finally, a word or two about the playoffs, before they begin:
Tucumcari
is clearly the favorite. my read on ozone's plan is that he is placing all his chips on red -- he wants to win, and this is the year. he has carried a very large salary all season, without the benefit of a long Cup run or USA NT players. even with good gates, i don't see how he was doing much more than breaking even all season, and now he has added another $200,000 in salary for the playoffs. his team is older (with key players Enil, Xiaobin, and van der Lande into their twilight years) and even his younger players (such as the injured Ravinski) probably can't be sold for replacement value. in other words, there may be a future for this team, but i don't see how it would be achieved, and decline next season seems imminent after these playoffs, as this team has few resources for a rebuild on the run. i figure ozone made a calculation early that to win the championship he needed HCA, and that is why he more or less blew off the Cup. he has his team in tip-top GS. Losing Ravinski was a terrible blow, but ozone went out and got a more than adequate replacement.
Toronto
a most interesting team, in large part because this squad is both talented and young. thylacine has quietly pulled together an awesome frontcourt that may capable of carrying a relatively weak backcourt. like me, late season moves have kept his players from being ready this season, but next year . . . and for five seasons after that . . . this team could be a powerhouse.
Barbarians and EDH
both very good teams, but simply lacking the firepower to keep up with or seriously challenge Tucumcari, especially on his court.
Beware of Dogs
normally, i would be quite frightened of TnT's squad, but as he has noted in this forum, his team is in decline, and -- a sure sign of bad karma -- his very talented SF got hurt and is probably lost for maybe the first week of the playoffs. even in wheelchairs, this squad is very good (he kissed off the last two games) and despite TnT's self-deprecating rhetoric, this team is dangerous.
The King and I
home to four, count 'em, four USA NT players and coached by one of the most imaginative managers i have ever run across. i drew this squad in the playoffs and i have literally no idea what lineup i will see. if there wasn't so much at stake, i would call that fun. anyway, this is a squad with immense talent, affordable (i would love to see what the merchandise revenue for this squad is like -- i would bet it approaches $200,000) -- like the Dogs, a very dangerous team.
In Your Face
talk about your elastic effect -- relegated two seasons ago, back this season in the playoffs and up to #4 in the country. i would guess xtc's record suffered because of the long Cup run. his game against the Dogs should be a very good one.
Eugene Register-Guard
out of shape and fully expecting to pass the crown onto Tucumcari in less than two weeks.
good luck to one and all.