basketball. It probably was worsened by the fact that we only had 9 people show up so we were playing 4 on 4 full court the entire time. I have no problem with that set-up since it means you never leave the court and you have to work even harder to cover on defense. J.D. had his mid-range game in full effect on showcase last night. I mean he literally may have missed 6 shots the entire night and that might not sound impressive but it is when you take into consideration the fact that he probably put up about 25 shots. Allegedly he has become a clone of his brother because now he is a gym rat every morning. I am not sure how long this routine will last because all it takes is one long night out and a runny nose and that one time he skips will turn into, two and then into ahh f it, I am done with the gym. I give him credit though for at least attempting to improve his upper body strength, so kudos go out to him.
I felt like I had a pretty good showing throughout the evening, my three ball was working and I even manged to hit a few of my patented one handed "tear drops" a la Mark Jackson. Combine that with some solid defense and rebounding and I certainly put in a full nights worth of effort.
Our roster situation is as crazy as it has ever been with at least 2 if not 3 spots still available for numerous players who are looking to get in on the excitement that is Clip Joint basketball. I even received an email from the league advising me that a player was trying desperately to contact me in hopes of getting our attention and trying him out. I guess it has gotten to that point now, where the upper echelon free agents are looking to get involved. That is super positive and can only help us out in the long run when looking to expand our team.
The league was supposed to kick-off again this weekend but due to a few minor issues they decided it was best if they postponed it another week. This too is pretty good news for us as we would like to get any and all issues squared away before the first game. So here we are, playing the waiting game on these new players. Trying to hammer out contract offers in hopes of landing a true big man for the first time since J.G. Speaking of J.G., I had a conversation with him a few weeks back and the rehab on his knee is right on schedule. Maybe by the middle of next year he will be ready to come back and fill that void for us, for now though he can only sit and watch from the owners box every week.
Time to ice down the knee a little bit....adios till next time
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Mug Shot
This is the photo that the league took of us a few minutes after winning championship #4 in a row and #5 out of 6!! Unfortunately, we were missing a few valued members of the team who could not show up for the photo opportunity. A.H. & K.J. were both M.I.A. so that is why there are only 8 of us in the picture. From left to right..
J.D. G.C. J.P. M.D. J.M. J.W. D.T. & B.A
I would post the picture of the losing team just for the sake of comedy but that will have to wait for the next time. Week 1 of the Elite session begins next week and our roster still has some question marks. Hopefully by tomorrow we can work all of this out because I get the feeling we are going to have an entirely different look moving into next season.
Monday, September 8, 2008
4 Straight & 5 Out of 6!!
As I sit here contemplating our roster for next season and our highly anticipated jump to the highest level of competition I wince ever so slightly each time I move my right knee. You see, at my age there is always going to be bumps and bruises after each game I play. Today is no different except for the fact that I can celebrate a 4th straight championship with my team. Once again we were up against the odds having to play 2 games within the matter of 2 hours with only a 15 minute break in between the two games. Once again, we faced a roster that lacked the talent of seasons past. But in the end we managed to find a way to get it done and win it all one more time which is a testament of how good the Clip Joint really is.
Game 1 had us against our rivals "Dynasty" who looked the part of spoiler for most of the first half as we struggled to get anything consistent going on offense. Without their team leader "Peja" they were forced to rely heavily on two players, one of which always gives us trouble and the other a talented leaper who likes to drive to the hoop. We had the game in the bag for the most part except we like to keep it close and nearly blew a late 9 point lead by missing something like 6 out of our last 8 free throws and they managed to cut it to 3 points after draining a three ball at the buzzer. make no mistake about it though, we got lucky that "Peja" was unavailable, because if he had been there I am not so sure we would have had enough to get it done. My prediction was pretty close as I had guessed a 4 point win , not too bad missing by 1 point!!
Game 2 saw "Awards Limo" and their entourage show up to the arena on an 8 game winning streak and hungry for their first title. Another slow start saw us trail early by 6 or 7 points before we got into our game and settled down. Clearly we all were very tired and worn out already from playing in such a physical first game but we battled through the first half and only trailed by 3. Throughout the night we struggled to get good looks and when we did we were missing a lot of shots we usually make. We really are not a half court team though so we had to get opportunities off the break which came few and far between. In the second half we willed our way to the lead and never turned back. As the final couple of minutes ticked off the clock it became clear that we were headed to yet another title. It is always a great feeling knowing that you are the best team in the league despite having a few hiccups during the season.
Having to deal with A.H. and his constant injury problems preventing him from appearing in any games except 1 at the very beginning of the year to J.M. who missed 6 straight games before showing up last night to provide us some extra height and depth. Most every game we played with only 7 players and that means the stars of the team had to carry us from week to week playing heavy minutes. They deserve a whole lot of credit for this season, without a doubt and i think towards the end of the championship game you could clearly see some tired bodies. I think the low point of the season was obviously the loss to "O'Donnel" to complete the regular season at 6-2. After that game I think we all felt embarassed and never wanted to share that feeling ever again.
Looking ahead we get a well deserved day off today and tomorrow before going back at it in practice on Wednesday. Expectations are high for us around the league since everyone knows what we have accomplished heading into this next season. I think reality might see things a bit differently though because we have so many question marks before the first game. We really need a couple of big men in the worst ay otherwise we will be forced to rely on our transition game to score most of our buckets. An update will be made before the middle of the week...
Game 1 had us against our rivals "Dynasty" who looked the part of spoiler for most of the first half as we struggled to get anything consistent going on offense. Without their team leader "Peja" they were forced to rely heavily on two players, one of which always gives us trouble and the other a talented leaper who likes to drive to the hoop. We had the game in the bag for the most part except we like to keep it close and nearly blew a late 9 point lead by missing something like 6 out of our last 8 free throws and they managed to cut it to 3 points after draining a three ball at the buzzer. make no mistake about it though, we got lucky that "Peja" was unavailable, because if he had been there I am not so sure we would have had enough to get it done. My prediction was pretty close as I had guessed a 4 point win , not too bad missing by 1 point!!
Game 2 saw "Awards Limo" and their entourage show up to the arena on an 8 game winning streak and hungry for their first title. Another slow start saw us trail early by 6 or 7 points before we got into our game and settled down. Clearly we all were very tired and worn out already from playing in such a physical first game but we battled through the first half and only trailed by 3. Throughout the night we struggled to get good looks and when we did we were missing a lot of shots we usually make. We really are not a half court team though so we had to get opportunities off the break which came few and far between. In the second half we willed our way to the lead and never turned back. As the final couple of minutes ticked off the clock it became clear that we were headed to yet another title. It is always a great feeling knowing that you are the best team in the league despite having a few hiccups during the season.
Having to deal with A.H. and his constant injury problems preventing him from appearing in any games except 1 at the very beginning of the year to J.M. who missed 6 straight games before showing up last night to provide us some extra height and depth. Most every game we played with only 7 players and that means the stars of the team had to carry us from week to week playing heavy minutes. They deserve a whole lot of credit for this season, without a doubt and i think towards the end of the championship game you could clearly see some tired bodies. I think the low point of the season was obviously the loss to "O'Donnel" to complete the regular season at 6-2. After that game I think we all felt embarassed and never wanted to share that feeling ever again.
Looking ahead we get a well deserved day off today and tomorrow before going back at it in practice on Wednesday. Expectations are high for us around the league since everyone knows what we have accomplished heading into this next season. I think reality might see things a bit differently though because we have so many question marks before the first game. We really need a couple of big men in the worst ay otherwise we will be forced to rely on our transition game to score most of our buckets. An update will be made before the middle of the week...
Friday, September 5, 2008
Down to 3
Now that we are only a few days away from yet another challenging weekend of basketball, it is time to look at the opponents who stand in the way of championship #4 in a row.
"Dynasty" is a team that has become somewhat of a friendly rival over the past couple of seasons as a level of respect is shared between the two programs. Originally spotted during the holiday tournament they managed to defeat the Clip Joint and eliminate us from said tourney. I think we all knew at that point that they were a talented group of players who could give us problems each time we faced them. They feature several very good players and I think this session they struggled a lot with injuries to key players as well as having guys miss games for whatever reason. It never seemed liked they had their core group of players from game to game and I think that is the only reason their record was as medicore as it was. Many people probably slept on them as a factor in the championship chase but as I predicted weeks ago, I knew they would be a team that could easily advance if they brought all of their talent to the games.
Make no mistake about it, with a healthy lineup that features not one but two centers taller than 6-5 it will be important that we control the tempo. One of them is coming off a major leg injury and the other just does not have the fitness to continually run up and down the court. "Peja" Mendez as he is affectionately known to us is always their top scoring threat but if he is not clicking on all cylinders they still have a pair of asian guys who hustle after the ball and hit the glass hard on every possession. To me the key will be whether or not they have their power forward who has been known to give us trouble in the past. He is a leaper with scoring ability inside that could make the difference between winning and losing for them.
At the end of the day it will be up to us to control the tempo and to ensure that we rebound well if we want a chance to win the game and advance to the title game.
Waiting in the wings for the winner of the first game is "Awards Limo" winners of the pathetic South division. Winners of 8 straight games they are certainly not to be overlooked. We are familiar with most of their players as we have competed against them in the seasons prior to this one. I think that they are a difficult team in terms of matching up but at the same time they hold an advantage regardless since they only have to play 1 game to take home the championship whereas we would have to play back to back. If we get to the final game against them it will be very important that we play hard nose man to man defense. They have too many outside weapons to play much zone in my opinion. Obviously the game against "Dynasty" will be tough and I hate to make any predictions because I have been so bad at it but here goes.
In a game that will be decided by tempo Clip Joint 59 Dynasty 55 similar to the very first meeting of the season. Then in the championship game I am predicting that Clip Joint defends their title winning 64-53. Lets hope the predictions are true and we come back after the weekend with nothing but positive reports from the game.
"Dynasty" is a team that has become somewhat of a friendly rival over the past couple of seasons as a level of respect is shared between the two programs. Originally spotted during the holiday tournament they managed to defeat the Clip Joint and eliminate us from said tourney. I think we all knew at that point that they were a talented group of players who could give us problems each time we faced them. They feature several very good players and I think this session they struggled a lot with injuries to key players as well as having guys miss games for whatever reason. It never seemed liked they had their core group of players from game to game and I think that is the only reason their record was as medicore as it was. Many people probably slept on them as a factor in the championship chase but as I predicted weeks ago, I knew they would be a team that could easily advance if they brought all of their talent to the games.
Make no mistake about it, with a healthy lineup that features not one but two centers taller than 6-5 it will be important that we control the tempo. One of them is coming off a major leg injury and the other just does not have the fitness to continually run up and down the court. "Peja" Mendez as he is affectionately known to us is always their top scoring threat but if he is not clicking on all cylinders they still have a pair of asian guys who hustle after the ball and hit the glass hard on every possession. To me the key will be whether or not they have their power forward who has been known to give us trouble in the past. He is a leaper with scoring ability inside that could make the difference between winning and losing for them.
At the end of the day it will be up to us to control the tempo and to ensure that we rebound well if we want a chance to win the game and advance to the title game.
Waiting in the wings for the winner of the first game is "Awards Limo" winners of the pathetic South division. Winners of 8 straight games they are certainly not to be overlooked. We are familiar with most of their players as we have competed against them in the seasons prior to this one. I think that they are a difficult team in terms of matching up but at the same time they hold an advantage regardless since they only have to play 1 game to take home the championship whereas we would have to play back to back. If we get to the final game against them it will be very important that we play hard nose man to man defense. They have too many outside weapons to play much zone in my opinion. Obviously the game against "Dynasty" will be tough and I hate to make any predictions because I have been so bad at it but here goes.
In a game that will be decided by tempo Clip Joint 59 Dynasty 55 similar to the very first meeting of the season. Then in the championship game I am predicting that Clip Joint defends their title winning 64-53. Lets hope the predictions are true and we come back after the weekend with nothing but positive reports from the game.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Practice Is Intense
During practice last night I learned that it is always competitive no matter what the circumstances are. With the conference finals only a few short days away we were able to get back on the freshly finished Wooton High School basketball court for a few hours. Having not been able to access the gym for a couple of months it was nice to have the opportunity to work in the middle of the week before the weekend. I think that it is natural to want to play well and play hard as we would normally do and with that might come the extra pushing and shoving and battling between teammates. Overall, I felt like the practice was needed and that in the end everyone did what they do best.
There has been so much speculation on what the final roster was going to be for the big game(s) this weekend and with A.H. not making an appearance last night as scheduled it is harder and harder to expect anything more than a possible cameo in the games this weekend. Any time you are coming off a semi-serious injury and are forced to sit out for several weeks without playing you are going to be rusty, bottom line. Without getting some work last night I think A.H. went from being a solid contributor to mostly a spectator this weekend. It would be great if we could get him 10-15 minutes in the opening game but I am worried he is not going to be much help. I guess we will see how it goes and make the decision once things get going.
Without looking past the importance of this weekends action, the NBA starts for us in about ten days and as usual we have questions on who exactly is going to be made available to participate. Making the jump from what essentially is the "D" league up to the big show is a step we have been talking about making for a couple of years now. Finally, we feel like we need to be tested regardless of the outcome this weekend. Win or lose, we need to see where we are at. Granted, we have high expectations and believe in our team, we still realize it is going to be a struggle to compete week in and week out if we do not give 100% effort every game. I guess we will patch together the best roster we possibly can before this weekend and submit our final opening day roster and hope for the best!
A preview of the remaining 3 teams headed into the championship weekend will be available soon, maybe today but certainly tomorrow at the latest. I think these two teams rival the last two we defeated last season to win the championship so I know it is going to take a supreme effort to get it done. Especially since they once again have stacked the deck heavily against us with the "no rest policy" if we do happen to win the first game. I expect nothing less from a place that does not want to see us with 4 straight titles to our name....
There has been so much speculation on what the final roster was going to be for the big game(s) this weekend and with A.H. not making an appearance last night as scheduled it is harder and harder to expect anything more than a possible cameo in the games this weekend. Any time you are coming off a semi-serious injury and are forced to sit out for several weeks without playing you are going to be rusty, bottom line. Without getting some work last night I think A.H. went from being a solid contributor to mostly a spectator this weekend. It would be great if we could get him 10-15 minutes in the opening game but I am worried he is not going to be much help. I guess we will see how it goes and make the decision once things get going.
Without looking past the importance of this weekends action, the NBA starts for us in about ten days and as usual we have questions on who exactly is going to be made available to participate. Making the jump from what essentially is the "D" league up to the big show is a step we have been talking about making for a couple of years now. Finally, we feel like we need to be tested regardless of the outcome this weekend. Win or lose, we need to see where we are at. Granted, we have high expectations and believe in our team, we still realize it is going to be a struggle to compete week in and week out if we do not give 100% effort every game. I guess we will patch together the best roster we possibly can before this weekend and submit our final opening day roster and hope for the best!
A preview of the remaining 3 teams headed into the championship weekend will be available soon, maybe today but certainly tomorrow at the latest. I think these two teams rival the last two we defeated last season to win the championship so I know it is going to take a supreme effort to get it done. Especially since they once again have stacked the deck heavily against us with the "no rest policy" if we do happen to win the first game. I expect nothing less from a place that does not want to see us with 4 straight titles to our name....
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