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And so here we are again. The start of a new season, where fresh beginnings and hopeful aspirations are abundant and everyone's championship hopes are alive and well. But before I reveal this years preseason rankings, lets go over some key off-season moves that will undoubtedly effect the rankings:

1) IXL Sold Wu Shuoxiang: Finished 9th in MVP voting and has led IXL in scoring the past 2 seasons.
2) ARK Sold Michel Debaise, Gyula Csaba, and Mei Weiliang: ARK is cleaning house, as this list contains 4 of last years starters, including a scoring champion runner-up.
3) B.I.G Sold Temel Öndüç, Jean-François Cabral, Urmas Nael, and Marek Łętowski: Another example of cleaning house, this group includes the assist leader last year, as well as a 2-time MVP candidate.
4) NEW Bought Gerald Currier: Gerald Currier comes in with one of the highest salary in the league, which will make life miserable for PG's in the Great 8.
5) ARK Bought Gregory Tibubos, Hansjürg Ringier, and Berke Greenlee: ARK may have cleaned house, but they brought in some new, high-caliber appliances who hope to push ARK into title contention.
6) RAT Drafted Nick Fortin: Nick Fortin has the highest salary of all the season 26 draftees last season, and will hopefully be part of the rebuilding process going on in Rat Brigade.
7) DEL Drafted Christopher Brantley: Brantley was pick #2 in D.III 5's draft last year, and at 7'3, he will definitely be a force to deal with come later in the season after proper training.
8) BIG Drafted Marc Sorenson: Out of all the draft picks that stayed in D.IV 10, Sorenson has the brightest future. He comes in with a +$4k salary and a Superstar potential, and will help BIG be a powerhouse in a couple of seasons.

I must say that in the making of this ranking, I have noticed that the caliber of teams is much better than previous seasons. There are no cake walks in this league now, and I can honestly see nearly all the teams in each division, having a shot at the playoffs. There is no longer great disparity, and the increase in competition will make this season an exciting one. And so, without further ado, I give you my preseason rankings for D.IV 10 Season 27:

#1 Bull Knights Salary: $135,882/ Average Salary: $9,059
Last year the Bull Knights lost in 3 games to the Georgia PowerRiders in the finals, and this year, we will see if they can finally get over the hump. Stefan Antonsson finished 7th in MVP voting and led the league in rebounding last year, and reigning MVP Mustapha Hajri carried BUL the whole season, putting on a spectacular playoffs where he averaged 33.4 ppg. But with an aging starting lineup, BUL will have to rely heavily on the capable backups if the want to have any chance of getting to D. III.

#2 Delroy Wolfpack Salary: $220,626/ Average Salary: $12,978
A D. III relegate, DEL comes in with the highest player salary in the league, and will instantly be a title contender. The Big 8 is going to be hotly contested this year, but DEL has extreme depth that will even give other starting lineups fits. DEL will be led by Mitch Tait, who led the team in rating, points, and shots taken last year. DEL will have to shoot much better than last season's 38.6% and play great defense if they want to outscore the very potent Big 8 opposition.

#3 Big Big Gulps Salary: $149,292/ Average Salary: $9,953
BIG was the only team to beat the eventual champions this past season, and there record is misleading because they did not trot out their best lineups at the beginning of the season. But BIG is very explosive, having 3 players in the top ten scorers last season, as well as 2 players finishing in the top six for the MVP voting. BIG had the second highest outside scoring rating last season, due to the play of Vsevolod Averchenkov and Görkem Ferzan. If they can manage their minutes and be healthy come playoff time, then this team has a real chance at representing the Big 8 in the championship.

#4 NEW WORLD ORDER Salary: $129,054 / Average Salary: $10,755
With the addition of Gerald Currier, this team instantly becomes very dangerous. A transfer from another D.IV league, NEW posses a nice compliment to Currier, including Jaan Hallik who led the team in ppg and rpg. The only thing holding this team back is their lack of depth, and this might result in poor game shape for Currier come later in the season.

#5 IXLOS Sabers Salary: $108,657/ Average Salary: $9,055
Last year IXL fell to BUL in the semifinals, and they will try this year to return to D.III after getting relegated 2 seasons ago. IXL has Wendell Windham, who at the age of 20 is a very liable candidate for the U21 team, and Victor Dincã, who will need to replace Wu Shuoxiang's production and defense, who is more than capable. IXL has decent depth, but outside from their 3 top players, they really don't have anyone to carry the team. Look for Dincã and Windham to have great seasons if IXL is to promote.

#6 Boots and Boys Salary: $98,591 / Average Salary: $7.042
#7 The Blood Suckers Salary: $119,337 / Average Salary: $ 7,956
#8 DreamTeam3 Salary: $185,262 / Average Salary: $8,421
#9 AtlantaThunder Salary: $94.683 / Average Salary: $7,890
#10 Arkansas Kings Salary: $100,875 / Average Salary: $8,406
#11 Rat Brigade Salary: $98,386 / Average Salary: $5,787
#12 Darlington Falcons Salary: $82,137 / Average Salary: $4,107
#13 Sheboygan Red Skins Salary: $117,004 / Average Salary: $6,500
#14 Get Evry Dollar Salary: $ 69,635 / Average Salary: $5,357
#15 B.I.GBallers Salary: $53,706 / Average Salary: $7.672
#16 Ten Jaguars Salary: $90,038 / Aver

+1 for the research, Ragdaddy.

I need to keep things honest on the draft, bruh. Per my Draft Report (256253.1), Higgins is by far the #1 grab. 18yo MVP vs Fortin at 19yo. There were also 3 18yo Superstars.

As far as the upcoming season, two words: Al "Big Driz" Driscoll (17741750). Class of S15. Peaked at a 13.0 rating twice last season while averaging a double double. All of it in D3.

Del Wolfpack's frontcourt is most definitely a force to be reckoned with in the IV.10. Bring Tait (19584192) into the conversation, a $48k Allstar SF build that he runs at the 2. Wolfpack also has the biggest arena by 2k seats of any other team.

They are poised to rake in the biggest earnings this season. Even with the penalty from RL'ng the previous season, I topped the league with $1.5+ mill in gates with only a 10K arena (Lvl 4 PR).

DWP's $231k team salary is heavy, but he easily drop two of his aging out players to get to profitable. All this while remaining in the driverseat of league.

Personally I can't wait to run Cintron/Windham against them. Windham is definitely in the U21 conversation for S29. Cintron is also tied for the most total skill points for the S30 squad. Both of them logged over 1000 mins. last season. The reason I mention this is because you referenced the Wu transfer.

Wu was a beast, but he was aging out. At 33yo he had 2 primary drops last season. I decided to cut his $26k salary and upgrade my trainer back to lvl 5. Look forward to the comp this season gentlemen. Good luck in the cup. We drew a bot out the gate.


Last edited by Mix at 04/03/2014 00:07:46

Thanks for the nod bro.

As far as the draftees, i agree that Higgins is the best player drafted, but his starting salary is more than $1k less than Fortin and Sorenson, and the names i mentioned in the transfer update were players i believed could possibly make a difference this season. No doubt that if trained properly, Higgins will be a beast in about 3 seasons, but hopefully i would like to be out of here by then :)

As far as Del Wolfpack is concerned, they are the most formidable team on paper. However when I look at their stats from last year, nothing really impresses me, especially their shooting percentage. now i assume that is due to the more advanced opposition, but their best player would have only ranked 9th in rating last year if they were in this league. I think the scariest thing about this team is their depth, with 8 players having a rating above 9 last year, which i assume will only increase in D. IV.

And concerning the Wu, i think you did the right thing letting him go. Sell him now as his value will drop exponentially with each passing year.

An entire season of max training and the potential skill points added outweigh the stronger starting salary in my book.

Player ratings are very relative to the particular contest IMO. D3 ratings don't directly translate to D4. That's why Wu looked so good in D4. He was my backup in D3. I held him over from the season I started tanking to get a lottery pick. I survived RL the first season and the second I got swept. Windham and Cintron are the lotteries from those tank seasons.

Regarding ranks. According to the current US rankings, the IV.10 stacks out like this going into this season's cup.

TEAM (CR)
1. Delroy Wolfpack (307)
2. Bull Knights (406)
3. IXL Sabers (553)
4. The Blood Suckers (589)
5. Big Big Gulps (701)
6. B.I.GBallers (714)
7. Atlanta Thunder (826)
8. Sheboygan Red Skins (837)
9. Boots and Boys (1038)
10. New World Order (1055)
11. Arkansas Kings (1064)
12. Darlington Falcons (1074)
13. Ten Jaguars (1219)
14. DreamTeam3 (1220)
15. Get Every Doller (1241)
16. Rat Brigade (1281)


I think a lot of this banter about rosters will need to be settled during Allstar break. As you said, it's a very competitive league now. That's a plus for everyone.




Last edited by Mix at 04/03/2014 18:24:05

Now that the season is a third of the way over, it is time for a ranking update. I decided to include stats this time to not only back up my rankings, but also make the rankings more credible. So the rankings this time will be based on potential success, the eye test, and a combination of rankings from the following 8 stats: points scored, points allowed, average player rating, efficiency differential, Team shooting %, assist per game, and rebounds differential, and points per 100 possessions. These stats will be found from a combination of BuzzerManager, BB Offsite, and BuzzerBeater. So lets begin.

#1 Bull Knights (preseason rank: 1)
BUL has been dominating teams all season, winning by an average margin of 40 points in their 7 wins. The team leader is not surprisingly been Mustapha Hajri, who has the 2nd best rating in the league and is shooting an unheard of 53.8% from the field and 61.9% from behind the arc, with an average of 17.2 ppg. BUL is also the most rounded team, with 5 players posting average ratings above 10.
Points: 851- 3rd------ Shooting %: 47.8- 2nd
Pts ALL: 588- 1st-----Assists pg: 24.9- 2nd
Rating: 9.8- 1st-------REB DIFF: 14.6- 1st
EFF DIFF: 81- 1st-----PP100: 113- 2nd


#2 Big Big Gulps (3)
Unlike last season, BIG is bringing out its best players for every game, which elevates this team from a sleeper pick to a bona fide title contender. BIG is a nightmare for defensive teams, with 3 players in the top ten in the league in scoring and half of the team with shooting %'s over 50%. Görkem Ferzan has been their MVP so far, ranking 3rd in the league in scoring and rating with 24.8 and 12.4 respectively.
Points: 862- 2nd-------Shooting %: 50.1- 1st
Pts ALL: 676- 3rd------Assists pg: 19.6- 9th
Rating: 9.3 - 3rd-------REB DIFF: 11.10- 2nd
EFF DIFF: 54.7- 2nd---PP100: 116- 1st

#3 Delroy Wolfpack (2)
DEL has the highest salary in IV.10 by a long shot, and the certainly have played like it. The have poured it on teams, scoring less than 105 points only once so far this season. DEL runs a very balanced offense, with 4 of the starters taking over 100 shots so far, which means that if their is a mismatch, this team can find it. DEL is lead by SG Mitch Tait, who leads the team with 20.2 ppg.
Points: 914- 1st--------Shooting %: 47.6- 3rd
Pts ALL: 769- 8th------Assists pg: 26.8- 1st
Rating: 9.4- 2nd-------REB DIFF: 9.7- 3rd
EFF DIFF: 42.7- 4th---PP100: 112- 3rd

#4 IXLOS Sabers (5)
IXL has unloaded the top 3 players over the past season and due to some up and coming stars, is still very much in the race for the title. Wendell Windham and Les Citron look to be staples of IXL's frontcourt for years and are liable U21 options, and are already forces to be reckoned with in IV.10, with Les Citron ranking 6th in the league in rebounds. At the moment though the team is led by an All-star backcourt, with Martin Štefanák and Victor Dincã averaging 18.7 ppg and a 12 rating between them.
Points: 771- 12th-------Shooting %: 47.4- 4th
Pts ALL: 608- 2nd------Assists pg: 22.5- 7th
Rating: 8.8- 4th--------Reb DIFF: 7.5- 5th
EFF DIFF: 50.3- 3rd---PP100: 105- 6th

#5 NEW WORLD ORDER (4)
While having one of the best PG in Gerald Currier, NEW only has 5 players averaging more than 10 points a game. If someone can step up and help their star PG, then this team has a real chance to make life difficult for the top dogs in the league, such as they did when they handed Bull Knights their only loss of the season.
Points: 829- 6th--------Shooting %: 47.2- 5th
Pts ALL: 724- 6th-------Assists pg: 24- 3rd
Rating: 7.6- 6th--------Reb DIFF: 3.8- 8th
EFF DIFF: 38.2- 5th---PP100: 110- 4th

#6 Boots ans Boys (6)
#7 Rat Brigade (11)
#8 Darlington Falcons (12)
#9 DreamTeam3 (8)
#10 Atlanta Thunder (9)
#11 Arkansas Kings (10)
#12 Get Every Dollar (14)
#13 Ten Jaguars (16)
#14 B.I.GBallers (15)
#15 Bedroom Ballers (not ranked)
#16 Wolves Elite (not ranked)

+1 Rag for the work.

PS - Delroy is/has/was/always will and forever be 'bot-Sauce'. Darlington and them will zap in the next few weeks. I'm going to go for their SF. XD

Last edited by Mix at 04/30/2014 17:40:35

Thanks bro. I think the Big 8 can be won by 4 different teams, with Big Big Gulps the favorite, but I agree the Great 8 is a two horse race. And which SF?

I was scoping out Driscoll but Delroy logged in again so that plan is scrapped. If Del gets serious about GS then I would say his team is in the driver's seat.

We got the win but it took a normal with 11 ENT versus his garbage GS. Other than that, we would've got buried. If he stays auto I'd say it's smooth sailing for you to D3.

So i noticed something that i thought would make for some good discussion. I was analyzing the stats from each conference over the past couple seasons, and i noticed a trend. The most prolific offenses always seem to be from the Big 8 and the toughest defenses always seem to be from the Great 8. I looked at the stats over the past 4 season in IV.10 and came up with these results: out of the 4 seasons i looked at, the best defense team was in the great 8 3 out of the 4 seasons, and the best offense came from the big 8 all 4 seasons.
But i goes further than that. I took the 3 highest scoring offenses from each season and ranked them, which equaled to 12 total spots for my study. Out of the 12 spots, 11 of the 12 spots belonged to teams from the big 8. I did the same thing for defense and out of the 12 spots, 9 out of the 12 spots belonged to teams from the great 8.
But the next stat seems to contradict my theory. I added up all the points scored and points allowed for each season, and found the difference between the two conference:
Season 24: Big 8 allowed 906 points more than Great 8
Great 8 scored 510 points more than Big 8
Season 25: Big 8 allowed 1523 points more than Great 8
Great 8 scored 133 points more than Big 8
Season 26: Great 8 allowed 611 points more than Big 8
Great 8 scored 527 points more than Big 8
Season 27: Great 8 allowed 331 points more than Big 8
Big 8 scored 453 points more than Great 8

So it seems from this data that while the best teams seem to fit my initial model, the bottom half of these conferences seem to overpower the effect and reveres the model.

Any other thought?

Wow what a race for the final playoff spot in the Big 8! i wonder who is going to be the last one standing.