5v5 Draft Week 1 Write-Ups
by Jason on
By JAMIL BALL
WEEK 1 (Preview)
5/2/2023 6:30 PM 1 # The Cambridge Rats VS. 4 # KERAMARIS MLK Jr School
Marquis Victor is the only reason I ranked The Cambridge Rats number 1 in the Way Too Early Power Rankings. Biskelonis's team has a lot of size (Wise 6”5, Rakusin 6”2, and Schwartz 6”2) and shooting (Biskelonis, Horton, Connell, Schluns, and Victor).
On the other hand, Team KERAMARIS has no shortage of firepower with Held, Mazz, Figuereo, and my personal favorite Eric Li. There are a lot of personalities on this team and I am very interested in seeing how they mesh.
Needless to say, I am going to give The Cambridge Rats the edge in this matchup, because they have straight-up dawgs on defense! Marquis is absolutely going to feast offensively because there is not a single player on Team KERAMARIS that can guard him. I said, what I said!
Wise, Schwartz, and Rakusin will dominate and control the paint. The Cambridge Rats over KERAMARIS + 6.
The Cambridge Rats - Project Starters
- Alex B
- Marquis Victor
- Brian Horton
- Dan Schwartz
- Shawn Wise
KERAMARIS - Project Starters
- Li
- Skates
- Mazz
- Nick K
- Jacob Held
Week 1 - Write Up 1 # The Cambridge Rats VS. 4 # KERAMARIS
By JAMIL BALL
I had The Cambridge Rats listed as the favorites in this matchup against Can’t Miss Keramaris, but Jacob Held (24 points, 17 rebounds, and 2 steals) was prepared to win this game himself. Jacob and company got off to a scorching start and led by as many as 10 very early on in the matchup.
Eric Li (9 points and 6 assists) did a fantastic job defending Marquis Victor, distributing the ball, and finding teammates for easy baskets. The chemistry between Held and Keramris was the true bright spot for this squad. These two were absolutely dominant combing for 29 rebounds!
It looked like Can’t Miss Keramaris was going to run away with this game until Jacob went down with a nasty-looking injury with a little under 7 minutes left in the second half. While finishing off the fast break, Jacob appeared to sprain his ankle pretty badly. I hope you’re ok big fellas!
Once Jacob went down, Mazz (17 points, 2 steals, and 4 assists) stepped up and filled the void offensively, but The Cambridge Rats started to mount a comeback over the phone.
Marquis Victor struggled mightly in the first half but went nuclear when the game mattered the most. Finishing with 33 points, 13 rebounds, and 3 assists. His rebounding was just as impressive as his shooting. Eric Li did a fantastic job defensively, but the Cambridge Rats did an amazing job initiating the pick-roll offense.
Alex B (9 points and 8 rebounds) and Dan Schwartz (9 rebounds, 4 steals, and 10 rebounds) had monster games and played really well on both ends of the court. Dan's play defensively in the second half was a huge catalyst for The Cambridge Rats' comeback victory.
WEEK 1 (Preview)
By Jamil Ball
5/2/2023 7:30 PM 6 # GILLOOLY VS. 2 # All the Smoke MLK Jr School
Despite original reports of a multi-week absence, Ron Cabeza will only miss one week before making his 5v5 Draft debut. Team GILLOOLY has no shortage of talent with reigning MVP Rich DiSola, Aidan Enright, and team captain Kevin Gillooly, but they are lacking a true/traditional post player with Aidan and DiSola being the tallest players on the team.
Jonathan Allen’s play will be a huge factor in the outcome of the game. No pressure at all buddy!
I am really excited about my team! The Tyrone Mullings and Kashawn Harrison combination is going to surprise quite a few folks. Ty was an MVP candidate last session and arguably the best guard in this league. Kashawn is an absolute lights-out shooter that will give DiSola some competition on both ends of the court. Brian Horan's profile is a pic of him throwing down a dunk with two hands, so hopefully, that translates into some on-court success. Dainis Klavins at the ripe age of 42 might be the biggest surprise, if my sources are correct.
While the guards will dictate the pace of play, I expect Brad Myatt, Kola Olugbade, and Brian Horan to take advantage of the size advantages, as we (All the Smoke) move to 1 - 0 on the season.
All the Smoke Over GILLOOLY + 8
GILLOOLY - Project Starters
- Kevin G
- Aidan E
- Jonathan Allen
- Rich DiSola
- Chris Blakeley
All the Smoke - Projected Starters
- Tyrone Mullings
- Jamil Ball
- Kashawn Harrison
- Brian Horan
- Kola Olugbade
WEEK 1 (Preview)
By Jamil Ball
5/2/2023 8:30 PM 3 # Primetime 5.0 VS. # 5 The Motha Effect
Motha draft strategy hit a glitch when Kevin drafted Ronnie at 7, but despite not knowing many of the players in the league he still managed to recover well. I think Jack Chen and Hamza are going to absolutely thrive playing alongside Motha and Guzzi. Nika when in attendance will be a solid contributor too!
Primetime 5.0 will be by far one of the best defensive teams in the league. Led by Muccio, Valcourt, Danzig, Jenco and Miller my 6-place rating is looking pretty foolish at the moment. Stull, Corey, and Scotty Glynn give them three legitimate three-point threats coming off the bench, which is huge against bigger teams.
Admittedly, it’s hard to bet against Guzzi, Motha, and company but I think the defending champs pull off a close victory and prove my Way Too Early Rankings are absolutely garbage.
Primetime 5.0 Over The Motha Effect +3.5
The Motha Effect - Projected Starters
- Eric Li
- Jack Chen
- Nate Guzzi
- Hamza
- Jeff Motha
Primetime 5.0 - Projected Starters
- Jacob Miller
- Muccio
- Chris Jenco
- Ben Danzig
- Evan Valcourt
Week 1 - Write Up 3 # Primetime 5.0 VS. # 5 The Motha Effect
By Jamil Ball
The defending champs Primetime 5.0 were the favorites in this matchup against The Motha Effect. This was a super physical matchup, so I imagine some folks are waking up today sore and bruised as bodies were literally flying (Jacob).
Getting to the gameplay, Primetime 5.0 jumped out to the early lead. Similar to the last session, their ball movement was impeccable and their scoring was distributed in a very balanced manner (Jacob (17), Danzig (16), Jenco (13), Muccio (11), and Valcourt (8) ) displaying their overall depth.
The Motha Effect was slow out of the gate but got it really going in the second half. Nate Guzzi (24 points and 10 rebounds) )and Hamza Abdul (17 points and 6 rebounds) are going to be a fantastic duo as they get more comfortable playing with one another. Both are very long athletic guards that can really create transition.
Jeff Motha did a fantastic job grabbing boards (11) and facilitating the offense (4 assists) but struggled offensively with 6 points total.
Jacob Miller (17 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists) was huge down the stretch hitting back-to-back threes. To force OT! I don’t know who thought it was a good idea to piss him off, but they sure as hell lit a fire because was playing pretty passive up to that point.
This game would go into overtime and come down to the final possession. Muccio won the game with an absolute circus shot that only Muccio would hit. Muccio was doubled-teamed and pivoted his way to a three-point heave from the left three-point wing as time expired to win by 1.
All the Smoke 73 – Victorious Secret 65
This was a back forth game from start to finish. Neither team was able to gain any separation for the first 40 minutes of play. Led by Rich’s 20-point first half, Victorious Secret would take a 3-point lead at the break. That lead would quickly be cut to 1 in the first 5 seconds of the second half with Victorious Secret defending the wrong basket. Rich kept his team close and finished the game with 36 points and 12 rebounds. Jonathan Allen would struggle to find his stroke starting the game 1-5 from 3 and finishing 2-7. Rich will score a ton of points each night but will need others to step and make baskets.
All the Smoke’s dynamic backcourt of Jamil and Tyrone led the way to an 8 point victory. Each of them would score in the 20’s and have 5 assists. After the first week, they look like the best back-court in the league. Kola would get into some foul trouble but his presence was felt while he was on the court, finishing with 10 rebounds in limited minutes.