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Week 1 Power Rankings
1. The White Walkers
EFFG: 122 | OPP EFFG: 58
Already there's only two undefeated teams heading into Week 2. The Night King takes the cake, with a convincing win on the road against Hustlas followed by the decimation of the Tardsicles on Tuesday. Their big purchase, newcomer 25-year-old Victor Papageorgiou, who they dropped nearly $3 mil on, leads the way so far with 21.5 PPG, shooting an impressive 51.5% from the field and 64% from three. Next up, they take on Żubr Białystok before playing host to STG on MCU.

2. Lion Rebels
EFFG: 140.5 | OPP EFFG: 106
Welp, this won't last long, I can assure you of that. A nice (surprising) win over Linndale at home, scoring 128 points, a feat this squad did not accomplish all last season (only scoring more than 100 7 times), followed by soundly handling Fondy Cardinals (though after their last purchase, maybe not next time). I have a feeling I got lucky and will be exposed this coming week with a matchup against Philly Dribble at home before traveling to San Dominica.

3. Philly Dribble
EFFG: 137 | OPP EFFG: 113
While they lost in that barn burner to 209's , they were able to right the ship immediately with a nice win over Carolina Rebels. Fun fact I discovered this week, Phils_Wings is an OG, having joined up in the middle of Season 2! I do not know what is going on with Phillip Huddleston, but he suffered another injury this week. Probably shouldn't be a problem though with their aforementioned road trip to Daylis stadium before playing host to Flamin' Flamingos next week.

4. Carolina Rebels
EFFG: 117.5 | OPP EFFG: 107.5
This is the middle of a three-way tie in terms of efficiency rankings. But a 1-1 Carolina team handled Fondy with relatively little strain before suffering their 15-point loss to Philly (man, I'm glad there aren't two Philadelphia based teams again this season!). Hugo Espinosa is nearly averaging a 20/20 double-double with 22.5 PPG and 19 RPG thanks, in part, to a 24-point, 25 rebound performance in game one. They get to host San Dominica this weekend before traveling Linndale's way after that.

5. San Dominica Warriors
EFFG: 113 | OPP EFFG: 104
Coach Stephenson made up for that heartbreaking buzzer beating loss last weekend by beating 209's at home on TV by seven, and that is in spite of 209's hitting 46% of their shots, including from three. Biggest difference in this one may have been free throws, with the Warriors making nine more than their opponent despite both teams having 18 fouls each. After their trip to Carolina, they turn to the other Rebels playing host to my crew next week.

6. Miami Cleo
EFFG: 99 | OPP EFFG: 94
I'm not trying to downgrade last season's Great 8 #2 seed - while their defense has been quite good (they held both opponents to less than 90 points) their offense is going to need to find a way to turn on. They lost by seven to the Tards which makes a potential matchup with the Walkers a bit intimidating, but then turned around and put Żubr Białystok in their place, beating them by 17 at home. They face STG on MCU on the road at YT Shorts before hosting Hustlas in a TV game.

7. Hustlas
EFFG: 90.5 | OPP EFFG: 87.5
I don't know if it's the lack of Reese's posts to start the season or what, but Hustlas feels a bit lifeless, losing by 13 to The White Walkers (which now, might not look SO bad) before taking care of Cincinnati by 16. But they are only averaging 84.5 PPG so far. Without having made a flurry of moves like we are used to, it's hard to know what to expect from them this season. They play host to The Beer Bellys on Saturday night, which should be revealing and then they travel to Miami for that TV matchup on Tuesday.

8. Żubr Białystok
EFFG: 108.5 | OPP EFFG: 109
A fairly seismic game one win over the Bellys on TV put them at the top of the standings. While they couldn't stop Segovia or Homs in that game, their solid spread-out play was more than enough to send them packing back to the Keg, but then they came out flat in game two against Miami, running a Low Post offense but apparently struggling to get it into the post with their PG and SF shooting the ball 37 times total. It didn't help that PF M. Grimm only shot 5-17 from the field. Alas, training, amirite? Next up comes The Night King followed by a trip to Cincinnati who now dwells in the basement of the Great 8.

9. Linndale
EFFG: 124.5 | OPP EFFG: 126.5
To say I was shocked on Saturday night is an overstatement - pleasantly surprised is more like it. But Coach Pio was utterly dismayed. Fortunately for them, hosting the Flamingos was a better experience as the Flamingos flamed out in the fourth period only scoring eight points after a furious third quarter in which they took a 12-point lead. Kyle Knowles is leading the charge with 25.5 PPG so far. A trip to 209's is on the horizon before playing host to Carolina next Tuesday.

10. The Beer Bellys
EFFG: 113.5 | OPP EFFG: 115
thatguy's in full on training mode while trying to avoid relegation. With that in mind, the game one loss to Żubr makes more sense, but their staving off STG by 11 on Tuesday brings a little hope that they will not be completely bottom of the barrel. Isidre Homs is a beast, averaging 31 PPG and 19.5 RPG. His 39 rebounds in two games are good for #8 in Division III and #25 in the USA. A road game against Hustlas is next followed by hosting Tasty Tardsicles on Tuesday.

11. Cincinnati Slammers
EFFG: 83.5 | OPP EFFG: 101
I don't mean anything mean by this, but I didn't expect Cincy to be this high in the rankings after my preseason review. And while their offensive efficiency is not great, there has been some bad defensive performances by other teams...in fact only three teams have an OPP EFFG rating of less than 100 so far, and the Slammers 101 score is good for fourth. Far cry from last year's OPP EFFG results, but that could change over time. While they are 0-2, a close two-point loss to STG opened the season where they put in less effort and fell apart in the final period after leading the whole game. After that Hustlas stuck it to them. Will they have success against Tasty's on the road this weekend? Or will their first win come against whitestok's crew at home next week? Time will tell!

12. 209's MostWanted
EFFG: 120 | OPP EFFG: 133.5
I would be pissed if I were Alex from the 209, especially after beating Philly at home like that, but what hurts them in these rankings is their OPP EFFG. While they were fifth in EFFG, they were second to last on the defensive side. They are giving up the most points per game so far at 121.5 and while they are scoring the most at 120.5, that is not going to cut it. Following their seven-point loss to San Dominica earlier this week, they will play host to Linndale before heading to the Birds Nest to visit Fondy. They've got a good chance to right the ship!

13. STG on MCU
EFFG: 98 | OPP EFFG: 112
While they are sitting at fifth in the Great 8 after their 1-1 week, defeating Cincy before falling to the Bellys with just a 9-point differential, they have a stiff test this week, playing host to Miami before traveling Beyond The Wall to take on Night King's undead. PG Matthew Marsh is a bright spot, averaging 28.5 PPG as a small forward and handles more than just scoring with a decent 5.5 RPG, 4.5 APG, and 3 SPG.

14. Flamin' Flamingos
EFFG: 103 | OPP EFFG: 119.5
Flamin's 1-1 start is thanks to that unbelievable fourth quarter comeback over the Warriors before then losing by ten to Linndale on the road, which is not a bad turn around. They are too low on this list, but they're going to have to get that OPP EFFG turned around to make much movement. A TV game against Fondy could be just what they need, but then they have the "privilege" of traveling to Philly to take on the Dribble. C Gambino Colonnello has had a nice start, averaging a double-double with 11 RPG and 22.5 PPG.

15. Tasty Tardsicles
EFFG: 71 | OPP EFFG: 109.5
In their game one defeat of Miami, Tards had 104 total EFF while holding Miami to only 78. But they got brutalized in efficiency against The White Walkers, with three players scoring negative numbers leading to a total efficiency of 38 while giving up an astounding 141. So, either White Walkers are incredible or Tasty had an off night and wanted to trick everyone! No one player stands out in terms of points scored, but C/PF Marco Jimenez is averaging an impressive 19 RPG including 8 ORPG, good for #4 in all of Division III. Should be a nice rebound week for them with a home game against Cincinnati followed by a trip to the Keg.

16. Fondy Cardinals
EFFG: 92 | OPP EFFG: 137.5
Almost all team's efficiency rankings on both sides were crazy different with only three teams finishing with both sides ranked within one or two of the other ranking. Fondy, thus far, is a bit of an exception, finishing 13th in EFFG and 16th in OPP EFFG. Muñoz should help them out, but a near 30-point loss to Carolina before an "embarrassing" loss to the lesser Rebels leaves them at the bottom of the Big 8. They will feast on a bot team in the Cup to make themselves feel better before facing off on the road (and TV) against the Flamingos followed by a visit from 209's MostWanted.

That is all for this week - good luck in the Cup and let's see what Week 2 brings us!

The GM addresses the team pre-game. "OK guys, first let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Ubaldo Pestana is no longer on the team. He wanted more time than we could offer him. He still had much value, but he was more valuable to someone else at this stage in his career. He wasn’t here long, but we will miss him and his impact beyond the court. Sometimes the business of basketball means letting good people go; I hate that part of it."

Coach Reina then took over.

"On to tonight’s task, you are going to have your work cut out for you. Kamp, Coenen. and Mann, you’re all in the lineup today. Paulie, Reese and Nick, you guys haven’t done anything to lose the job; this is a match up issue. I think you guys are all going to be more effective off the bench tonight. Coenen, watch the turnovers. Mann, show up and play some defense. Kamp, just go out and play. You know the plan, you know what we expect. Will we defend?"

"Yes!"

"Will we rebound?"

“Yes!”

“Will we turn the ball over?”

“No!”

“Will we create turnovers?”

“Yes!”

“Do those things and the game gets a lot easier. Let’s go to work!”

"UNF******BELIEVABLE!!! NO DEFENSE!!! NO REBOUNDING!!! NO TAKING CARE OF THE BALL!!! YOU GUYS LOOKED LIKE HOT GARBAGE!!! WHAT DO YOU GUYS NOT GET HERE??? THIS IS WHAT WE DO!!! THIS IS WHO WE ARE!!! YOU PLAY HERE YOU WILL DEFEND!!! YOU WILL REBOUND!!! YOU WILL PROTECT THE BALL!!! IF YOU CAN'T OR WON'T, GET OUT OF MY LOCKER ROOM AND OFF MY TEAM!!!!"

Pio Reina wasn't just pissed off, he was far beyond that. The team's performance was absolutely enraging. Pio took a deep breath to compose himself.

“I’m making changes effective immediately. Coenen back in at the point. Kyle, you got you torched. Shooter, you get your first start. Make it count. Kamp, you stay at small forward, but we need consistency out of you. Bring the A game. Mann, grab some bench. I need to get more, so Nick gets the start. Ramon, you grab some bench right alongside him. Datler, you know what I want. Keep grinding. Paulie, you get a lot more firepower on the second unit offensively and defensively. Make it work. Bobbie, you, Shooter, Kamp and Nick should be able put up some points and be solid defensively. I’m trying to get us to be the best versions of ourselves and you guys are out there doing the opposite. That’s all right, though. I got tricks for you guys. I told you not to piss me off. You did it anyway. Life just got a lot harder for you. Survive if you can. Play the way I want because you must. I want everyone who came off the bench in my office tomorrow morning 8 AM sharp. Those who started today, you’ll have the team conference room, same time. Full team meeting at 9. No one leaves until I’m satisfied we are where we need to be. We are either going to be a playoff team and move past the first round, or we are going to go full on youth movement and get guys in here who will play how I want to play. It’s up to you guys to figure out where you want to go and how to get there. If you’re not trying to get where I’m trying to go, I don’t want you here. You know where the door is.”

Waiting inside Pio’s office, the GM heard everything. “Pio, think maybe you were a bit hard on them?”

Pio responded tersely. “No.”

“Good”, replied the GM. “Mind if I join your meeting tomorrow?”

“I don’t mind at all. You’ve already called Coach and told him to come talk to a few players, didn’t you?” Pio knew what the GM was thinking.

“Yeah. You’re really gonna do it, aren’t you?”

“We’re not a playoff team,” Pio answered. “We absolutely have too much talent to play like garbage. I have no remorse if they choose not to fight through this. I want fighters, and if they don’t want to fight,
then we gotta go get guys who will.”

“Pio, did I ever tell you about the nastiest, roughest, toughest basketball team I’ve ever seen?”

“NBA. Detroit Pistons. Bad Boys era, right?” Pio knew.

“Confirmed.”

“Sir, I was a Lakers and Cavaliers fan back then, but you’re still ok in my book." They both laughed.

"Good to see you able to laugh. See ya tomorrow morning, Coach."

"Don't be late!"

Day 3 (Saturday 18 February 2023) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)

Night results
Linndale 107 - 209’s MostWanted 128
Fondy Cardinals 112 - Flamin' Flamingos 119
Philly Dribble 79 - Lion Rebels 96
San Dominica Warriors 70 - Carolina Rebels 91
Cincinnati Slammers 48 - Tasty Tardsicles 107
The Beer Bellys 122 - Hustlas 138
Miami Cleo 96 - STG on MCU 82
The White Walkers 79 - Żubr Białystok 78

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 138 : Hustlas
Rebounds : 75 : Tasty Tardsicles
Assists : 33 : The Beer Bellys
Steals : 12 : The Beer Bellys
Block Shots : 9 : Miami Cleo

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 57 : J. Esposito (Hustlas), D. Rivas (Flamin' Flamingos)
Rebounds : 21 : J. Bégin (San Dominica Warriors), T. Armstead (Lion Rebels), P. Katsikis (Fondy Cardinals)
Assists : 10 : R. Sillick (Hustlas), J. Segovia (The Beer Bellys)
Steals : 4 : G. Azheli (209’s MostWanted)
Block Shots : 5 : G. Locus (Miami Cleo)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : J. Segovia (The Beer Bellys) (18 Points, 4 Rebounds, 10 Assists, 3 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 28
Shooting Guard : J. Esposito (Hustlas) (57 Points, 5 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 46
Small Forward : V. Papageorgiou (The White Walkers) (32 Points, 7 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 3 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 36
Power Forward : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) (27 Points, 21 Rebounds, 1 Assists, 1 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 38
Center : P. Katsikis (Fondy Cardinals) (28 Points, 21 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 39

MVP of the evening
J. Esposito (Hustlas) (57 Points, 5 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 46

The bad performance of the evening
É. Blanchet (San Dominica Warriors) (6 Points, 4 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots)B. Rivas (Cincinnati Slammers) (0 Points, 8 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -4

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : G. Azheli (209’s MostWanted), R. Sillick (Hustlas), U. Barbarossa (Cincinnati Slammers) : 5 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : G. Tison (The Beer Bellys) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : J. Valverde (Flamin' Flamingos) : 53 Minutes

The shooter : A. Ziółkowski (209’s MostWanted) : 9 Three points

The best performer : T. Armstead (Lion Rebels) : Rating : 17.0

The worst performer : T. Lang (Fondy Cardinals) : Rating : 3.0

Coach Reina: “I close the door in 30 seconds. Anyone not here at that time gets released, effective immediately.”

Surveying the room, Pio noted Shooter was running down the hall full speed. He got in just before the door slammed shut.

Trenton Tovar: “Sorry I was running late, Coach.”

Coach Reina: “If you get back on defense like that, you don’t have to apologize.”

Tovar thought to himself this was going to be a painful meeting.

Coach Reina: “Gentlemen, you all know our GM. He’s the guy that brought you here. That means he saw something in you that he believed we wanted or needed around here. If he decides to move on from you, you've failed to live up to what was expected. Staying here is all up to you. Sir, the floor is yours."

GM: “Thanks, Coach. I’ll be brief. We were going to have our in house legend, Coach, come in to speak with you. He declined. Said while he was sure he could help you, you don’t seem to want to help yourselves. He said he’ll be in to speak with you guys if you ever get serious. In all the years, I’ve known Coach, he’s never turned a player down. Technically, he still hasn’t because you didn’t make the request. However, his reasoning speaks volumes. You’d do well to think about that. Coach, I’m off to the other room now.”

Coach Reina: “Shooter, your defense needs work. A lot of work. You might find that your defense will actually increase your scoring opportunities. You might even get more minutes if you work on your passing; we could use a true combo guard. For that to happen, your defense has to improve. Get it done. Any questions?”

Tovar: “No, sir.”

Coach Reina: “Datler, keep grinding. Your board work picked up yesterday. Great job. We need you to keep that up, be strong defensively, and do the little things. Keep working and improving. Reese, we’ll work on your offense, but you’re in for your defense. You’re raw. You have a lot to improve on, but your defense is already solid enough to play. Just keep grinding. You’ll get better; just keep grinding. Paulie, you know what we want to see, your marching orders haven’t really changed since last season. Shooter, Reese, both of you would do well to follow Paulie’s lead. Paulie hasn’t had a single turnover so far this season in ANY game. That’s taking care of the basketball. Paulie, we’re gonna see about getting you work in the post; your rebounding can be better. We need help there and you can help on the boards. Nick, I want you to work on your passing, perimeter defense, and rebounding. There’s still more in the tank and I want to see it. Brownie, we’re still working on that jumper, eh?”

Brown: “Yes Coach.”

Coach Reina: “We have to tighten your handle and passing up, get you to be a better rebounder, and post defender. Reese, Brownie is another one for you to shadow. Rolland, you’re on the same program with Reese. Gentlemen, I demand results. Let me be clear about something. Out of the lot of you, only Nick, Paul, and Datler are guaranteed playing time. If we go with a short rotation, you don’t play. You want to guarantee playing time? Get better. Make yourselves indispensable. Brownie here is a prime example; he’s one of the best all around defenders on the team, can get to the rim and finish, has the range to be a threat when his jumper is on, and is the best free throw shooter on the team. Good bench piece to have, and when inserted into the starting lineup, he’s dependable. He finds ways to contribute. Oh, and Shooter, Brownie here, when he gets hot from outside, he gets red hot. You’d do well to learn.”

The GM opens the door and sticks his head in. “Coach, you might want to talk to the starters when you’re done here.”

Coach Reina: “Oh, I have words for them. Gentlemen, we are done hear. I want you on the pratice floor immediately. Paul and Nick, lead the workout. Brownie, back them up. I’ll see you on the floor later. I’m going to extract another pound of flesh.

Last edited by Speedtraps at 2/19/2023 9:33:59 PM

Coach Guy: "Now that we have all sobered up from our post-game mud wrestling party with the cheerleaders and few select fans, I want to give a shout out to Tison. Dude, the day after I bought you I regretted that rum and edibles decision. But...dropping 24 points and 8 assists and a 9.5 rating in 36 minutes on a Hustlas team with strong guard play is sick considering you still suck and need a ton of training. However, I overpaid a stupid price because I remember through the haze of drinks and that hybrid kicking in that I knew you could become a gunner. Keep it up Tison."

Guillaume Tison: "Thank you coach, I couldn't have done it without Segovia unselfishly setting me up. I mean, 10 assists, what a pro moving from scoring guard for so long to play the point during this transition. I'm gonna continue to work hard, especially now that you have lifted the ban on the team dating cheerleaders...well, accept for those two you like so much."

Coach Guy: "Muižys and Almeida, you are young guards as well, but let Tison serve as an example of what hard work gets you. Pick of the hottest cheerleaders, only top shelf drinks for players who perform, and of course the finest selection of edibles and flower this league has to offer."

Coach Guy: "Team, all of you played your hearts out and took a great team to double overtime. Imagine what we could do the Hustlas when we meet towards the end of the season."

Bret: I’m the legend Bret Rodriguez filling in Hunt Mosley, and you’re on the Coach Stephenson Show on your Warrior Network. Here with me is the man himself, Coach. Needless to say that last game vs Rebels. That had to hurt

Coach: (sighs) Yeah hmm. I mean lately the problem has been us playing 2 halves of basketball, well that game pretty much was us playing no half of basketball. Now yes you can say, hey they went full throttle, while you guys were doing load management. Yeah yeah yeah. But ok we lose by 10 to 12 then okay you can feel good about yourself be like ok next time with a bit of tweaks here and there ok y’all ours next time.

Bret: Kinda different when you lose by 20

Coach: Right lose by 20, it is what is. The reality is Coach Merollin brought her team on that court to play and they did. The crowd had high basketball IQ. When we had it, they were just going ballistic! However soon as there was a change of possession and the Rebels had it, quiet as a pindrop until they had a reason to yell. Hell I was half expecting at the game's end for The Miz's theme to pop. They dang sure earned the right to play it. I don’t know who her crowd management guy is but he earned his dough that game.

Bret: Do you think it might have been different had this been a home game

Coach: Probably! There are times when you can’t say in words the power of home court. But no point in speculating on that. We get them at home later in the season but I can assure you Daisy and I are gonna want our teams to be completely different than the two that took the court Saturday.

Bret: Now you know as a former player, and a good friend. I gotta ask. What the heck was up with Gordo and the end of that game.

Coach: You know Gordo, Gordon Long when he played was a Charles Barkley, Charles Oakley hybrid. This guy isn’t taking any mess. He thought at the game that there was some … disrespect But if we’re talking honesty, look Gordo took that loss hard, not because we lost but how we lost. We’ve had games where we lost and it was due to ok these guys just had such firepower and our firepower just couldn’t keep up with theirs.

This game we … we basically got San Dominicaded. Things that have become a trademark of our teams defensively was just done to us. I can't think of he last time since when we first got to the league that we’ve been defensively manhandled like we were this game. Again its why I have to give credit to Daisy, she and her team brought the wood. The Rebels just shut us down on the defensive end. Now some of that was us but most of it was the Rebels just went all glove on us and we couldn’t figure a way out of it. Now the good thing this happened early so we can fix it.

Bret: It doesn’t get easier. Next up you got the OTHER Rebels.

Coach: (laughing) The more hated Rebels

Bret: (laughs before continuing) A tough one as always but it seems like this is a different Lions Rebels than what we’ve seen the past few seasons. But we’re talk about that more once we’re back from commercial break.

Last edited by Coach Stephenson at 2/20/2023 10:00:37 PM

Bobby Sparks sits alone in his office, brooding. So far the team is 2-1, but he knows something most do not know. That it is not a good Hustla's team that is being fielded. There's a knock at his door. He clears his throat.
"Come in, come in."

In walks John Walton and Coach Boone. "Hello Gentlemen. Come in, take a seat, and let's talk shop."

John Walton and Coach Boone, both comes in and takes a seat.

"The setup we have going right now, we will keep it like that. So Coach Boone, it looks like we are parting ways as you will be joining the Hustlas II coaching staff."
At least they have a great team, he thinks to himself. "That's a solid team over there. I believe if they were in this league, they would have kept their last two players they just released and would be good enough to win this league. That's an incredible team over there."

"Yes, it is," said Coach Boone. "And I will enjoy coaching that team as the lead assistant under Augustus Spears. But I'll help here were I can. And from what I can see, we need to blow it up. This team will not exceed this season. The players are too old. Your bigs are fine, but they are also aging. But your guards, except one, is just old. The new starting guard is below average for this league but has good defense. But this team, as constructed, will not do well this season."

"I concur," said John Walton. "But we just don't have the capital, not yet anyway. We are close, And hopefully by all-star break we can make some moves and are not too far out of the hunt for the playoffs. Let's just hope we can stay above water until we get that capital."

Bobby Sparks stands up and stretches. Afterwards, he looks at both men. "We are Hustlas. We will continue to thrive, or die trying. Look at our last game. We survived a serious onslaught from a great team in Beer Bellys. who has beaten us the last couple games, including private league. We did use more enthusiam. We wanted it more. And we got it. But we cannot maintain this level for too much longer. Three to 4 weeks from now I hope to have some capital to do something. It may take a bit longer than that, more like 7 to 8 weeks. But hopefully, I can work some miracles and find some better players."

“Gentlemen”, Coach Reina began, “I was raised to know if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. I have a lot of bad things to say to you, but I will say something positive first.”

“Coach”, Bobbie Coenen spoke, “we know we played like a pile of crap. There’s absolutely nothing you can take from that.”

“Bobbie, shut up and listen. There’s being the point guard who is an extension of the coach, and then there’s being a suck up trying to curry favor by saying all the right things. Nobody likes that last guy. Don’t be that guy.” Coach Reina’s gaze made Coenen sink into his chair; his words hit like a gut punch.

Coach continued. “The good was 7 assists and no turnovers for you Bobbie. It was 5 of 9 on three-balls, Kyle. It was a 27 point, 5 rebound, 6 assist game with no turnovers from Kamp.”

“Hey Coach, what about my double double?” Harrison Mann was not adept at reading rooms.

“You mean the one where you got a total of 1 offensive rebound in 34 minutes? Clarify which one you’re talking about, Harrison, because I don’t care about a double double in a scrimmage. Are you talking about the one against the Lion Rebels where Mr. Singh beat you like a cheap drum? The way he cooked you out there we have to put respect on his name. You talking about our 1st BBM game? Good freaking job for 1 game. Which one are you talking about, Harrison?” Harrison shriveled from that response.

“Well, as Harrison just noted, I’m all out of positive. I am also keenly aware that I have said nothing positive about my starting power forward or center. Excuse me; my former starting power forward and center. You are two of the three best interior defenders we have and you got absolutely shredded. I imagine our GM is looking for another option. I’m not happy at all with you guys. Let me make this really clear to the lot of you. Play better, get better, or get out. We can’t play the game fast, or pretty, or with style., or with flair. You got to be willing to get in the mud and dirt. You got to be able to bang and fight. You have to punish opponents and impose you will. I don’t see it in you. I don’t know where it went, but you better find it or you’re out of here. I’d rather have a team of no talent scrappers and fighters than a team of talented bums who are lazy. Go to work or go home. You all know what I want, expect, and demand. No one told you it would be easy. Give me those things and I promise the wins will come. If you don’t give me those things? We have other players to train up, but at least they’ll know they have to fight.”

Pio’s cellphone interrupted him.

“Hello, No Happy, it’s not a bad time. I was supposed to be meeting with my players but the starters no showed again. Let’s talk about it on the show. I’ll see you shortly..."

Last edited by Speedtraps at 2/20/2023 4:42:43 PM