Good evening basketball fans wherever you may be (h/t to Bill Schonley)!
This season marks the 50th anniversary of Buzzerbeater and this season's champion will once again earn the privilege of promotion to the ultimate challenge, the NBBA!
We've got a promising season in front of us, filled with transfer wire intrigue, training, promotion, and demotion plans, and the always unknown Cup draws to balance alongside what will undoubtedly be a tough league once again.
Let's get things started with Big 8 predictions.
Predicted order of finish
1. Lunch Room Bullies
2. Brighton Mammoth
3. New York Dragons
4. Barbaric Yawps
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5. [Insert Name]
6. Mouthbreathers
7. Chronic Pain
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8. Southpaw Army
1st Round: LRB over BY and NYD surprises BM
Conference Finals: Lunch Room Bullies over New York Dragons
The Teams:
Lunch Room Bullies
At 17 and 5 last season, LRB was upset in the first round by upstart Brighton Mammoth, with both teams pounding the ball inside. The Bullies have a massive payroll and heavy depth. They have the potential to carry deep into the Cup and gain the nod at 1 for their talent, depth and potential to bank enthusiasm.
Brighton Mammoth
Last season's darling, Mammoth finished the season 13-9 and met their match in the conference finals against the eventual champ, The Closers. Like the Bullies, Mammoth has a massive payroll, but also the type of depth that could potentially carry them far into the Cup. They'll contend for the top spot, and the difference could come down to Cup draws, tactics, and the Bullies sense of revenge.
New York Dragons
This homegrown team features only players drafted by the franchise. And what a franchise it is! This team is developing young top-end talent, and they could disrupt the status quo this season because of it. While they have a number of aging players too, the team's ability to cross-train could prove the difference with young, high potential players all over the place. A potential downfall could be the team's training plans as they may be patiently seasoning this group. Still they have the most potential for in-season development.
Barbaric Yawps
The Yawps get the nod for the final playoff spot because of their top-end talent, managerial experience, and the strength of their starting 5. Yawp has been around since Season 9, and last season's DIII.12 champs come ready-made and unfazed to compete now.
The best of the rest:
[Insert Name] - This team hung tough in a tough Big 8 last season, finishing at 10-12 and winning their relegation series. Mathematically this team is in the top four returning teams, but are they shaking things up? If the Dragons don't develop like expected this franchise is poised to take a playoff spot.