Volume 2 Issue 34 February 1998
FROM COMMISSIONER SCOTT ELLIS, 2ND AMER. BASKETBALL LEAGUE
Get me the stats or it's autoplay time
Most of you are doing great sending in game files to me. For those that aren't, time is running out.
I'm not going to hold up the rest of the SABL because of a few slow coaches. Except for new Coach Tom Jargo, Carbondale Coach John Smith and Richmond Coach Frank Rowley, who is having computer trouble, no one else has an excuse to be six weeks behind in games. So, here's a list of games that either I or the opposing (away) coach will be autoplaying, unless I get results from you before these games become two months old.
The autoplayed games will become official SABL league records and standings, no matter what you may have played. If you've played these games and were too lazy to email or snail mail me game files, too bad. Your games won't count. You'll also get penalty points for your inattentiveness and once you accumulate 21 points or get a month behind on more than half your games, I'll find a new coach.
Dec. 11, Day 36, Game 1 - Motor City Maulers at Michigan Gearjammers. I'll be playing the game very soon. - AUTOPLAYED
Dec. 11, Day 36, Games 9-12 - Michigan Panthers at Calgary Condors. I have no manually created box scores for this game from the new Michigan coach. I also asked for these a couple of weeks ago. These are also gonna get autoplayed by me very soon.
Dec. 16, Day 41, Game 3 - Tulsa at Calgary - Tulsa Coach Phillip Creider's been trying to send me this file for months. He's gonna keep trying, but if I don't get it by Feb. 16, I'm playing the game. GOT IT!
Dec. 31, Day 56 - Game 5 - Bettendorf at Galactic, Game 6 - Galactic at Bettendorf, Game 7 - Bettendorf at Motor City - GOT IT, Motor City at Bettendorf, Game 15 - Tri City at Gearjammers.
Jan. 1, Day 57 - Game 9 - Austin at Gearjammmers
Like most of you, I have a very busy career and family life and neither I nor the SABL have time for late coaches.
Rowley's having computer trouble
Give Richmond Raider Coach Frank Rowley until the end of February to catch up on games played. He is having trouble getting his Strat-O-Matic Basketball Game to load. And I'm sure it's not his fault at all. It's a pure DOS game trying to exist in a Windows 95 world.
Jargo takes over Seattle franchise
Let's give a big SABL welcome to new Coach Thomas W. Jargo, who is taking over Frank Pennylegion's Seattle team. Thomas' address is 2738 Hawthorne Drive, Bettendorf, IA 52722. Phone: 319-359-4681. His email is tsamcub@aol.com
Give Tom all of February to catch up on his stats and games. Send all Seattle instructions and results to him ASAP. He will be contacting owners, too. He is a friend of Mark Feeney, the amazing coach of the Bettendorf Druids.
Give John some time
Carbondale Coach John Smith has recently experienced a death in his family. Please give him until the end of February to catch up on instructions and games.
On behalf of the SABL, I want to express our sympathy for John and his family.
Penalty points
Mark Feeney - 4 Frank Rowley - 2 Chris Feeney - 2 Scott Ellis - 2 Eric Everage – 3 Kevin Feeney – 1
Charles Dillingham - 1 Steve Walters - 2 Mike Saylor - 4 Josh Marquardt - 1
January stats online!
Check out our Rosters & Stats, League Leaders, 48-minute leaders link for the latest numbers.
Who’s trading?
Aces send Pippen & Finney's 2nd pick to Dazzlers for J. Howard.
Aces send Mourning & J. Howard to Gearjammers for Grant Hill, Austin & Gearjammers 1st pick.
Austin sends Green, Ratliff, their 3rd pick and Maulers' 2nd pick to Finney for Horace Grant and Manning.
Heat & Tigers Pace SABL
Looks like my draft picks might not be so bad after all: Charlie Dillingham's Holcomb Heat is burning up the SABL in the first third of the season, with an .806 pct. at 25-6, first in the South Division. Right after him is Steve Feldheim's Brooklyn Tigers, at 37-9, tops in the North.
Me, I'm just a piker at 30-8, second place in the South. Guess I shoulda kept MJ one more year. Check out our Standings link for the lowdown. I hope to do some analysis of our playoff races soon.
Everyone is sending in stats, sometimes a bit slow, but much better than during last year. Your support this year has saved our league and you all should be very proud. And the best is yet to come!
I also have a great story from Condor Coach Jeff Stahl, whose team is stalling this season. Read on:
Condors conundrum
CALGARY, ALBERTA-The Calgary Condors have become a big story in the SABL this season, but not for the reasons they had wanted. They had hoped to make a big move and establish themselves among the league elite. They took a first step last year, making the playoffs, but that was only because two teams had to back out because their owners abandoned them. The Condors finished with a 40-42 record, but more was expected of a team that boasts young talent such as Penny Hardaway and Vin Baker. This season has shown little or no improvement as the team has a record of 13-16. The Condors have been hamstrung all season by the lack of a true point guard. Hardaway showed signs early that he could be that player, but recently has focused more on his own offense than on distributing the basketball. This has hurt the offense often this season. Another factor holding back the Condors has been the absence of starting power forward Brian Grant, who has played sparingly because of a shoulder injury. The Condors attempted to shake up the mix over the offseason, swapping starting small forward Tom Gugliotta for the number two overall pick in last October's draft, which turned out to be Shareef Abdur-Rahim. Googs was solid last year, presenting matchup problems for other small forwards who were not able to handle his size in the low post. However, the Condors felt that power forward was his true position. They believe that Abdur-Rahim will be better fit for the team. They also were weak on the boards last year. Vin Baker, while a talented scorer, got pounded on the boards by the bigger, more physical centers in the league. The Condors tried to solve that problem by selecting Erick Dampier and Lorenzen Wright in the draft this year. Wright has helped out, racking up solid minutes at power forward and lessening the impact of Grant's loss. Dampier also has shown promise as a rebounder, defender, and shot-blocker, but unfortunately has also shown the hands and shooting touch of a nose tackle. Unfortunately, the real focus of the media attention has been on the allegations of mob activities by the Condors organization. Accusers claim that in addition to its basketball operation and its sister football operation, the Condors also have a shadow organization that operates largely outside of public view. The Condors are believed to be part of a larger, even darker organization known simply as the "Canuck Underworld". It is a loosely organized, extremist faction that grew out of the CFFL, a fantasy football league in which the Condors have a franchise along with the Alberta Clippers, its provincial rival from Edmonton. On the field, they are bitter rivals, but many people say off the field, they are an unholy alliance, unleashing a reign of terror over all of Western Canada. The Clippers also had a team in the SABL for a short time in the 1994-95 season, the SABL's inaugural season, taking over a dismal outfit that featured the likes of Chris Mullin, Brad Daugherty, and Sean Elliott. However, poor attendance and unstable leadership in the basketball operation caused the franchise to be sold again later that year to a New Jersey group led by Tom Gantert, where it finished the season with the worst record in the league. The franchise has since become the Bettendorf Druids, owned by Mark Feeney, who is trying to resuscitate the team from the dead. In the leagues' second season, the Condors traded a second round pick for the rights to Bill Wennington, a cult hero in Edmonton during his short stint with the Clippers for his rugged play and tendency to stick out his knee and cause small guards to crash to the floor. The Condors' corporate line was that he was simply brought in to replace backup center/stiff Elmore Spencer, who had gone into treatment for emotional problems. However, others believe that Wennington was brought on to act as a liason between the two organizations and to help facilitate secret operations between them. These activities allegedly include illegal weapons purchases, extortion of local businesses, and assassinations of individuals deemed to threaten the Underworld's stranglehold on Western Canada. Wennington now is an assistant under Condor head coach Sleepy Floyd and is often seen on the sidelines wearing dark sunglasses with a cellular phone in hand. Authorities have done little to curb any of this beacuse provincial and city governments are in reality puppets of the Canuck Underworld. In fact, it is believed that the Underworld has actually rigged elections to ensure their favored politicians gain office. Condors public relations director, Tony "The Blade" Vitaglia, denies these reports, arguing that parties hostile to the interests of the Condors are attempting to drag the organization through the mud for personal gain and had no proof of any of these charges. However, critics are quick to point out a recent example of the Condors' influence, a local ordinance banning cigarette smoking in public buildings which was suddenly overturned. It is widely believed that it was done for the benefit of the Condors team mascot and alleged secret enforcer, Krusty the Clown, who likes to smoke his customary two packs of cigarettes on the sidelines every Condor home game. Furthermore, leaders of opposition groups who tried to fight this decision mysteriously disappeared. Vitaglia was asked about these disappearances. He responded by saying, "We have no knowledge about what happened to these people. It is unfortunate and we hope the police are able to get to the bottom of this." However, Calgary police investigated these disappearances for only a short time and quickly closed the case. This is a story that could explode. Stay tuned.