ADB pulled out a great stat the other day – the last three NBA Development League Championships were won by former Continental Basketball Association teams.
That is guaranteed to change this year. The four remaining teams (Rio Grande Valley, Austin, Iowa and Tulsa) are pure bread NBADL teams. But wait, there's more.
ADB was also quick to point out three of those teams have something in common.
My first guess was, rightish... Rio Grande Valley, Austin and Tulsa are all old Southwest Division teams (good thing Colorado's gone, otherwise they might've beat the tar out of all three teams and perhaps none of them would've made the playoffs thanks to the intra-division match-ups... well, maybe that's not true, but I still feel the sting of a 1-15 franchise record against Colorado, even if those were completely different Vipers teams).
I had the right teams, but not the point. What else do those three teams have in common? They're all single-affiliation teams.
The so-called hybrid system is the future of the NBA Development League, so this is really no surprise. The only team that doesn't use their single-affiliate effectively is LA. Houston, San Antonio and Oklahoma City have done a great job of maximizing the value they get out of the Vipers, Toros and 66ers. In doing that, they get better players (perhaps because of better resources to scout players and know who's going to make noise in this league) which makes their teams better. They also assign players and for longer periods of time than other teams because they know what they're getting. The Vipers do what the Rockets do, so Joey Dorsey and Jermaine Taylor can develop down here. Remember, Aaron Brooks was only a Viper for two games. The Vipers had three parent clubs that year and the Rockets had no say over what Brooks was going to have to with the Vipers, so it was really just a way to get the man some playing time.
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Tulsa's no longer OKC JV. Mustafa Shakur and Byron Mullens have been recalled. That just leaves Kyle Weaver on assignment with the 66ers. I guess the Thunder want depth for the playoffs. OR this could just be for the last regular season game followed by a re-assignment before the Semifinals opener. I guess we'll have to wait and find out.
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The last three champions Doctor..
ReplyDeleteThat's what it says. It's not like I just edited it or anything...
ReplyDeleteI was under the impression there couldn't be any assignments after the last day before the regular season - otherwise, the Rockets would have waited to assign Harris then.
ReplyDeleteDid the rules change, or did someone explain this to me wrong?
Yes and no. There can be assignments after the last day of the regular season, but only by NBA teams that are in the playoffs. Basically, assignments must occur before a team's final game, whether it be regular season or post-season.
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