2031 WBA FINALS PREVIEW
Cancun Outlaws vs Colorado Pioneers
For the third straight year, the Colorado Pioneers arrive at the doorstep of a championship. They have spent the past two seasons bending the league to their structure, their discipline, and their relentless execution. They have won close games, blown out contenders, and survived every stylistic challenge the WBA has thrown at them. But this year’s Finals present something different. Something they have not yet solved. Something they have not yet beaten.
The Cancun Outlaws didn’t just finish the season as one of the most efficient teams in the league. They didn’t just dominate the paint, or the defensive glass, or the shot‑blocking leaderboard. They didn’t just win games with physicality or spacing or depth. They did something far more significant: they beat the Pioneers twice, once in a slow, grinding battle, and once in a high‑tempo shootout. They beat them in Cancun. They beat them in Colorado. They beat them with defense. They beat them with offense. They beat them with stars. They beat them with depth.
And now, they stand between Colorado and a historic three‑peat.
This is not the first time Cancun has reached this stage. In the pre‑modern era of the WBA, the Outlaws were one of the league’s flagship franchises, a team that turned talent and toughness into multiple championships and carved out a legacy long before the modern game took shape. Their banners hang as reminders of a different time—when the league was smaller, the systems simpler, and their dominance unquestioned.
But the modern WBA is a different world: deeper talent, sharper coaching, more complex schemes, and a level of parity that punishes every weakness. In this era, the Outlaws have reached the Finals twice… and have yet to win a single Finals game. Two modern‑era Finals appearances, zero wins. A proud franchise with a decorated past, still searching for its first Finals victory in the league’s current age. For Cancun, this series is not just a chance to win. It is a chance to bridge eras — to prove that the franchise that once ruled the pre‑modern WBA can finally conquer the modern one.
The Regular‑Season Storyline
The first meeting between these teams came in late November, and it looked like a classic Outlaws victory: physical, methodical, and controlled. Cancun dragged Colorado into a slow game and suffocated their spacing. Pellegrino Lamantia was brilliant, scoring 31 points and dictating tempo in a way that left Sammy Gasper scrambling. Joe Pinone added 21 points, Alexander Rojo controlled the glass, and the Outlaws won the rebounding battle 53–44. Colorado shot just 2‑16 from three, and their normally fluid offense collapsed under Cancun’s pressure. The Pioneers scored only 90 points — one of their lowest totals of the season.
If that game exposed cracks in Colorado’s structure, the second meeting in April shattered the illusion of stylistic advantage. Cancun walked into Denver and delivered a 42‑point first quarter, the highest single frame Colorado allowed all year. Pinone erupted for 33 points, Rojo produced a staggering 19‑10‑7 defensive masterpiece, and Lamantia added 19 points and nine assists. The Outlaws shot nearly 60 percent from the field, outscored Colorado’s bench 30–17, and controlled the game from the opening tip.
Two games. Two wins. Two completely different styles. Cancun didn’t just beat Colorado — they proved they can beat them any way they want.
The Outlaws: A Team Built for June
Cancun enters the Finals with one of the most complete rosters in the league, and at the center of their resurgence stands Patrick Fullum, one of the most respected general managers in the modern WBA. Fullum’s reputation among his peers borders on legendary. He is known for his patience, his eye for development, and his uncanny ability to uncover gems in the draft. While other franchises chase quick fixes and splashy acquisitions, Fullum builds slowly, deliberately, and with conviction. He drafts players others overlook. He nurtures prospects others would rush. And he has assembled a roster whose youth, talent, and versatility make them one of the most intriguing cores in the league.
Winning a championship this season would do more than validate the Outlaws’ rise — it would place Patrick Fullum back on the WBA throne. It would mark the return of a franchise that once dominated the pre‑modern era, now rebuilt through modern principles and modern patience. And given the age of this group — Pinone at 22, Rojo at 25, Lamantia at 28, McNeil at 26 — a title would not feel like a culmination. It would feel like a beginning. For Fullum, this Finals is not just a chance to win. It is a chance to launch another dynasty.
On the court, Cancun’s identity begins with Joe Pinone, the 22‑year‑old forward whose blend of power and finesse has made him one of the most difficult covers in the WBA. Pinone averaged 24.9 points and 8.2 rebounds this season, scoring with elite efficiency and punishing mismatches with a maturity beyond his years. His performances against Colorado — 21 and 33 points — underline his importance in this matchup.
Beside him stands Alexander Rojo, a defensive anchor whose presence changes the geometry of the floor. Rojo averaged 12.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 3.0 blocks, but numbers alone don’t capture his impact. His seven‑block performance in Denver was one of the defining defensive games of the season, a reminder that Colorado’s interior scoring — normally a strength — becomes a liability when Rojo is patrolling the paint.
The backcourt is led by Pellegrino Lamantia, one of the most efficient guards in the league. Lamantia averaged 20.6 points and 5.8 assists with a .636 true‑shooting percentage, and his ability to control tempo has been central to Cancun’s success. Against Colorado, he outplayed Gasper twice, once with scoring and once with playmaking. When Lamantia is comfortable, Cancun’s offense becomes a machine.
Around this core is depth that few teams can match. Kevin Whitlock provides veteran shooting and spacing. Kris Cheatham adds defense and secondary creation. Morten Kjolbye, Daniel Stevenson, Piotr Stoklosa, Hans Gruber, and Eric Decottignies give Cancun a rotation that can play big, small, fast, slow, physical, or perimeter‑heavy. Head coach Odis Brown has the tools to adapt to any game state, and he has used them masterfully all season.
The Pioneers: A Dynasty in Search of Answers
Colorado’s rise to this moment has been nothing short of cinematic, and no one has felt it more deeply than their general manager, Marc Hameleers. Two years ago, Hameleers watched his team claw through one of the most grueling championship runs in modern WBA history — a title earned through attrition, resilience, and sheer force of will. It was not the coronation of a juggernaut; it was the breakthrough of a franchise still discovering who it was.
Since then, Hameleers has been living the dream.
The hard‑won championship became the foundation for something far greater. Under his stewardship, the Pioneers transformed from a scrappy contender into a postseason machine, a team whose structure and discipline have overwhelmed opponents and carried them through the playoffs with an authority that borders on dynastic. Blow became an anchor, Chiang a metronome, Morales a connector, Gasper a conductor — and together they built a brand of basketball that has defined the modern WBA.
Colorado’s identity is built on structure. They score 122.4 points per game, shoot .524 from the field, and move the ball with surgical precision. Their offense is a symphony of spacing, timing, and discipline. Their defense is anchored by Eusebio Blow, whose rim protection and interior scoring stabilize the entire system. Their wings — Merle Morales and Frankie Chiang — provide versatility, creation, and scoring bursts. Their point guard, Sammy Gasper, is the brain of the operation, a maestro whose passing and tempo control elevate everyone around him.
But against Cancun, that structure has cracked.
Chiang struggled in both meetings, shooting 1‑7 from three in the first game and failing to control the second. Blow scored efficiently but could not overcome Rojo’s defensive presence. Morales played well but could not tilt the matchup. And Gasper — normally one of the most reliable point guards in the league — delivered one of his worst performances of the season in Cancun, scoring just one point with six turnovers.
Colorado is still a championship team. They still have the experience, the coaching, the discipline, and the talent to win four games against anyone. But they have not yet shown they can beat Cancun. And in the Finals, that matters.
The Matchup That Will Decide the Series
Every Finals has a defining battle. This one is clear: Pinone and Rojo vs Blow and Sanchez.
Cancun’s frontcourt is the most dominant in the league. Colorado’s is strong, but they have not solved Cancun’s physicality or Rojo’s rim protection. In two games, Pinone and Rojo combined for 104 points, 33 rebounds, 12 assists, and 12 blocks. Blow and Sanchez combined for 74 points, 22 rebounds, six assists, and three blocks.
If Colorado cannot win the interior, they cannot win the series.
The Outlook
The Pioneers arrive with the poise of champions. They have won close games, survived adversity, and built a culture that thrives under pressure. They will not fold. They will not panic. They will not hand over the trophy.
But the regular‑season evidence is overwhelming. Cancun didn’t just win the matchup — they dominated it from every angle. They beat Colorado in a slow game. They beat them in a fast game. They beat them with stars. They beat them with depth. They beat them with defense. They beat them with offense. They beat them at home. They beat them on the road.
Colorado will fight. They will adjust. They will compete with the heart of a dynasty.
But Cancun’s physicality, versatility, and matchup advantages give them a clear edge — and the chance to finally claim their first modern‑era Finals victory, perhaps even the first chapter of a new dynasty.
Cancun Outlaws in six games.