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We've reached the All-star break, and I wanted the next set of power rankings to compare against the pre-season rankings. I'll be coming out with the Top 4 today, and follow up with 5-8 tomorrow and the rest on Friday.

Season 41 All Star Break Power Rankings

1. lélé - 12-1 CR: 463
Pre-Season Ranking: 3 - Preseason CR: 494

Coming into this season, I wondered if lélé could hang with the top 2 teams in the Big 8. Despite any early season loss against TicTacShack, lélé has proved they are definitely the class of the Big 8, and look to prove they are the class of the division with their next two games against the top 2 teams in the Great 8. lélé's great offense and fast pace has them leading the league in points scored by a wide margin and so far no one has really been able to slow them down. Any concerns about the defense have been masked by the great offense. At this point, anything less than making it to the division finals will be a dissapointment for this team.

2. The Golden Bricks - 12-1 CR: 524
Pre-Season Ranking: 4 - CR: 613

The Golden Bricks have proved that last season's playoff run was no fluke. If lélé is all about their great offense carrying them, The Golden Bricks is all about their great defense carrying them. They lead the league in points allowed, also by a wide margin. Their offense has improved with some of their acquisitions and they look like a more complete team then they did at the beginning of the season. No more simply relying on the GDP or enthusiasm management, this team looks like the class of the Great 8 right now. Their upcoming matchup against lélé looks like it could be a division final preview.

3. Hot Boyz - 11-2 CR: 784
Pre-Season Ranking: 10 - CR: 875

Hot Boyz has had the higher highs, without many of the lower lows that I mentioned in the preseason. This team's offense as well as tactical prowess has been more than enough to vault them from unknown into contender. They currently lead the league with the highest 3 point FG% of any team and any age on this team does not look to negatively impact them this season. They feel like a lower salaried version of lélé right now to me, so their upcoming game will be interesting to watch.

4. I Volt - 8-5 CR: 500
Pre-Season Ranking: 6 - CR: 483

Other than two early one possession losses, I Volt's only other losses come against the teams ahead of them in the rankings. They are a top 5 team in the league in points scored and have the best 3 point FG % defense in the league. They also have the best foul differential, 2nd best Turnover differential and 3rd best steal differential in the league. As I said in the preseason, this seems like a playoff team that can be dangerous come playoff time.

Season 41 All Star Break Power Rankings (continued)

5. Thunderhorse - 9-4 - CR: 300
Pre-Season Ranking: 2 - CR: 265

Salary wise, this should be a top 4 team, but management looks to be coasting and uninterested this season and that is holding this team back. With a team salary about 100k more than the team's average gate receipts, this team seems content to be hemorrahaging money. Perhaps management is hoping that their highly paid team will be able to perform to their best come playoff time, and as they have no reason to worry about not making the playoffs, they could be a sound strategy. Nothing has really changed about this team from the preseason, and despite the poor GS throughout the season, this team has put up a top 4 defense and manages to draw a fair number of fouls, but also tends to be foul prone so that ends up being a double-edged sword.

6. brooklyn knicks - 8-5 - CR: 581
Pre-Season Ranking: 7 - CR: 577

brooklyn knicks has a top 4 offense and alot of that is driven by the greatness of Eldon Cannon. Their defense and rebounding still continue to be a problem and management has not done anything to improve in that manner so far. This team is one of the few teams to manage to beat Hot Boyz, but they followed that up with a loss vs The Boxers and later had a perplexing loss to the MeHiCans. This team looks to compete for the playoffs in the Great 8, but needs to become more consistent if they hope to hold off some of the teams below them.

7. The Boxers - 7-6 - CR: 709
Pre-Season Ranking: 8 - CR: 613

The Boxers continued their plucky ways, and despite having a salary at the bottom of the league they have held their own against some of the top teams, despite not coming away with a victory. They also sacrificed some of their league games in order to focus on the cup and were rewarded with the longest cup run in the division. The Boxers rely on defense and rebounding as they have a top 3 team in both, but their offense is not consistent enough for them to be able to win more consistently. While this team looks like they could compete for the playoffs, they seem content to continue to focus on improving and might be targeting next season as their season.

8. Sinking Ships - 5-8 - CR: 850
Pre-Season Ranking: 11 - CR: 933

Sinking Ships has really turned the corner as of late and compared to the preseason, teams now should have a good feel for what to expect from this team. Aggressive maneuvers on the part of management has this team increasing their talent throughout the season and despite their middling season stats, this team has played great defense as of late. Tactically this team also is sound and their recent winning streak proves just how much this team has improved. Reaching the playoffs this season might end up being too tall of a task for them though as they currently sit in 7th and are three games out of the playoffs.

Season 41 All Star Break Power Rankings (continued)

9. TicTacShack - 8-5 - CR: 453
Pre-Season Ranking: 1 - CR: 427

TicTacShack is definitely on cruise control this season. Despite having what should be a top 4 team, they are just focused on training and not at all on competing. Perhaps they too will try to leverage their team's ability to the fullest come playoff time, but for now they seem content to coast. No real changes have been made to this team throughout the season, but through training they definitely have the potential to be a better team then they were at the beginning of the season as their training will cover their big deficiency. We will just have to wait till the end of the season to determine what this teams true intentions are.

10. Matchstick Men - 9-4 - CR: 592
Pre-Season Ranking: 5 - CR: 588

Age and inactivity has definitely caught up with this team as they definitely have been surpassed as one of the top teams in the Great 8. As their team continues to deteriorate, I would not be surprised if this team lost it's playoff spot unless management makes some moves. Kumar was injured part of this season, and neither Origo or Kumar have performed up to their typical standards. The high point for this team was the early season victory over The Golden Bricks, the only team to beat them so far this season.

11. Ghostface Killas - 7-6 - CR: 988
Pre-Season Ranking: N/A

Ghostface Killas took over for the MeHiCans just a few games ago and are still looking to get their feet under them. With the new true stars and money from the tutorial process, new teams are able to become competitive much quickly than in the past, and coming into the half bot Big 8, Ghostface Killas will make the playoffs. However, with over half of the conference schedule being bots and the rest being top salaried teams, it will be hard to determine just how much progress this team ends up making as the season goes on. This team might just be content to look forward to next season already.

t12. Bluehawks, BuryYourDead, Dejags, new york celts, OpTicNation

Still being managed by that same computerized player. Shouldn't this count as one manager with multiple teams? I hear that's a bannable offense :D

Saturday, February 23rd

GAME OF THE NIGHT

1. lélé @ 2. Hot Boyz (TV)

The TV crowd is welcomed back from the All-Star break and will be in for a treat in what should be a high scoring affair. About the only thing that would make this game more pivotal for either side would be if this is a rivalry game. Hot Boyz got a much better GS update and has HCA, while lélé looks to have the better offense. Enthusiasm will not be much of a factor as both teams should be about the same fresh out of the break. At the end of the day, I think the GS difference and HCA will provide Hot Boyz with just enough defense to slow lélé down. Winner: Hot Boyz

Great 8 vs Big 8

2. Thunderhorse @ 3. Matchstick Men

Both team's GS is in about the same shape, and Thunderhorse's LI will play poorly into Matchstick Men's 2-3 zone. Matchstick Men's LI though will play up against Thunderhorse's weak ID, so even though my gut told me to pick Thunderhorse, the more I think about this, the more I like this matchup for Matchstick Men. Winner: Matchstick Men

3. TicTacShack @ 4. I Volt

Not a great GS update for I Volt and the poor GS might offset any advantage given them by being home for this game. Ratings wise these teams seem pretty similar, but I think this game will come down to extra possessions as I Volt looks to force turnovers and TicTacShack looks to be the better rebounding team. TicTacShack has the 2nd fewest turnovers in the league though and I think they'll win the possession battle and the game. Winner: TicTacShack

4. Ghostface Killas @ 1. The Golden Bricks

Ghostface's continues their run through the top teams in the Great 8 and this game does not seem like it will go any better for them then the other ones. Look for a relatively low scoring game but one that The Golden Bricks wins handily. Winner: The Golden Bricks

4 Games, 4 bot losses (and 1 win)

6. Bluehawks @ 5. brooklyn knicks
5. OpTic Nation @ 6. The Boxers
7. new york celts @ 7. Sinking Ships
8. BuryYourDead @ 8. Dejags

Last edited by Rufus Rugi at 3/2/2018 12:04:27 PM

Season 41 Week 8 Power Rankings

1. The Golden Bricks - 14-1 Previous Ranking: 2

A good week for The Golden Bricks as they beat what was coming into the week their closest competition for HCA. Other than the bankrupt Matchstick Men's defeat of this team, the closest any other team has come to beating this team is Hot Boyz 15 point loss. It is championship or bust for this team.

2. Hot Boyz - 12-3 Previous Ranking: 3

A perplexing week for Hot Boyz as they handily beat lélé but then lost to TicTacShack. I suspect that is because TicTacShack's team is finally overcoming their poor GS doldrums and is not the same team they have been the rest of the season. Perhaps TicTacShack or Thunderhorse are better than this team down the road, but these rankings are only concerned about now.

3. lélé - 12-3 Previous Ranking: 1

Definitely a rough week for lélé as twice their offense was not able to keep up with their porous defense, having given up 138+ points in both games. For now this is still the top team in the Big 8, but Thunderhorse and TicTacShack are within striking distance.

4. Thunderhorse - 11-4 Previous Ranking: 5

Two solid wins this week for Thunderhorse as this team is back to looking like the team that I expected at the beginning of the season. They still are a bit predictable and not actively managed but at some point, having more talented players just wins out.

5. TicTacShack - 10-5 Previous Ranking: 9

This team responded to my low ranking of them with two double digit wins against two of the top 4 Great 8 teams coming into the week. This team looks to be rounding back into form as well and should be a force to deal with over the rest of the season.

6. I Volt - 9-6 Previous Ranking: 4

The next three teams are all tied for what will be two playoffs spots in the Great 8 with Sinking Ships nipping at all three teams' heels. I Volt looks to rebound from their loss to TicTacShack with two games this week against the teams that are chasing them. The Great 8 playoff picture should be alot clearer after this week.

7. brooklyn knicks - 9-6 Previous Ranking: 6

brooklyn knicks holds a tenuous lead on a playoff spot for now, but four of their remaining seven games are home games. With Matchstick Men's bankruptcy, this team is now the highest salaried Great 8 team and look to ride their top shooting FG% into the playoffs.

8. The Boxers - 9-6 Previous Ranking: 7

The Boxers play the top two Great 8 teams this week and managing at least one win without having to CT would go a long way to getting them into the playoffs. The coming weeks will be a good indication of where Simon's priorities are between training and making the playoffs.

9. Sinking Ships - 7-8 Previous Ranking: 8

Sinking Ships pretty much needs to beat all three of brooklyn knicks, The Boxers and I Volt to have any real shot at making the playoffs and play all three on the road. The other chance is if they can steal a game from one of the top two teams. That means with games against Hot Boyz and I Volt this week, they need to win at least one to have a realistic chance at making the playoffs.

10. Ghostface Killas - 7-8 Previous Ranking: 11

Ghostface Killas are still looking to get their first victory since new management took over, and with two bots on the schedule this week they look to get just that.

11. Matchstick Men - 10-5 Previous Ranking: 10

The unsustainable high salary for this team finally caught up to them and they are facing going bot as a result. This team raised less than 400k in it's player sales and do not look like they will end up raising enough money to avoid going bot and need a miracle to survive.

t12. Bluehawks, BuryYourDead, Dejags, new york celts, OpTicNation

Saturday, March 3rd

GAME OF THE NIGHT

6. I Volt (rival) at 4. brooklyn knicks (rival)

The premier game of the night features two rivals both fighting to make the playoffs. Stakes cannot get much higher than that. I Volt has won 5 of the last 6 matchups of these teams including a resounding victory in week 1. The teams look pretty even on paper. I Volt's outside offense should play up against brooklyn knicks 2-3 zone, but brooklyn might have enough flow to break through I Volt's press. In the first matchup of the season I Volt ditched the press and this game might just come down to their defensive tactic. In the end I think brooklyn knicks manage to win a close game at home.

Big 8
3. TicTacShack at 7. Bluehawks
6. BuryYourDead at 2. Thunderhorse
5. OpTic Nation at 4. Ghostface Killas
8. new york celts at 1. lélé

Great 8

1. The Golden Bricks (rival) at 5. The Boxers (TV)

With Matchstick Men's bankruptcy, this becomes the only difficult game this week for The Golden Bricks and really diminishes any chances of The Boxers being overlooked. In the end, The Boxers just don't have enough offense to keep up with The Golden Bricks, though otherwise these teams are pretty similar.

2. Hot Boyz at 7. Sinking Ships

This seems like a dangerous game for Hot Boyz as they are facing an improved Sinking Ships who's last last league game against a live opponent was almost a month ago. This makes it hard to get a read on just how much Sinking Ships has improved exactly. While I think Sinking Ships has a chance, they are not quite on the same level as Hot Boyz. I expect a close game, but for Hot Boyz to win.

8. Dejags at 3. Matchstick Men