WBA Conference Finals Preview
by Mike Begley
And then there were four! One of these remaining teams will be crowned as WBA champion the other three will lick their wounds then go fishing during a long off season. I have no inkling which will be which. And you would not care for my prediction either way. So let’s read on perhaps we can savor a little of the spectacle that is to come.
Gabon Giants v Paris Honey Bees
This is the best team in Gabon history against perhaps the third or fourth best team in Paris history. So it should be easy to predict the outcome. These Giants are one of the most talented teams ever assembled with superstars agreeing to come off the bench just for a chance to wear that Gabon purple. No one on this Gabon playoff roster is averaging more than 33 minutes a game and the team has yet to lose a game. They do not even break a sweat! Truly a player’s paradise. Heck 6th man of the year Fulgencio Lurdes even has a chance to drink martinis on the bench. So it’s a done deal who can compete with such an ensemble of talent?
Well this is where it gets tricky. These Paris Honey Bees are the defending champions and also have yet to lose a game in these playoffs. However, the Bees only boast a single lottery pick on their playoff roster: Klemens Eberle selected 13th overall. They have no superstars off the bench. Only a former superstar 36 year old Abdiel Gordon playing perhaps his final season. The Bees have four players under major stress averaging over 35 minutes a game. But coincidentally each of these, Bobbie Mason, Klemens Eberle, Hilton Fulton, Eusebio Blow, are playing the best basketball of their career.
The Bees enter this matchup with a 13 game winning streak the Giants with an 8 game winning streak. One of these streaks will end tomorrow. There is history between these two teams, once African brothers, Simon Drapeau and Adrian Arceo battled for many seasons when Arceo managed Cape Town. Usually (actually each time) Cape Town ended with victory. Those were different times.
Gabon has ended their season in the conference finals the last two years the franchise has yet to reach the WBA finals let alone a championship. So this will be a historic season not only to vanquish these Bees but go on to win the championship. They will get the job done. Drapeau has learned the ins and outs of the Paris system and knows what is coming. Also he knows who is not coming: Jervan Timmons. Without Timmons at the helm, Drapeau now has the freedom to employ unproven French point guard Olivier Herve. Will Herve survive the Bees infamous defending the hive press defense? That is what we will witness tomorrow.
Maybe Herve heads to the bench but Gabon still wins this in SIX.
California Fighting Cocks v Miami Xtreme
What a burning hell of a second round for both these teams! The Miami Xtreme in Florida tornado fashion swept the Brooklyn bridge clean. For all those long time Brooklyn haters it was a sight to behold. Mario Bailey and Jarius Miles getting swept into oblivion. I mince no words. They had their time. Now it is Miami’s time to vie for a trip to the WBA finals.
Now to be honest before this season began I had no idea who Venceslas Portocarrero was but now I have been educated. Mr. Portocarrero and Jervan Timmons are quite possibly the best WBA backcourt of all time! The kid is amazing feeding off Timmons like a Sharksucker to a Whale shark! Look that one up. What amazes me the most of all is not the incredible stats or wins it is that they have resurrected the career of Brian Armstrong. Honestly I am quicker than Armstrong even in my forties, and I had a crafty hook shot.
Then we have the Fighting Cocks. Suffering adversity with the loss of Dan Kincaide to a broken foot (told you they were old) and Matias Gutierrez to a sprained wrist, they still managed to pull out a victory over the valiant Sydney Bloods in seven game. This is championship meddle. And they are going to need it against Timmons and company. Oh yeah did I mention Timmons? Yup the greatest point guard of all time who defeated California in last season’s finals. No one said a championship would be easy. This will be a chance for pay back. And pay back California will (I mean on the court not the 32 billion budget deficit). Brian Armstrong (my man) will not be able to hold down avengers superhero Hassan Watt. Is it too late for Miami to sign Mike Begley?
California takes this in SIX.