The last and final tournament of the year is here.  It’s time for the old timers to battle it out for top dog in UH Nation.

 

Unfortunately, we had some teams drop out the last few weeks but the remaining 8 teams should still make for a fun and competitive tournament this weekend.  The good news is we all now have more time to go take naps before all the after parties!

 

Here are my predictions and favorites for the tournament. Let me know in the comments section what you think.

 

1.     Ball So Hard (AZ): +100

The return of Mike Bibby will definitely bring some excitement to the tournament. BSH also started taking a play out of everyone’s playbook by recruiting outside talent in Atlanta and Vegas. Jeremiah Massey, Brandon Wheeless and Jazwyn Cowan have joined the darkside. The rich just get richer.

 

2.     Never Off Work (AZ): +500

An Arizona guy writing this article putting 2 Arizona teams in the top 2 is a little biased maybe? Roster looks great on paper but rumor has it GM Chris Walker having a tough time getting everyone on the bus to Vegas. IF everyone shows up they will be a dangerous team.  Fred Dudley will have his final opportunity to showcase his talents for the Hall of Fame committee so I’m expecting a monster performance this weekend. Juice Hedrick is my top pick to lead the entire tournament in scoring.

 

3.     Flight (NV): +550

Why do I get the feeling that this is not Flight’s final roster? 7 players on a roster with home court advantage?  Waiting for Woj bomb any minute now to see which former NBA players gets added at the deadline.. Regardless who they add, the squad looks poised for another strong run with former pro guard David Bell leading the pack.

 

4.     Impact (CO): +800

Beau Barney and friends are back for the 294th time.  This team reminds me of the old Utah Jazz teams of the 90s. Always above average and competitive but tend to fizzle out at the end. Outside of Ball So Hard this team probably has the best chemistry of all the 8 teams in the tournament. Could this be the year Beau and company finally go all the way? With only 8 teams in the tournament, anything can happen.

 

5.     Livin the Dream (NV): +1000

Basketball GM Mastermind Chris Mitchell has probably spent the entire year trying to piece this team together so I am going to give him the benefit of the doubt that this team is going to be good. Vegas has the largest and deepest pool of VET leagues in the country so would not be surprised to see 2 teams from Vegas advance to the final 4. Charlier Farber will also have one last final opportunity to impress the Hall of Fame committee before voting ends at the end of the month.

 

6.     Nor Cal Buckets (CA): +2000

The Nor Cal Buckets round out my top 6 and my last pick to make it to Sunday. Reason being they were the last team to send me in a full roster without me having to text our Vegas coordinator Dan Orozco frantically asking for help to build their roster. However I do see they have added 6-10 center Darian Townes to the roster which might be the biggest player in the tournament.

 

7.     Glue Guys (CA/NV): +2500

The Southern California boys bail on us again. Vegas godfather Dan Orozco has been given the tall task to build a team of Vegas guys that didn’t make the A and B team for Vegas. This is going to be the Vegas JV team, that’s right I said it.  However we all LOVE a great underdog story. Can the Bad News Bears from Vegas pull off one miraculous win on Saturday to advance to Sunday?! If anyone can do it, Dan can.

 

8.     Wheel Chair Mafia (MN/NY): +5000

Let’s just say I had to call 3 of my buddies from New York to fly all the way down just to make the roster work. Not sure how well they are going to do since I think most of them are more excited for the after parties at Hakkasan and Omnia this weekend than the actual games. Paul Klar looks over 60 years old in his mug shot but my guy is averaging over 30+ in the VET leagues in Vegas! Why do I get the feeling he’s going to my favorite player in this years tournament?!  Let’s go Paul! Never Retire baby!!

 

Good luck and thank you to all the teams coming out for our final tournament of the year.  We never take for granted to all the teams that make the effort to come out!  We know how difficult it is to get a team to fly out and we appreciate all of you. Looking forward to another fun weekend with everyone!

 

Also we are excited to announce Sports Visio will be piloting their new basketball app with us this weekend. Every team and player will have game highlights they can view from the app!  Make sure to download SV Hoops app before you arrive so we can show you how to find your highlights!