(Another post from Ryan Ripley. Enjoy! -- Scott)
As kids we learn that ants do not enjoy being under a magnifying glass, but with only one win in the past eight games including a three-game losing streak, that’s exactly where the Fort Wayne Mad Ants found themselves on January 7 -- with a home game against a talented Canton Charge team coming up to boot.
Frequent roster changes and the replacement of head coach Joey Meyer with 26-year-old assistant coach Steve Gansey only intensified the scrutiny. Another thing learned as kids, though, is that while ants might scatter under a magnifying glass, they come back stronger and more determined than ever to get the job done.
With the shortened NBA season, teams are opting to assign players to the D-League with increased regularity. Hamady Ndiaye (Wizards), Hassan Whiteside (Kings), Tyler Honeycutt (Kings), Gary Neal (Spurs), and Darington Hobson (Bucks) are the current assignees playing D-League ball.
From a fan perspective it is great to see such great talent come to a court near you. Though some D-League fans do complain that these assignments take minutes from players already on the roster -- and even cause team chemistry problems in some cases -- the assignment is well worth the investment of minutes for the D-League team that gains the talent refresh.
Take, for example, Milwaukee Bucks assignee Darington Hobson (@ParkaySmooth). He joined the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in late December and, after one game and a handful of practices, he provided the spark that the Mad Ants needed to snap their four game losing-streak against the Canton Charge on New Year’s Day with a 104-103 victory.
Hobson finished the game with 22 points (6-of-10 from the field, 9-of-10 from the free-throw line) to go with fiverebounds, five assists and three steals in 37 minutes of play. Not to mention he also hit the game winning shot with 21.5 seconds left!
Come add your name to the sign up list and start doing your research!
https://sites.google.com/site/wetalkfantasysports/d-league-home-page
Draft date TBD!
Scoring
Trades
Free Agents work the same way trades do.
With the NBA season looking as it’s dissolving right before our eyes, the minor league of the NBA, the D-League, is soon to tip off its season soon with no holdout restricting their season.
The Iowa Energy officially start their season Nov. 25 at new franchise Canton (affiliated with Cleveland), but fans were invited to Wells Fargo Arena last night to an Open House to get fans thinking about the upcoming season. It will be hard to forget last season for fans after coming off the franchise’s first championship in their short time here in Des Moines.
"Last year was such a blessing," said Moses Ehambe, who is only one of three returning players for Iowa this season. "After having a losing season over in Spain, then being traded from Tulsa to Austin to here, then winning a championship was just amazing."
Flip the switch from last season, because this one will be entirely different. New coach. Nine newcomers are the majority of the Energy roster, one of them being Jarrid Famous, a 6-11, 240 center from South Florida.
His goal is to make a stand on defense.
Thursday night was the NBA D League draft, and two of the 'unknowns' stood out for me because I've been privy to a little sliver of their respective basketball journey's. First, PG Marcus Hill, taken #1 in the sixth round by the Springfield Armor, and second was Franklin Session who was picked up #16 in the sixth round by the LA Defenders. Both played at the ....
In my last post I spoke about a kid from Houston who will be looking to pursue his dreams in the NBDL, or as i like to call it, the NBA "Dream" League. Craig Blackmon has inspired me to do more research on players and coaches who are truly under the radar. There are many routes to the NBA, the most common would be big time recruiting, big time college, NBA Draft and the rest is history. Although that is the most common, it is also the hardest to obtain, many great players have been passed over years.That is a different road, this post is about those players that may have been late bloomers or just have been misguided in their careers. Just imagine, many guys grow up in the parks and courts around the world, never heard of until one or two years prior to the draft. Many international players play professionally in their respective countries from a young age and grow to become great athletes in the country, however when you may have melting pot like Brooklyn, New York, basketball is just as religous but the opportunity is not available. Now your thinking college right? Well that may be correct, but some basketball players may be better on the court than the classroom. What happens now? Thats when we hear about playground legends or European stars, and when a kid has always been misguided money is the easiest way to keep them astray. I have been to many Pro-Am summer leagues and charity games all across the country and seen first hand what a player that has never played professional could do, pretty amazing.
So I have came up with the a category system for players:
Let me explain each category.
The "Star", everyone loves the star and everyone knows him. He is the AAU champion, the high school phenom, the NCAA all-tournament candidate he is a great player, but the road has always been paved for him.
The "Next Generation" is father-son tandem, this is usually a star player but not necessarily, he just has always had the right things, at the right time, and in the right places. Been giving the benefit of having a legendary last name, with this you get room for error and a key to somethings other players may never get.
The "Pupil", he is similar to the NG but no actual family ties. He has been look out for his entire life either from a veteran NBA player or famous scout. This player has always know the ins and outs to making it successful in the business.
The "Prototype", he is built in perfect basketball form. He is the 7 footer or the 6'8 guard with extreme athleticism, his basketball skills may not be very polished but the kid wins every dunk contest and has tremendous "Wow" factor.
now my personal favorite is the "Hungry Player" he is the gym rat, the one who wants to be all those others wrapped in one. He is has always had to fight for his opportunities, but when the lights come on he puts on a show, maybe a small time division I player or maybe a juco role player, or possibly never had the shot at collegiate play.
So my question is what can you teach? We all are taught in different stages of our lives but there comes an age and time where we are not really receptive to these things. Basketball is a tough game to learn later in life, it is filled with skills and knowledge that takes years to develop, hence why kids begin basketball camps at early ages. Now its a bit easier to show someone how to interact and become a professional player. The skills you would learn in a college setting from a coach. So I would like to say, any coaches or scouts looking for talent during a time like the NBA lockout, go to your local gyms around 2 A.M. on a Saturday night, if you happen to catch a guy running suicides an shooting free throws give him a quick interview, might just surprise you what you find!
Does anybody know if there is Fantasy Basketball for the D-League somewhere on the internet? I think it'd be pretty awesome to play, and I want to create a private league, but so far I can't find anything using Google. So I thought maybe you guys who follow the D-League might know of a good place to create a league. So, anybody want to help me out? Or does Fantasy D-League just not exist?
Met a guy at a local 24 hour fitness in Houston, he was working out with trainer, so naturally I watched his routine, this kid was in the basketball gym andI swear he made 30 plus jump shots all net!!!
Watch the entire workout and this kid has nice size and in some awesome shape.
Got a chance to talk with him and get his name, Craig Blackmon, he has been working out with the Dallas Mavericks D-League team and will be in the D-League draft Nov 3.
Look out for this kid, I googled him and caught some youtube film...kid has a JUMP SHOT!!!
If he makes it to the D-League he will get an NBA opportunity!
What's up RU? I haven't posted in over a month, I just got home from a family vacation in North Carolina.
Anyways, I thought I would do a write-up on some of the top Big Ten prospects, because those are the guys I know best. I'm a Wisconsin fan, so I get to see alot of these guys in live action on Big Ten Network or even ESPN (Ohio State is always on).
Notable Stats: 17.2 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 54% FG
PF/C. 6'9" 275 lbs.
Positives:
Sullinger is a very big kid. He is about 270-280 lbs, and he uses those pounds to his advantage inside. He's so tough to stop in the paint; he uses his butt to clear space. He also has pretty good touch inside, usually making the first attempt. He draws alot of fouls down low, and makes a respectable 70% FT. He's not completely limited to the paint; He rarely takes jumpshots but when he does he's not bad, he made 3 of 12 from downtown last season and made a few midrangers.
Negatives:
The biggest issue for Sullinger could be his height. He doesn't scrape 6'10", he's pretty much a legit 6'9", but for an NBA Center that's slightly underheight. The second issue is his conditioning. It didn't appear to be bad last year, as he played most of the games I watched as well as 32 mpg, but the NBA is different. In the NBA there is more run-and-gunning and the game is longer. He might have to get his weight down a bit.
People will also question his ability to make an impact on defense. He only average 0.5 blocks per game last season, a very low rate for a PF/C
Verdict:
Sullinger is a sure Top 10 prospect who could move into the Top 5. He is a beast inside, scoring at a high rate in the paint and getting to the line (where he makes 70%). It's not too rare that he steps out and hits a midrange shot. He's also a big rebounder at 10.2 per. To be a lock for the Top 5, he will have to improve his body composition by cutting some weight, and he will have to show he can be a factor on the defensive end by blocking some shots. Some scouts will look at his height as a yellow flag, but everyone sees how Kevin Love worked out.
From the FanPosts! -- Scott
Rookies are rookies. They enter the league without any previous experience, and often have a difficult time making the adjustment. But every year, there are a handful of rookies who make a significant impact in their first season, and others to help take their team to far places. There are always surprises, some good, some bad.
This article embraces the possibilites, how a seemingly forgotten player in the 2nd round can make an impact as a rookie. It's easy to say that Kyrie Irving, or Jimmer Fredette will be solid as rookies. Is it as easy to say that for a Late-1st Rounder or a 2nd-rounder?
The reigning BIG 10 Player of the Year will have no excuses if he doesn't get playing time. The Celtics core front line from last season will be almost completely gone. Shaq already retired, and won't pull a Brett Favre. Jermaine O'Neal and Garnett are also possibilties to retire, and even if they stick around, don't expect them to be healthy very often, and expect them both to regress in their all-around games.
On top of that, Glen Davis is going to be a FA who could be overpaid and pulled out of Boston. Troy Murphy is 31 years old, and gone, as well. And recent news says Nenad Kristic will be going to play overseas. That just leaves Johnson, and Jeff Green, who is a RFA and will almost certainly be resigned, but also is a combo forward.
If you haven't realized it by now, the Celtics' frontcourt next season will be completely depleted, with some past-their-time oldies still on the roster. Johnson will get plenty of playing time, 25-30 MPG, and will produce solid numbers in those minutes, 10-14 PPG, 5-7 RPG.
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