JBL Power Rankings - Pre-Season Edition

JBL Power Rankings – 2019 Pre-Season

With the JBL Auction less than 3 weeks away and the NBA pre-season beginning, I thought it was a good time to look at the JBL rosters and see who is in the best shape heading into the 19/20 JBL season. 

Obviously, those established teams with as many as 5 players (4 keepers and 1 rookie) will likely be rated higher than those teams with less players. For a team like French Lick, the defending Champ, who has won 3 of the last 4 titles and who has 5 players coming back (33% of his roster is already set) – they are going to be very highly rated. 

So, with that said, let me dive right in. Here are your Power Rankings in 3 distinct tiers (A, B, C).

Grade A teams: French Lick, Chilliwack, Idaho

French Lick
As mentioned above, French Lick is the envy of the JBL these days. 3 titles in the last 4 seasons. A loaded roster coming back for the 19/20 season. He’s got Mitchell Robinson as a cornerstone piece to this franchise for many years to come. He’s got 4 keepers who would all go for much more at Auction so he’s got ‘value’ on his side already. And for French, a known Celtic lover, he’s got his boy Tatum on the cheap as well. Nothing better than winning fantasy pools while having guys from your favourite team on board. This team is already well balanced but you know Hildy will be looking for ATO during the Auction as he’s light in ATO right now. All that being said, this French Lick squad is once again the favourite to win it all in 2019/20. The rest of us all have our work cut out to knock him off his pedestal.

Chilliwack

It’s been 6 years since the Wack won his last JBL title, but this year’s squad is poised to make a run. He’s got Towns and Adebayo at huge discounts and was lucky enough to nab the #2 rookie pick and selected potential superstar Ja Morant with his pick. The Wack knows how to JBL, no doubt about it. This 4-time champ will be well prepared come Auction night and I expect him to be laser focused on building a title contender. This is KAT’s last year before he goes back to Auction so Benny needs to make sure he takes full advantage of his discounted price. This Wack team could be knocking on French’s door if he drafts right. Of course, the 5 year trend in the Wack has not been very good. But, because Benny is a former champ, member of the Elite Champions Club, my best mate, I’m excited to see if he can win another title and catch Mr. Woo for 2^nd place all time.

Idaho

Yet again, Idaho has proclaimed this is the year that he takes home the JBL Title. He’s getting closer every season. Last year he was 2^nd. Year before that he was 3^rd. So he’s moving in the right direction. With Ben Simmons and DeAndre Ayton on board, Tuna has 2 massively discounted players on his roster already. They are both studs and the cornerstones of the franchise. He’s also got Kanter and Allen on board for rebounds. I’m sure Idaho was disappointed to see DeAndre Jordan land in Brooklyn as it takes the shine off Allen’s potential breakout season. Nevertheless, Allen has value and with Kanter’s boards as well this is a very BIG roster to start the Auction. Adding the #3 rookie pick RJ Barrett to the fold completes the big 5 for Idaho going into the season. Barrett is a complete wildcard in my book. There will be nights where he goes off and there will be nights where he looks lost. Regardless, Idaho is poised to make a run at his 1^st ever JBL title. To join the elite JBL Champions Club would be a very rare feat indeed. Can he do it? Can Idaho actually do it?

Grade B teams:  Bangkok, Norfolk, Juan de Fuca, Maui, Golden, Brussels

Bangkok

We all know about Bangkok’s big offseason move to trade Zion to Seoul for 3 established players and the #4 rookie pick. What could have been a lengthy rebuild towards chasing a title in a year or two has been accelerated into ‘win-now’ mode in Bangkok. With Mitchell, Siakam, and Turner on board, the Kok already has some seriously category builds going on. Adding in a rookie like Hunter, who should play right away, fits the build for Bangkok to compete this season. Knowing that the good Doctor is not going to be ordering the Kok around his own house also gives me belief that Rick can focus on the draft and not on getting another scotch and some peanuts for his house guests. The Kok has a similar build to French so far and needs to get himself some ATO at Auction. Will Rick look to go big and acquire a big name or will he build around a bunch of mid-tier players? There are a lot of options here for Rick and I’m excited to see what the Kok does if he’s a contending team. 

Norfolk

The good Doctor will apparently be drafting from a wedding venue in Toronto on the night of the draft. Hopefully he’s able to find someone to bring him his scotch on demand like he did when drafting at the Kok’s house. This is year #7 for Norfolk and he’s coming of best ever 5^th place finish. On top of that, he’s bringing back 3 excellent players in Bradley Beal, Trae Young and Domantas Sabonis. It’s very well balanced 3-some and he’s added a potential gem in Jaxson Hayes. He could be the Pelicans starting Center in the very near future. The key for Norfolk will obviously be the draft and if he’s able to spend the time needed while he’s at this wedding. The Auction is such a massive building block for JBL teams so let’s see if Norfolk can get it all sorted out. With a strong draft, Norfolk could definitely be in the hunt for a money spot this coming season.

Juan de Fuca

Juan is the answer to a great trivia question. Outside of Golden, French, Seoul, and Chilliwack, name the last JBL team to win the title. That’s right, it’s Juan de Fuca, in the 99/00 season. That’s 19 years ago now!! Juan comes into the 19/20 season with a very balanced 5-man roster. He’s got scoring with Lavine and Randle. He’s got ATO with Brogdon and Augustin. He’s got a rookie, Hachimura, who should get a lot of minutes. And he’s got a history of strong performances in the JBL. As you can see from the chart below, he’s got 8 money-spot finishes in the last 15 years. Look for Juan to get some blocks at Auction and as always, look for Juan to get some Raptors on that roster. Juan will be right there contending for a money spot again in 2019/20. Count on it.

Maui

Here come the Ribs. One of the OG’s in the JBL, this is year 29 for Trev and he’s finished in a money-spot in 5 of the last 6 seasons. This year, Maui brings back 4 keepers and 1 rookie as he heads to Auction. How will Porzingis do paired with Doncic in Dallas? This is year 5 for the Unicorn and he’s been a big reason why Maui is a contender in years past. Maui also has holdover rookie picks in Bagley and Isaac on the squad this season. Both of them look ready for bigger roles and could be fantasy darlings this season. Maui also secured Jarrett Culver in this year’s rookie draft and he could be a starter in Minnesota before it’s all said and done.  And Maui will ride Caris LeVert one more season in Brooklyn as well. With KD injured for the season, LeVert could have a nice campaign with Kyrie by his side. Like other squads, Maui is light in ATO and will likely be looking for some point guards at Auction.  With a strong draft, Maui can be shooting for another money finish or maybe even a JBL title.  And as most of you know, if you want a player, best get him at Auction, cause once he’s in Maui, it’s unlikely he’ll be leaving. 

Golden

Johnny is back to chase a 12^th JBL title. The 18/19 JBL season was Golden’s worst finish since the debacle of 2010. I believe that was the Vegas Draft and my attempt at a Gay Love team (Rudy and Kevin). Golden brings back 3 players (Fox, Harrell, and Gilgeous-Alexander) on decent contracts and I’m excited to see SGA in OKC. Picking rookie Brandon Clarke was based solely on people smarter than me saying that he would be a good player in the NBA. Plus, he was born in Vancouver so that gives me 2 Canadians already. Is another Johnny theme team in the works? Golden clearly needs some rebounds at Auction and will be looking to spend all of his Auction money this season (as opposed to years gone by where I’ve left a lot of money on the table). Will Golden be contending for another JBL title? History says yes. 

Brussels

The Muscles rebuild is in full effect. Last season he grabbed Doncic with the 2^nd overall rookie pick. Then he traded for Jaren Jackson Jr to give him 2 stud rookies to build around. Now, in this year’s rookie draft, he may have landed another gem in Darius Garland. Could Brussels be building something big here? It all depends on what Timmy does at Auction. And of course, it also depends on whether he can manage his Free Agent dollars. In year’s past, Brussels is out of money before Christmas and has to ride it out for a few months. Like other teams, ATO and 3PT% will be a priority if he wants to build a balanced team. Word is Brussels is creating his own War Room for the Auction so there are fewer distractions. Could this be the year that Brussels competes for a money spot? It’s been a dark 5 year period for Brussels as you can see. Come on Timmy. I’m cheering for you. 

Grade C teams:  Arctic, Seoul, Vancouver

Arctic

You might think this is a little harsh for Arctic to be here in the ‘C’ category. This ranking is more based on the amount of money Arctic has left for Auction and the unknown on whether Arctic will be making player selections or if he will engage his Auto-Pilot to complete the draft. If I knew for certain that Crikker was going to be drafting his own roster, then I would move them to the ‘B’ list. If he auto-drafts, who knows what this roster will look like when the Auction is over. With Westbrook, Harden and Russell on board already, the Arctic is loaded with scoring. The %’s are going to be an issue but he could work on those depending on who he drafts (or auto-drafts). The biggest issue for the Arctic is having just $107 bucks for 11 players. It’s very do-able, but I would have more faith in this squad if Crikker was behind the wheel instead of Steady Eddy the auto-pilot. 

Seoul

Again, maybe a harsh grade for the 5-time champion but this is more of a product of him having just 1 player to start the Auction. Also, I have to factor in sleep deprivation since Phil is a new Daddy. Will he be able to stay awake for the entire draft? Will he be able to avoid petting Barkley the whole night? Will he stay focused and not play NBA2K? There are a lot of variables to factor in here with Seoul.  I love that Woo traded his entire roster for Zion. That takes balls. I would also wager that Zion doesn’t finish the season in Seoul. Will he be able to build a contender around Zion? He might. Woo’s last 5 years has just one money spot finish. Will his reliance on Tendex rankings bring him back to glory? I love the wildcard that is Philly Woo. 

Vancouver

This will be year #6 for the Jizzlies squad. They are bringing back Kemba and Hardaway Jr while they also added one of my Blazers, Nassir Little, at the rookie draft. I think Kemba will be very good in Boston while I have my doubts about Hardaway in Dallas. The Auction will be key for this franchise and whether they can compete in 19/20. They need good players. Plain and simple. In their short history, it’s been a tough go. Their history looks a lot like the other Vancouver franchise and their short time in the NBA. It only takes a few smart picks and some luck to be right there in the JBL race. Let’s see if this is the year for them to make a move up the standings.

Incomplete Grades – Cali, Bellingham

I love that the JBL has 2 expansion teams. Albeit, Cali does have prior JBL experience from a few years back. It’s always nice to have new owners who are passionate about fantasy hoops. With now 14 JBL franchises, it places extra emphasis on Auction night and ensuring you get a solid roster to start the year. It also gives Idaho two new teams to bombard with trade offers. History shows that expansion teams struggle in the JBL. However, with an Auction draft you can build a roster however you like and with some clever Free Agent signings and shrewd trades, you just never know.  Best of luck to our new expansion friends, I’m excited to have you on board. 

Rookie Rewind 2019

The 2019 Rookie Draft

With the summer dragging on and my Fantasy Football team already 0-2 the focus on the JBL intensified this past week. So much so that teams were dropping players left and right with the hopes of beginning the JBL rookie draft early. Usually we start out Rookie draft around October 1^st but the group this year was super keen on starting early and despite a few mild protests – everyone dropped their final players.

With those final drops completed, we officially opened the 2019/20 JBL season. Again, this is our 29^th year of JBL fantasy hoops.

Let’s have a quick look at the picks…

#1 – Seoul – Zion Williamson

Was there ever a doubt? Seoul goes into the Auction with 1 player and $245 remaining to spend. Woo will build around Zion and try to win another title.

#2 – Chilliwack – Ja Morant

I’m still not sure if this pick is actually staying in Chilliwack or is apart of a bigger trade. Nevertheless, for now, Morant is an Off. This was always going to be the pick at 2. Morant could be very, very good. Chilliwack has 3 players on his roster and $198 left to spend at Auction.

#3 – Idaho – RJ Barrett

Again, the defacto choice all along. Even though we all know the 3^rd pick and/or RJ was offered around the JBL at some point. Idaho has 5 guys on his roster and $176 bucks to spend at Auction.

#4 – Bangkok – De’Andre Hunter

Was this the safe pick? Or was it the right pick? Or was it both? The rumours were Kok was going to take Hunter and it turned out to be the case. Hunter is primed for a starting position and could push for 30 minutes a night. Will he be a superstar? Unlikely. Will he play enough minutes to be fantasy worthy? Yes, I think so.  Bangkok, after the big trade with Seoul, now has 4 players on his roster and still has $201 to spend on Auction night.

#5 – Golden – Brandon Clarke

The first pick to go off-script from the NBA draft. Watching Clarke at Gonzaga this past season got me partially hooked on him. Plus he was born in Vancouver. So add him to SGA and I’m creating my own Team Canada. I like Clarke’s game and hope he can play some minutes off the Memphis bench. And if they get blown out, then more minutes for Clarke.  Golden has 4 players on the roster and $218 to spend at Auction. Of course, will I spend all of it is always the question. Golden is notorious for saving money for players that don't exist.

#6 – Brussels – Darius Garland

Brussels must have liked seeing Garland slip to him at #6. The kid only played 5 college games at Vanderbilt before blowing a knee. Recent videos show he’s bulked up considerably and looks 100%. And man this kid can shoot. This is the big potential player that Brussels was hoping to land. Adding Garland to Doncic and Jackson Jr is a major haul for a rebuilding Brussels squad. Timbo now has 3 players on the roster and still has $221 to spend.

#7 – Norfolk – Jaxson Hayes

Another move off script here. The Doctor aiming for the high ceiling that Hayes brings to the table. Love his potential but will he play much this season in New Orleans? Guess we’ll find out. Norfolk has 4 players on his roster and still has $171 to spend.

#8 – Arctic – Sekou Doumbouya

This was a big home run swing here by the Arctic. Not much is known about Doumbouya. Some have compared his potential to the Greak Freek. Could you imagine. Not sure if Doumbouya will spend more time with the Pistons or in the G-League. But hey, why not take a swing. If you don’t like him, drop him. Arctic has 4 players on the roster and just $107 bucks left to spend. Keeping those high-priced keepers has always been the Arctic’s play.

#9 – Vancouver – Nassir Little

If you thought the Sekou Doumbouya pick was a big swing, this is a monstrous swing for the fences. Little was rated very highly coming into his freshman season at North Carolina. Unfortunately, he didn’t have a great college season. That said, he was projected to go in the lottery but for some reason slipped to the Blazers at #25. Being a Blazers fan, I love the pick for them. Many scouts still feel Little could be a star in the NBA. I don’t expect to see him play much for a Blazers team that was in the Western Conference Finals last year and whose coach only played rookies (Simons and Trent) 20 and 15 games respectively last season. Classic draft and stash here.  Vancouver now has 3 players on the roster and still has $206 to spend at Auction.

#10 – Maui – Jarrett Culver

Maui’s draft strategy over the years is pretty simple. Take the highest remaining available rookie. NBA teams employ smart people to make the best picks, so for Maui to take the #6 pick in this draft with the 10^th JBL pick was a no-brainer. As mentioned, I think Culver could start eventually for the Wolves. Safe pick here by Maui.  The Ribs now have 5 players and still have $203 to spend at Auction.

#11 – Juan de Fuca – Rui Hachimura

Another good pick here in the sense that Hachimura should see lots of minutes with the Wizards this season. Who are the other forwards? Davis Bertans? Troy Brown? CJ Miles? Umm, yeah, Hachimura should play. Juan has 5 players on the roster and $186 to spend on Auction night.

#12 – French Lick – Goga Bitadze

I’d like to say this is a surprising pick by French but I know the methods to his madness and predicted this pick. Goga should see time as the first big off the bench in Indiana. He’s ready to play and could put up decent numbers for the defending champ. There is a reason that French has won 3 of 4 – he follows the numbers. French has 5 players and $204 still to spend. 

#13 – Bellingham – Cam Reddish

The 1^st ever pick in Bellingham has a chance to see a lot of minutes for a young Hawks team. Cam can play multiple positions and if he can figure out his shooting could make an impact this coming season. Bellingham has Cam and $259 to spend on Auction night.

#14 – Cali – Cameron Johnson

Much like the Suns, Cali reaches for Mr. Johnson. At this stage of the game, why not swing for the fences. Cali goes into Auction with Johnson and $259 bucks to spend.

So, there you have it Gents, the 2019 JBL rookie draft. Surprises? For sure. Coby White, who the Bulls took at #7, didn’t get picked. I find that a bid odd. Maybe it was my harsh review of his summer league play? We saw lots of guys that were not drafted in the top 14 picks in the NBA draft get taken in ours. Doumbouya (15), Bitadze (18), Clarke (21) and Little (25) all found their way into the top 14 of the JBL draft. I think there could be a poll here for the JBL site to keep things interesting…

And finally, here is the breakdown of what each team needs (# of players) and how much they have to spend in the October 19^th JBL Auction. 

Team Players to Draft Money to Spend

Arctic 11 $107

Bangkok 11 $201

Bellingham 14 $259

Brussels 12 $221

Cali 14 $259

Chilliwack 12 $198

French Lick 10 $204

Golden 11 $218

Idaho 10 $176

Juan de Fuca 10 $186

Maui 10 $203

Norfolk 11 $171

Seoul 14 $245

Vancouver 12 $206

The Rookies

The Top 10 Picks in the NBA Draft

As the slow summer months drag on it’s time for another JBL Chronicles. Even though our JBL Rookie draft is still a couple weeks away (deadline for drops is October 1^st) I thought I would share my thoughts on this year’s top 10 rookie picks. Should I be sharing my thoughts on these guys considering our Rookie draft hasn’t happened yet? Well sure, why not, again my history with rookies is less than stellar so if anyone is reading this and making a decision based on my comments, shame on them. What do I know?

Furthermore, I have pick #5 in this draft and we can all pretty much agree on who will be the top 3 picks will be so I don’t think sharing my take on the other 7 top 10 picks is going to change much. All 10 of these players will be selected in our 14 team rookie draft. So there really isn’t any surprises there. I will say that I don’t envision our rookie draft following the exact same order, but who knows, that’s why the rookie drafts is so much fun.

So, with that, here we go…

#1 – Pelicans - Zion Williamson – the guy is a beast. A ManChild.  I know some say he will be a bust because he’s carrying too much weight. And hey, they might be right, but I just see a beast of a player. I see similarities to Barkley or Larry Johnson or Elton Brand. Undersized but a bull in a china shop. I like him. I like him a lot. Is he the best rookie since Anthony Davis? Since Karl-Anthony Towns? Only time will tell. But I clearly see why Seoul sold the farm to move up to #1. Most people would be building around Zion for 5 years and the rest of us would never have a chance to trade for him. That’s the great thing about Zion landing in Seoul because it’s highly unlikely Zion lasts the full 5 years. Phil is not afraid to pull the trigger on a trade if it means a chance at another JBL Title. Did you know Seoul hasn’t won a title since the 2010/11. That’s a long time ago. Is Seoul still considered a perennial favourite when they haven’t won in 8-9 years?

#2 – Grizzlies - Ja Morant – again, I’m a huge fan. Not just of him as a player but of his landing spot. Being in Memphis and essentially giving the keys to him. I like it. The fear of small or mid-major schools shouldn’t be there anymore with guys like Lillard and McCollum showing that those players can be successful in the NBA. Morant and Jackson Jr should be an exciting young duo for the rebuilding Grizz. I think he could have a real shot at Rookie of the Year because he’s going to have the ball in his hands all the time. I don’t have any doubts that he’s going to be the #2 pick in the JBL rookie draft. I think Benny would love to add him to his KAT/Bam combo. However, I’m also well aware of teams with offers to move up to #2 to presumably grab Morant. We’ve already seen the #1 pick flipped – let’s see if Benny stays here at 2.

#3 – Knicks - RJ Barrett – love that another Canadian kid went so high in the draft. His numbers at Duke were insane and I like that he landed in New York. I don’t like that NY went out and signed 5 power forwards for this season. Once NY didn’t land the big fish Free Agent I would have much preferred they just go with a young team and build through their youth. My question though is can he be a fantasy stud? His percentages were not great in college so how will they translate to the NBA. I expect a lot of points and some huge nights. No one is higher on RJ Barrett than Idaho. That works out really well since Idaho is picking at #3. Now, it could all be a part of an elaborate rouge by Idaho, pumping the tires of RJ and looking for someone willing to trade up and get him. However, I’m not sure if everyone is as sold on RJ as Idaho is. I’m not saying there is another player to take over him at #3 but RJ does appear to be very difficult to project at the pro level. 

#4 – Hawks - DeAndre Hunter – the Hawks paid a huge price to move up and get him in the draft. For me, he’s going to be a way better real life NBA player than he will be in Fantasy. However, he’s in the perfect landing spot. A young team who needs a Small Forward. He can play D and he can shoot 3’s. He has lots of opportunity to approach 30 minutes a night and in most cases - minutes usually mean fantasy stats.  Will Hunter be the #4 pick in the JBL rookie draft? Bangkok now sits at #4 and we know Kok could go 2 ways here. He will go with the ‘safest’ pick and the one who will likely contribute to the Fighters this season. Or he goes for the home run, takes a chance on someone who might not start right away but could be good next spring and for years to come. Someone who has massive upside. This #4 pick is really where the JBL Rookie draft begins. And the Kok gets to set the stage for the rest of the rookie picks. Who will Kok take at 4?

#5 – Cavaliers - Darius Garland – the wildcard pick. He only played five games in college before injuring his knee. It appears he can shoot it. He doesn’t pass much. Can he defend? How will it work with him and Colin Sexton in the Cavaliers backcourt? The coach appears to love him already so that’s a good thing for him. He is a little undersized though and I wonder if the Sexton/Garland backcourt can work long term. For me, the kid could be a stud and one of the best players in this draft or he could be just another average dude struggling to find his way in Cleveland. High risk, high reward type pick. The latest news that he had another knee surgery this summer definitely has to worry some JBL owners considering calling his name. Will he stay healthy? Will the Cavs limit his minutes? Since Darius is the son of Winston Garland, that gives him bonus points in my eyes. 

#6 – TimberWolves - Jarrett Culver – A bit surprised that Minnesota took Culver here with Coby White still on the board and Minny needing a PG. That said, I like Culver. I think he will play a lot for the T-Wolves and ultimately if he develops he will force the Wolves to push Wiggins out the door (if they can find someone to take his horrible contract). While Culver needs to work on his shooting apparently, I think his athleticism and defense will earn him minutes this coming season. The Wolves traded Dario Saric and the #11 pick in the draft to move up to take Culver – so they must have plans to play him. It looks like the Wolves will consider starting Josh Okogie at a wing position alongside Wiggins. Or can Culver beat Okogie out? Regardless, I think there is a path for Culver to play meaningful minutes this season for the Wolves. 

#7 – Bulls - Coby White – initially one of my favourite rookie targets for my #5 rookie pick. Then I saw him play in Summer League. He’s quick, he’s agile, he can pass and defend, but the boy can’t shoot. I like that he’s landed in Chicago as I thought he would replace Kris Dunn but then the Bulls went and signed Satoransky for 3 years. I do think he’s worth a high pick because of how fast he is and what he’ll be able to create for the Bulls. Reminds me of De’Aaron Fox. If the Bulls didn’t sign Satoransky then I think White would be very high on the lists of JBL owners. I do still think he goes top 10 in our Rookie draft because his upside is huge. Like his hair. Love his hair. 

#8 – Pelicans - Jaxson Hayes – didn’t know much about him except I thought his rebounds were low for a 7-footer. Then I saw his summer league dunk. Holy cow, he’s long and athletic. The challenge will be minutes in New Orleans I think. They brought in Favors and they also have Okafor. I think New Orleans thinks they can push for a playoff spot so I’m not sure how many kids they can play at one time. Now, if the Pelicans playoff push stalls I would look for Hayes and Alexander-Walker to get more minutes near the end of the season. Love him as a draft and stash because of his athleticism and Favors and Okafor haven’t exactly been a perfect picture of health over the years. Could this be the Kok’s big swing? 

#9 – Wizards - Rui Hachimura – loved his college game and I loved that Gonzaga team but the scouts are concerned about how his game translates to the NBA. Can he hit 3’s? Can he defend? Is he a SF or a PF? The best spot about this landing spot is that the Wizards are going to be bad and they don’t have many forwards who can play. I think Rui will play a lot from the get-go and could put up decent numbers. When Seould held the #4 pick it seemed like Hachimura was destined for Seoul. After the big Seoul/Bangkok trade, the Kok demonstratively announced he would not be picking Hachimura. I wonder if that statement still stands. Hachimura had a good FIBA World Cup and looked good at times so I definitely think he will play minutes for the Wizards this season. 

#10 – Hawks - Cam Reddish – the 3^rd Duke freshman taken in the top ten. He was supposed to be a stud coming out of the high school but his numbers at Duke are amazingly bad. The kid never found his shot. He’s long and athletic and landing in Atlanta is a great spot for him. But will he excel and be a fantasy gem? I’d like to think he can and I know a lot of scouts love his potential. I’m just worried about those percentages.  He’s also struggled a bit with some sort of injury this summer. If he had been able to play in the Summer League and show he’s healthy and can shoot – then I think he would likely go higher than #10 in the JBL Rookie Draft. It certainly looks like he has a path to minutes in Atlanta as he can play SF or SG and he’ll be battling for minutes with the likes of De’Andre Bembry and Evan Turner – so you have to like his chances. 

So, those were the top 10 picks in the NBA rookie draft. Will those be the top 10 picks in the JBL rookie draft? I'm saying absolutely not.

Kok's Shining Moment

While the 2018 JBL rookie draft saw the first ever coin flip to decide who Idaho would pick at #1, the 2019 rookie draft is already more exciting and we don't even have the 1st pick yet.

While the2019/20 season hasn't even officially begun, we already have a monster trade to report. It's kind of like the NBA Free Agent period where teams were supposed to wait to talk to Free Agents until a certain date and time - but when that time arrived, players and teams already had multi-year multi-million dollar contracts in place. The Kok/Seoul trade fits the same mold.

With Zion Williamson being the clear #1 Fantasy rookie by a landslide everyone was going to the Kok looking to land the #1 pick. While we heard rumours of lowball offers I was thinking it would be silly for Bangkok to even consider trading this kid. He's being hyped as the best rookie since Anthony Davis and before that LeBron James. He set all sorts of efficiency records in college basketball this past season. Most of us have known about him since he was in grade 8. The kid could be a phenom. There was no way Bangkok could pass him up and I could only imagine that it would take the world to pry that #1 pick away from the Kok.

But then there was rumblings that Seoul was offering the world and then some. The rumour was all 3 of Seoul's keepers and the #4 rookie pick. The 3 players are Myles Turner, Donovan Mitchell and Pascal Siakam.

Siakam is on the books for $9 bucks and has 2 years left on his contract. Mitchell is $14 dollars and has 3 years on his rookie deal and Turner is $27 and is entering the final year of his contract. Those 3 players, at those prices, are undervalued. Siakam could be worth $40 at Auction. Mitchell is certainly in the $30-$40 range with the revamped Utah offense. And Myles Turner is likely worth $40ish as well as he was the NBA's leading shot-blocker last season.

While there is a significant drop off in this rookie class after the top 3 picks, Bangkok essentially gets his chance to find the next best rookie in this class. Zion, Morant and Barrett are the top 3 picks. There is no one else who can break into that group. But who is the 4th best rookie? Is it De'Andre Hunter who the Hawks gave up several assets to move up and acquire? Is it Darius Garland who the Cavaliers selected at #5? Or is Jarrett Culver who the T-Wolves moved up from #11 to grab at the 6-hole? Could it be Rui Hachimura who the Wizards selected at #9 and now there are rumblings that he will start right away and he's been fantastic this summer? Or is someone else? The Kok gets to decide who he thinks will the man. Huge opportunity here for Bangkok if he gets this right.

And I get why Seoul sold the farm. Zion could be special. You get him for 5 years with the starting price of $15 bucks. That means year 5 he'll be just $35 bucks. He's probably already worth the $35 so I see why Woo went all in. And if Seoul doesn't think there are any potentially good rookies at #4 then that part of the deal is a moot point for him.

So who would I rather have? As much as I love Zion and his potential, I take the deal and bring in Turner, Mitchell and Siakam and a rookie.

The key to winning the JBL is utilizing your $260 cap space to your advantage. If you have players at salaries well below what they are actually worth - you have a great chance at winning. Look at French last season. With his 4 keepers, his rookie pick, and a wicked draft, I figure he got over $400 bucks of value from his $260 salary. That's why he destroyed the rest of the league. The rest of us were working with $260 and he essentially had a $400 dollar budget.

So for Bangkok, this trade moves him in that direction. The 3 players he acquired cost him $50 bucks in JBL salary. But in terms of value, those 3 are worth over $100 bucks in value. Again, no brainer for the Kok. Instead of going for the slow rebuild, if the Kok drafts well, he is a contender. Yes, I'll say it again, a contender. It's all about 'value' my friends. There are 3 phases here for the Kok for this to have a chance. Step 1: He's acquired significant undervalued players. Step 2: Find the rookie who will out-perform his $9 dollar cap hit and Step 3: Nail the draft (which means focus on Bangkok and not serving scotch to the Doctor).

Bangkok wins the trade hands down, but Seoul has acquired a potential gem in Zion. How Woo handles the draft is his next step. Seoul's track record the past few years has been less than stellar but maybe Zion is the building block he needs to bring back a once mighty franchise who lately has been an also-ran.

Post-trade there are rumblings that there were better offers on the table for the Kok to consider. Namely that Chilliwack was interested and had a better package to offer. I don't have any details of what was the Wack was offering so we'll never know. Was the Wack offering KAT and the #2 rookie pick? Is one year of KAT and Ja Morant better than the Seoul package? Was the Wack offering 3 years of Bam Adebayo and #2?  For me, neither of those are better than Seoul's package. Now, if the Wack was offering KAT, Bam AND #2  - now we've got a debate. Because getting Ja Morant at #2 is very appealing and makes me want to dance! (FYI-I love Frankie!)

So there you have it gents. The Kok traded Zion. I never thought it would happen and I never thought Bangkok should do it. But I can't argue with the haul he received. Well done Kok.

JBL Auction Night - Saturday, October 19th @ 6pm PST
Location TBD (Kok's house or Golden's house or......)

The 2018 Rookie Draft Rewind

With the 2019 Rookie Draft not far off, I thought I would look at how all the JBL Managers did last season in the rookie draft.  As a reminder, here’s how last years Rookie draft went down. 

2018 Rookie Draft order (salary) 

1. Idaho $15 - DeAndre Ayton 
2. Brussels $12 - Luca Doncic 
3. Seoul $10 - Jaren Jackson Jr. 
4. Norfolk $9 - Trae Young 
5. Juan de Fuca $8 - Mo Bamba 
6. Manila $7 - Wendell Carter Jr. 
7. Arctic $6 - Collin Sexton 
8. Maui $5 - Marvin Bagley III 
9. Chilliwack $4 - Kevin Knox 
10. French $3 - Mitchell Robinson 
11. Vancouver $2 - Michael Porter Jr. 
12. Golden $1 - Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 
13. Bangkok $1 - Svi Mykhailiuk

The most memorable #1 pick in the history of the JBL Rookie draft occurred in 2018. Why? Well, if you remember, Idaho literally flipped a coin on whether to select Ayton or Doncic. The whole thing was filmed and the drama was awesome. Of course, it’s always nice that no matter what the coin reveals, you can be happy with your choice. 

Ayton is not as flashy as Doncic nor was he getting all the hype that Luca was seeing. Ayton was a throwback. Back to the basket center who could not survive in today’s NBA. Well, Ayton was a really good fantasy option and was ultimately the right analytical pick at #1. I don’t think anyone would ever call Ayton flashy or sexy or even say I’m here tonight to watch Ayton – but his numbers are very solid in the world of Fantasy hoops. Ayton was a 5 category guy in his rookie season (16 and 10) with good FG% and almost a steal and a block per game. He will get better in year 2. Sure, it would be nice to see him block 2 shots a game but he was just a rookie. Give him time. Ayton might never be a star, but for $20 bucks as a keeper this season he has HUGE value.

The merciful coin flip that landed Idaho Ayton also landed Brussels Mr. Doncic. This was the outcome that Timbo so badly wanted. There was an obvious man crush on Luca. He was buying Doncic jerseys for his children and they don’t even know who Luca us. Tim got a Doncic jersey for himself, his Mrs and even the family dog. Timmy loves him some Doncic. What Luka did in his rookie season was nothing short of outstanding. 21ppg, 8reb, 6ast. 1.1 steals. Sure, his %’s were low but we’re talking about a 19 year old kid in his first season in the best league in the world. He is must see TV as some of the stuff he does on the court is simply amazing. Is he worth as much as Ayton at Auction? No. Not yet. Nevertheless, over the coming years this kid is going to be amazing. You can just see it. As Dallas adds more players around him, the focus will move away from him and it should help him increase his numbers. Having Luka and Porzingis on the same roster should be really fun to watch. Add Dallas now to your NBA League Pass. I cannot see a situation where Brussels moves Doncic. 

Finally, at #3 we had a decision to make. Where would Seoul turn? He went with the hyped Jaren Jackson Jr. who was being portrayed as a future Defensive Player of the Year. We all know Seoul loves his stocks and it seemed like a perfect fit as JJJ would surely be a defensive menace. JJJ wasn’t the stud right out of the box like everyone thought. He’s young and skinny and was getting muscled. He also fouled at an amazing rate so he was unable to stay on the floor much in Memphis. As the season wore on, the Grizz were hit by injury and started to rebuild. Gasol was moved on to TO and the rebuild was on. JJJ is now the man in Memphis. He and Morant should be a dynamic duo. I’d like to see JJJ grab more than 5 boards a game and he could improve his ATO but the kid is going to be electric. I think that’s why Brussels made the bold move to acquire him from Seoul for Pascal Siakam. One of the best pure trades last season in my mind. Tim was thinking long term and pairing Doncic with JJJ as keepers was brilliant. Seoul loves Pascal and the Raptors so the move for him made sense too since Pascal was undervalued as well. And by the way, did Seoul always love the Raptors? Seems like he just jumped on their bandwagon as the NBA title was in site. And is Seoul a Kyle Lowry fan? Seems one day he loves the guy and the next he thinks he’s a fat tub of goo.

At #4 we saw the Doctor jump on Trae Young. This was going to one of 2 ways. The kid was either going to be really good or he was going to be Trajan Langdon. Well, after a somewhat slow start, Trae Young is on the cusp of being must-see-TV. In the 2^nd half of last season he averaged 23ppg and 9ast. OK, his %’s aren’t the greatest (44% and 35% at high volumes) but the kid was just a rookie. I really like Atlanta and what they are doing there. Young and Collins are an exciting pair. Trae Young, right now, is really just a 2 category fantasy stud. Points and ATO. His percentages need work and of course he could grab some more steals. But as a rookie he averaged 19 and 8 so the sky is the limit. As the Hawks get better, Trae won’t have to jack as many shots. His upside is huge. Norfolk has done really well here in nabbing Mr. Young. A great core piece to an improving Norfolk franchise.

At #5 Juan de Fuca grabbed Mo Bamba. The kid was being touted as a defensive beast. A shot blocking machine. The trouble for Mo was that the guy he was up against, Nikola Vucevic, was about to embark on a career season. And then there was the injury. I believe Mo can play in the NBA, the problem at the moment for his progression is that the Magic just re-signed Vucevic to a big deal. Can the two of them play together? I’m not sure. How will Bamba get enough minutes to be fantasy worthy? This is the first pick where the JBL owner has a tough decision on how to move forward with the player. The first 4 picks are slam dunk keepers – but Mo Bamba – at $13 bucks is going to be a tough decision. 

The now defunct Manila Ice took Wendell Carter Jr at #6. I liked this pick. Carter Jr had a path to the starting job as only Robin Lopez stood in his way. Unfortunately, Carter Jr. only managed to play 44 games due to injuries and his minutes were significantly limited by Coach Boylen who seems to use games of chance to determine who plays what. Due to his potential, French Lick made a bold trade for Carter Jr late in the season even though Wendell was injured at the time. French had the title won by about February so in order to keep himself amused he decided to get a potential great keeper for the 19/20 season. French can protect 4 players for next season and he currently has 6 studs all clamoring for jobs. Carter Jr. would have a $12 dollar salary for a starting Center who can score, shoot, rebound and block shots. Which 2 players French ultimately cuts should be of great interest to the rest of us JBL owners. Will Carter Jr. make the final roster in French? We’re a couple weeks away from finding out. Come on French, make those final 2 cuts.

At #7 the Arctic nabbed Collin Sexton. He had a really slow start to the year as the Cavaliers tried to figure out who they were. They figured it out – they learned they are not a very good basketball team. Sexton will give you 2 things – points and 3PT%. The 2^nd half of the season Sexton actually averaged 19ppg and shot 41% from downtown. He gives you nothing else. Nothing. I know Arctic is looking closely at who will fill out his 3 spots. Sounds like he will go the veteran route and look at guys like Westbrook and Harden. But Sexton is still there. He would be $11 bucks. Does Arctic believe he can better? Can Sexton co-exist with Darius Garland? Will the return of Kevin Love impact Sexton’s number positively or negatively?  Will be interesting to see if Arctic re-ups with Sexton. My guess is that we see Sexton back at Auction.

At pick #8 of the 2018 rookie draft, Maui somehow managed to select the actual #2 NBA pick – Marvin Bagley. Trev’s approach to the rookie draft is simple. If NBA GM’s have done their homework then they must know something. Trev takes the highest rookie available. This worked 5 years ago as well with Porzingis, the #4 pick, was bypassed by all of us and Trev landed him with the last pick in the lottery for a $1 salary. 5 years later Porzingis is about to finish his 5 year tour of duty in Maui. Personally, I’d love to see Brussels land Porzingis to pair him with Doncic. Back to Bagley. He came off the bench for much of the season as somehow the coach, was it Dave Joerger, thought Nemanja Bjelica was a better option? Oh wait, Joerger got canned. Go figure. Bagley averaged 17 and 9 while shooting 49% in the 2^nd half of the season and is poised for a monster season under new coach Luke Walton. This is a no brainer keeper for Maui and the rest of us can forget about acquiring his services – he’ll be in Maui for the 5 years. Unless a miracle happens.

At pick #9, Chilliwack took Kevin Knox. The Knicks also took Knox at pick #9. Both likely regret this pick. Don’t get me wrong, Knox had spectacular moments where he looked like a future star. But the bulk of his work was not impressive. Many experts call his rookie season one of the worst in NBA history. He averaged almost 13ppg but the rest of the numbers are not good. Like, really not good. He shot 37% and 34% and took a lot of shots. He had a negative ATO. He doesn’t steal. He doesn’t block. He can’t rebound. The kid has a long way to go. I wonder how much he will go for at Auction now that the Knicks have a 7-man rotation of big men.

At pick #10, French Lick took the chance on summer league standout Mitchell Robinson. He was drafted by the Knicks in the 2^nd round so for him to go at #10 in the JBL rookie draft was quite the reach at the time. Well, what do you know, Robinson becomes one of the best rookies, especially for Fantasy hoops, in a long time. French struck gold with this pick and I would expect him to be in French for many seasons to come. He’ll be just $8 bucks for the 19/20 season and will once again be one of the young, cheap, core players that French relies upon to chase yet another title. Can French win 4 in 5 years? If he does, Robinson will be a big reason why.

At #11 Vancouver took a flyer on Michael Porter Jr. As we all know now, this didn’t work out very well. Porter Jr. never saw the floor last season. I will say that I liked this pick at the time and Golden would have likely taken the same chance if he slid one more spot. Oddly enough, Porter Jr is now projected as a breakout candidate this season for the Nuggets. I’m not sure about this as the Nuggets are loaded with talent and I’m just not sure he can crack the rotation. But I am willing to say someone drafts him at Auction as a late round sleeper.

At #12, Golden grabbed the Canadian youngster Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Safe to say Golden finally got a rookie pick right. After years of taking guys like Wade Baldwin and Stanley Johnson I’m quite proud of picking up SGA at this stage of the game. SGA will be back in Golden this coming season for $6 bucks as he looks to become one of the building blocks of the Thunder. He appears to be a jack of all trades and a master of none. However, for a youngster, I like his potential.

With the final pick in the 2018 JBL Rookie Draft, the Bangkok Fighters selected Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk. The Lakers took him at #47 so this was a HUGE swing…..and a miss for the Kok. What can I say? You gotta go big with the 13^th pick but this one just didn’t work out. I can't really say much more about this pick. The Kok bet it all, and lost. Oh well, he was rewarded this offseason with the #1 lottery pick in the 2019 rookie draft and we all recently heard about what he was able to get for the pick. That's my next article actually - how the Kok's rebuild hit the turbo boost.

Some of the other rookies that probably should have been selected in our rookie draft included Miles Bridges, Mikal Bridges, Landry Shamet and Kevin Huerter.

So if we had to do it all again – what would the rookie order look like? How high would Robinson climb? Think of the talent in this rookie class when you have the likes of Doncic, Ayton, Young, Robinson, Jackson Jr, Bagley, Carter Jr, and SGA and others. I’m hoping the 2019 class turns out to be just as good but it certainly doesn’t look like it on the surface.

There you have it gents, the 2018 Rookie draft in rewind. With the 2019 Rookie draft so close (JBL owners just need to drop 14 players between them before we can begin) I always like looking back and see how we did in years gone by. Get dropping everyone (I still have 1 to drop myself) and then we can get going on the 2019 draft!!

Some JBL Ideas

I’m going to layout 3 scenarios that I’ve thought about as potential rule changes for the JBL. I’m not suggesting we put these to a vote at this time, I’m just here spewing out some ideas for the masses. 

Option 1

Rookie Draft – JBL Lottery

Currently, the JBL Rookie lottery is one of the most exciting things that happens all summer. Listening to TSN1040 has reminds me everyday that the sports world in the summer months, if you’re not a baseball fan, is slow and boring. The BC Lions are trash. The Whitecaps play horrible football. And there is no NBA.

The anticipation of the JBL rookie lottery keeps me going. Researching rookies from some small town College in Eastern Nebraska excites me. I’m still, to this day, amazed at these kids highlight reels on You Tube. Not because of their 3 minute videos of them just dunking – but because it doesn’t show any scouts (or a super keen JBL owner) if you can play in the NBA. Can you shoot? Can you hit a 3? I certainly can’t tell from your dunking video. I get it, you’re 6’10 and can dunk. Big whoop.

So this year’s rookie lottery was held at Talking Rock Resort, Shuswap. In attendance was Chilliwack owner Benny and Golden owner Johnny. Also there, former JBL’er and Dayton Yer Sista owner Cord. And finally, a fan favourite Deano R was the man holding the box o’ balls. The anticipation of who was going to get the 1^st pick was amazing. Would Kok actually get #1? I was definitely rooting against French being drawn early – his run of championships (3 in 4) did not need bolstering by winning the Zion sweepstakes. Would the trash talking Idaho be able to pull off another major coup? So many good storylines. 

We all know what happened and who gets to pick where. But my take on the Rookie Draft is that it should be 2 rounds. For a year like this with 14 JBL teams – that’s 28 rookie picks – essentially matching the NBA draft. All 2^nd round rookie picks in my universe would be $1. You could do a lot of things to make the 2^nd round more interesting. You could do the standard reverse draft. So Kok winning #1 also means he gets #28. Or, you could lottery up again for the 2^nd round. Maybe the Kok wins #1 and #15?

You would get to take a chance on someone, before the Auction, for just $1 and see how his pre-season shakes out. Maybe you’ve got a $1 dollar gem on your hands. If not, release him before auction.

And I get all the negatives – that no one wants to take a chance on some $1 rookie. Well, in my scenario, you could ‘PASS’ on your 2^nd rounder. Another negative I imagine would be that those true NBA fans (or JBL keeners) would have a huge advantage by potentially getting a $1 steal. Well, yes, but that’s the same for the Auction – do your homework and you’ll probably get some good players. Again, these players we would be picking in the JBL rookie round #2 would all be 1^st round NBA picks. Or, you could gamble on Bol Bol or other 2^nd rounders that may have slipped thru the cracks. And of course, as the JBL Auction date approached – if you didn’t like the looks of your 2^nd rookie pick – you could release him and send him back into the auction pool. 

So there is my first pitch to JBL owners – expand the Rookie Lottery Draft to 2 rounds.

Option 2

My 2^nd idea for the JBL, especially now that we’re back to 14 teams, is to eliminate the IR spot and just have 15 man rosters. 

With the current roster limits (16 players) and with 14 teams, that means we are drafting/holding 224 players from NBA teams. With 30 NBA teams, we are drafting roughly 7.5 players from every team in the NBA. 

Eliminating the 16^th spot (IR) would put 14 players back into the Free Agent pool. 

This would force teams to be a little more strategic around how they want to use their 3 bench spots. If you’re in the hunt for a money spot or a JBL title and you’re stashing John Wall in one of your 3 bench spots – can you really afford to keep him – or should you drop him and sign a FA that can actually help you?

This would also make it much harder for those teams that are going to draft and stash the likes of Klay Thompson, DeMarcus Cousins, John Wall, Kevin Durant, and others. Currently, I can draft anyone of those guys and just put him in my IR spot right away and sign a Free Agent the first week of the season. Easy peezy. No risk. Lots of potential reward. Now if I only had 3 bench spots and I want to stash one of those long term injured guys that means I have to run my team with just 2 healthy bench players. And what if I get another injured guy? Do I run with just 1 bench option? 

The NBA now has 15 player roster limits – so maybe the JBL should follow them.

Option 3

My third and final idea for the JBL surrounds the idea of developing more dynasty teams and carry over from year to year. My idea stems from the current keeper model where depending on where you finish in the standings determines how many keepers you get for next season. 

So, to have the ability to build your JBL team from year to year, my proposal would be add a rookie spot to the current keeper allotments.

So, to use French Lick as an example. He finished 1^st so he gets 4 keeper spots. In my proposed model – he gets 4 keeper spots + 1 rookie. So he can keep Tatum, Curry, Nance, and let’s say Carter Jr as his 4 keepers but then he can also keep 1 more player as long as he was drafted as a rookie – so in French’s case that could be Mitchell Robinson in this example. So, essentially, French now has 5 keepers. 

This would work all the way down to last place. So, for poor Kok, if he finished last again this season (which of course won’t happen) – he would get 0 keepers but he would get 1 rookie keeper – so that would be Zion. 

The negatives to this rule change are of course that the best teams are actually getting stronger as they get 5 keepers instead of 4. But there is also the notion that the bottom teams at least get something. Again, using teams from last season, let’s use Chilliwack this time, he finished 10^th and gets just 2 keeper spots. In the new model – he gets those 2 plus 1 rookie. So currently he’s looking at KAT and Adebayo as his only 2 keepers. In the new model, since Bam is a rookie, Chilliwack could now keep KAT and Lord Covington as well as Bam Adebayo. 

This model of course places even more emphasis on rookies and the rookie lottery as my proposal would only be for players who were drafted in a rookie draft and had the ‘R’ status in their contract years. So it doesn’t have to be a rookie in R1 year – as long as he was drafted in the rookie lottery at some point in the last 5 years. It would not include those rookies drafted at Auction. 

The big thing in this model is that we are rewarding the last place team. So, a team finishes dead last but still gets to keep a top rookie?? Do teams sell out and trade an Anthony Davis for RJ Barrett because it doesn’t matter if they plummet to last place? There are definitely more risks associated with this potential rule change. 

So, there you have it, 3 ideas for the JBL. They all have things that I like and they all have pieces that I don’t like.

My favourite one is definitely moving to 15-man rosters – just easier to manage (less time for the Commish emailing owners reminding them to move a player out of IR); adds more players to the Free Agency pool; aligns to NBA roster limits; might deter stashing long-term injured players.

I also like having 2 rounds of a rookie draft. I’m fascinated by the rookie class every year and doing the rookie draft during the NBA pre-season gives you the feel of maybe winning the lottery again and finding a great rookie. And if you don’t like your 2^nd round rookie pick – drop them or even just PASS on the pick. 

The Option 3 I’ve gone back and forth on for quite some time. The strong get stronger in my opinion but the bottom teams also get something for their efforts. And do we want to reward the last place teams with a rookie keeper? I’m really torn on this one…

THE JBL CHRONICLES ARE BACK!

The last time I posted in the JBL Chronicles was December 15, 2015. It’s been almost 4 years since my last post. Crazy how time flies. Maybe I should be doing Podcasts or You Tube videos or TikTok’s but my preference has always been to write my thoughts down in an “old fashioned” blog. Call me old school.

So, shall we continue? Let’s cover the ground rules. I’m going to write about all things JBL, NBA, and whatever else suits my fancy. Some things you might like, some things you won’t like. As always, these are my opinions on various topics and you might not like what I have to say. This video clip from Ricky Gervais sums up my take on this….

https://twitter.com/afrovii/status/1124635242625736704?lang=en

2019/20 will be the 29^th JBL Season. I find that hard to believe but that’s the truth of the matter. 29 years we’ve been getting together and drafting Fantasy basketball teams to see who can win the year. It makes the NBA so much better knowing that I have a JBL team. I’m not sure I would even follow the NBA that closely if the JBL didn’t exist. Long live the JBL.

So where is the draft going to be for the 30^th year in the JBL? We went to Las Vegas for the 20^th year anniversary. And I would like to point out that’s still Golden’s worst finish ever in the JBL. I blame the Keg of Heineken that Benny rolled in around 10am for the Golden fiasco that year. It was also my year of Gay Love. You know, my theme team centered around Rudy Gay and Kevin Love, just so I could say Gay Love. Not the best idea I’ve had.  So where is the 30^th anniversary going to be? Vegas again? Phoenix for some sunshine and golf? Or back to the Kok’s palace for some ping pong and NBA2K? We have time to figure it out but start thinking about it gents.

So, let’s dive in to some things on my mind for the 2019/20 JBL season.

The Rookie Lottery was pretty exciting. Well, at least for Bangkok it was. I think it had been awhile since the last place team had actually won the lottery and got the #1 pick. Pretty sure we know who Kok will be picking. Chilliwack won #2 and Idaho beat the odds and took home #3. Idaho had the 1^st pick in last year’s Rookie Draft and selected DeAndre Ayton. Idaho can’t have any better luck in the Lottery. He’s like the Oilers of lotteries.

I’m a fan of this rookie class and think there are a handful of players that can make an impact right away. But I also think there are several rookies that will shine in March/April as the season winds down and teams give their kids a chance. Of course, I’m also the guy who believed in Stanley Johnson and Wade Baldwin – so what do I know. Trying to figure out who will be the most impactful rookie and also who has the best 5 year value can be very difficult.

As soon as all teams are down to their max number of keepers we can begin the rookie draft. Likely timeframe will be October 1^st to start the rookie draft. And we still need to land on an Auction date – looks like it’s either Saturday, October 19^th or Saturday, October 20^th. Need to pick a day soon just so people can block it in their calendars.

Big injuries are mounting this offseason. Benny will go nuts at this draft as we have multiple big name guys that are going to be drafted for cheap that will not be impacting the league at all this season. Kevin Durant. John Wall. Klay Thompson, Victor Oladipo. DeMarcus Cousins. Jusuf Nurkic. They will all be on the shelf to start the year but will be up for Auction. If they get drafted at Auction, they will be eligible for protection. Will be interesting to see how much people will be willing to spend on these guys just so they can maybe keep them for next season. 

We have 2 new teams this year coming in. We say goodbye to Manila Ice (the 2^nd time a team by that name has failed) and we say hello (again) to Marko and his 2 co-owners as well as the Kok’s buddy. Typically, expansion teams don’t do well in their 1^st year, so we’ll see how this time around unfolds.

Let’s look at keeper options for all the teams…

Arctic (3 keepers max) – he has big ticket options in Westbrook and Harden or he has cheaper options like Gallinari or Sexton. Arctic has been a BIG 3 model over the past few years and his auto-pilot draft technique once he has his big 3 players draws the curses of the crowd at past drafts. We’ll see what strategy he employs this time around. But I do like his keeper options. Plenty to choose from here. Arctic also has the #8 pick in the rookie draft and might be able to snag someone of value.

Bangkok (0) – the cupboard is bare but I think that’s a good thing. The Kok gets the #1 pick in the rookie draft and can build from there. Sometimes in order to build something up, you have to tear it all the way down.

Brussels (2) – while Brussels still has 5 players on his roster for just 2 spots, make no mistake about who his 2 keepers are. Doncic and JJJ are the picks and I love those 2 players. Both should be in Brussels for years. Well done Timmy. Off to a good start. Brussels has the #6 pick in the rookie draft as well and should be able to get a contributor from that spot. There are rumours of Timbo trying to move up in the rookie draft. With Golden’s poor history of rookie picks, Brussels might have his guy fall into his lap at 6.

Chilliwack (2) – another team where it’s pretty clear who the 2 keepers will be. It’s KAT and it’s BAM. Throw in the #2 rookie pick and Chilliwack is my one of my favourites for the JBL title. Could this be the Wack’s comeback year? It’s been 5 years since the Wack has won a JBL title. He sits 3^rd all time (1 behind Seoul and 1 ahead of French) with 4 championships to his name. The Wack must be loving that he gets KAT for $35. That was a major Golden error last season giving him up. But hey, we all make bad trades at some point.  

French Lick (4) – still has 6 guys on the roster for just 4 spots. Love the options here. The defending champ (and 3 of the last 4 titles) is loaded again for the coming season. French is another favourite already based on the keepers here. He does have some tough decisions to make though. Everyone keep your eyes on Steph Curry and whether French is keeping him at $72 bucks. 

Golden (3) – I’ve got my 3 guys that I like and I lucked out to get the #5 rookie pick. Good thing I like 4 rookies a lot. After that, it’s a bit of a crapshoot. But as mentioned above, picking guys like Wade Baldwin over Andre Drummond really builds my confidence about the rookies I like. I’m likely going to second guess myself about 1,000 times before the rookie draft even starts. 

Idaho (4) – Tuna has 6 guys left on the roster for 4 spots. I think 2 of the guys are locks – Ayton and Simmons. Despite the Nets bringing in DeAndre, I still like Jarrett Allen’s potential too. The Celtics don’t have many big bodies so maybe Kanter is a good guy too. Or will Idaho take a chance on Crazy Man Portis or Cedi Osman? And as mentioned above, Idaho has the #3 pick in a 3 rookie draft. Lucky dog. As many know, Idaho has probably offered that #3 pick to every team in the JBL 5 times over by now. 

Juan de Fuca (4) – Juan has 6 players still on the roster for just 4 spots. I can make a case for all 6 of these guys to be protected. The easy one for me, and the best value, is Malcolm Brogdon. Love this kid at a $9 dollar price tag. Whoever Juan protects is pretty much going to ensure that they have a strong core for next season. Did you know Juan was the last JBL champion that wasn’t Golden, Seoul, Chilliwack or French Lick? That was 18 years ago now since Juan won their title. 

Maui (4) – Trev still has 8 guys on the roster for 4 spots. I think 2 of these guys are absolute locks – Porzingis and Bagley. This will be the final year of Porzingis in Maui before he must go back to Auction next season. Not a bad run for a rookie that was a $1 pick 5 years ago. I think the 3^rd and 4^th spots are up for grabs. And remember, whoever Maui keeps, the chances of another team acquiring any of those keepers in a trade is slim to none. Maui certainly isn’t one of our more active traders.

Norfolk (3) – Dr. Dave is coming off a career best 5^th place finish and has his 3 keepers locked in. He’s got Bradley Beal ($46), Trae Young ($14) and Domatas Sabonis ($23). All good keepers in my view. And in the Doctor’s mind – Trae Young should have been rookie of the year. I now Norfolk is very high on the kid. Maybe he’s just jealous of Trae’s hair.  Could Norfolk now be a regular contender? Will the Kok continue to have to serve him scotch whenever the Doctor snaps his fingers? I’m curious to see if Norfolk can take the next step into top 4 contention or see if this past season was just some luck.

Seoul (3) – another team locked in with his keepers. Woo is keeping Donovan Mitchell, Myles Turner and his personal favourite Pascal Siakam. Seoul also has the #4 pick in the rookie draft so he should have a good base for the coming season. This will be Phil’s first JBL draft as a Dad – so will he be awake long enough to get those sleepers in the late rounds? Will he have any time to study for the draft? Let’s see how Father Woo handles this auction.

Vancouver (2) – with 2 spots up for grabs here I’m going to be honest, I don’t love the options. I think most of you know I’m not a Wiggins fan. At all. Kemba is nice but at $41 is that saving you any money? Hardaway Jr for $9? I’m not sold he’s worth that amount or how much he’ll play in Dallas. An aging Paul Millsap for $22 when they just traded a 1^st round pick for Jerami Grant? So, honestly, I don’t love the options. And maybe ultimately they don’t keep anyone from this group. You don’t have to protect anyone…but hey, if you want to keep Andrew Wiggins for $26 bucks. Please, by all means. 

So, that’s it for me for this post. It was all about the Keepers. But really, it was all about getting the creative juices flowing again to see if the JBL Chronicles should make a comeback. For my next post, I’m going to touch on potential rule changes I’d like to see in the JBL. So if you have any ideas you want me to discuss, just let me know.