July 20th, 2003
Where Are the Superstars?
EDISON (HP) – The absence of Red’s Chris Healey and Warren Chia, along with Orange’s Jake Douglas and Praveen Pamidimakkula overshadowed the blockbuster trade between three teams two weeks before the playoffs. Red and Orange went a combined 2-9 this weekend. Red’s lone win came against Orange, and Orange’s lone win was against a Kang-less Blue team.
HBA Facilities had a tough time replacing the net at Hidden Park as the first attempt at putting the net resulted in a laughable moment.
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The trade, officially made on Friday evening, sent Gray’s Ed Liu to Orange, Red’s Ed Bong to White, and White’s Yifu Wu to Gray. The consensus was that Gray received the better end of this deal, but each team filled a need: Gray needed a point guard, White needed defense, and Orange needed a scorer, especially with key absences plaguing them this week.
The weather was not so much of a problem, as frequent periods of shade, along with a huge cooler of HBA-issued Gatorade helped keep the players from dehydrating. This was also the first week that significant footage was shot and pictures taken, but this did not seem to affect the players much.
The lack of superstars from other teams puts an asterisk next to White’s continued resurgence behind the ferocious Neeraj Patel. During White’s only loss (to Blue) on the day, Patel lashed out verbally at scorekeepers for not reading the score correctly. The HBA staff that was officiating the game asserted that they informed the players of the score correctly. It has yet to be determined whether Patel will be fined or suspended, but disciplinary action seems unlikely.
The playoff format was released this week. The bracket will be single, best of five games up to eleven points. The bottom two teams in the standings will play for the final playoff spot in a best of three series. The finals will be best of five and a consolation game between the losers of the playoffs will play each other as well. Teams cannot play the same lineup in successive games. This is to ensure equal playing time for all players who attend.
Red Team
RED LOOKS LOST WITHOUT HEALEY
Red team, once again without the league’s best player Chris Healey, went a disappointing one and four this week. However, amid the expected struggles without their marquee superstar, Red gained confidence in their defense. Red came back to defeat Orange team, and pushed Blue to an overtime game. But with all three of their players shooting around twenty percent from the field, Red simply could not score enough to complement their excellent defense. If Red expects to win without Healey, Arvind Chandran and Oleg “Russian Roulette” Bisker must be have better shot selection.
Although lacking in offense, Red showed its tenacity on defense as Oleg Bisker denies a shot by Blue's Mike Sheehan.
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The motto remains “wait until Healey gets back” for Red, as they are 11-4 with Healey in the lineup and 4-18 without him. If both Chia and Healey return for the playoffs, Red could automatically jump to the front of the pack.
Red’s defense-oriented, grind-it-out game also produced a snore-fest in television ratings. Red’s shooting is the worst in the league, but Red easily leads the league in blocks and steals. Are teams frustrated to play Red? No, because drawn out defensive struggles create “stat builder” opportunities for everyone.
A bright spot for Red this week was a triple five effort by Andy Chou in Red’s only win against Orange. Chou notched 6 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 steals to become only the fourth player in HBA history with a triple-five. The other players who have achieved this status are Red’s Chris Healey, Blue’s Peter Kang, and Orange’s Praveen Pamidmakkula.
Orange Team
ORANGE MISSING TOP THREE, WINS ONE GAME
Orange should be happy with one win, being that they were missing their top three players. However, they were a few unlucky bounces away from three and three this week, thanks to a great effort by substitute player Brian Kim, who played aggressively but did not receive much help from his teammates Ed Liu and Peter He. The trio did not look comfortable on court, probably because they had never played with each other before.
The look on Peter He's face was a dead-on indicator of Orange team's woes on Sunday. The team gave up a 9-5 lead to Red in what should have been an easy victory.
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If all things go as planned, Pamidimakkula, Douglas, and Freeman should be present for the playoffs, but considering the past history, it would be amazing if all three showed. Orange team has become notorious for absentee players, as one week nobody from Orange showed up. It is unfortunate that Orange is plagued with such problems, as their top three lineup posted a 7-0 record in one day, best in league history.
Orange’s only win came against a Kang-less Blue team, but they played Red and White relatively close. What will happen next week? Will another player have to fill in, or will Orange’s players finally attend? The rest of the league holds their collective breath.
Gray Team
ROLE PLAYERS STEP UP AS GRAY BREAKS OUT
Gray finally got over the hump this week, posting their first ever winning record of four wins and two losses. Now, if a few things bounce their way, they could conceivably beat out Orange and Red for the final guaranteed playoff spot. How did Gray suddenly break out?
The shy Tim Chang was bold when it came to scoring on Sunday, capping the day off with a career-best 22 points in four games.
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Gray now has four players averaging between 22 and 26 HBAP per game. No other team has that sort of balance. Most surprisingly, “superstar” Andy Ni is now fourth on his team. Yifu Wu’s initial success could slow down once he plays more games, but who would have thought that Gray’s best lineup did not include the highly touted Ni?
Tim Chang improved his HBAP average by two points with two 7-point games. Newly acquired Yifu Wu averages a league-leading three assists per game. The “new look” Gray seemed to click a lot better, but continues to lack the superstar play that is essential to close out games, especially overtime ones. The story is old and repetitive, but once again, Ni must step up. His role players are overachieving—if he can do the same, Gray can be a force in the playoffs.
Gray has also become the first HBA team to officially have a “fan club” as one source put it. Perhaps team Gray has some alternative motivations driving it on the court? If fan clubs are indeed associated with breakout weeks, perhaps all the teams need one.
White
WHITE DOMINATES SHORTHANDED FIELD
White team continued its meteoric rise from last in the standings to second, only four and a half games behind league leader Blue. White no longer has to fight for a playoff spot, and has a very outside chance to take the number one seed next week from Blue. White looked strong overall, winning five games and losing one, blowing out quite a few teams.
Neerj Patel played with his usual aggressiveness as he dominated opposing defenders inside. He helped his team dominate first-place Blue team in their second match, 11-2.
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White’s improved play can be attributed to Neeraj Patel. Entering the league with loads of talent and an intimidating edge that comes from a Ron Artest-like anger, Patel had been relatively well-behaved until this weekend. As the old saying goes, winning cures everything. The others on team White, notably Jeff Hsieh and Jeremy Doodanauth, are playing selfless basketball. White easily leads the league in assists, and has very evenly-distributed scoring. Great passing combined with improved shooting has made White’s wins fast and efficient. It seems even John Tso has broken the rookie slump, improving his HBAP slightly this week.
When the other teams’ superstars return, White will not have such an easy time. But for now, they are the hottest and deepest team in the league.
Blue
BLUE UNSPECTACULAR AS CHEN RETURNS
League leader Blue team went four and three this week. Blue simply does not look like the powerhouse they did early in the season. Fortunately, Blue still has one more regular season week to gear up for the playoffs, where they will be, barring a final week collapse, the number one seed.
Peter Kang dropped below 30 HBAP per game for the first time this season and made an uncharacteristic 9 turnovers in six games.
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The return of Ken Chen was unspectacular. While Blue handed White their only loss with Chen on the court, he looked rusty and fatigued at times, allowing Tim Chang to score seven points in their opening game loss to Gray. Chen and Reggie Soang both dropped in HBAP this week.
Blue’s performance can be described as ordinary. They are generally winning the games they should. The playoff field is wide open, but Blue looks to be the favorite as of now. Experienced playoff veterans Kang and Soang won last summer’s HBA Reunion tournament, but can they step up and deliver a second straight Blue championship with this year’s bigger, deeper, more talented field?
(HP)
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