SCOTTSDALE, AZ: Week 1 Power Rankings | Countdown to the Crown has officially started

If I may, let me start by quoting my man Jay-Z, aka Mr. Beyonce, “Allow me to reintroduce myself; my name is NGOV, oh, N to the O-V…” Enough of that, you get the drift. You’ve seen my face at the Tempe Leagues running stats. You’ve heard my voice on the recap videos. Now it’s time to sit back with a cup of coffee and read my words as each week I’ll be bringing you my opinions; listing each team’s strengths, and just as important, their weaknesses. This week’s article may be longer than most but bear with me as I’ve got a lot on my mind. Disagree with where I’ve got you? Don’t tell me; just prove it with your play. With all that said, let’s get to it:

Week 1 Power Rankings

1. PINK CANOES (1-0, LW 1) Don’t let the name fool you…this team is big and can play. The size of Adam Grimes (6-10), Seth Robinson (6-6), and Nick Teschler (6-5) will be a matchup problem all season long for teams. They struggled a bit in the first half– only leading by four - but in the end, their size and experience were too much to handle winning by 18. The only question I have, “Can their guards match the play of their frontcourt”?

2. Splash Brothers (1- 0, LW 2) Scorers? Check. Athleticism? Check. Size? Check. Alley-oop dunks? Check. Nick Tomsick (40 pts, 10 rbs) available for the playoffs? Uh, check back with me in a few weeks. There are rumblings that Mark Price – our favorite resident trash talker – might be healthy enough to suit up this season. Will this addition make this team that more unbeatable? I say yes, as they are my odds on favorite to win the ‘chip.

3. SUPERSONICS (1-0, LW 5) Strong first game showing by Lee Andari (29 pts, 6 rbs) and fellow frontcourt mate Kyle Hansen (26 pts, 8 rbs). The stats won’t show how valuable point guard Aaron Braude (2 pts, 4 rbs) is but he’ll be instrumental in leading this team deep in the playoffs. Other teams need to take note…don’t sleep on this team.

4. PHX BALLERS (0-1, LW 4) This team showed me something. They are a balanced scoring team with 4 of their 5 starters getting solid double digit points led by Tyrone Jones (22pts, 7 rbs) and Chris Natale (18 pts, 5assts). They lack size which can hurt in the playoffs, but their guard play can hang with the best of them. Friendly word of advice, read the rules ahead of time.

5. TIMELIFERS (1-0, LW 7) Again another team that has good balance and good guard play. Kyle Rivas (18pts, 3 asst) along with Patrick Denicola (15 pts, 11 rbs) will need to shoulder the load as they go against some of leagues better 3’s. As long as Russ Edwards (15 pts, 5 rbs) doesn’t step out-of-bounds every time he attempts a three, this team should compete and be solid all year long. Just partially kidding Russ… you clearly stepped out before the buzzer sounded though.

6. XOVER (0-1, LW 3) Tough to drop them down this far for losing to my preseason champ but I am not here to make friends, so I have to call ‘em like I see ‘em. However, they’ve got some damn good talent as Fred Dudley (38pts, 8 rbs) is going to be in the mix for the scoring title. Big man David Warner (21 pts, 7 rbs) is going to wreak havoc on the block. How much of a difference will Brandon Walker – my vote for the most underrated player in the Tempe league - be to this group? Will they be able to climb back to the 1st tier? Only time will tell.

7. PILLSBURY B BOYS (0-1, LW 6) This team is nothing flashy, save for Michael Bizoukas (13 pts, 8 rbs, 8 asst), but they’ve got good balance with Klayton Kristick (15pts, 7rbs) manning the 2, and Brandon Birden (11 pts, 5 rbs) at the 3. They will struggle against the more talented teams, but should be competitive every week. Look for this team to play spoiler and disrupt the seeding for the playoffs.

8. KOBRA KAI (0-0, LW 8) No change with the bye week. I am open to moving them up in ranking if they come out in karate warm-ups - potentially to number one if they can get Ralph Macchio (aka Daniel-san) to do a pregame pep talk. Make it happen boys!

9. SCOTTSDALE FA (0-1, LW 9) It’s been said before, but I’ll say it again, free agent teams seem to always struggle until they figure out how to work as a team. Ryan Karpel (15 pts, 6 rbs) and Marquest Holeman (10 pts, 7 rbs) should be the main focal point for this team but it’s going to be a struggle all year. Might I suggest a few practice sessions to get the groove going?

10. TEAM TO BEAT (0-0, LW NR) What’s this? A misprint? You say there should only be nine teams not 10 in the league? Nope, just a late entry. This team is led by Tempe League veterans Donald Didlake, Josh Hunter, Jeremia Nelson, and Joseph Hormes. Started from the bottom now they here. Where is here you say? Top 3 by the end of the season. Bank on it.

That’s a wrap. Week 1 was a good barometer test, a dip the toes in the shallow end of the pool if you will, but now it’s time to man-up and jump in the deep end. As the season progresses, who’s going to put whom in their place and vie for that number one spot?

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