Random Thoughts

A week has passed since my post. The JBL standings haven't changed much in this time. Woo is still in 1st and is looking more and more like the 08/09 champion. There is just so much balance on this team that it will not drop enough for anyone to catch him. The 2 best things that happened (or Woo did) to ensure victory are (1) traded Rondo for Dirty Dirk and Mike Conley and (2) Andrew Bynum got hurt allowing Odom (and Gasol for me) to excel down the stretch.

Rajon Rondo became a top 5 Fantasy PG this season. Sure, he doesn't score much, but look at all those other categories - especially the steals. Consider him a modern day Jason Kidd with a better FG%. Moving him was hard because Rondo would have been a great keeper - but Phil did the right thing by making the trade to ensure victory. Dirk is a Fantasy stud and Conley apparently really likes it in Seoul because his numbers have been really good since arriving.

The other great move had nothing to do with Woo - but the bad luck of Andrew Bynum. All year, Woo to his credit, held on to Lamar Odom. He came off the bench and put up 10 and 5 numbers all season until Bynum went down. Then, Odom was inserted back into the starting lineup and he became the Fantasy force he was in 07/08. This was a HUGE bonus for Woo.

I think the next 3 weeks we'll see Woo cruise into the victory circle. You can see he's still managing his team as he has been sitting out Richard Jefferson (the Bucks leading scorer now) because Woo is still playing the other categories. Perfect move.

2nd place is still up for grabs. The Wack and Golden are battling it out with the Wack holding a slight lead at the moment. 2nd place will be decided by a couple of categories - it's that simple. Where is there room for movement? Well, the Offs and Showers are neck and neck in blocks. So, there's a 26 point category swing. Golden has a slight chance of catching Idaho in scoring - that would be 20 points. Golden has a slight chance of catching Idaho in steals - there's 13 points. FG% remains tight and any poor shooting nights from Golden could see them drop points. And finally, The Wack needs to continue rebounding as he could drop 15 (or gain 15) points over the last 3 weeks.

To make a bold prediction, I say we finish like we stand right now. Woo, Benny, Johnny, and Tuna. In that order. We'll see.

I see that Stephen Jackson has shut it down for the season. Another injury for the Pancakes - not that it matters. He's wrapped up 12th place. Although, he may have set a record for most players injured in a season. It's hard to do well in Fantasy pool when all your guys are hurt. Just off the top of my head, here's the guys I can think of on his team who have missed games: Carmelo, Calderon, Iverson, Hamilton, Amare, Bogut, and now Jackson. I'm sure I missed some guys there too. Tough year for Trev.

As for the Warriors - they will miss S-Jax - but their season is a write-off now anyways. They really need ot figure out what to do going forward. Is Don Nelson the right guy?? Will Mullin be canned? Is the owner running the show? Golden State plays an exciting brand of basketball (one that will never win a championship) but they need to figure out what to do with their crowded swing man positions. How many guys do they have that can play SG or SF?? Hmmm, Ellis, Crawford, S-Jax, Maggette, Morrow, and Azubuike. 6 guys for 2 spots. They have promising young big men in Randolph and Wright - but don't play them. I could see them not using them if they were currently winning games with the small lineup. But, they suck, so why not play conventional? I think it's time for Nelson to go.

The Suns lost to the Blazers the other night. That pretty much kills their playoff hopes (although the Mavs lost to the Nuggets last night). I think the Suns are 3 games behind the Mavs with about 10 games left. Conclusion, the Suns are done. I'm not sure why this is really news. I mean, they lost Amare weeks ago - why would this aging team make the playoffs? And even if they got in as the #8 seed - hello Lakers.

After joining the Crikker baseball pool this week and seeing a 2 division format - I've started to wonder if the JBL should consider moving to 2 divisions. You would still get your overall winner, but you might create a little more excitement down the stretch with 2 divisions. If there were 2 divisions right now (top 6, bottom 6), there would actually be a pretty good race for the B division title with Bangkok and Juan de Fuca battling it out.

The other thing I thought about was promotion and relegation. Top 2 teams in the B division would get promoted into the A division at the end of the year and the bottom 2 teams in the A league would move down. It would create some rivalries and might add interest to the pool. I think I will create a JBL poll and see if the other owners like the idea. And wouldn't it be something to see a team in the B League (we would have to come up with some cool division names), a team that finished bottom 6 the year before, win the JBL Overall title?

As for names for possible divisions...the 'A' League should be named after a Basketball great and the 'B' division should be named after the ultimate role player. How about Paul Shirley? Ed Nealy? Eric Leckner? As for the A division - is it as simple as the Jordan Division?

The more I type about this idea...the more I like it.