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!