OKC beats the field then beats the odds on it's way to their first championship! While doing so, they become only the third team in our 14 year history to win the regular season championship, with an undefeated record, then move on to win the Finals! The other teams would win the regular season championship then move on to loose the Finals! Another record was broken this season during the Finals! For the first time one team lost the championship two years in a row! Los Angeles! Last year they were the Lakers! This season they were the Clippers! Both times they lost!This season was true heart break, as they were the only team to beat the Thunder this season! The championship series was competitive! Going the full three games! In the end, the Thunder just wanted it more! OKC fought it's way back from big leads and sometimes each other, but when it was said and done, the Thunder was the better team of the series and the best team of the season!

Congrats to Pierre Monagan who grabs Finals MVP honors! An excellent all around player, Pee did what needed to be done to get his squad on point! A good outside shooter, he didn't settle for jump shots when it was money time! Pierre attacked the basket! And did it often! He kicked his team in the pants when they played bad! Patted guys on the back when they played good! Took over when it was necessary! And fell back when he had to! A work of art that lead to his squad capturing the hardware!

Now OKC will have a chance to defend their crown next season at the McCook Expo, with their newly installed wood floor! Not that fake tile trash we use to practice and scrimmage on! We'll look to start in January of 2013. With this spot being closer to the West side `and the start time being pushed back one hour, we should be able to find some committed teams who want a chance to de-thrown the Thunder!We'll take the month of December off for the holidays and to recruit some competitive teams to add to the mix! Thanks to all who played this season! Got big plans coming in 2013! Be on the lookout!  

The Play-Offs Are Coming!!

Let's get ready for the play-offs! Here's how we will move forward to the post-season! We have one more weekend of regular season games to play this weekend, October 27, 2012! Here's the match-ups:

08:30 AM LA vs Suns
09:30 AM Denver vs OKC
10:30 AM Bobcats vs Bulls

OKC is the regular season champs! Also, OKC and Denver has earned first rounds buys! The play-off schedule for the first round is already up! Take a peek here:

http://premierehoops.leagueapps.com/leagues/7678/schedule

We'll start the first round on November 3, 2012! The match-ups will be:

LA vs Suns
Bulls vs Bobcats

To advance to the second round, two teams will have to win 2 out of 3 games! So, on November 3, each team will play 2 games! If each team splits wins, meaning win 1 game loose 1 game, then both teams will have to play the deciding game 3 on the following week on November 10, 2012! Then be ready to start the second round with game 1 on the same day! Please keep in mind that on each game day of the play-offs, you will have to pay ref fees twice, for 2 games! So make sure your team has $100 for each day!

Remember, we are playing for championship rings, a team trophy and a chance to return and defend your crown for free next season at the Max! No teams should think about bringing any new players we have not already seen throughout the regular season! This is the tough part of the season, where things feel a little more like the NBA! Hope you guys are excited and ready to roll! Time to find out if OKC can close the deal out and win the Finals! Or will another team get hot at the right moment and steal the crown! Time will tell!

Bobcats bob and weave their way to first Fantasy Championship!

Another season of the Premiere Hoops Fantasy League has come to an end! And another championship team has been crowned the best! Congrats to the Charlotte Bobcats! They did just enough to squeeze by the competition to steal the title! The runner up Lakers became yet another squad in a long list of teams that would find a way  to win the regular season title, then advance to the finals, only to loose the set of games that matters the most! The finals was a physical match up between two teams determined not to loose, but in the end, only one squad would walk away with the championship hardware! This season, that team would be the Bobcats!

As we close out our 12th season of the fantasy league, a few thoughts of perspective! First of all, I would like to once again thank all the teams who played this season! I would like to send out a special thanks to all the team captains who I worked with throughout the course of the season! You guys did a good job of getting your teams to the games when we needed them the most! I want to also thank my staff, Robin Locke, Nancy Johnson, and Twain Jackson, for their hard work and dedication throughout the season! You guys made a big difference and I appreciate your efforts! I would like to also apologize for all the rescheduled games this season! No excuses, but sometimes things are out of your hands and control! Despite all the bumps in the road this season, we made it through! Now that everybody has gotten a test drive of the league, expectations will be much higher for the upcoming season! As we hopefully move closer to the day Premiere Hoops the Sports Complex opens, we will work harder to make Premiere Hoops the Fantasy League more like the NBA experience you guys have come to expect from us!

The next season will be even better as we will look to move to a new location on the south side of Chicago! The Kroc Center off 119th street! This place will blow your mind for real! The basketball courts will remind you of the United Center, and with good reason, because the Chicago Bulls donated the floor, complete with Bulls logo, scoreboards, and shot clocks are on order and on the way! This place is complete state of the art, and there is too much there for me to describe in this article! Everybody will be expected to raise their game up! From the registration process, to the rules of the games, to the competition levels, this is shaping up to be the best Fantasy league yet! Stay tuned!

OKC eyes upset of regular season champs!

OKC didn't take the easy road to the second round of the Premiere Hoops Fantasy League Play-offs! During the regular season, their record was a mere 2-6. That kept the Thunder towards the bottom of the standings, but this appeared to be a better team on paper! And so they enter the play-offs and the sudden death round, along with the Knicks, Heat, and Mavs! Each team had their opportunities to win and advance! But in the end, here's a recap of how the Thunder eventually beat the others to the finish line!

Knicks vs Heat

The great thing about the play-offs in any sport, is the second chance factor! In others words, the start of a new season within a season! Everybody goes back to 0-0! And so the Knicks vs the Heat was a great match up! Both teams went back and fourth, down to the wire! When the smoke cleared, the Knicks had secured a 70-64 victory! Looked ready to claim that 4 seed date with the Lakers!

Mavs vs Thunder

This game was a mirror of the first game! The team photos with the championship rings must have given everybody a sense of urgency, because the games were very competitive! The Thunder showed to the game with all their key players for the first time this season! And it made a big difference! The Mavs showed up short handed and they suffered for it! In the end, the Thunder had the horses to hold off the young Mavs for a 77-70 victory!

Thunder vs Knicks

Here's what makes the Premiere Hoops Fantasy League different and in my humble opinion and better than other leagues! The two games in one day factor! Any team can get lucky and win one game in a day! But can you muster up the strength to win two games in one day! Now, you have to play against your opponent and your stamina! That second game is no puck, and especially for teams who dare show up for battle short handed, like the Knicks choose to do all season long! NY on more than one occasion, would show up late to games, pick up a few standby players on the sidelines, and then proceed to find ways to win games! But their luck would run out against the Thunder. The Thunder squad at full strength would eventually ware down this tired team and pull away with a 66-46 victory!

Next week's double elimination games should be even better than this past weekends single elimination games, as the Thunder take on the Lakers followed by the Bulls and Bobcats! This round will be the best 2 out of 3 games and the winners from both match ups will eventually face off in the finals!

Lakers best team through regular season! Preps for play-offs!

The end is finally near to this extended regular season! The JBL has been a great set up for our fantasy league! Featuring official NBA 3 point lines and 24 second shot clocks really helps to make our league feel like the real deal! But playing in a church has it's drawbacks! We'll look to iron out some of those drawbacks  next season! Meanwhile, throughout all the distractions of this season, the Los Angeles Lakers have stayed focused and found ways to stay unbeaten, with impressive wins over Chicago, OKC, and the Heat, since play resumed from our extended Christmas break!

Using their on brand of showtime basketball, the Lakers have found success pushing the ball up and down the basketball court, forcing teams to adjust their game plans! To that end, the Lakers simply have been better at playing to their strengths and what they do best, verses other teams and their strengths and what they like to do best! This team is loaded with talented players who know how to play the game, and are basketball savvy! They play smart and don't make a lot of mistakes! Following this formula has lead the Lakers to this year's regular season championship!

The Lakers are lead by guards Nick Edwards and Dwan Williams. Both of these players are aggressive on the offensive end! For a older player, Dwan can be deceptively fast on the fast break! And he can be very sneaky around the basket exploiting open seems in defenses! If you don't account for him at all times, your defense will be left wondering whose guarding him! Nick is a strong player who can absorb contact and finish strong going to the basket! He uses silky smooth moves to get around defenders and only takes high percentage shots! Nick also plays just as hard on the defensive end! Causing steals that usually leads to fast breaks opportunities! Nick is also playing like the regular season MVP, which should be officially announced before the start of the play-offs!

Overall, the Lakers are a good squad who should do well in the post season! But they will have an uphill battle in route to their first fantasy league championship! Over the course of our 12 year history, only one team, last year's Celtics, has been able to win the regular season and post season championships, during the same season! Winning the regular season championship has actually been a curse for 11 other fantasy league teams! But I like this Lakers squad chances! They play hard and they also play the game the right way! They show up for all their games, on time, and ready to play! It's these types of traits that our league looks for when recruiting teams to play with us! Guys who still have a love and passion for the game! Looking to play, compete, and win at the highest levels, for as long as possible! It's what the Premiere Hoops Fantasy League is all about!