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FML Radio: 3-Peat Duble

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This Post:
88
311584.1
Date: 9/15/2021 1:10:32 PM
Overall Posts Rated:
926926
Helllllllooooo BuzzerBeater! B)

Flash Masher Life Radio returns for another episode of FML with our honored guest, A-Dub! (trophy)

A-Dub (which I am told is actually pronounced uh-doob) leads the distinguished Upsyndrome, who have absolutely dominated top tier USA play over the last era of BB. Today we get to hear the secrets to his success, and his thoughts on USA chances going forward in the B3. Let's dive straight in!

Chek: Welcome back to the show! Thanks for being here. To start off, I'd like to hear about your experience tanking. Many teams have gone through a session of 'tanking', but very few seem to have such rebuilds result in multiple NBBA trophies. What sets your rebuilds apart from others?

A-Dub: Patients. In a game that is more of a marathon than a race you have to be patient, and much of that comes with experience. Haste will only lead you to mediocrity and poor decisions. Many managers want to rush the process, but that only ever leads to less than ideal results. Rebuilding a team should be slow and methodical.

Aside from patience, one thing that might separate my rebuilds from others is the fact that I am very frugal with my money. I don’t waste money on just any player or prospect. I take my time and make sure I acquire the right players for the right price. I love a good transfer-list bargain. For example, one of my trainees during my previous NBBA and B3 runs cost me as little as 450K (that’s around 200K-300K in todays market!). That same player made the USA NT in his 30s and was crucial in my clubs success.

If you take your time, these type of low TSP bargain players will pay off in the long run. I had two other trainees that recently made the USA NT, one of whom that I drafted and the other I spent 1.5m on; which was a bit rich for my taste but I doubled my money back, and aside from winning titles, that is the long term goal of training — to make a profit before the inevitable start of your next rebuild. I typically only splurge cash on my supporting cast of players, or sometimes on high TSP prospects, but those players have to be absolutely perfect according to my plan.

In a fickle economy, like in BB, you have to be patient and frugal. With that said, training has always been the foundation of my success. It is a long process, and many managers do not have the time nor patience to properly rebuild their team or train their own prospects which is why their success is limited. Moreover, I do not cling onto my players. I know when it is time to rebuild and move on.

Chek: Well it certainly seems to have worked out for you as it has led to some pretty impressive B3 results. How is competing in the B3 different from competing against other USA teams?

A-Dub: Well, the tournament is called “Buzzerbeater’s Best” for good reason: you are going up against the best in the entire BB world, not just 16 top teams in your country like in the NBBA.

The major difference is the amount of top managers you have to face, many of whom have all the money and experience in the world. Some are perennial B3 competitors with multiple B3 titles. You have many top notch managers that understand how to build superior teams. Winning a B3 title is much more difficult in comparison to the NBBA. However, I do believe the talent in the NBBA is getting increasingly more difficult.

This Post:
22
311584.2 in reply to 311584.1
Date: 9/15/2021 1:10:40 PM
Overall Posts Rated:
926926
I often converse with fellow US manager and elder statesman, Yuck, and he mentioned to me that winning the NBBA and Cup title in the same season, three times in a row, as I’ve done in the past and has yet been matched, will be an impossible feat for anyone due to the growing strength of US managers that are quickly closing the gap. That’s a challenge I’d like to take on and even surpass, six domestic titles in three seasons, but I must concede that the task very will may not ever happen again. Especially when you ponder the fact that before I set that record no US team had ever won two doubles in a row, shockingly enough. That’s hard to believe given the iconic US managers that have come before me.

Chek: What is your favorite Shikago quote?

A-Dub: Somting-somthing . . . “Mystic Pizza.” —Shikago

Some context: Mystic Pizza is an inside joke. To my anguish, the joke is basically on me. I forget why the joke is on me, but it is. I think I posted a corny press release many years ago and Shikago, as he does, replied with an imdb.com link to a remotely obscure 80s movie, “Mystic Pizza.” I’ve never watched the movie and I don’t think I ever will. It’s apparently a romanic comedy “with the works” . . . and I swear that last line kills me every time; like, what the hell does that even mean. Not that I care to know. Anyways, it’s the joke that keeps on giving, apparently, because it was mentioned in my last FML interview as well. In fact, in the comment section of my last FML interview, Shikago made a Mystic Pizza reference that I found particularly amusing enough that I copied and pasted his comments into a press release I made a few months ago which can conveniently be viewed on my team’s home page: (23869).

Fun fact: Shikago won the s18 USA CUP against the ATG US manager, Brian, of the King Drive Ballers.

https://buzzerbeater.com/country/1/cup.aspx?season=18

Shikago also had a very respectable B3 run in season 19. Not bad ol’ friend!

https://buzzerbeater.com/country/1/cup.aspx?season=18

Chek: Well even if Shikago got close, no USA team has won the B3 yet. What do you think it will take for a USA team to claim the ultimate prize? Is it possible?

A-Dub: It’s definitely possible for a USA team to win a B3 title. Money is a good starting point. You’ll need lots of that in order to buy the best players, with the best TSP. Experience is important. Managerial skills need to be top notch — tried and tested — and if you are like myself and have all of that and more . . . sometimes a little luck goes a long way. And it never hurts to get on your knees and cry out to the BB-gods, begging them for unlimited power and glorious victories.

Chek: So... someone from Yuck's management team wanted me to ask this one... "How does it feel knowing that if you had won against Yuck in season 51 that the USA page would rank you as the number 1 titles per team in BB history?”

A-Dub: Oh, I should have known this was coming. You bastards. Okay, I have to admit that made me laugh. I have a stupid grin on my face as I type right now. And now it’s gone.

Uhh, yeah, what can I say . . . that sucks? Honesty, I believe my current ranking is very much appropriate and I am fine with it by all means. In fact, It would be an injustice to be ranked ahead of Brian, because he has more overall titles than I do and beating Yuck wouldn’t have changed that. It actually irritates me that the trophy count does not include CUP titles when determining rank. It would bother me to be ranked ahead of Brian when I know in my mind it’s undeserved. It’s the total count that matters.

Last edited by Chekreyes at 9/15/2021 1:15:36 PM

This Post:
11
311584.3 in reply to 311584.2
Date: 9/15/2021 1:10:48 PM
Overall Posts Rated:
926926
Brian actually tanked league playoff games in favor of the CUP. That shows you how much he valued his CUP titles and of course the monetary benefit gained by winning the CUP. However, It should be noted that at the time the B3 did not have a fixed enthusiasm (unlike now-a-days); so teams that went on long cup runs benefited greatly. Macro nations benefited more than anyone due to the fact that their national tournaments had more rounds and were thus longer so macro nation managers like Brian were smart to prioritize CUP success over wasting enthusiasm during the playoffs or league play. That’s one advantage macro nations had over micro nations.

Anyways, I said it once or twice, but I’ll say it again: congratulations, Yuck, on winning the season 51 NBBA title. But also, as is NBBA tradition — EFF YOU!

Chek: So, what can newer BB members do to set themselves up for longer term success like yourself?

A-Dub: Learn from experienced managers and ask questions. When I was new, I was constantly asking questions or I would read through the forums, or on the previously popular: “BB-USA offsite.” However, the offsite is not really used anymore. Now the best place to do all that is on the BB-USA discord which I highly recommend https://discord.gg/cKpNkt2

For those who don’t know, Discord allows you to ask question or reply in real time and there are hundreds of managers online throughout the day that can answer your questions which can help accelerate the learning process for new managers, but of course, veteran managers benefit as well.

Chek: You won your titles with essentially a six man roster. Do you still think this is a viable strategy with the new stamina changes?

A-Dub: Eh, I would have rather had an eight-man lineup, but the issue is that it’s hard to have depth when top players have such high salaries due to the average TSP of players getting higher and higher. I believe today’s bloated salaries are unfair and devalue TL market prices of high TSP players, which most managers cannot afford to pay under the limited salary cap.

With six players, I was already pushing above the D1 salary cap and my weekly revenue income had dipped into the negatives. I would say it is a viable strategy to play six men, because your opponents are stuck with the same dilemma, either that, or they’ll be forced to play 8 players that fit under the salary cap, but suffer quantity over quality and a team’s performance will suffer while their starters rest as a result. However, if a team has enough money to burn, they can go 8 solid players deep.

If the devs want to stop the 5-6 man teams a more logical approach would be to make it mandatory for teams to have to fill-in eight positions in order to not be disqualified from any particular game. When they messed with the stamina that affected all teams equally and didn't make the difference they were hoping it would; instead, that lowered the quality of performance for all teams. So, again, yes six man rosters are still viable options for now.

Chek: Even if you had to utilize a shorter roster, do you think the team you assembled was the best in USA BB history?

A-Dub: Yes, I do believe so . . . BUT . . . with the market being flooded with a new generation of record breaking high TSP players, it is only a matter of time before my ‘accomplishment’ is surpassed. We are in a different era and team’s are only going to get better, naturally. I know there are many current NBBA managers that have the cash to spend and right now is the best time to buy — in what is a buyer friendly market.

I assembled my team in a grossly inflated sellers market which really did a number on my teams finances and limited my success, but that just comes with the game. Sometimes you’re lucky, sometimes you’re not. The economy will always play its part in what type of team you can build and mangers should be mindful of this.

Last edited by Chekreyes at 9/15/2021 1:19:30 PM

This Post:
11
311584.4 in reply to 311584.3
Date: 9/15/2021 1:10:55 PM
Overall Posts Rated:
926926
Right now, it looks like, Chek, your team team has the best chance of surpassing mine. You recently acquired two USA NT players that are close to 160 TSP which cost a total of approximately 6m. That’s insane! When I was assembling my team, the going price for a player with 146 TSP was around 5-6m. That gradually went down as the market rebounded. Sometimes you gotta know when to buy and to sell. And sometimes you can’t help it.

Side bar: This is post-interview Chek. Really want to say I am shocked A-Dub thinks my team is close to where his was. Makes me sad I didn't assemble this crew last season so we could see if he is right! I still think A-Dubs crew from last season would stomp my current roster.

Chek: If you could bring back one inactive BB member and have them compete actively again, who would it be? I know your first choice is (*) Wolph (*), but who is your second?

A-Dub: I’m just going to ignore your Wolph comment as I generally do with any of his posts.

Brian is the obvious choice for me. He’s like the Babe Ruth of BB-USA. There were many great US managers during his time, but as the BABE once said: “Heroes get remembered, but legends live forever.” And it’s safe to say that Brian is a legend. He was one of the first pioneers of this game and he had great success. He still holds the record for the most NBBA & US Cup gold titles — even years after retirement. Brian was the pinocle of BB-USA success and everyone, myself included, strived to get at his level. He set the bar high.

As a competitor, I would have loved to compete against him. Although, for me, when Brian was in his prime the mere thought of competing against him, and other NBBA managers alike, was an afterthought as I was fixated on making my way up the USA divisional ladder one baby step at a time. I had absolute tunnel vision. In season 22 I came close to promoting to the NBBA and facing Brian; however, I was not ready then and I failed to promote after being defeated in my D-II semifinal matchup. In hindsight It was probably for the best, because like I said . . . I wasn’t ready. I was actually surprised to have been close to NBBA promotion during my first time up to D-II. I ended up tanking and rebuilding in s23; and after my rebuild, I eventually promoted to the NBBA in season 33 and won my first NBBA & Cup title. However, by then, Brian had been retired since around s27. So I never got the opportunity to face Brian, unfortunately.

Chek: How long do you see yourself playing this game for? As a part of that, how long do you think this game will be around for?

A-Dub: Well, the future is uncertain and of course nothing is forever. Inevitably, there will be a time that I stop playing this game; however, I try my best to enjoy the present and take life one day at time, minute-by-minute. I have goals that keep me motivated such as winning a B3 title and surpassing Brian in the overall title count which helps me stay engaged. However, admittedly, I have lost the vigor that I once had when I first played this game as a young man, but that’s just life. In regards to the longevity and potential of BB, I like the direction it’s headed now more than ever before. I see real potential.

I think the game is in good hands with the new Dev team. They seem to be really engaged with the user base and very dedicated; which I respect greatly and I know that the BB-community does too. Being able to retain mangers longer, or replace veteran managers with fresh ones down the road will be important to this games longevity.

Last edited by Chekreyes at 9/15/2021 1:23:18 PM

This Post:
11
311584.5 in reply to 311584.4
Date: 9/15/2021 1:11:03 PM
Overall Posts Rated:
926926
Chek: Well, thanks so much for answering so thoroughly. And one last bonus question, mostly for my own ego :) Now that you are demoting, who do you see taking over as the dominant team(s) in the NBBA?

A-Dub: I have to stick with my guns and go with the two teams I claimed would be the ones to beat, one of them being your team, Chek (the Flash Mashers), and Apex’s team (LeBron Slams Up).

I think those two teams are set up well for the future and could have long and successful title runs. Now, with that said, I have been pleasantly surprised by the strength of competition in the NBBA this season and some of the new team’s that have risen to the top look formidable.

And I can’t overlook Red Velvet. That team can put up a fight. I have to shout the Irvine Anteaters manager, 8ants, who is one of the last two NBBA teams in the US CUP and of course they acquired my former trainee, Dion Jackson. I can’t help but to root for a team that has my ex-player. There are so many teams that deserve mentioning, but as a spectator, I’m just gonna kick back and see how the season unfolds. It should be interesting. Good luck to all the competitors.

With that said, it’s been a pleasure doing this interview. Thanks for reaching out to me and good luck to you in your quest for a title, Chek. You have one hell of a player in Tyrese Graham and NOW you added fellow USA NT star, Philip Mrosla. That’s an intriguing duo to say the least. You know I’m rooting for you. Go get an NBBA title!

--------------------

Huge shoutout to A-Dub for doing this and taking the time to provide some really interesting answers. I think I speak for all of BB-USA when I say that we are proud of A-Dub for representing us at the top level and for placing really well in the B3.

For all of you who made it this far, do you want to see more FML? If so, who should we interview?

Thanks!

(https://i.imgur.com/WBlqRs8.png)

Last edited by Chekreyes at 9/15/2021 1:33:19 PM

Message deleted
From: A-Dub

This Post:
22
311584.7 in reply to 311584.5
Date: 9/15/2021 10:12:20 PM
Upsyndrome
III.15
Overall Posts Rated:
697697
Second Team:
Upsyndrome II
A-Dub (which I am told is actually pronounced uh-doob)


I have to chime in here: that is simply not true. With that being said, not that I have any control in the matter, but I give people the full artistic freedom to pronounce my name anyway their heart desires.

Anyways, great job in conducting this interview. It's great to have a manager, such as yourself, that engages the community at large and brings us together with these entertaining and intriguing interviews. This community is one of the reasons why I've stuck around and played this game for so long. Y'all are the real MVPs!

I nominate Yuck as tribute. He was mentioned in this interview quite a bit and he is a great veteran manager that would make for a very interesting read. And of course he had a great run recently: three titles in three seasons. And of course he beat me in order to gain his last title to complete the three-peat which was icing on the cake I'm sure he'd tell you. He's one of the better and more knowledgeable managers in this game.

"You will lose." -Ivan Drago
From: Mixx

This Post:
11
311584.8 in reply to 311584.4
Date: 9/17/2021 1:26:59 AM
Overall Posts Rated:
2323
Chek: If you could bring back one inactive BB member and have them compete actively again, who would it be? I know your first choice is (*) Wolph (*), but who is your second?
Everybody knows it's 1) Wardo 2) KHenry/ Wolph (Tie) 3) Sahand. 🤣

Last edited by Mixx at 9/17/2021 1:28:18 AM

From: A-Dub

To: Mixx
This Post:
11
311584.9 in reply to 311584.8
Date: 9/17/2021 9:00:27 PM
Upsyndrome
III.15
Overall Posts Rated:
697697
Second Team:
Upsyndrome II
Please don't summon the wrath of Wardo upon us. I don't want him to spam me via BB-mail about the time he had a one night stand with Fergie, or his titillating rap career, or his nWo-wrestle-mania-alien conspiracy theories.

Oof. You compared Khenry to wolf? Somewhere in Nebraska, Khenry rolled over in his bed and probably lost a little sleep.

Also: Not to pop your bubble, but Sahand is still active. He's literally in the B3 semi-finals right now you uncultured swine.


Last edited by A-Dub at 9/17/2021 9:10:29 PM

"You will lose." -Ivan Drago
From: Apex

This Post:
11
311584.10 in reply to 311584.5
Date: 9/20/2021 12:09:27 PM
Atelier
IV.13
Overall Posts Rated:
420420
I think EBW and Zenith would make a great duo for the next episode. They're both the best of friends who would love to join you for a 2-on-1 special with two successful inactive USA managers!

Last edited by Apex at 9/20/2021 12:10:32 PM

2x NBBA Champion: S55, S56. 3x USA Cup Champion: S54, S55, S56. WR for longest home streak ever at 11 in Season 47.