It is going to be nice to get back to Ridge park…although i do have mixed emotions about leaving crestwood, not having drive thru Crestwood, Alsip and Merionnette Park to get home is a pretty big deal. O’Rourkes has a lot to live up to after spending time at the Hideout though….Ronnie was great to us and although the bar was filled with hillbillies sometimes, we seemed to fit in Ok. I was going to reach out to Ronnie to see if she would guest bartend a few times @ the new bar but she declined citing an incident with Hanigan but wouldnt delve any further into the story.

Good bye Crestwood and the hideout….covid brought us together for a reason.

I know i say something like this every week but please do your best to show your face at the bar. 2 beers, 100 beers, whatever it is, this league is as much about the bar as it is the court. not gonna go all Dave Statham on you if you dont show, but please try to be better than his sons at showing up to the bar.

Week 1
6pm O’Malley -10 vs DeCarlo
i am really sticking my balls out on the table with this one, especially since my team is probably one of the most confusing i have ever drafted but i have a good feeling about this year. we are big and although we may lack shooting, i have faith that every player can contribute. as for DeCarlo…..they seem to be confident in their squad even though i cant find 1 player on their squad who can score a bunch if they need to…..matchups

Finger blaster vs Healy—lots of unknown here but anyone with the name Rich Finger has my vote of confidence

Smallbone vs Konopka—2 different styles, not sure if Konopka has the lentgh to stay with Smallbone but could definitely use his speed to go past Smallbone…even match

Coci vs Sheehy—2 similar players, both quick guards and both rookies….this matchup will be the difference in the game one way or another

O’Malley vs Dillon Knight—-2 sick ass quick defenders, shifty slashers….or maybe just 1, ill have to hit a bunch of 3’s to win this battle

Slevin vs Flannery—-great matchup here, solid D, both can drive…..ive got Slevin

O’Malley 66 DeCarlo 56

7pm B Healy-14 vs Hanigan
Brian Healy with one of the ballsiest moves in league history…..says fuck you to his CHAMPIONSHIP squad and throws everyone back into the draft. I loved every second of it, mostly because his major motivation was to get rid of the defensive specialist Matt McDonald. Pretty horrible Draft for Hanigan, i know i mentioned that earlier but every time i look at his 3-9 picks i just start laughing.

McCann vs Overstreet—2 great players here…..both make their teams better and have similar games. Kevin is not as good of a shooter as Dylan but can slash with the best of them. based on the fact that neither have played since last years playoffs, it might not be a pretty first week. Edge goes to McCann

Statham and Slager vs Hanigan and Rappold—i was ragging on the rapp pick in the 3rd round but only because i love the guy…..IMO, he needs to shoot more and would be more effictive…luckily for team Hanigan, they literally have ZERO other shooters so he will have a chance to chuck……Statham and Slager have the opposite problem…both are great shooters as well and LOVE to shoot the ball. one time i saw slager take a 3 with all 5 players from the other team within 4 feet of him…..dont blame him though, he is from Thornton. Advantage S&S

Gollogly vs Bartlett—-many of you know that in the 3 years that Tommy Gollogly has been playing in this league, he has received ZERO compliments on the blog…..i cant believe it, but that is about to change. the bartlett pick was confusing to me….probably the most in shape guy in the league but i just didnt see enough offense from him last year to warrant the pick (based on who was left on the board)….in reality, i hope Bartlett proves me wrong because then i can take back anything nice that i was about to say about Gollogly. Advantage Gollogly

B Healy 58 Hanigan 44

8pm Manzke vs McEldowney -4

similar to my confusing draft, i feel Manzke is also confused about the ability of his squad. McGinty is a game changer but their chance this season will depend on his abiltiy to use his size to score, not just jack 3’s. Matt Kelly is also a complete wild card after last years injury. i am happy to report that we played a few weeks ago and he actually looked pretty dominant. will the lack of ronnie impact his bar status? thats really the biggest question i need answered. Team Mac looks like a pretty typical team mac…lots of shooters, 2 big guys and red shirts. Will mac be able to rebound from his worst shooting year in 2021? Rob is a gamer and rumor has it that he is coming for Brian Healy for dismantling what he called “his championship squad”….FYI, Bill Bendo will be out this game, with him, they pound team Mac…without, they are the underdog

McGinty vs Bendo—both oafs, different games. this will be interesting to see bendo have to guard McGinty on the arc. Advantage McGinty

Matt Kelly vs Rob—-Matt Kelly never stops moving and Rob is just an all around efficient player. pre Kelly injury, ive got Rob….post Kelly injury, ive got Rob

Manzke vs Mac—-2 energizer bunnies…one that still has batteries, one that is recharging his from a battery acid leak in the last few months. Manzke impacts the game on D and on O, Mac, when shooting at his normal pace can change any game…..Advantage Mac

Nolan vs Statham—-Nolan is young and unproven, Statham is old and a proven sniper. hard to predict this one but gotta go with the proven scorer..adv Statham

9pm Carroll -18 vs Harrigan
classic brutal 9pm game to end the 1st week….i love when i dont have to say shit about the 9pm game because i am usually sick of typing by this point…..Team Carroll is the clear cut favorite in my opinion and are going to create major matchup issues with pretty much every squad. finding 3 capable guys to guard Kennedy Carroll and Koll isnt going to be easy… team Harrigan, as always, will live and die on the play of both Harrigans, specifically Whitey…..adding Packy as a 3rd scorer and 2 bigs like Vodicka and Tyler will help but i dont think this team can sustain a long run.

Kennedy vs Vodicka—-actually a pretty decent matchup…..if Kennedy is making his shots he is super difficult to guard but the key is, will he be making his shots. ive got Kennedy

B Harrigan vs Koll—–a gunner vs a former gunner who is now an all around player…..if B is making his 3’s it will be hard for Koll to stick with him, if not, it will be an easy day for Koll….ive got Koll

Carroll vs Whitey—tough match here for Carroll coming off last years knee injury….will all depend on his speed and shot…..Whitey is a freak and weighs 130lbs and can run circles around pretty much anyone in the league…advantage Whitey

Wills vs the world—perfect way to end this blog session….ive never seen someone so distraught after getting passed up in the 6th round….big time chip on this guys shoulder this year…yet to be seen if he can average more than Brettman this year. According to Brettman, last year he averaged 8 and Wills averaged 6. just sayin

Carroll 62 Harrigan 44