‘The League’ heads into playoffs for summer
W.R. Anderson Community Center has been the place to be for high quality basketball this summer. The League, sponsored by the Josh Howard Foundation, has been buzzing since the spring league tipped off earlier this year. Now that the summer league is in full swing, teams are making a last push for the playoffs.
In total, 12 teams are participating in the summer league, but only 10 will make the playoffs. Steve Nivens, league commissioner, says the competition level is higher than ever.
“The summer league is going well and we have a new team that is bringing a nice following every game, he said. “The crowd and the competition level have picked up each week.”
Team Truth walked away with the championship during the spring league. According to Nivens, they are looking like one of the best teams this summer as well.
“Team Truth is looking good, but they are still looking like one of the teams to beat,” said Nivens. “It’s funny because they lost a couple of players from the spring league and those players started their own team, which is undefeated right now.”
Nivens says the reason for the hightened competition level is that many of the top players playing in the summer league were either in college or playing overseas in the spring. Now that many of them are home, it seems that every team, even the new ones, are stacked with quality ball players.
“These new teams are matching up really well and some of the new teams are knocking out some of the veteran squads that have played in the league a few times,” he said. “To be honest one of the veteran teams have not won a game all season.
“No one knew what to expect from these new teams, but now they know, so they need to up the ante when they come back next spring and summer. People want those bragging rights, and it’s getting closer to the vision that I had for the league in the future,” Nivens said.
Nivens says he really feels any of the 10 teams participating in the playoffs has a chance to win it all.
“They all have a chance to win, I think, but if I had to put any money on it, I think I would roll with Good Vibes because it seems they have what it takes and they are undefeated,” Nivens said.
