SM NEgamall

Yes. 'twas SM's big mistake--- not calling it as i suggest above. Heck, it's the hippest, coolest rip-off ever. At the same time, you'd have little effort selling the name and the product itself. The idea that it did not at all float escapes me really. For the probinsyano's they'd always ask themselves: "Why go to Megamall when you can go to Negamall." Unintentional slang and all, Naguenos and Bicolanos alike will enjoy the ripped-off name. And the pseudo-mega shopping experience, after all, they've got it all for you!
Speaking of ripped-off names, i've talked to an Ayala insider and they are considering of putting a mall right across SM City Naga. The name? Yes, they'd be more creative this time: Tri-Naga. It's located in Triangulo (barangay) via your usual tricyle. And no, you won't get the joke if you are not from Naga, so don't try.
As emphasized by Enteng's post, the saddest part is the fact that most stores/restos are the ones you find only in Naga City. We had a nuisican mayoral candidate years back, i think his name is Herbas and one his campaign promises was to put a roof over the entire "centro" of Naga. On May 2009, it just happened. Courtesy of your SM City Naga.

As dead as Naga centro will become among the early victims (according to stories) is the E-Mall, previously the first (Ok, second there's the LCC Mall) 'shopping' center in the area. Good riddance, there's a reason why it's called the E-Mall: After the E-ntrance you can already see the E-xit. There goes your record-breaking 2-minute malling experience.

(And errr, pardon the pics, they were rushed when i took them. Not that it changes my status of being an ama-teur photographer and all)

+++

Another sad fact is the traffic. No left or right turns? One way street? i can see it in the tricycle (trike) driver's faces: "fuck 'em all, they are soon going to replace us with taxi/cabs." Or maybe not. Because after all, everywhere in Naga is still five minutes away from point A to point B. Case in point: i walked home earlier tonight from SM. Arhtritic joints and all (after a KFC dinner with the family) i actually enjoyed it. Much like walking from school to our house 15 years back.

And finally... i went home because i really wanted to this "malling" experience. Nyaha. Like there's no mall in Metro Manila (And where can you get Star Trek @ 100 pesos in Metro Manila?). But hey, it's not the same when you are at home and with your pamangkin, who by the way scored another one of those Transformers autobots.

The wrath of work, and payday awaits.

Anti-Boni Makeover

Sabi ni Ermana, i-post ko daa ni sa blog ko (kaya uyan na). Basically, the before and after kang sadit na harong ko sa Antipolo.

Medyo mahal man yan, worth 500 pesos and some! (Magulo na ulit these days, so i have to cough up another 500 bucks tapos pamasahe kung isay man ang mabisita sako para maglinig.) Iyo, tama, hamak na hugakon lang akong tawo kaipuhan ko pa ning ibang tao para maglinig ning sakong harong.

Before

AfterBeforeAfter
Before
AfterDagdag sa 500, ipopost ko pa ang picture ni ermana as part kang saiyang incentive para sa tultol na paglinig sa harong ko. (And dae ko yan kamukha, kung naging babae ako sigurado mas magayon ako diyan, ta hamak na mascute man ako saiya ever since aki pa kami)

Unholy Pac!

Haha. This youtube video is too damn funny. i must say, conspiracy theorists are the most creative people in the planet. Heck, i am not even sure if Manny understands 90 per cent of his accusations. That, or the maker of the Nike emblem is the real devil worshipper. Either way, maybe we should all start worshipping the devil as well so we can all be rich?!

The video:

Holy Pac!

Just too damn awed for Manny's victory over British boxer Ricky Hatton. Me and Ian (Clear SP) were doing chest bumps after we heard the news at the Saint Louis University Gym where we were shooting the Semifinals/Finals of the Baguio Leg of the Clear Men Future Leg.

i am not (yet) even whining about the fact that this is the first time since the first Barrera win that i have NOT watched the Pacman live on the tube.

Eight Minutes, 0 Points, 0 Assists and 1 Turnover (Arguable)

And you are quite happy with that. Welcome to the land of point guards. So no, you won’t find your name screaming stats from the boxscore. Heck, it’s only inter-department office basketball after all, so all the recorded stats are the points scored and fouls (kaldagan, according to the Black Mamba team) made and you can’t expect they record the other numbers that really matter (field goals, percentage, rebounds, assists, etc etc)… I always imagine that we can play in a league where such (a la Yahoo/NBA.com) is updated play-by-play. You know, I am a real sucker for numbers.

And numbers I don’t have in our last game for the elimination round. Around 8 minutes (5 or so in the 2nd quarter, and 2+ in the final quarter), zero attempts meaning I scored zilch and no assists at all. There was one arguable turnover, a pass I made to Arnold, White’s rebounding demon, which he did not handle (or that my pass was too high)… That is not actually the bad news because we did win the game and clinched the number two spot and advanced to the semis (yey, pahinga. Assuming I can still play in the next round/s)… So, to sum it up, it was a goddamn good night for our team.

As I was saying earlier, welcome to the land of point guards--- hobbits of the hardwood and most of the time, damn underrated and overlooked (Am I saying, I am one?)… No, not the Chris Paul, Chauncey Billups, Jay Jay Helterbrand or Jimmy Alapag type of point guards, those kinds virtually dominate the stat categories because they are superstars. Think more like, Chris Quinn, Anthony Carter, Don Dulay or Froilan Baguion. Scrappy play, spotty minutes and simply effective at what they do. Normally, I post my actual (personal) numbers but earlier tonight’s game was different in a lot of ways: I thought I contributed things that more than met the eye (and the score sheet), I acted as pseudo-coach as always and I just do hope they respect me and some of the decisions I made during the course of the ball game.

Not much numbers here, but you can keep a tab on these stats…

1st quarter: Right off tip-off, I fire the first shot at trash talk telling the team to run, run and run because the Black team was a slow and plodding squad (Not sure though if anybody heard it.) We were off to a good start and led after the first canto.

2nd quarter: We were still leading, but Black was starting to come back. Paul Navarro, the other team’s point guard had 3 offensive rebounds and the same number of putbacks. I had the same number of Putang Ina’s as well, telling the team to watch out for the little guy because he was practically putting the Black team within striking distance. We led by 10 points at the turn. Not bad.

3rd quarter: Three straight baskets by Black to put them within four points to start the quarter. We called a timeout and I reminded them that we were not making an effort to stop their fastbreak attempts. We responded and put back some sort of order and pad the lead back up to 8 points. Somewhere here, I was clapping right in front of Ron del Mundo’s face as he passed by the bench (again, not sure if he did see me do that) Also of note, Kristian at the freethrow line and Paolo Mariano was distracting him with the timed “cough” as he shoots the free throw, Kristian misses the first. And Paolo does it again in the second, and Kristian again misses. However, the referee awarded Kristian a third free throw for the errr, distraction. (Efff you ref, that’s part of our defensive gameplan)

4th quarter: Paul was at it again, easily pushing people around like it he was editing in his Avid/Premiere machine. I reminded the referee that the same little guy was probably older than him! (He got the point, and called a foul on Paul on two consecutive plays now seeing the Mr. Navarro’s inadvertent elbows and subliminal shoves. That gave him his 4th personal foul, and clearly his aggression on both ends was a bit affected.) The Black team was making their famous run at end games and cut down the lead to 2 points… We held on, and that’s the most important stat of the evening. Ball game. We win.
So yeah, hobbits of the hardwood will be difficult to appreciate but you know in our own little ways, we’d be making a mark one way AND the other.

Thoughts From the Service Van

Hello, work. How are you doin'? Sitting in this cramped up van of the production team along with the technical crew, i feel very, very tired. As the audioman and cameraman discuss the next shoot for the next few days, i think to myself: do i really fucking want all of these.

One cameraman observes... "kasi di sya masaya sa trabaho niya eh. Dapat nag-lawyer siya, kasi mahilig sya makipagdebate at di sya nageenjoy sa ginagawa niya." Referring to another cameraman. This made me laugh a little bit inside. And a little relaxed, because that's just might be the best take in fucking asking if i really want all these.

So, there. Tomorrow's pullout is around 6:30 a.m.

Wake-up. Work. Whine. Repeat.

RP Under-16 Down Under

As i've said, be careful what you wish for because you just might get it. Working for BTV means an endless flow of basketball projects over the next couple of months. More often than not, you are asked to double up and you don't have time to whine. Yeah, yeah just like what James Posey should do if they want to beat the Denver Nuggets in the their first round match-up. Or asking Ime Udoka to forget that he doesn't have a playoff experience and lead the Spurs to an improbable comeback because they are already in a 1-3 hole against the surging Dallas Mavericks. Anyway, the pictures above are some images from the U16 training at the AIS camp in Australia (sent to me by RP Youth Team's PR Manager Val Victa, thank you sir!), the same pictures which i sent to my editor today to add to the already "latagged" segment 1 on BTV's feature on the RP Youth Team.

For Pride and Posterity's Sake Year II

One of the problems of posting this here is the fact that a friend just won a (real) trophy as opposed to these (fantasy) trophies, which really means nothing. And the fact that he'd be showing (off) that new trophy anytime soon. Congratulations, 'teng! (See link on the rightside by now he should be posting the pictures of Jason Williams Kevin Garnett Hidalgo--- not the real name for the sake of two, plus your newborn son)

Before i write "may you have many more to come.", ini muna: Pramis. Mahabol kami. Bold and italicized.

Greatest (Fantasy) Season Ever!

(If you have time please do read everything, this fantasy entry comes in 5 parts, bear with me.)

Sure. It could have been better. But at some point in your (fantasy) life you have to settle for less than perfect. And even then, it can give you enough satisfaction (and a few dough, in this case) to last until the next battles.

The stats and facts (and i promise, more to come in later entries):

All in all, i joined nine (9) leagues this year. Four of them money-leagues (of each below), 2 of them semi-serious leagues (Because of sentimental reasons and because i feel they are 2 of the most competitive ones i joined since time immemorial) and the other three, the funtasy leagues--- against friends/officemates/random people who are either fantasy virgins or managers who just don't have the guts yet to spend a little cash to spice things up.

While, it would be fun to analyze what happened in the funtasy leagues, it won't offer much insight to what really transpired because well, it was all for fun. (A note for Enteng and Jao, who placed 1st and 2nd respectively.)

The other semi-serious leagues? Let's just say i won't talk about those because i pretty much sucked again as in the past seasons in these leagues. That's a lot of mad props to the members of the Solar Forums as the managers in these leagues are from the community--- i can now say the basketball addicts in that forum are in a class of their own, fantasy-wise. Now, the question is would the results have been better if it involved money? Hmmmm. That's difficult to say, but i am pretty sure i would have worked doubly hard (And that's not to discredit them, because i know they'd be pushing the envelope as well)

And the money leagues? Let's just say i outdid myself this season. i joined four of them and finished in the money in three. Not bad, eh? If last year brought (bought) me this one:



This year brought (bought) something a LITTLE bit better:


Damn right. Fantasy basketball--- it's more than just a hobby now, it's business. (But heck, you won't win anything if you remove the "fun" part. Believe me.)

Airball Postmortem 2009: CSC LIVE

CSC LIVE (Roto) - 17 Teams, Entry Fee: 1,000

And yes, let's start with the bad news. After winning last year's head-to-head format (see link: For Posterity and Pride's Sake) with virtually the same managers in this league i ended up 12th out of 17 teams this year! Ika-dose! Kakasupog! Then again, after winning last year it didn't hurt as much... And there's something to look forward to: Roto - Head-to-head alternates every other year, and as Sir Noel Z said during the start of this season i am NOT the defending champion this year but next. So there, i get a free pass for not really bringing my A-Game for this one? (or just plainly sucking in this league)... Which brings me to the first fantasy lesson of the entry...

1. INJURY BUG BITES--- HARD AND FAST.

During the first five rounds, NEVER draft players who were injured in the offseason.

Sure, you could risk it but maybe never this high because more oft than not he will slide anyway to the next few rounds. After being one of the sleeper stars last year, Mike Dunleavy missed the first three months of the season before returning in early January. Team Airball selected him in the fourth round over the likes of David Lee, Hedo Turkoglu, Stephen Jackson and Kevin Durant. Jackson and Durant became 2nd-round quality players while Turkoglu and Lee are 4th rounders.

Lesson learnt. Never again will i pick players who has the tiniest bit of an injury history. i don't/won't care if it's a hyperextended pinkie--- i am not going that way. i will pick the player who will give me full 82 games (Ok, 80) even if it means a projected -5 points, -3 rebounds, -3 assists for that season. (But of course the gambler in me says i have to errrr, gamble, but never again inside the first five rounds)

2. INJURY BUG BITES, ACCEPT IT

i've heard it all before. They lost because of injuries! Of course! That is part of the game. While it could be the reason, it does not mean you have to stop fighting! For the CSC League i already lost the aforementioned Dunleavy to injury early on. Adding insult was the fact that i was also missing Kevin Martin for the early part. Then Al Jefferson during mid-season and finally, Andres Biedrins in the latter part?

Did i stop adding and dropping people? No. Proud to say i was still competing during November to January. Although missing Jefferson was the turning point of the season (and Biedrins was the final nail in the coffin) i never lost sight of the fact that there were still worthy free agents out there. Now, the question is did it work in this particular league? Obviously not, but as you will see later when we analyze the leagues i have won (or almost won), it was this never-say-never mindset that brought me that gold trophy.

Airball Postmortem 2009: SOLAR ANTIPOLO

SOLAR ANTIPOLO (Head to Head) - 18 Teams, Entry Fee: 500

This was one of the first funtasy leagues up until three years ago when we decided to shell out some money so that people will treat it seriously. And that they did. After winning last year, i was looking forward for my first back to back titles. But it wasn't meant to be. In the finals match-up against Cubao Barkers team, which upset #1 seed The Mouth, who choked in the semifinals, i lost 7-to-8 after leading him 9-to-6 in the penultimate day. As with life and fantasy, the people you rely on are the same people who will drag you down to the ditches. Lebron James decided to rest on the Cavaliers final game versus the Sixers and i lost by 8 freaking FIELD GOALS MADE! EIGHT! Lebron can double that if he played!

But of course, i am half joking. i can't fault The King for not playing, and a league manager should expect that because that is what stars do for non-bearing games. And league managers should find a way to soften the blow.

For the last day in this league, i did decide to bench him because of reports that James will not be suiting up. It was a good move but the remaining players i had were either cruising along (Culprits: Delonte West and DJ Augustin) or just saw limited minutes. So it was not enough which brings me to my third lesson:

3. ADDING AND DROPPING IS AN ART.

i will spill the beans right here, right now. Max out all your moves when you get the chance. Especially in the playoff round, or if you are chasing for a playoff spot. NEVER, EVER be afraid to cut quality players because you picked them early in the draft. Look at their schedule for the week and compare it to average players who might be playing more for that same week. Ask yourself: is the juice worth the squeeze? Should i risk getting 0 minutes from my star player or settle for the 10 minutes a game for a lower-rated player but will definitely play this week?

i can actually pinpoint how i lost the match-up against Cubao Barkers. i was waiting for Kevin Martin to comeback for the final week and decided to stick with him for the first day but the Kings star never showed up. If i had gotten say, a Lou Amundson for this week, could he have given me those extra 9 field goals?

There's science in the add/drop as well. Spilling the beans (and the pork too) again, release before the 3PM deadline to set your line-up for the next day. It's actually very easy, you can see their next schedule right across that certain free agent you are picking up. Now, there are leagues with max moves so make sure you use the add/drop strategy wisely. Timing is of essence, but it's not all. Make sure you pick players that can actually contribute (Meaning, no Adam Morrison) and will be playing for that day.

The Moves That Brought Me The Silver:

Apr 12 7:11pm James Jones (Mia - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 12 7:11pm Brandon Bass (Dal - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 12 6:36pm Marvin Williams (Atl - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 12 6:36pm Ime Udoka (SA - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 11 7:12pm Brandon Bass (Dal - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 11 7:12pm Ryan Anderson (NJ - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 11 7:07pm Ime Udoka (SA - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 11 7:07pm Roy Hibbert (Ind - C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:32pm Louis Amundson (Pho - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:32pm Anthony Carter (Den - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:25pm Roy Hibbert (Ind - C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:25pm Von Wafer (Hou - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:20pm Ryan Anderson (NJ - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 9 11:20pm Carl Landry (Hou - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 8 5:10pm Von Wafer (Hou - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 8 5:10pm Matt Bonner (SA - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 8 4:33pm Carl Landry (Hou - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 8 4:33pm Javaris Crittenton (Was - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 7 7:08pm Javaris Crittenton (Was - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 7 7:08pm Kevin MartinINJ (Sac - SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 4 6:46pm Leandro Barbosa (Pho - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 4 6:46pm Udonis HaslemINJ (Mia - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 2 5:45pm Samuel Dalembert (Phi - C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 2 5:45pm C.J. Miles (Uta - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 1 10:18pm C.J. Miles (Uta - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 1 10:18pm Rudy Fernandez (Por - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 1 9:53pm Anthony Carter (Den - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 1 9:53pm Jared Dudley (Pho - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Mar 31 3:49pm Jared Dudley (Pho - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Mar 31 3:49pm Samuel Dalembert (Phi - C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 20 12:09pm Aaron Brooks (Hou - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 20 12:09pm Anthony Johnson (Orl - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 11 5:42pm Delonte West (Cle - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 11 5:42pm Trevor Ariza (LAL - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 5 2:51pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 5 2:51pm Sergio Rodriguez (Por - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 5 2:25am Anthony Johnson (Orl - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 5 2:25am Fred Jones (LAC - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 1 2:42pm Trevor Ariza (LAL - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 1 2:42pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 31 3:44am Fred Jones (LAC - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 31 3:44am Chris Wilcox (NY - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 29 2:49pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 29 2:49pm Steve Novak (LAC - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 27 1:08pm Chris Wilcox (NY - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 27 1:08pm Ricky Davis (LAC - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 26 12:01pm Ricky Davis (LAC - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 26 12:01pm Delonte West (Cle - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 26 10:27am Steve Novak (LAC - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 26 10:27am Michael ReddINJ (Mil - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 25 8:45pm Sergio Rodriguez (Por - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 25 8:45pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z

Date Player Type From To By
Jan 25 8:45pm Sergio Rodriguez (Por - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 25 8:45pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 24 6:44pm D.J. Augustin (Cha - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 24 6:44pm C.J. Miles (Uta - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 20 7:49pm Delonte West (Cle - PG,SG) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 20 7:49pm Desmond MasonINJ (OKC - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 20 1:20pm C.J. Miles (Uta - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 20 1:20pm Will SolomonNA (Sac - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 17 4:17pm Desmond MasonINJ (OKC - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 17 4:17pm Courtney Lee (Orl - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 17 4:09pm Will SolomonNA (Sac - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 17 4:09pm Kosta Koufos (Uta - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 16 6:41pm Courtney Lee (Orl - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 16 6:41pm Daniel Gibson (Cle - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 16 5:21pm Daniel Gibson (Cle - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 16 5:21pm Kyle Lowry (Hou - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 15 6:33pm Kyle Lowry (Hou - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 15 6:33pm Thabo Sefolosha (OKC - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 10 2:33pm Kosta Koufos (Uta - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 10 2:33pm Kyle Lowry (Hou - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 10 2:27pm Thabo Sefolosha (OKC - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 10 2:27pm Jose Juan Barea (Dal - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 7 5:39pm Jose Juan Barea (Dal - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 7 5:39pm Joakim Noah (Chi - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 6 4:26pm Kyle Lowry (Hou - PG,SG) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 6 4:26pm Courtney Lee (Orl - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 3 3:34pm Joakim Noah (Chi - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 3 3:34pm Rasual Butler (NO - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 1 2:40pm Rasual Butler (NO - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 1 2:40pm Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 31 5:33pm Courtney Lee (Orl - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 31 5:33pm Jose Juan Barea (Dal - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 27 4:46am Jose Juan Barea (Dal - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 27 4:46am Tony Allen (Bos - PG,SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 23 6:28pm Tony Allen (Bos - PG,SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 23 6:28pm Joakim Noah (Chi - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 23 6:19pm Joakim Noah (Chi - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 23 6:19pm Drew Gooden (SA - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 8 4:23am Matt Bonner (SA - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 8 4:23am DeShawn StevensonINJ (Was - SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 6 4:25pm Zach Randolph (LAC - PF,C)
Trade Air Ball Career Losers JQU!Z
Dec 6 4:25pm Michael ReddINJ (Mil - SG,SF)
Trade Career Losers Air Ball Enteng
Dec 3 11:06pm DeShawn StevensonINJ (Was - SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 3 11:06pm Jamario MoonINJ (Mia - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 27 1:05pm Jamario MoonINJ (Mia - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 27 1:05pm Mike Conley (Mem - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 14 4:26pm Drew Gooden (SA - PF,C) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 14 4:26pm Brandon Bass (Dal - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Oct 23 3:22pm Marvin Williams (Atl - SF,PF)
Hakim Warrick (Mem - SF,PF)
Trade Air Ball Bano JQU!Z
Oct 23 3:22pm Rafer Alston (Orl - PG)
Udonis HaslemINJ (Mia - PF,C)
Trade Bano Air Ball Bano
Oct 18 6:15pm Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Oct 18 6:15pm Marco Belinelli (GS - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z

Airball Postmortem 2009: RADYO PBA-NBA

RADYO PBA-NBA (Roto) - 12 Teams, Entry Fee: 500

Magoo Marjon invited me at the 11th hour and i almost begged off. Well, because of the fact that i already had three money leagues at that time, i was really considering of not joining. But because of the lure of Magoo (and the players/managers in it, the likes of Jason Webb, Mico Halili, Topex Robinson, Wesley Gonzales) i decided to give it a chance.

And trying to remember how it all began... The horrors of the autodraft! For the first round (9th) pick, Team Airball selected Shawn Marion! (How i rated him so high escapes me), i passed up the likes of Caron Butler, Al Jefferson and Deron Williams (who all missed ample time but might have been a better pick)... Anyway, i did quite well in the next 7 rounds getting Yao Ming, David West, Andres Biedrins, Kevin Durant and Troy Murphy among others.. However, i think the real reason i won this is with patience and just waiting out on somebody to make the wrong move (and being prepared with a high waiver) which leads me to my fourth advice...

4. WORRY BUT DON'T PANIC

On November 15 i traded James Posey for Mike Dunleavy hoping the Pacer will have an early return. However, on November 29 Lamar Odom was released to the waivers and i immediately grabbed him and dropped DunDun...

On December 6 i dropped Jamario Moon (Still a Raptor and still effective but with erratic minutes) and risked on Kellena Azubuike.

On January 4, i dropped Drew Gooden (the bug starting to errr bug him) and acquired Andrea Bargnani.

All of the mentioned players lasted 'til April 16, the last day of the regular season. The lesson? Be on the watch for managers who do press the panic button (Examples are the release of the likes of Odom and Bargnani, who had starter minutes all season long)

The Moves That Brought Me The Gold:

Date Player Type From To By
Mar 12 6:54pm Aaron Brooks (Hou - PG,SG) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Mar 12 6:54pm Derek Fisher (LAL - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 9 5:01pm Derek Fisher (LAL - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 9 5:01pm Anthony Carter (Den - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 6 2:15pm Anthony Carter (Den - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 6 2:15pm Luke Ridnour (Mil - PG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 30 6:33pm Luke Ridnour (Mil - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 30 6:33pm Andrei Kirilenko (Uta - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 4 5:37pm Andrea BargnaniINJ (Tor - SF,PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 4 5:37pm Drew Gooden (SA - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 6 4:25pm Kelenna Azubuike (GS - SG,SF) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 6 4:25pm Jamario MoonINJ (Mia - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 29 4:25pm Lamar Odom (LAL - SF,PF) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 29 4:25pm Mike Dunleavy (Ind - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 23 4:25pm James Posey (NO - SG,SF)
Trade Air Ball strontium90 JQU!Z
Nov 23 4:25pm Mike DunleavyINJ (Ind - SG,SF)
Trade strontium90 Air Ball winsworld
Nov 15 8:03pm James Posey (NO - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 15 8:03pm Mike Conley (Mem - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 9 10:53am Steve Blake (Por - PG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 9 10:53am Kirk Hinrich (Chi - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z

Airball Postmortem 2009: SOLAR BRAGGING RIGHTS (MAKATI)

Solar Bragging Rights - Makati (Roto) - 13 Teams, Entry Fee: 1,500

Last season i was on the way to a third place finish in this league but faltered (CHOKED) in the final five days... How, why? i RELEASED my favorite, favorite player in Jason Williams because i thought he was going to be benched in his final game... Then horror of horrors, White Chocolate hit 5 three pointers in his last game as i lost a point and dropped to 4th place (no money).... The point coming from 3PT FieldGoalsMade.

Losing at that time felt so bad that i wanted to give up Roto the rest of my fantasy career (Remember i can't give it all up because i did win a big money head to head league)... However, there's no walking away from a loss. You just can't leave with a bad taste (whitechoco-flavored) in the mouth...

This year, i made it all the way and honestly, i don't know where to start on how i won this goddamn thing. The draft wasn't too shabby, after all i had the first pick (but this was a snake draft so i was picking 26th and 27th afterward) and used it for CP3, then picked David West and Kevin Martin for the next two. i had Chandler at fifth (ugh, the injuries) then had average picks for the next five (Wallace, Odom, Randolph, Haslem and Moon)... i lucked out for my 11th pick and got Nene.

While the draft did not look too good at first glance, i pretty much had a balanced team. Somewhere along the way i picked players who helped me in specific categories... Which brings me to my fifth point...

5. YOU WON'T WIN EVERY CATEGORY, GIVE UP A FEW AND DOMINATE THE OTHERS!

That's the biggest secret in fantasy leagues (and i do believe in any stats-inclined fantasy sports league) and i am letting it out because that should be a given. While we all want to win all the stats--- the points, 3 points made, assists, steals, blocks, rebound and turnovers. IT'S NOT JUST HAPPENING! The point is maximizing what you have and minimizing the loss of points on categories you are weak at.

On October 30, i dropped Darko Milicic for Shane Battier. While Milicic looked promising at that time, i had enough rebounds that i preferred Battier's across the board production. His three's were falling back then and an extra steal or two did not hurt.

On December 17, i got Roger Mason. He was the starter then because of injuries to Manu Ginobili. Mason provided me all-important points, which was hard to come by because i did not have a legit scorer (aside from David West, who wasn't exactly a sure-25 point scorer)

On March 09, i got Ronnie Turiaf because he blocked 5 shots in a game the day before. With Biedrins out, he was swatting shots like it's French toast.

Going into the final weeks of the season, i got Trevor Ariza, Kyle Lowry and Courtney Lee. Sure they can hit three's but i did not need that: all i wanted was their pick-pocket abilities.

So, why i am telling you all these?

Airball had 95 points for its final score. The second placer, Eee-Cee had 91.5; he was -5 on steals (889 to 884) Assuming he stole that steal-cat that makes it 94 for me and 92.5 for him. On blocked shots? The nearest competitor was at 529 and i was at 535. Assuming he did steal the block-cat, that is another -1 for me, meaning i end up at 93. Just 0.5 away from Eee-Cee--- going into the final week? Anything could happen.

Sure, sure. Maybe it's not as simple as that, maybe there are other factors. But most of the time, it's the small things that make you win big.

Thank you fantasy gods!

The Moves That Brought Me The Gold:

Date Player Type From To By
Apr 8 5:47pm Kyle Lowry (Hou - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 8 5:47pm Kevin MartinINJ (Sac - SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Apr 6 6:35pm Courtney Lee (Orl - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Apr 6 6:35pm Udonis HaslemINJ (Mia - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Mar 13 5:47pm Trevor Ariza (LAL - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Mar 13 5:47pm Kelenna Azubuike (GS - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Mar 9 11:03am Ronny Turiaf (GS - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Mar 9 11:03am Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Feb 26 11:23am Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Feb 26 11:23am Rudy Fernandez (Por - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 29 5:32pm Kelenna Azubuike (GS - SG,SF) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 29 5:32pm Trevor Ariza (LAL - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 26 6:02pm Trevor Ariza (LAL - SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 26 6:02pm Roger Mason (SA - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Jan 3 3:43pm Matt Bonner (SA - PF,C) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Jan 3 3:43pm Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 24 7:14pm Rudy Fernandez (Por - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 24 7:14pm Travis Outlaw (Por - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 18 2:00pm Travis Outlaw (Por - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 18 2:00pm Daniel Gibson (Cle - PG,SG) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 17 4:29pm Roger Mason (SA - PG,SG) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 17 4:29pm Carl Landry (Hou - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 8 4:36am Daniel Gibson (Cle - PG,SG) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 8 4:36am Nicolas Batum (Por - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 5 1:19am Carl Landry (Hou - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 5 1:19am Brandon Bass (Dal - SF,PF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Dec 3 11:17pm Brandon Bass (Dal - SF,PF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Dec 3 11:17pm Jamario MoonINJ (Mia - SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Nov 30 8:16pm Nicolas Batum (Por - SG,SF) Add Free Agents Air Ball JQU!Z
Nov 30 8:16pm Mickael Pietrus (Orl - SG,SF) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z
Oct 30 3:28pm Shane Battier (Hou - SF) Add Waivers Air Ball JQU!Z
Oct 30 3:28pm Darko Milicic (Mem - PF,C) Drop Air Ball Waivers JQU!Z