Biraj's Comments

1) Good games. Most of the basketball is terrific, and it's a pleasure to watch - outsiders seem to enjoy it.. However, there are some issues with Div. 2 games

2) Div. 2 games. Unfortunately, I'm not able to be at every game, so I have to rely on the captains and all the players to ensure that the rules are followed and the games are played within the spirit of the league. There was some tension in a couple of games at Kits. The issues seem to be due to "over aggression". Please correct this. I've hired Chrissy Benz (captain of Dynasty) to be at Kits for at least the last two games. Her job will be to ensure that the teams do what they should do to play in this league and also to help out where necessary. We'll see how this goes for the Fall. My intent is to have the captains and the rest of the players ensure the games. Teams should perhaps consider bringing in a non playing "team rep" to help manage their teams, and thus the league.

2) Div. 1. The most notable point was Scotia's upset of Lummerland. This was a good game. Interesting to see Lummer playing under pressure. Hoop Dreams played well to win a good one against Sweet. Bus Drivers won a good one against Jamma. O-Dubs won over Blaze - I didn't see this game, but this is a slow start for Blaze, and a good win for O-Dubs.. TT won easily over MP -- good game, great spirit. Money won over BasketCases.

3) Div. 2 - Urban Legends won by quite the score - looks like a Div. 1 score. Badgers (Drizzle) picked up a couple of new players, and they're rolling right along. RV is off to a great start, unlike past seasons. Hydropro, TD, & Barrage, all won their games. Got Game won a close one over Dynasty. This game had issues. Both captains, please find a way to deal with these kinds of games.

4) Game tension - Sometimes the games get too tense where players are either over aggressive in their play, and/or too vocal on the court as situations arise. One way of preventing these situations or dealing with them is to pull the respective players off the court. The players don't have to be off for long, sometimes only a few minutes. But this seems to diffuse the local tension on the court. Captains should do this, but other players should feel free to help out. This is where a non playing "Team Manager" helps. If the tension gets out of hand, both parties are out. We do not differentiate between who started the incident in terms of players getting penalties; however, the degree of penalty differs slightly. Please note that any penalties are noted, and move those players and teams a big step closer to being removed from the league. This league does not get into a cycle of penalties and return to play. Usually, its a couple of penalties, and then the players or the team are gone. Please see the rules. Either players play in the spirit of this league or they don't play in this league.

5) Shot clock warning - Although we do have shot clocks in both gyms, we use them sparingly for two reasons: 1) We don't want to get too technical, and 2) it's a bit of work to manage the shot clocks. Some players like to operate them, which is fine. However, we generally tend to use them if a team seems to be violating the spirit of the 27 sec. shot clock (approx. to 30 secs). In a close game, they do come in handy in the last few minutes of a game. The one at Kerrisdale is not working at the moment. --- Spirit of the shot clock means approx. times. Don't argue if the 5 sec warning is a bit outside 5 secs -7 or 8 secs.- we usually let the player follow through on their possession when the warning is announced. But the monitor can stop it right at 5 secs. Either way is fine. I prefer the more spirited option when the shot clock isn't working.

6) Monitoring - thanks to the friends of players who monitor. This helps so much, especially in the last games at both centers where the monitors don't usually want to stick around.

7) New website. The new website is up. http://www.kerrisdalebasketballleague.ca/ Please have a look. We'll transition to this website next week. Many thanks to Brian Van Sickle on MP Ballerz for putting this site together. Brian has a done a fantastic job, and he continues to be a solid supporter of this league. I'll find some way to compensate him for his efforts.

Let's continue with some of the great basketball, and stick to basketball. Other than a couple of corrections, the games are great.

Great Start. Both the veteran teams and the new teams played very spirited games. I don't think I've seen a better start to this league. A couple of issues, but nothing difficult

1) Lummer scored 161 points right off the bat. Usually, I get about half way through the season before I start challenging the other teams to better challenge Lummer, but it looks like this year, the challenge is here already. Lummer is a fantastic team - great team, great spirit. I think they've won this league 3 or 4 sessions in a row. They hold the record for most points in a game at 176. Let's see if anyone can stop them this year.

2) The Div. 1 games were played at a really high level for the first week. BTR, Penicillin, Scotia, Triple Threat, Sweet, & MP Ballerz are off to a great start. A bit of an upset with MP winning over Blaze. Considering the strength of the first week, it'll be very exciting to see how the teams do over the next set of games. One team has a bit of work to do with their roster - Money. Hopefully, they'll work it out.

3) Div. 2 games were excellent as well. I must say that I was impressed with the organization of the new teams. The captains of these teams need to be commended for putting a great effort pulling their teams together - Sarah, Dustin, Mer, Peter, Shaun. Players on the new teams - please thank your captains for their effort. - There's a good mix of veteran and new teams in Div. 2; it's too early to tell how the balance of strength in this Division because of the new teams, and also because of revised rosters on veteran teams.

4) Admin. Please clean up your bench areas after the games. Players at Kits left a mess. The community center was not happy about this. It's our job to make sure that we leave both gyms clear of garbage and bottles. If the players don't do it, I have to. This is a problem at Kits because I can't get there in the evenings. Therefore, please be responsible, and let's look after both gyms together.

5) Spirit ratings. Captains -please send spirit ratings each week. Depending on how the games are going, I'll either post them, or keep them for later posting. These ratings are a thermometer of how the games are going, so it's important to get them. It's best to email them.

6) We're getting a new website, which we hope will be up next week. With this website, we hope to set it up so that players can make game comments directly. I'll let you know when it's up.

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These are my new shoes. They're good shoes. They won't make you rich like me, they won't make you rebound like me, they definitely won't make you handsome like me. They'll only make you have shoes like me. That's it. ~From a Charles Barkley commercial for basketball shoes, 1993

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I hate it. It looks like a stickup at 7-Eleven. Five guys standing there with their hands in the air. ~Norm Sloan, on zone defense

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When I dunk, I put something on it. I want the ball to hit the floor before I do. ~Darryl Dawkins

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We're shooting 100 percent - 60 percent from the field and 40 percent from the free-throw line. ~Norm Stewart

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The secret is to have eight great players and four others who will cheer like crazy. ~Jerry Tarkanian

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If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you...
..If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same...
...Yours is the earth and everything that's in it

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"I try to do the right thing at the right time.

They may just be little things, but usually they make the difference between winning and losing."

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1947-)
US collegiate & NBA basketball player, born Lew Alcindor, led UCLA to 3 NCAA titles

"Winning isn't everything, but the will to win is everything."

~ Vincent Lombardi (1913-1970)
American football coach, Green Bay Packers’ winning coach

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"You've got to get to the stage in life where going for it is more important than winning or losing."

~ Arthur Ashe (1943-1993)

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"There's nothing to winning, really. That is, if you happen to be blessed with a keen eye, an agile mind, and no scruples whatsoever."

~ Alfred Hitchcock (1899-1980)

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"There's a very fine line between winning and losing. Every team in the NFL has talent,but attitude is the biggest thing that counts — that, and playing together as a team. If you can capture that feeling, then you'll have success."

~ Ray Bentley
NFL linebacker

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"That's what learning is, after all; not whether we lose the game, but how we lose and how we've changed because of it and what we take away from it that we never had before, to apply to other games. Losing, in a curious way, is winning."

~ Richard Bach (1936-)

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"The Ten Commandments of Sport 1. Thou shalt not quit. 2. Thou shalt not alibi. 3. Thou shalt not gloat over winning. 4. Thou shalt not be a rotten loser. 5. Thou shalt not take unfair advantage. 6. Thou shalt not ask odds thou art unwilling to give. 7. Thou shalt always be ready to give thine opponent the shade. 8. Thou shalt not under estimate an opponent, nor over estimate thyself. 9. Remember the game is the thing, and he who thinketh otherwise is no true sportsman. 10. Honor the game thou playest, for he who playeth the game straight and hard, wins even when he loses."

~ unknown