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*inside the huddle after the 1st quarter*
Pio Reina: “What the h*** is wrong with you guys? Giving up 42 points in one quarter? And at home? Who are you guys and where the h*** is my basketball team? You won’t defend, you can’t rebound, you can’t shoot!!! Maybe I should just tell the GM to get rid of everybody and just develop the kids! If you play like you don’t want to be here, we’ll oblige you! I thought you were professional basketball players!”

*3:35 left in the second quarter, down 47-45*
Pio Reina: “Welcome back, team. Is this a visit or are you guys here to stay? Rolland, it looks like it’s you and Art at the three the rest of the way. McCain, kid be ready. Anything can happen. Let’s finish this quarter up strong. There’s still a lot of basketball left to play.”

*1:13 left in the second quarter, after Reynolds injury*
Pio Reina: “McCain, you ready? You better be. We just might need you to get through this game. We’ll see if Serk and Reynolds are gonna be ok, but you need to be ready. This game is gonna be a fist fight. Be ready for anything.”

*Halftime*
Pio Reina: “Harrison, too many turnovers, not enough rebounding. Rod, way to pick it up after that first quarter. Mantas, solid work off the bench. Keep it up. Kyle, ready for a big second half? We’re gonna need it. Floyd, we need more on the boards. Shooter, you gotta start making shots. Serkan and Rolland, are you guys ok? Don’t even think about being tough guys; I want to know how you’re feeling. I’ll get the medicals from our staff. Gentlemen, it’s nice to see you guys back. Was this a one off for the second quarter or are you guys ready to rock and roll? Don’t tell me. Show me. Reese, assume you’re starting at the small forward. McCain, you’re the backup. If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready. Art, you’ve been here before. You can do this. McCain, all you need to do is play your game when you’re on the court. You don’t have to be a hero, and we don’t need you to be. Gentlemen, this game is ours for the taking. Play Linndale basketball and we win. Let’s go win this game.”

Doctor: “Coach, Serk is ok to play. The trainer is getting him ready to go. Reynolds is out.”

Reina: “Reese, McCain, stay ready.”

*1:37 left in the third quarter*
Pio Reina: “Come on, guys. Finish up strong. We win this game in the fourth quarter. Just stay the course, and play the way we play. Serk, you good?”

Serkan Sokmen: “If the training staff can keep me taped up, I’ll keep going. You’re gonna have to rip the ball out of my hands and wheel me off the court, Coach.”

Pio Reina: “We don’t need you to be a hero. We need you to be available. Be smart. Team, you guys ready to send the crowd home happy?”

team in unison: “WE GOT THIS!”

*7:55 in the 4th quarter*
Pio Reina: “Serk and Rod are gonna need a bit more support on offense.”

*6:43 in the 4th quarter*
Pio Reina: “Then again, maybe not, but I’d feel better if someone stepped up.”

*4:00 left in regulation*
Pio Reina: “Ten points isn’t enough. Defense, keep it up. That’s what I like to see. Will someone give Rod and Serk a hand on offense? Let’s finish this game strong!”

*1:10 left in regulation*
Pio Reina: “Don’t let him shoot the three!!!! NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!”

*31 seconds left*
Pio Reina: “Be smart fellas. We got this. Just be smart.”

---Game over---
Pio Reina: “Way to come back after that first quarter, guys. Good job!”

I wasn't expecting to win, but 42 points in the first and then lose?! Sheeeeeeet.

Day 6 (Tuesday 6 June 2023) : Performances by (https://www.buzzer-manager.com)
I told you LionPride was going to sneak in a win!

Night results
San Dominica Warriors 89 - 209’s MostWanted 91
Lion Rebels 98 - Linndale 110
Philly Dribble 108 - Las Vegas Silver Stars 76
Carolina Rebels 117 - FR-S 73
BKDogs 64 - Tasty Tardsicles 102
Super Sonics 75 - LionPride 83
The Beer Bellys 88 - Miami Cleo 76
Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️ 100 - Żubr Białystok 92

Best collective performance of the evening
Points : 117 : Carolina Rebels
Rebounds : 64 : Carolina Rebels
Assists : 28 : Carolina Rebels
Steals : 10 : Carolina Rebels, Tasty Tardsicles
Block Shots : 13 : LionPride

Personal best performances of the evening
Points : 34 : R. Guyton (Linndale)
Rebounds : 25 : K. Nádas (209’s MostWanted)
Assists : 10 : M. Stott (Lion Rebels), M. Velasco (Philly Dribble)
Steals : 4 : B. George (Carolina Rebels)
Block Shots : 4 : D. Ray (Super Sonics), E. Magajna (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️)

Top 5 of the evening
Point Guard : R. Guyton (Linndale) (34 Points, 6 Rebounds, 5 Assists, 1 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 37
Shooting Guard : M. Stott (Lion Rebels) (19 Points, 7 Rebounds, 10 Assists, 1 Steals, 1 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 22
Small Forward : T. Freeman (Mindless Zombies 🧟‍♀️) (31 Points, 4 Rebounds, 7 Assists, 2 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 33
Power Forward : C. Holley (LionPride) (32 Points, 11 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 1 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 42
Center : D. Allen (Carolina Rebels) (10 Points, 16 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 0 Steals, 3 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 28

MVP of the evening
C. Holley (LionPride) (32 Points, 11 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 1 Steals, 2 Block Shots) : Efficiency : 42

The bad performance of the evening
S. Huerta (Lion Rebels) (0 Points, 0 Rebounds, 0 Assists, 0 Steals, 0 Block Shots) : Efficiency : -8

All kinds of statistics
The player who forgot to remove his mittens : H. Mann (Linndale), G. Luongo (LionPride), M. Davies (Super Sonics) : 5 Turnovers

Player targeted by the referees : R. Singh (Lion Rebels), H. Espinosa (Carolina Rebels), L. Martín González (Super Sonics) : 6 Personnal Fouls

The iron-man : K. Brown (Lion Rebels), R. Souza (Super Sonics), D. Ray (Super Sonics), S. Hatch (Żubr Białystok) : 48 Minutes

The shooter : G. Azheli (209’s MostWanted), R. Guyton (Linndale), S. Sökmen (Linndale) : 6 Three points

The best performer : C. Holley (LionPride) : Rating : 18.5

The worst performer : M. Marquez (FR-S), A. Blackmon (LionPride), L. Martín González (Super Sonics) : Rating : 5.5

I imagine going from 42 to 12 the very next quarter wasn't expected either. I sure as heck didn't see that coming. Then again, after you went 42 on us in the first quarter, I expected to lose in a fantastic blowout.

Week Three Power Rankings
Week 3 Observations
So last season, by the time week 3 had rolled through, I announced that I was stunned there were 56 transfers that had occurred from the end of season 59 through the beginning of season 60. This season (with one sale pending that I'm including) we've hit 70 total transfers. 42 of those have been players sold with 28 players transferring in. All told, as a whole, the league actually profited $25,430, thanks primarily to LionPride's sale of two players totaling $2.5M. The league spent $7.815M on those 28 players and made $7.84M off the 42 transfers. Here are a couple of other fun numbers from the transactions over the last nearly six weeks:
Players Sold by Position
PG | Average Age: 30.2 | Total Profit: $1.03M | Number of Players: 12
SG | Average Age: 22.6 | Total Profit: $553 K | Number of Players: 05
SF | Average Age: 24.5 | Total Profit: $3.81M | Number of Players: 10
PF | Average Age: 30.0 | Total Profit: $590 K | Number of Players: 06
C | Average Age: 28.7 | Total Profit: $1.86M | Number of Players: 09

Players Bought by Position
PG | Average Age: 24.3 | Total Spent: $1.77M | Number of Players: 9
SG | Average Age: 19.7 | Total Spent: $1.15M | Number of Players: 3
SF | Average Age: 25.5 | Total Spent: $226 K | Number of Players: 2
PF | Average Age: 25.6 | Total Spent: $1.71M | Number of Players: 5
C | Average Age: 24.8 | Total Spent: $2.96M | Number of Players: 9

This week's rankings will be accompanied by some facts about each team's transactions for the season. Only 4 teams didn't bring anyone new onboard in this time frame and just two teams didn't sell anyone. One of those teams didn't make any transactions whatsoever! Onto the rankings! Also, we're going in reverse this week!

Week 3 Power Rankings
16. Las Vegas Silver Stars (14)
EFFG:16 | OPP EFFG:15

Number of Transactions: 10
Profit: $843.8K
Spent: $1.013M
Result: -$169.7K

Outgoing Salary: $119.7K
Incoming Salary: $115.9K
Result: $4K less total salary

Fun fact: Las Vegas replaced seven players with three!

15. FR-S (15)
EFFG:13 | OPP EFFG:16

Number of Transactions: 8
Profit: $418.6K
Spent: $441.2K
Result: -$22.6K

Outgoing Salary: $40.5K
Incoming Salary: $28.1K
Result: $12K less total salary

Fun fact: FR-S going for the Weirdest Named Players Trophy: PG Rafiqul Mukhopadhyay & PF Oktavijan Sindija leading the way!

14. LionPride (16)
EFFG:15 | OPP EFFG:13

Number of Transactions: 7
Profit: $2.69M
Spent: $199.9K
Result: $2.48M

Outgoing Salary: $357.7K
Incoming Salary: $3,213
Result: $354K less total salary

Fun fact: oriolekid sold a player from every position except shooting guard!

13. BKDogs (11)
EFFG:9 | OPP EFFG:14

Number of Transactions: 3
Profit: $90K
Spent: $478.8K
Result: -$388.8K

Outgoing Salary: $9,130
Incoming Salary: $57.2K
Result: $48K more total salary

Fun fact: BKDogs was one of the few teams that made themselves a bit older...but not by a ton with only three transactions.

12. 209's MostWanted (12)
EFFG:10 | OPP EFFG:12

Number of Transactions: 8
Profit: $709K
Spent: $705.8K
Result: $3,200

Outgoing Salary: $96.5K
Incoming Salary: $66.8K
Result: $30K less total salary

Fun fact: Alex traded 5 players with an average age of 28.8 for 3 players with an average age of 24.

11. Miami Cleo (9)
EFFG:14 | OPP EFFG:8

Number of Transactions: 2
Profit: $9,000
Spent: $0
Result: $9,000

Outgoing Salary: $14K
Incoming Salary: n/a
Result: $14K less total salary

Fun fact: He's alive!

Week Three Power Rankings - Continued
10. Linndale (7)
EFFG:12 | OPP EFFG:9

Number of Transactions: 3
Profit: $707.4K
Spent: $106.2K
Result: $601.2K

Outgoing Salary: $59.2K
Incoming Salary: $6,157
Result: $53K less total salary

Fun fact: Daniil Kamp is raking in Utopia Div III.6, averaging 21.5 PPG on 42.7% shooting. He's also 8th in fouls.

9. The Beer Bellys (10)
EFFG:7 | OPP EFFG:11

Number of Transactions: 5
Profit: $102K
Spent: $294.7K
Result: -$192.7K

Outgoing Salary: $12.5K
Incoming Salary: $35.6K
Result: $23.1K more total salary

Fun fact: thatguy is competing for the Weirdest Named Players trophy as well, with top-rated contestants: SG Fritjof Fung and Ronan Descarpentries (who is just Ron Desantis in disguise as a French basketball player).

8. Tasty Tardsicles (13)
EFFG:1 | OPP EFFG:14

Number of Transactions: 1
Profit: $0
Spent: $1.049M
Result: -$1.049M

Outgoing Salary: n/a
Incoming Salary: $23.4K
Result: $23.4K more total salary

Fun fact: Tasty had no competition on their one acquisition for this season.

7. Super Sonics (5)
EFFG:3 | OPP EFFG:10

Number of Transactions: 1
Profit: $1,000
Spent: $0
Result: $1,000

Outgoing Salary: $4,475
Incoming Salary: n/a
Result: Less one Malcolm Contreras

Fun fact: Contreras was pick 36 in Season 58 by the Super Sonics and is now playing in Spain's Div III.5 as a back up and (frankly) isn't doing well.

6. Mindless Zombies (4)
EFFG:6 | OPP EFFG:4

Number of Transactions: 7
Profit: $888K
Spent: $1.36M
Result: -$470.6K

Outgoing Salary: $112.4K
Incoming Salary: $112.4K
Result: Wow. It's almost like he planned it.

Fun fact: Dee-Jay-Tee31 swapped a 24-year-old $68k center for a 22-year-old $66k center for just over $200k more in cost.

5. Lion Rebels (3)
EFFG:8 | OPP EFFG:2

Number of Transactions: 3
Profit: $480K
Spent: $755.6K
Result: -$275.6K

Outgoing Salary: $42.7K
Incoming Salary: $65.9K
Result: $23.2K more in total salary

Fun fact: Very few times have my acquisitions to "push my team over the top" worked out. I'm not banking on this one doing anything different for me this time!

4. Philly Dribble (8)
EFFG:4 | OPP EFFG:5

Number of Transactions: 1
Profit: $433.1K
Spent: $0
Result: $433.1K

Outgoing Salary: $33.7K
Incoming Salary: n/a
Result: $33.7K less in total salary

Fun fact: "Sell off a 31-year-old SG and make no additions to have a better season" advertisement going on over here.

3. Żubr Białystok (1)
EFFG:1 | OPP EFFG:7

Number of Transactions: 4
Profit: $450K
Spent: $286.8K
Result: $163.2K

Outgoing Salary: $28.4K
Incoming Salary: $21.4K
Result: $7K less in total salary

Fun fact: whitestok traded 2 years and 8K in salary for $145K in cash, baby.

2. Carolina Rebels (6)
EFFG:5 | OPP EFFG:1

Number of Transactions: 0
Profit: $0
Spent: $0
Result: $0

Outgoing Salary: $0
Incoming Salary: $0
Result: n/a

Fun fact: Standing pat with their championship run team from last season. I like it.


1. San Dominica Warriors (2)
EFFG:2 | OPP EFFG:3

Number of Transactions: 5
Profit: $21.6K
Spent: $1.125M
Result: -$1.1M

Outgoing Salary: $21.3K
Incoming Salary: $34.9K
Result: $13K more in total salary

Fun fact: I really tried, on this one, but I ain't got nothing, kinda like Maid Vrana's 6.5 MPG.

Next week we'll be looking back at what Week One's rankings were compared to the current ranking. Best of luck!

So I fell asleep and accidentally bought an old player smdh. Why?

Well you only paid 70 grand for him so don't knock yourself too hard for it. Now if you had paid 100,000 grand then we'd probably be like "what were you doing man!" lol

It was a pop up player. I was looking at my "manage my team" tab and fell asleep woke up and was so upset. He got a day trader badge and I missed out on my real target because I wasn't spending any more money.

Happy Ourer: “I’m here with Coach Pio Reina, and today we’re just trying to get to know his basketball philosophies a bit better. Coach, thanks for joining us. I really appreciate it. Let’s get right to it. It’s been said that you don’t know offense by a leading critic of yours, my colleague Air Allnite.”

Pio Reina: “I know who he is.”

HO: “How would you describe your basketball philosophy?”
PR: “You coach to the strength of your players, but do so in the best manner for the team. I’ll give you an example. Your colleague Air Allnite thinks we should force feed Floyd Hearn and Ramon Sanz Garcaa. He thinks both should be easy 20 point 10 rebound a night guys. He also thinks Kyle Knowles and Rod Guyton should both 25 point a night scorers. He doesn’t say much about Serkan Sokmen. I’ll tell you why. If you’re force feeding 2 guys, and they’re paired with shooters, the idea is the defense is forced to pick your poison. It’s not a bad idea, it’s just not correct.”

HO: “In a vacuum, that would seem to be correct. Tell us why that’s not the case? What is the average fan not understanding?”

PR: “It’s not that the average fan isn’t understanding. They, and Air, are looking at it incorrectly. It’s math. Nobody wants to use math, I know. Let me explain. Six games into the season we’re averaging 91 shots a game and we average 33 made shots. That’s a terrible 36%. You want your team closer to 50%. Now those numbers are for the team per game. Let’s take just the 5 usual starters. They are 145 for 383, for 38%. That’s 24 for 63 shooting. Now, remember the goal is 50% shooting. If Floyd and Ramon are getting 20 points a night each, they’ll need 20 shots on offense each. That’s 40 of the 63 shots right there, but Air wants Rod and Kyle at 25 points a night. That’s another 23 shots each. Well, my math says 40 and 46 is 86. So where are those extra 23 shot attempts coming from? Sokmen hasn’t been mentioned yet.

HO: “So you’re saying in order for Air’s numbers to be met, the offense has to be extremely efficient. Is that correct?”

PR: “Exactly. That doesn’t account for the quality of the defense you're playing, or the intensity, or the tactics used. In case Air hasn’t noticed, this is a pretty strong defensive league. One more thing, Happy. This doesn’t account for free throws and 3 point shots.”

HO: “Wait, what?!? Why not?”

PR: “You can’t assume what the referees will call or when or how many times. You can only make the free throws when you get them. Also, if you’re fouled on the shot and miss, yes, you get 2 free throws. You also have the inefficiency of a missed shot. How many shooting fouls are of the and-1 variety? Not as many as you think. Now with the three point shot, think of it like a baseball double play. The rule there is a double play cannot be assumed. Well, neither can a three point shot. 50% is the goal for any basketball player, but factor just the three point shot, and you want to see a minimum success rate of 35%. Elite shooters should be at 40%. By the numbers, and elite shooter should be 4 of 10 from the three point line. That’s 6 misses. He still needs to be 4 of 8 inside the arc to get to 20 points, and that does not factor in free throws. 8 of 18 is only 44% shooting.”

HO: "We'll be back with more from Pio Reina after a word from our sponsors!"

*watching in his dressing room with Marshall Richards*

Air Allnite: "I hate that guy. I F****** HATE THAT GUY!!!"

Marshall Richards: "Why? Is he carving you up? Yep! Is he wrong about any of that? Nope! Did he just show his work? Absolutely! You know, if you could show your work instead of whatever it is you do, you might be really good at this gig."

AA: "Marshall, shut up before I punch you in the face."

MR: *walking out the dressing room* "Air, your playing days were over 30 years ago. You can't hit the broad side of a barn with your shot..."

Last edited by Speedtraps at 6/11/2023 6:08:43 AM

HO: “Coach, what’s the basic Linndale plan of attack?”

PR: “For us, it starts with what we can control. We demand defense and effort. We can control that. We demand rebounding. We demand ball security. If you don’t turnover the basketball, those are shot attempts the other team doesn’t get. If you rebound the basketball, that’s a shot that missed and the other team doesn’t get another shot attempt for that possession. Those things help keep your opponents’ shot attempts down. That helps your defense. Offensively, it’s simple. We will take what you give us. Every team in this league does things well. We just try to figure out what we do better than you defend. You take away the outside game? We have the horses inside. Take away the inside game? We have shooters. Want to run? We can do that. Want to slow things down? Go ahead, be my guest.”

HO: “It sounds like you want a team that can do it all. So, if you do it all, what do you hang your hat on? As the saying goes, ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. What’s the secret sauce? What makes Linndale tick?

PR: “Happy, at the end of the day we play basketball. There are different ways to play the game, but it’s still the game of basketball. The fundamentals don’t change. The goal is to get everyone playing together on the same page, working to achieve a common goal. It takes everyone. Not just the starters, but the bench also. You have to have depth. It’s a team game. That’s probably what we do better than most. That’s our strength. It’s why we can mix and match what we do depending on who we play any particular night. We have 3 guards who can go for 30 at any given time. We don’t run anything specifically for our small forward, but he’s led us in scoring twice this season already. You know how talented Heard and Sanz Garcaa are. The secret is the guys behind them are pretty good too. Do they do everything as well as other players? No, but they don’t have to. You coach to the players strengths and put them in positions to succeed.”

HO: “Where does player development fit in?”

PR: “We have 2 rookies on this team. 6 players are 21 or under. 11 players are 24 or younger, and remember Floyd Hearn was 24 when we brought him in last season. Out of those 24 or younger, 2 are starters, 5 are rotational pieces, and 2 more are almost there. On the other hand, we have 3 starters 25 or over, and they keep getting better as well. Of those 5 rotation pieces, we have 2 that we feel comfortable starting, and 3 that we think we will be comfortable starting by the end of the season. This is where I remind you when I say we are comfortable starting a player, that means the player can play on the defensive end first and foremost. If you can defend a position, we’ll figure out your playing time.”

HO: “Who’s the player you are most excited to see develop?”

PR: “That’s a trick question, Happy. I like to see all the guys get better. We’re working to get Rich McCain time, and Elijah Wilson. Christophe Nguyen, Art Reese, Rolland Reynolds, Art Reese, and Damian Hatfield are all fun to watch develop. The others I wouldn’t say are developing but I’d say they are evolving. That’s fun to watch, too!”

HO: “Coach, we’re out of time tonight. Can we possibly pick this up at another time? This is a really interesting conversation.”

PR: “It would be my pleasure!”

HO: "We'll see you next week on the Pio Reina Show. I'm Happy Ourer, and you're listening to the Linndale Radio Basketball Network!"