2009 FBA JUVENILE DIVISION PREVIEW AND PREDICTIONS:
There is just three weeks to go and FBA is just around the corner. The site this year is Glendale Heights in Illinois. Going into my 5th year being involved in the tournament I will give you my insights, preview and predictions for the Juvenile Division. As the Coach of Vaughan’s juve team I will not be biased….lol!!!
Let’s start with the teams from Canada. First, The Lispenos of Winnipeg the three time defending champions these boys from the Prairies had all the tools to bring home the titles the past three seasons. This year may be different as most of their key players will be moving up to the Open Division most notably reigning MVP and University of Manitoba guard Eric Garcia and the athletic wingman Joshua Olaes. If the new breeds step it up Winnipeg still has the depth and skill to bring home a fourth straight title to Manitoba. Now Vaughan on the other hand came up short in the championship after a disappointing 8 point lost to Winnipeg. Vaughan’s starting backcourt that year was players who were still eligible to play in the midget/junior division. Vaughan will lose 3 starters that were part of the runner up squad in Winnipeg. Point Guard Jon Jon Sheriff and center Brian Asiedu both attending University of Santo Tomas and small Forward Jason Demicais who is currently visiting family in the Philippines. This year Vaughan will be led by last year leaders guard C.J. Isit and senior forward JimBryan Gorospe. Hopefully the experience and disappointment from last year can help Vaughan into this year tournament and bring home a title but can the bench step up? We will see in September. The final team north of the U.S. border is Mississauga. Which team will they bring? The scrappy type and never give up attitude or we don’t care attitude and just party. This is an unpredictable squad if they come out firing they will be a team to be that will be hard to beat and teams should not look past them or they will make you pay the price but if they bring the easygoing mentality they will be 2 and out. Let’s see what they bring.
Now the American teams there are a total of 6 American teams participating in the tournament. I will talk about 4 of the 6 teams as New Jersey and New York are new to the tournament. Starting with PBA Chicago, they are basically playing in their own backyard and they will have a big fan base in the tournament. These boys are scrappy and good shooting team. Another strength other teams underestimate is the speed of their guards. Playing them in Winnipeg last year I noticed they are up tempo and they love to push the ball. If these guys catch fire and catch you in transition they are deadly but they will lack size this year. If they get exposed inside it will be a long tournament for the boys from the Midwest. After going winless in Winnipeg they seek revenge for anybody who comes in their way. The FABA boys from Washington D.C. another good shooting and a very athletic team and these are the strengths these boys rely on. They live or die with the three balls and play good team defence look undersize but don’t underestimate their size because they can fly and rebound. They just lack ball handling force them to make turnovers and it will a difficult tournament for the team from the Capital city to win. Next up the boys from the Lone Star State Houston, Texas. After a disappointing 0-3 tournament in Washington in 2007. These boys seek revenge and from what I saw in Washington they had the tools to win but they just lacked team chemistry. If they learned how to play together and keep training with their open team the tournament field better look out. In 2007 it was “Houston we have a problem”. Will there still be a problem or will we see improvement? Finally, the host PBL Glendale Heights the Inaugural FBA Champions in the Juvenile division in 2005. If you are up 25 points on these guys the game is not over as I have seen them catch up from deficit this deep before they play hard for 40 minutes and they don’t give up. This is probably the most in shape team in the tournament they play hard and play with a lot of heart. With their in your face defence and physical play this is the most intimidating team in the tournament on the defensive side of the ball. On the offensive side majority of their points are off turnovers and in transition. If teams reduce turnovers and play good transition defence this team will be stopped. That will be hard to do especially with their 6th man on their side. Playing Glendale Heights is like playing Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium they got rowdy crowd on their side. Playing a slow pace game and will slow down Glendale they also lack the outside shot. I would say that the PBL boys will contend for the title and should bring home a championship or it would be a huge disappointment for the coaching staff.
Here are my 2009 FBA-NA final ranking for the Juvenile Division:
1. PBL – Glendale Heights
2. Vaughan
3. Winnipeg
4. Washington D.C.
5. PBA – Chicago
6. Mississauga
7. Houston
Unranked – New York and New Jersey as they are new members with the FBA.
