The West Leonard Hearts have added Swish to their active roster from the returning player pool.
The 6-2 guard/forward was originally drafted by the Bridge Street Buzz and played the 1st half of the 2021 season for the Yellow Jerseys.
Andy hits a milestone as he runs down 60.
Congrats to a good friend, the reason we run distance, and the Real Deal realtor of the year in our book.
*the original draft pick of the Buzz
The first half of the 2021-22 regular season will come to a conclusion on Tuesday night before the Gr3g League takes nearly a month off for the holidays.
The Creston Rock Crew will be looking to stay undefeated as they take the home end of the floor playing host to the Red Hawks of Force in the opening game (7pm). Both teams have a different look since the season opener where the Crew defeated the Hawks, 47-38.
Newcomers Ricky Bobby (left) and Proto have led the way for the Crew, according to the MVP Race, but it’s been a collective effort across the board for the Purple. Boog and Jimmy G are playing some of their best basketball to date while the new additions of Gavin and Asian Spice (right) have increased tempo and opened up wide-open pockets to shoot from.
The Crew hasn’t felt the need to take their game outside the 3G line, as they’e attempted the least of any team.
Coming off last season’s Championship victory, the team found itself in disarray. Multiple players had secretly positioned themselves to leave the squad for other teams over the summer creating a whirlwind of drama which was at the time only known to league personnel.
During the offseason recruiting process, multiple players had again made it “very clear” they did not want to return to the Hawks. One was even bold enough to tell the league they’d, “found another league to play in and I’m taking some players with me.” (That player no longer plays in the Gr3g League and did not respond to inquiries for a comment.)
The league made the choice to fill the team with incoming players in a huge trade after Week 1 “once the Nines decided how to fill their roster” AND “none of the other Hawks being available or having reached out to the league yet“.
In that trade, the Hawks secured the services of a “team of 4 that will start their own expansion team next season in Orange & Black” consisting of The Juice, AG, ****Mike & Coach Drew to go with  I’ll Will, (pictured below) Cake and newcomer Daniel Bk.
With Bandit‘s sudden return in Week 4, the Red now have a returning squad of four plus the Orange 4 and part-time available services of Big Baby.
A.G. has lead the way in the scoring department so far this season, only giving way to Bandit this past week against the Buzz. ****Mike is a dominant force on the boards both offensively and defensively. After an injury to his shooting hand, Coach Drew has taken a prominent role on the sidelines as the “voice of the Force” and, not surprisingly, The Juice just keeps finding himself in open space to fire three-pointers in long-sleeves.
This team has taken the most 3G’s this season, a deep contrast to their upcoming opponent.
Continue reading “2021-22 Week 6 Preview: End of the 1st Half”
Friday night in a dark, smoke-filled room somewhere on the WestSide of Grand Rapids, the six GMs of the Beer City Hoops league got together to prepare for the upcoming draft.
Here are the transactions that took place and have been stamped “Approved” by the Commissioner.
Turns out, the Princess gets what she wants. This time, it’s an All-Star trio to put on the floor in 2021.
Jill Green, owner/GM of the Greens, made it known over the weekend that her objective during the 2021 season was to surround the team’s cornerstone player, Dr. Weed, with a group of hustlers that could meld together quickly this off-season to put together a championship run.
Monday afternoon she did just that. The Greens have sent their 1st, 2nd & 5th round draft picks in 2020 to the Buzz and agreed to a pick-flip in rounds 3 & 4 to bring Sam Awry and B Stacks over to the greener side of the fence. Both Awry and Stacks have played for Beer City Hoops in previous tournaments, including the Battle of the Gains 2019 on Calder Plaza in downtown Grand Rapids. Green, as she said Monday, “saw what they’re able to do on the court as teammates last summer and (we) want that hoops knowledge on our team”.
If teams are worried about the free agent market, this should prod the anxiety nerve in GMs around the league. Awry’s canny ability to recruit late in the game is remarkable. Look at the wake of players attributed to his being in the league. (We’ll count six, currently.) B Stacks has opened the airways of opportunity for two potential draftees this off-season.
With Dr. Weed’s leadership and veteran presence, Sam Awry’s ability to get people on the same page and B Stacks being the emotional Magic of the squad, Greens now has a Big Three akin to the likes of Dennis Johnson, Jim Paxson and Robert Parrish from the ’87 Celtics. Add in Trip, aka “Four Corners Eau Claire” aka Larry Bird, and this team is just a rock-and-roll band from Boston.
Buzz GM Grizzly Doug, namesake of the MVP Trophy, owner/operator of the team and Little River Woodworks- Croton, was willing to saw the root stump off the current team to start over on a new canvas of hoops for 2021. Burning his own flesh into the team’s outer layer like a cattle brand, this sawyer knows when to cut and run. Now was the right time to Buzz off.
The haul? It’s Yuge! The Buzz now have two 1st’s, two 2nd’s, two 5th’s and flipped their 3rd & 4th with Greens in the upcoming draft on December 8th. That’s eight picks!!! The architect is drawing up plans; step one – foundation.
Late Friday night the Buzz sent a 2020 6th Round Draft Pick to the Nines for a 4-pack of Mosacca IPA from Greyline Brewing.
Sources throughout the league continue to believe Sam Awry and B Stacks will be traded by the Buzz sometime before the Gr3g League draft on Tuesday December 8th.
While no official word from the Buzz (or any team for that matter) has been announced or discussed in public, sources familiar with the situation who wish to remain anonymous talk about this being “openly talked about within the GM circle” and that the Buzz wants “as many draft picks” as possible for the duo whether shipped out together or in separate deals.
The Reds‘ GM is on record, allegedly, denouncing the path Buzz leadership have taken over the past year during the pandemic. We don’t have that audio. “Get your sh!+ together” is his motto, but it’s a bit surprising to show such emotion. We don’t believe the Reds are a true contender for either player.
City, Crew, Nines & Greens all have the assets necessary to pull off such a deal. If any one of them willing to make a major splash pre-draft, our bet is on the Crew. What the trade wouldn’t do for these teams is add size.
The Gr3g League Draft takes place on December 8, 2020.
News coming out of the Buzz camp is that ownership and management are contemplating a complete rebuild of the roster for the 2021 season.
With the completion of pre-season games, the upcoming Draft becomes the building block for the newest expansion team in the Gr3g League. The “buzz around town”, pardon our theft Mr. Goebel, is that both Sam Awry and B Stacks could be on the move as soon as Thursday night.
The Yellow Jackets could add as many as 3 picks for each player and set themselves up for a run at a title in 2022.
The Buzz is currently located outside Broadleaf Beer in Grand Rapids, MI.
Check the “Broad Board” for a free pint from the League, if you’re In Gear AND Pay It Forward!
