Season 38 Preview

Predicted finish of MBA teams following draft, improvements and trade.

WEST DIVISION

1ST--OKLAHOMA CITY LARIATS: (9-1, 1-2) Although they lost one of their most important players in defensive stalwart guard Lemon Jell-o, the Lariats are still fully loaded with young talent and should capture their fifth consecutive West Division title. Simon Barsinister taking Jell-o's place is an acknowledged step down, but Hodor's addition at center will strengthen the team's one weak spot from a season ago. They still have the league-leading scorer Naf Naf at guard and his All-MBA teammate Walter Sobchack at forward. Reckless Abandon is set for a break-out year as well.

2ND--DALLAS DEMONS: (3-7) The infusion of all-time steals leader Lemon Jell-o and promising rookie point guard Bootlace Barnaby will most assuredly end the three-season string of last-place finishes by Dallas. Center Naceg Gecan, the top player at his position last season, has also improved his defense to go along with his potent 18.8 scoring pace and league-best (tied) rebounding ability. The forwards are somewhat questionable, but Dallas is primed for post-season.

3RD (tied)--SAN JOSE FIGHTING AMIGOS:(3-7) The aging franchise received a much-needed shot of youth in the persons of rookie guard Guy "the Eye" Clark and center Pippi Pippstrelli. Both will be instant starters, Clark being a superb shooter and Pippstrelli a defensive stalwart and rebounding machine. With some luck they could challenge Dallas.

3RD (tied)-- SACRAMENTO RIVER DOGS: (3-7) The R-Dogs replaced half its roster, and only point guard Patchy Fogg will remain a starter from last season's lineup. Sacramento traded Milwaukee third-year great Danke Shame for four-time all star game shooting guard Steve Carter, two decent rookie forwards and the Greyhounds first draft pick next season.

LAST -- SEATTLE STAMPEDE: (6-4, 5-1) Champs will plummet. Loss of playoff MVP center Dis Reflexia is a brutal one.


EAST DIVISION

1ST-- CHARLESTON MOUNTAINEERS: (7-3, 0-2) After playing without Hall of Fame center Max Payne in a painful first-round playoff elimination, the Mountaineers let Payne go, added rave-worthy rookie pivot J.J. Gargantuan and are poised to nail down their third consecutive East Division title. Only Oklahoma City has a younger starting lineup, and the Mountaineers have good, tested depth. With Bop-Bop, B. Quiet, Buck Naked and Jesus Moron Joseph all in their prime, Charleston is looking to navigate the tough East and nail down their second championship in three seasons.

2ND (tied) -- CHICAGO GALE: (5-5) Hit hardest by retirment with the losses of starting guards Didger A'doo and Hall of Famer Ching-Chong Chung, the Gale seems to have weathered the storm...at least on paper. Steady point guard Ginger Vampire will move seamlessly into the lineup, and rookie Chief Keef seems like a solid two-way player as his running mate. All-MBA forward Art Vandelay will be joined up front by the exciting aquisition of Hall of Fame center Max Payne.

2ND (tied) -- MILWAUKEE GREYHOUNDS: (5-5) Looking to get off a four-season .500-record snide, the Greyhounds fired coach Raisin Sport, replaced him with Fly Davia, and traded their team MVP of the past three seasons, Steve Carter, along with two rookies and a draft pick, to get defensive stalwart Danke Shame. They also created quite the buzz in Milwaukee by bringing back one of the great MBA players of all time, Hrundi V. Bakshi, who started his Hall of Fame career here. Enough? Time will tell.

4TH – PHILADELPHIA PHOBIA: (6-4, 3-4) Picked for last, they surprised all with a finals appearance last season. They added free-agent superstar center Dis Reflexia, but will go into this campaign without retired defensive great Gabba Penton at forward. Will Reflexia and two-time All-MBA guard T. Kanes Masterson be enough?

LAST – HOUSTON IGUANAS: (3-7) Strong at forward with Vic Hitler and Harold Arlen, they lost Hall of Fame guard Hrundi V. Bakshi in the free agent draft and got nothing to replace him. Seem destined for last.

THE ROOKIES

Bound for Greatness
6-8 center J.J. Gargantuan will start for Charleston
6-9 center Pippi Pippstrelli will start for San Jose
5-10 sharpshooting guard Guy “the Eye” Clark will start for San Jose

Solid Futures Ahead
6-8 forward Bill Cull will start for Sacramento
6-9 forward Du-Du Dadinga will start for Sacramento
6-1 guard Bootlace Barnaby will start for Dallas
5-11 guard Chief Keef will start for Chicago

Good Looking
6-9 forward Peter Pizza will sit for Oklahoma City
6-10 center Matthew Scott Chemers will back up fellow rookie Pippstrelli in San Jose
6-4 guard Baskets Weaver will play off bench for Seattle


Questionable, but hanging on
6-6 forward Baba Brinkman chucks his way onto the Dallas bench
6-5 forward Mimsy Borogrove makes Sacramento roster
6-5 forward Baldy McGrindy will be nailed to Seattle bench
6-7 guard Dustin Hirsch has size for Philadelphia

Directly to the cut pile
6-2 guard YourMajesty Lumpkins drafted and cut by Seattle
6-9 forward Parker Wellington drafted and cut by Houston

Season 38 Free Agents Announced

The Season 38 Draft is already assured of being an exciting one, as no less than eight starters, including both active Hall of Famers, will be included with the 16 rookies in this season's draft.

It could be a short stay at the top for the defending champion Seattle Stampede, which lost two of its famous "Three Amigos," the most damaging being last season's playoff MVP, center Dis Reflexia, who is among the top centers in the league, if not THE top center.

Also taking big hits in the free agent department were Houston (Bakshi), Charleston (Payne), Oklahoma City (Jell-o)and Dallas (Shame), to say nothing of San Jose, which lost its MVP, center George Gershwin.

FLY DAVIA NAMED NEW COACH OF MILWAUKEE
The Milwaukee Greyhounds have announced the firing of Raisin Sport as coach and the hiring of first-time coach Fly Davia.
The Greyhounds have had four consecutive 5-5 seasons and have the longest streak (six seasons) of not making the playoffs in the MBA. On the other end of the spectrum, they also boast the longest consecutive string of seasons without posting a losing record (nine).
Weird combo, eh? We'll see how Davia does.
One thing Milwaukee has going for it is they are the only MBA team to have no retirements and no players lost to free agency. Seemingly, they can only get better in the talent department.
Raising Sport has been head coach since the second half of Season 23. He has compiled a regular season record of 76-69 which included East Division first-place finishes in Seasons 30 and 32. He has had four playoff appearances at the helm, getting to the finals in Season 32. But he could never get Milwaukee, which has the second-most titles withe seven, a championship. At one point this franchise was dominant with Philadelphia, but their last championship was in Season 18.

Season 38 Free Agents Announced

The Season 38 Draft is already assured of being an exciting one, as no less than eight starters, including both active Hall of Famers, will be included with the 16 rookies in this season's draft.

It could be a short stay at the top for the defending champion Seattle Stampede, which lost two of its famous "Three Amigos," the most damaging being last season's playoff MVP, center Dis Reflexia, who is among the top centers in the league, if not THE top center.

Also taking big hits in the free agent department were Houston (Bakshi), Charleston (Payne), Oklahoma City (Jell-o)and Dallas (Shame), to say nothing of San Jose, which lost its MVP, center George Gershwin.

FLY DAVIA NAMED NEW COACH OF MILWAUKEE
The Milwaukee Greyhounds have announced the firing of Raisin Sport as coach and the hiring of first-time coach Fly Davia.
The Greyhounds have had four consecutive 5-5 seasons and have the longest streak (six seasons) of not making the playoffs in the MBA. On the other end of the spectrum, they also boast the longest consecutive string of seasons without posting a losing record (nine).
Weird combo, eh? We'll see how Davia does.
One thing Milwaukee has going for it is they are the only MBA team to have no retirements and no players lost to free agency. Seemingly, they can only get better in the talent department.
Raising Sport has been head coach since the second half of Season 23. He has compiled a regular season record of 76-69 which included East Division first-place finishes in Seasons 30 and 32. He has had four playoff appearances at the helm, getting to the finals in Season 32. But he could never get Milwaukee, which has the second-most titles withe seven, a championship. At one point this franchise was dominant with Philadelphia, but their last one was in Season 18.

Retirees find their final resting place following Season 37

MBA SEASON 37 PLAYOFFS SUMMARY

SEATTLE WINS FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP
Thirty-seven seasons after joining the MBA as an original franchise, the Seattle Stampede becomes the last of the original six teams to win an MBA title, and the final team of Tyler Masterson's to capture a crown. They did so with a fine young team, the youngest in the modern era, consisting of three second-season players and two rookies in the starting lineup, along with a bit of luck. The luck part came when they were able to meet the defending champion Charleston Mountaineers, who were missing Hall of Fame center Max Payne, in the first round of the playoffs, then avoiding the overwhelming favorites from Oklahoma City in the Finals. The Lariats, who had twice thrashed Seattle in the regular season,were upset in the opening round by a surprising Philadelphia Phobia contingent. Then, after losing game one of the Finals, Seattle swept the next three to capture that elusive first championship.



POST SEASON LEADERS NOTES
-- Second year center Dis Reflexia of Seattle becomes just the second Stampede player to ever capture the Playoff MVP award. The other was Hall of Fame center Bill Rustler in Season 10. Reflexia is just the fifth center to get this honor and the first to be so-named in 11 seasons.
The other centers who won were:
**Dolf Whizbang, Houston, Season 5
**Hall of Famer Alex Pal, Philadelphia, Season 7
**Hall of Famer Bill Rustler, Seattle, Season 10
**Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Paige, Oklahoma City, Season 12
**Hall of Famer Jonny Cockaroo, Philadelphia, Season 19
and Cockaroo again, this time with Charleston in Season 26. Cockaroo is the only center to win the Playoff MVP twice.
-- The top three spots in assists all belonged to rookies, with Seattle's Bob Kittle becoming the first rookie since Hall of Famer Shucks Oyster of Philadelphia in Season 17 to be tops in that department. The only other rookies to lead in playoff assists were Hall of Famer Soul Duran of Houston in Season 3 and Angie O'Gram of Seattle in Season 7.
-- Lemon Jell-o of Oklahoma City ties Hall of Famer Oscar Mudcat for the most times leading the playoffs in steals by securing his third title in that department.
-- Seattle's Sven Marquardt sets record for playoff free throw accuracy, going 13 for 13 from the line.



GUMM MAKES HALL OF FAME
-- Benny Gumm, who retired following Season 31, becomes the 40th member of the MBA HALL OF FAME, going in by vote of the Veteran's Committee.
-- Gumm Spent 13 seasons in the MBA, with 11 of those seasons with the Charleston franchise in what has to be considered the golden years of the team. His final two seasons were spent with Seattle. Only three Hall of Famer had longer careers.
-- He was a two-time First Team All-MBA performer in Seasons 25 and 26.
-- He made four MBA All Star Game appearances.
-- He helped lead Charleston to its first two Championship Seasons in Seasons 26 and 27 following a finals appearance in Season 25 that fell just short.
--He led the league in scoring with an 18.2 points per game average in Season 25 and followed that with his highest per game average the next season at 18.9 per game.
-- Gumm burst onto the scene in Season 19, leading Charleston in scoring with 15 per game and leading the league in free throw shooting.
-- He led his team in scoring 3 times, in assists 7 times and in free throwing 3 times.
-- An unusually good rebounder throughout his career, Gumm, a 6-foot guard, averaged 3 rebounds a game throughout his tenure, getting a high of 5.4 per game in Season 26.
-- A tremendous ball handler and shooter to the end, he was always a shitty defender and got worse as time wore on.
-- He enters the Hall of Fame as the 38th best player of all time, just behind another Charleston great, Silo Chamberlin and just ahead of Oscar Mudcat.

MBA Finals Game 4

Seattle 91, Philadelphia 87

YOUNG STAMPEDE CLINCH FIRST FRANCHISE CHAMPIONSHIP

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Stampede, playing before a raucous and appreciative home crowd won a wild and wooly Game 4 of the Season 37 finals, to nab the first title in the long history of this original franchise.

Following a first-quarter barrage of 5 Stampede treys that had the joint jumping, the home team went out to as much as a 14-point lead in the first half, only to see a game Philadelphia team close within 4 points late in the contest.

The game's exciting conclusion played out thusly:

15 TUs left, Seattle leads 85-81
13 TUs left, Seattle forward Vermin Supreme, subbing for fouled out Jairo Capoeira, hits a cold-blooded medium jumper with Philadelphia's Gabba Penton all over him...Seattle leads 87-81
12 TUs left, Philadelphia rookie point guard Mel A. Noma scores down low cutting the Seattle lead to 87-83.
10 TUs left, Seattle power forward Sven Marquardt hits a short jumper following a pass from Bob Kittle, Seattle 89-83.
9 TUs left, Philadelphia's Pythogoras Theorum makes short jumper, Phobia within 4 again, 89-85.
8 TUs left, Seattle rookie guard Bob Kittle makes a strong drive to the hole and scores his 20th point of the game, Seattle up 91-85.
5 TUs left, Philadelphia's Theorum misses short jumper, Seattle's Marquardt gets rebound, all but ending Phobia hopes.
Philadelphia would score once more before game's end, followed by Seattle coach Neville Chamberlin stripping bare and running wildly around the arena before being knocked to the floor by a security guard and removed.
But they could not remove the smile from the Stampede leader's face.

20-plus GVP Performances
-- Mel A. Noma returned to the lineup for the first time in the finals for Philly and the rookie point guard had a perfect 7 for 7 game for 15 points. He added 4 assists and a rebound.
-- T.Kanes Masterson of Philadelphia finally came up big offensively for the Phobia, leading his team with 22 points and winning co-MVP of the Game honors. He tied for game-high in rebounds with 6 and added 1 assist.
-- Philadelphia forward Pythogoras Theorum had 14 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and led all with 2 steals.
-- Playing in what turned out to be the final game of his career, retiring Philadelphia forward Gabba Penton went out with a 16-point effort, grabbed 2 boards and assisted 3 times.
-- Rookie point guard Bob "Fats" Kittle of Seattle played a whale of a game, scoring 20 points, directing the new champs with a game-high 7 assists and grabbing 2 rebounds. He won co-MVP of the Game honors in this biggest of all games.
-- Seattle super center Dis Reflexia led everyone in scoring with 23 points, thoroughly outplaying Philadelphia's fine 7-footer Q-Bert McGuffin for the second consecutive contest. Reflexia was held to 1 rebound. He's a lock to win the MVP of the Playoffs award.
-- Stampede power forward Sven Marquardt did his share of the dirty work in this championship run and in this game. He scored 14 points and grabbed a game-high (tied) 6 rebounds.

NEXT: THE PLAYOFF SUMMARY

MBA Finals Game 3

SEATTLE 88, PHILADELPHIA 66

SEATTLE ROAD ROMP PUTS STAMPEDE ON DOORSTEP OF FIRST TITLE

PHILADELPHIA -- The Three Amigos from last season's rookie class dominated this 88-66 road win for the Seattle Stampede, putting them one victory away from clinching their first title as they head home to the Northwest.

Seattle leads the best of five series 2 games to 1, having won two in a row.

The remarkable second-year center, Dis Reflexia led the way for the visitors, registering the first triple-double of what continues to be a remarkable beginning of a storied career. Reflexia, who came into the game neck and neck for Playoff MVP honors with his adversary, center Q-Bert McGuffin of Philly, just dominated the much bigger man.

Meanwhile, in the battle of the shooting guards, Wimsy Greenfoyle of Seattle continued to outplay All-MBA player T. Kanes Masterson, and Stampede power forward Sven Marquardt returned from injury in a big way.

Seattle was strong right out of the gate, hitting its first seven shots of the game, but could not shake a determined Philadelphia team. The Stampede went up by six at the half, but in the third quarter. Seattle blew the doors off the Phobia 29-11 and never looked back. On the way their ball movement accounted for 19 assists, just 2 shy of the playoff record set in Season 18 by Philadelphia.

The Phobia will be getting back starting point guard Mel A. Noma, whose heroics against Oklahoma City actually put the Phobia into the Finals. They will need to come up big on the road to get back into this series.

20-plus GVP performances
-- Center Dis Reflexia, already having an outstanding playoffs, took it to the next level with the first triple-double of his career. Relexia had 20 points on 10 of 12 shooting, tied for game-highs in rebounds (8) and assists (5) while registering 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. The 6-7 pivot also thwarted Philadelphia's big 7-footer numerous times with excellent defense.
-- Wimsy Greenfoyle of Seattle was the game's top scorer for the second contest in a row, following his 21-point effort with 23 in this one. He also grabbed 3 boards and assisted 3 times.
-- Seattle power forward Sven Marquardt had 18 points, banged the boards for a game-high (tied) 8 rebounds and dished out 1 assist.
-- Philadelphia point guard Ted Hose played very much under control in this game, getting 12 points on just 11 shots, dishing out 5 assists, getting 2 rebounds and 1 steal. He'll still go to the bench in favor of Mel A. Noma.
-- T. Kanes Masterson led the losing home team in scoring with 14, but has yet to break out in this finals, which is what the Phobia needs if they are to win the next two games. Masterson grabbed 4 boards, dished 3 assists and had a steal as well. In last season's playoffs, playing for Houston, Masterson led everyone in scoring with 22.4 per game. He's averaging just 12.5 per contest this season in the playoffs.