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Coaches meeting for breakfast
Marshall Richards: Frias and Uzek improved their passing. Piotr got better on the drive part of the drive and kick.

Byron Helm: Air is gonna have his hands full with that kid when he gets back.

Pio Reina: That will sort itself out later. I’m still thinking about the game plan.

MR: You’re thinking about changing the training calendar.

PR: Already did that. Made a slight change to the rotation.

BH: I figured as much.

PR: Don’t worry; we’ll get back to the original plan. I’m just moving a few things around.

MR: Plus, if the guards get better in front of the bigs, that can only help the bigs.

PR: That, and we’ve been working the bigs pretty hard. Let them catch their breaths.

MR: Ball movement gonna be better on the first unit, but that 2nd unit might just pack a punch offensively.

PR: We'll see.

Later, In the arena...

Joshua Doe with Sam Dunkley and Jimmy Buckitts here live from courtside! Sam let’s jump right in! What do you expect to see tonight?

Sam Dunkley: There shouldn’t be a question as to who the better team is at all. It’s the Warriors. What we’re hoping to see is if Linndale’s in season rebuild has closed the gap. They’ve spent over four million dollars on 9 players and moved 8 for nearly three and a half million. They clearly want to see the gap close.

Jimmy Buckitts: To be fair, that rebuild was not done in response to the Warriors loss earlier this season; this was kicked off by a disheartening loss to the Jumpstop Jumpers. Various sources in the front office have indicated to me that it may not have appeared so initially, but every player brought in was an upgrade or necessary part to remake the team defensively. They are telling me this was a long term vision, and they think they’ve accelerated the turnaround.

SD: I’ve heard from other sources around the league and in other basketball circles that Linndale has done a nice job of remaking the roster in such a short amount of time, but no one I spoke to thinks the architect of this makeover will be around long if the team doesn’t show improvement.

JD: Sam, are you saying that Roberto Gurgone is on the hot seat?

SD: I haven’t confirmed that, Joshua. For now, that seems like speculation.

JD: Tell us something you can confidently report, Sam.

SD: That Jumpstop Jumpers game is really sitting with Pio Reina. The Fort Wayne game also, but mostly the former. He really feels like both games were there to be had, and is bristling at having to wait a season to play those teams again.

JB: From that perspective, you win those two games and you’re 8-7, 2 games out of a playoff spot. Pio has a history of getting his team up for the challenge, though I think that one would be a bit too tall.

JD: Gonna play devil’s advocate here. You win those games, you don’t make the moves they’ve made. Likely lose games later on. From what I’ve heard within the organization and seen with my own eyes, this is the group to roll with. I’m not saying they’ll make a run this season; I just think if it comes down to a relegation series, no one wants to face Linndale.

SD: Jumpstop looks like a likely opponent in that event, and I think they’ll take their chances.

JB: CB Bethesdorf and Fort Wayne may have something to say. 3 teams, 1 playoff spot. One of them will be seeing Linndale again.

JD: If they’re worrying about Linndale, they’ve already lost. If you’re in a playoff, that should be the only focus!

In Air Allnite’s apartment…

(radio speakers) ...and now… the starting lineup your favorite basketball team…

“I should be there”, Air thought to himself. “Marshall’s gonna run one of his gimmicks and get us killed.”

...starting at shooting guard… at 6 feet 7 inches tall from…

“D***** MARSHALL, HE’S NOT READY FOR THAT!!!”

(neighbor yelling) “SHUT UP OLD MAN; WE’RE TRYIN’ TO WATCH THE GAME!”

Welp, I made mistake. Congrats Muffins!

Joshua Doe: Folks, we’re live at The Speedway, where though the final score was a disappointment, the mood was far better than you might think. A second 19 point loss to Coach Stevenson and his San Dominica Warriors this season, but this one was different. I’m here with Sam Dunkley and Jimmy Buckitts, and gentlemen, there were things to be disappointed with to be sure, but there were also things to get excited about.

Jimmy Bickitts: Joshua, Byron Helm is going to be a holy terror on those big men after tonight’s performance. They got obliterated on the boards, and that’s probably the single biggest contributor to their defeat. That’s not to say there weren’t other reasons, but that has to be the biggest one in my eyes.

Sam Dunkley: Granja absolutely ate Pasman for lunch, Stojakovic was bullied by O’Brien, and the bench gave you very little offensively. We thought Pasman would acquit himself better, Stojakovic just couldn’t do anything with the 5 fouls, but really he couldn’t do anything anyway. San Dominica looked like they were toying with a little brother at times.

JD: The first quarter was just not very good for Linndale. You give up 36 points, Piotr Bolibok was a non factor, San Dominica gets 12 free throw attempts in that first quarter, and Alidori, Granja, and LAB each had 8 points. This absolutely looked like it had gone sideways fast.

JB: Then something happened. Slowly but surely, Piotr Bolibok became Petey Buckets. Carlos Frias showed why he was sought after. Joy Beko stuffed the stat sheet, and at one point this was a 5 point game in the second half.

SD: Petey Buckets put on a show once he got his feet under him. No one expected him to stop Alidori; they just hoped he would make him work on the other end. Alidori shredded Bolibok that first quarter. From then on, Bolibok showed why Linndale was so excited to get him.

JB: Frias had a solid game, but where was Kops? That second unit was primed for him to takeover and he just didn’t, and Tovar was shooting blanks today. The rebounding and the bench clearly cost Linndale this game.

JD: Let’s see if we can get a word with one of the coaches. (walks toward Pio Reina) Coach Reina! I know it wasn’t the outcome you wanted, but what did you takeaway from tonight?

Pio Reina: We know we had a lot of questions coming into this season and into this game. We knew we had a lot of work to do inside; we know we have a long way to go there. We got some clarity in the back court; I don’t think Kops in the back court is done, but I think we need to see more of Bolibok, and we will going forward. We also know we have a number of other players that need court time in the back court, and we’ll do what we can to make sure everyone gets the time they need to improve.

JD: Is Bolibok the starter going forward?

PR: Let’s not anoint him yet. I’ll say he’s on track to play a lot next season, but nothing is guaranteed.
We have some things we’d like him to work on, but his offensive talent was undeniable.

JD: Coach, Joy Beko does a lot of things well except score. Tonight he was only 2 assists from a triple double despite only taking 8 shots. How can you incorporate him into the offense more?

PR: I think Beko will score more in time, but he’s more important to us as that secondary facilitator on the floor than he is as just a scorer. He had 8 assists and Frias had 6,and that’s impressive because they were on a unit that, while very talented overall, had some issues with ball movement and offensive flow. His points will come when other players flesh their game out.

JD: Thanks, Coach!

Joshua Doe: Joshua Doe and Jimmy Buckitts here with the Pio Reina Show. Coach, lots of things to discuss this week. Let’s start with the breakout performance from the young phenom fans are calling Petey Buckets, Piotr Bolibok. How did that come about?

Pio Reina: Joshua, we weren’t surprised, but it was touch and go that first quarter.

JB: Coach, word on the street was Bolibok doesn’t pass, was a turnover machine, and didn’t play defense. You’ve had him in your program for 2 weeks now. What have you seen that maybe hasn’t translated into games?

PR: Fearlessness, and until last night, confidence. Once he got his feet under him, the young man put on quite the display.

JD: Coach, with the renewed emphasis on a defense first mentality, why was this game the one to start him?

PR: We chose this game because we thought he had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Big talent steps up in big situations, and he stepped up.

JB: Bolibok scored from everywhere after a quiet first quarter. What did you say to him to get him going?

PR: We just told him to go out and play his game. We told him he wasn’t getting benched, but his offense was going to have to step up to cover his defense. He did that.

JD: Coach, Carlos Frias had a nice game. How has he performed so far?

PR: In his two starts after his arrival, he’s averaging 22.5 points, 3 boards, and 7 assists, all the while being a work in progress. Carlos is fine, and he’ll only get better.

JB: Coach, where does Trenton Tovar fit in the picture? It seems like he’s been passed up in the rotation.

PR: Like anyone else, there are improvements we want to see from him. We fully expect to see those improvements and look forward to seeing Trenton be the best version of himself yet.

JD: Coach, talk about Joy Beko and Darko Stojakevic and their impact on the team.

PR: Joy Beko is averaging 10.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 5.4 assists, but there is much more to unlock. Joy has to improve on offense, but he’s a very skilled player and we expect to see him blossom.

JD: I heard there was a package with him at the point.

PR: We have a package for various situations. That may or may not be one.

JB: Tell us a bit about Stojakevic.

PR: He has only been here a week. His value? 15 points, 10.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists. We haven’t seen his best yet.

JB: Coach, that’s 10 assists between your starting bigs. Is the passing big man a feature or a byproduct of what you’re doing?

PR: Both.

JD: Having played a few positions, I know the answer, but explain for the fans why positional versatility is so important to the team?

PR: It allows us the ability to find match ups on offense or defense to exploit. Look at the box score from our close loss to Fort Wayne. Notice anything?

JB: Pemwieser played small forward.

PR: On offense. Defensively, he played center.

JB: Beko played center! It’s right there on the sheet.

PR: Having Beko on the floor gives us the option play Pemwieser at small forward and play him at center on defense because Beko can cover anyone; that’s one way versatility can come in to play. Meanwhile, Pemwieser was 9 of 16 for 20 points and 10 rebounds. We’re not letting Pemwieser guard a small forward; that’s not his skill set. Pemwieser hit a late three to tie the game; if he’s at center, he likely doesn’t get that shot if he’s even in the game at that point. Remember, the score sheet only tells what position a guy started of offense; it doesn’t tell you what position they guarded on defense. That’s something that score sheet scouting won’t tell you about on the surface.

JD: You're listening to the Pio Reina Show on WINO radio. Back with more after a word from our sponsors...

Day 16 (Saturday 27 January 2024) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Night results
Dragmort Dragons Utd 78 - F.Day Internet Lovers Club 91
San Dominica Warriors 120 - Linndale 101
Lion Rebels 73 - Muffin Men 85
Shandong Golden Lions 109 - 209’s MostWanted 104
Super Sonics 90 - CB Bethesdorf 87
Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️ 101 - Tasty Tardsicles 114
Fort Wayne Pistons 103 - VileOnes 80
Balls to the Walls 82 - Jumpstop Jumpers 103

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 120 : San Dominica Warriors
Rebounds : 63 : 209’s MostWanted
Assists : 36 : San Dominica Warriors
Steals : 12 : Super Sonics
Block Shots : 11 : F.Day Internet Lovers Club

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 33 : D. Conaghan (Tasty Tardsicles)
Rebounds : 22 : J. Smug (209’s MostWanted)
Assists : 13 : É. Blanchet (San Dominica Warriors)
Steals : 4 : M. Craig (Super Sonics)
Block Shots : 5 : I. Tabrizi (F.Day Internet Lovers Club)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : J. Valentin (Jumpstop Jumpers) (32 Points, 7 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 32
Shooting Guard : R. Blanco (Jumpstop Jumpers) (23 Points, 2 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 2 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 27
Small Forward : M. Granja (San Dominica Warriors) (32 Points, 13 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 39
Power Forward : C. Webber (Muffin Men) (20 Points, 19 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 0 Steals, 1 Block Shots), I. Kavoukas (209’s MostWanted) (16 Points, 19 Rebounds, 6 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 32
Center : P. Pardo (F.Day Internet Lovers Club) (20 Points, 10 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 1 Steals, 4 Block Shots), P. Tai On (CB Bethesdorf) (22 Points, 19 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 33

MVP of the evening
M. Granja (San Dominica Warriors) (32 Points, 13 Rebounds, 2 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 39

The bad performance of the evening
H. Kwang Chih (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️) (0 Points, 0 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -6

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : M. Coedo (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️) : 6 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : J. Graf (VileOnes) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : D. Branimirović (F.Day Internet Lovers Club), R. De Calice (Shandong Golden Lions), A. Suprianto (Shandong Golden Lions), M. Coedo (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️), A. Carečina (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️), J. Valentin (Jumpstop Jumpers) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : O. Ülisoo (209’s MostWanted) : 6 Three points

The best performer : P. Pardo (F.Day Internet Lovers Club) : Rating : 17.5

The worst performer : A. Handy (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 4.0

Layups, Dunks, Bombs, and Bricks
By Sam Dunkley

Every few weeks, I’ll talk Linndale basketball with whomever I may come across. I recently covered a local high school basketball game for The Basketball Times, and the players (and in some cases, their parents) had thoughts and opinions they freely shared about Linndale basketball. These nuggets were then divided into one of four categories stated in the title of this column.

I don’t understand why they think (Midas) Kops is a guard. He’s a bad volume shooter and he’s loose with the basketball.

We start off dropping bombs. Kops is in a weird space. He has gifts that play well at guard and forward, but he’s better suited to guard (for now). Granted, it’s a small sample size (4 regular games as guard) but he’s shooting a bit better at guard and significantly better from deep. The turnovers are a function of high usage and various combinations he’s played with. Expect those to drop over time. For now, the numbers are a bit ugly. The constant changing lineups don’t do him justice either. Having said that, he’s got to be better.

Bolibok hasn’t looked like a scorer yet. I heard the players call him Petey Buckets.

This one is a brick. He’s played one game with us. His shot blocking showed, and he had his highest game rating on the season. Know what else has showed on the year for him? His scoring. His shooting line is .500/.508/.627; the kid is shooting 50% from the field and a tick better from deep. On the season, he’s averaging 25.2 points per game. Let’s give him some time, but beware some growing pains. Averaging 0.6 assists to 2.6 turnovers means he has a serious ball security issue. Plus, did you see the San Dominica game?

That second unit scares me. Strong enough on defense for a bench bunch, could be a little stronger. Stronger than they appear on the boards, but Hatfield and Pemwieser need to be stronger. The ball security on that unit is atrocious.

This one is an easy dunk. I concede that point. Yet, the defense on that unit is strong and will get stronger. The offense will improve. Ball security is a real concern, though. Pasman, Enfes, Hatfield, and Pemwieser doesn’t seem scary initially, but that’s a complementary unit as well, ball security aside. Expect the 2nd unit to change, depending on team needs and whatever the team’s training rotation looks like. The unit is in flux, but I’ve heard more changes are coming.

Joy Beko for point guard.

This one is a both a layup and a brick. 4 assists to 0.7 turnovers per game is great, but you’d want his ball handling and passing to be a bit better. He definitely would be a non traditional point guard. I’ll bet Pio Reina has something cooked up for that occasion. You also have to plan what to do with Carlos Frias. He's been pretty good, too.

Pemwieser is way overrated. He needs to be out of here.

On the surface, one might think this is a layup. I think this one deserves a closer look. A lot of fans think he’s been a bust, after being advertised as a unicorn. He shoots .470/.478/.706, averages 5.4 boards a night and 8.7 points a night in 21 minutes per contest. He may not be an everyday starter on this team, and he is not without flaws, but at the very worst, he will anchor the 2nd unit. He’s clearly still acclimating himself to playing center, but in the last game he started he was serviceable with 10 points and 7 rebounds. The game before that, Pio pulled out a wrinkle, with Pemwieser at small forward on offense and center defensively. He went for 20 points, 10 rebounds and a huge three pointer to tie the game late in the 4th quarter. As unpopular as it may be, Pemwieser is going to be a key player going forward. He most definitely is the team’s unicorn. This is the brickiest of bricks.

Roberto Gurgone: Gentlemen, I want to get your thoughts on something. What if I could go out and get a true center? A bona fide, shot-blocking, interior defending, glass cleaning center?

Byron Helm: You’ve got prospects, don’t you?

Marshall Richards: I know I’ve been hearing things...

Pio Reina: We coach who’s here. If you bring in a center, we’ll make things work like always. I’ll allow that I’m not happy with production from the bench. We’d need to have a conversation about who moves to the second unit.

RG: What’s your biggest issue with the bench?

PR: I can’t pick one. The defense. The lack of rebounding. The lack of scoring. The ball security. The lack of intensity.

RG: OK; this wouldn’t address ball security, probably. Defense and rebounding, definitely. The lack of scoring? That’s going to depend on how you want to alter your rotations, but this could be promising.

MR: (whispers three names in Roberto’s ear)

RG: Who told you and how did you know?

MR: Easy, ‘Berto. I was media recently; I still know people. They say stuff. Most of what they say is wrong, but they also talk to scouts. So do I.

RG: Fill in Pio and Byron. None of this leaves the office. Also, nothing is guaranteed. You’ll need to make plans just in case.

PR: You do know we have a game tonight, right?

RG: Yeah. Don’t expect another 20 point win tonight. I’ll be interested in what Bolibok does for an encore performance.

PR: We’re interested in seeing what Enfes does tonight. I guess we’ll both find out soon enough.

RG: I’ll see you after the game, gentlemen.

Guys,
Lion Rebels had made it to top 8 in tournament, one of the two in League 3. he is now rank 26th in the nation!!!

Yeah - honestly got lucky on several of my cup match ups after running into a struggling Div II team in the third round. I had four Div IV matchups in a row after that, and then back to back Div II teams, the second of which threw the game. I’ve only made it to the round of 64 once, so this feels pretty good. But I’m not holding out too much hope…but that is one reason I lost to Muffin on Saturday, trying to preserve my starter’s game shape. Also, I feel like the ranking system is inflating my team’s rank just because of the cup run…and I’m not sure it’s entirely accurate. But I do wonder if there’s just several Div I & II teams tanking a bit.

At any rate - I’m enjoying it while it lasts. Cheers!

…and after losing out in the BBM in the round of 32, I’m not holding out hope for tomorrow!

Tied it up at 72 with 30 seconds left in the third, only to give up a three pointer to end it. Doing better than I thought, but pretty sure I’m about to be finished.