Season 43 Free Agents Join Upcoming Draft

Sixteen free agents have announced their intention to join the 16 rookies in the upcoming Season 43 draft. Six of those 16 are starters, with three excellent forwards adding some spice to the mix.

Here's the breakdown of free agent losses by team according to draft order.

LOS ANGELES BIG ONE (2-8) One free agent, no starters
Tiger Masterson, 6-8 back-up forward going into his fifth season declares for free agency.
Add the tough loss of starting forward Vic Hitler to retirement and L.A. goes into the draft in pretty good shape, losing just one starter in a draft replete with forwards. In addition to getting four picks of their own, The Big One will get Chicago's second and third pick, so they should be able to fill that solo void and then some.

CHICAGO GALE (2-8) Two free agents, no starters
Gale loses two backups to free agency: 6-6 forward Nomo Momo going into his fourth season and 6-11 King Schmeckpepr who will be going into his seventh year and looking to play for his fifth different team.
Chicago lost solid starting forward Reckless Abandon to retirement and will have to re-group with its first and fourth picks in the draft, having given up its second and third to Los Angeles in a previous trade. Four starters from last season will be back as well as a starter from a previous year.

MILWAUKEE GREYHOUNDS (3-7) Two free agents, one starter
Hoping for a comeback season in Season 43, Coach Fly Davia and his charges received a cruel blow when 6-6 forward Baba Brinkman declared for free agency. Brinkman, going into his sixth season, has been All-MBA and made four All Star Games. He's been the Greyhounds' MVP for the past four seasons and last season was the league's third-rated forward. They also lost 6-3 guard Piggles Huckster, who in three previous seasons has never approached shooting even 40 percent from the floor.
Although the loss of Brinkman is a tough one, Milwaukee lost nobody to retirement. Additionally, they have five picks in the upcoming draft, which includes the first two picks of Sacramento. Without Brinkman and his 18.2 scoring average, Milwaukee needs someone who can put the ball in the hole.

SACRAMENTO RIVER DOGS (5-5) No free agents
The R-Dogs are the only team in the MBA to escape free agency unscathed.
They will, however, have to replace the steady play of forward Tea Time Typhoo, who was their only player to retire.
After trading their first two draft picks to Milwaukee, they will have to hit big on their lone remaining pick in the third round.

PHILADELPHIA PHOBIA (5-5) Two free agents, one starter
The Phobia's two free agency losses were 6-7 backup center Benji Ballou and starting shooting guard 6-1 Brownie McShytles whose play last season dipped a bit from his promising rookie campaign.
Philadelphia suffered no retirements and could field a decent starting lineup right now if it needed to. They have three picks to improve even more.

SAN JOSE FIGHTING AMIGOS (5-5) One free agent, one starter
6-6 defensive-minded forward KYLE SHERWOOD declared for free agency, but although he started a vast majority of the games for the Amigos last season, he lost his small forward spot toward the end of the season anyway.
He is the second forward San Jose will have to replace, having lost Sven Marquardt to retirement. The Amigos have all three of their draft picks and look good heading into the draft.

SEATTLE STAMPEDE (5-5)(0-2) One free agent, one starter
The Stampede lost starting point guard, 6-1 veteran Mel A. Noma, going into his seventh season, to free agency. He can be replaced by Lapiz Lapiz Boligrafo, already on the roster. But Seattle also lost two other starters, top center Naceg Gecan and forward Jairo Capoeira to retirement, as well as backup forward Harry Verducci. That means they need to fill four roster spots as well as three starting positions from last season. Although they have three picks, they could be starting the draft with the worst current roster.

OKLAHOMA CITY LARIATS (8-2)(0-2) Two free agents, one starter
6-7 forward Sloppy Dollop, a starter since coming to the Lariats three seasons ago, declared for free agency and immediately became one of the most desired picks in the Season 43 draft. In three seasons as a starter Dollop has earned two All Star Game appearances and two championship rings. He tied Baba Brinkman as the third-best forward in the MBA last season and he's still in his prime as far as possible improvements go.
The Lariats also lost 6-3 guard Tatsuo Takamiya, who has managed to escape the cut pile in three of his four seasons.
The loss of Dollop to free agency, coupled with the retirements of Hall of Fame center Max Payne and first-tier guard Ginger Vampire, who led the team in scoring, means that Oklahoma City's glory days are almost assuredly over. They have three picks to replace three superb starters.

DALLAS DEMONS (5-5)(3-3) One free agent, one part-time starter
Lost 7-1 center Jefferson "Budweiser" McNuggets, who filled in ably for Steve "Drunk Uncle" Bromberger during his injury down the home stretch last season and shared the job in their surprising playoff run. McNuggets joins three fine looking rookie centers in a bumper draft crop for that position.
But the Demons also lost Bromberger to retirement, as well as the No. 1 ranked forward from last season, Gulemon Mon-Mon. Of the two front-court positions, Mon-Mon may be tougher to replace. Dallas has all three of its picks.

CHARLESTON MOUNTAINEERS (10-0)(5-1) Four free agents, one starter
The defending champions lost the most players to free agency of any team, with four declaring.
Among those, the toughest loss is 6-8 forward Pietro Destroyer, who graded out as the sixth best forward in the league last season and has been a tough starter for Charleston all three of his seasons in the MBA. In those three campaigns, Destroyer has never failed to make the All Star Game and has one championship ring to his name. He's right up there with Dollop and Brinkman as draft prizes at the forward position, along with rookie Chip Battoe.
In addition to losing Dollop to free agency, the Mountaineers lost longtime guard Jesus Moron Joseph, guard Cat Timol and defensive forward Mike Hunt.
Joseph was a big loss because he filled in so well for Naf Naf when the Charleston Hall of Famer was in foul trouble. Hunt played a solid backup forward for the champs last season and Timol was also decent off the pines.
Luckily for Mountaineers fans, no one from the squad retired, so with six players left on the roster, they need only fill one starting spot at forward. In Tyler's opinion, they still have the three top players in the league in their Hall of Fame guard tandem of Naf Naf and Beezow Bop-Bop and center J.J. Gargantuan.
And they have three draft picks.