Season 29 PRESEASON MEDIA GUIDE! READ HERE...... So First we'd like to welcome all the new teams to our league. Most being teams that promoted so congrats on that. And 1 that relegated however in looking looks like he could be trying to relegate again or just has checked out of BB. but none the less as i always do here's a brief look at the league's Landscape.
First off I would have to say coming in BucsBlue would be the preseason favorite (losing last season only to Cheeks the league champion), however in BB any team can turn its roster over quickly and we all know you have to avoid the dreaded injury bug. Well in terms of the Great 8 side of things there was only 1 team added. Its expected that a few times have trained and a couple have made some moves to free up money. So its anticipated the teams can have a shake up however the predicted Playoff teams for the Great 8 Remain the same 4 as last year with Philly trying to sneak into the 4th spot.
the Big 8 however is where this will focus given the drastic changes.
First off ALL 4 of the active new Big 8 members are coming to us by way of promotion. 2 teams had their leagues MVP and 1 team had 3 members in the top 3 for votes for MVP. so lets just say all these teams bring in strong D4 resumes. So lets look a bit closer
Warhawks (21-1 last season) Enters with the second highest Big 8 payroll among contributing players at 215k, with 130k of that focused on 2 PRIME interior players... my guess is he will look to pound the paint with such interior talent.
Baker (21-1 last season) Enters with 5th highest payroll on the Big 8 181k, its noted he did add a player today. Bakers also comes to our league with previous D3 experience. Bakers has a much more balanced payroll, with SG being his top paid position.
North Carolina (18-4 last season) Enters with a lot of momentum as he won his league despite not being the preseason favorite or even the favorite in the playoffs. This manager either scouts really well or manages his team perfectly to be hot late. He currently among active members has the Lowest payroll of the Big 8 at 141K. Look for him to use that promotion money and increased TV revenue to find 1-2 players.
Beastest (1-21 last season) Joins us as a relegated D2 team. Roster is depleted and i am not sure how active this manger is or will be.
As for the Returners!!! BucsBlue will be strong as he has been in each of his 2 seasons prior in this league and how he's been since joining BB. This seasons team however lacks depth when looking at the roster, yet still can put a strong starting 5 on the floor every night.
Snake was a force last season and made BucsBlue & Cheeks work for every win. hes back with an extremely balanced team as always and his teams are always well managed.
Grand Ma remains the sleeper in our opinion. He has a strong roster 209k in salary. A VERY good overall team talent at every position. However often struggles to get consistent wins and play from his team. Always a Cup force and never an easy out in the season or playoffs.
Walnut... Is another team that could very easily be right there down the stretch. He holds one of the BEST players in the league along with an overall 198k team salary. Walnut was under .500 last season but won tough games and finished in the 5 seed. This year he will look to make his push for a playoff spot.
Playoff Prediction... BucsBlue, Snake, Grand Ma, Warhawks... With Walnut & Baker really close and challenging the top teams. Both these teams could EASILY jump into the playoff.
Best of luck to everyone this season and in the CUP!!!!