Chaska, Minn -- Duval United general manager Matthew Fairburn could not meet eyes with anyone in the room, as reporters peppered him with questions after his team's second straight heartbreaking playoff loss.
His face flushed, he struggled to explain what it's like to barely miss out on the COMO Finals two seasons in a row. "I have poured my heart and soul into it FTB," he said, fighting back tears. "All for nothing." Not nothing, though. After beginning the season as a high-octane offensive threat, the Bold City Brigade was slowed by long-term injuries to stars Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant. Few thought that the remaining players could carry the load, but they nearly found a way to upset regular season behemoth Chaska in the semifinals. Led by recent point guard acquisition Reggie Jackson, Duval was a dozen bones away from reaching the pinnacle basketball series of the year. "I don't know how the [Buffalo] Bills of the '90s did it," Fairburn said. "We have a tough offseason ahead of us. Big decisions need to be made. Research needs to be done. I just need to #logoff for a while." Asked about Jackson's performance, Fairburn finally looked up and locked eyes with the room. "Reggie is still my god damn hero for what he did," he said. "He put on for the city when nobody else was man enough to do it. That will not be forgotten by this regime. I lost hope in this season when [Shorewood GM] Alex [Smith] traded for LeBron. But Duval pulled me back in. I gave up when Durant went out for the year, but Reggie pulled me in. The fluctuation of emotions was a lot to handle." After a short offseason break, Duval will have a lot of questions to answer. A likely Top-7 pick awaits them in the Rookie Draft, but DeAndre Jordan has already expressed discontent with his cheap contract, and Kobe's cap figure is still hanging over the team's budget. The two will not be able to stay together thanks to Durant's titanic deal, and many other familiar faces (Rajon Rondo, Derrick Favors, Andrew Bogut) might also be jettisoned. Chaska and Shorewood also eliminated the Minnesnowta Chill, a hapless group that fell off the championship radar at least a week ago. The COMO Finals will run from tonight, March 30, to April 15.
0 Comments
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — You're probably not surprised.
Duval United small forward Kevin Durant has dominated COMO since the Brigade signed him for $50 million in the offseason auction. Kevin Love and LeBron James had excellent seasons, too, but in the end, they weren't really close to matching Durant's 34.08 average over 63 starts. Nobody else had the crunch-time instinct that would kick in on Sunday nights when the Brigade needed a standings bump. Durant would routinely go over 40 bones on the final day of the week. "None of those things will matter if Kevin doesn't keep up his stellar play in the postseason," Duval United general manager Matthew Fairburn said. But Durant has also been dominant through the first week of the playoffs (although that did not factor into the voting for this award). He's collected 130 bones through three starts for a 43.33 average. If Duval wins a championship, it will be Durant who carries them to the crown. "Kevin has to understand that we don't have any other players," Fairburn said. "This is his show. And your tape is your resume, FYI." Here are the final results of the 2013-2014 COMO MVP voting: 1. Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City), SF, Duval United — 34.08 / 63 starts 2. Kevin Love (Minnesota), PF/C, Chaska — 32.47 / 59 starts 3. LeBron James (Miami), SF/PF, Minneapolis — 30.95 / 62 starts 4. Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers), PF, Minneapolis — 27.63 / 68 starts 5. Anthony Davis (New Orleans), PF/C, Hollywood — 32.70 / 40 starts 6. DeMarcus Cousins (Sacramento), PF/C, Chaska — 27.79 / 56 starts 7. Carmelo Anthony (New York), SF/PF, Minnesnowta — 27.33 / 58 starts 8. LaMarcus Aldridge (Portland), PF/C, Shorewood — 26.87 / 60 starts 9. Stephen Curry (Golden State), PG/SG, Newport Beach/Shorewood — 26.03 / 64 starts 10. Andre Drummond (Detroit), PF/C, Rio — 25.64 / 64 starts JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — This one was obvious.
Kevin Durant accounted for four straight Player of the Week awards in the month of January, making him the easy selection for Player of the Month. His stretch included 16 games with an average of 38.44 bones. To put that in perspective, only a couple players have been able to maintain such an average over the course of a single week this season. "Your tape is your resume," general manager Matthew Fairburn said. Indeed. HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — It was only a matter of time until Anthony Davis etched his name into the league record book.
After being robbed of the award in November (when owner Curt Clauss illegally altered the Hornets lineup), Davis finally strutted his stuff for all the league to see. He played only two games, but put up 47 and 51 COMO points in those contests. The rest of his team, meanwhile, is still floundering due to a combination of awful front office management and an injury to star point guard Chris Paul. The Hornets are in a fierce battle with Kansas City and Rio for lottery position. Davis' saving grace is that he is a very young star (20 years old), and will have plenty of time to make deep playoff runs under different ownership. NOTE: This is the first time in five weeks that Duval United small forward Kevin Durant has not taken home COMO Player of the Week. That sort of run — four in a row — was unprecedented, and we may never see such a feat again. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — First to five. First to three in a row.
Kevin Durant is still doing unbelievable things on the basketball court, and is being rewarded off it. The Duval superstar averaged 38.75 bones in four games last week en route to his fifth Player of the Week award. "That boy good," owner Matthew Fairburn said. "We are blessed to have Kevin Durant in Duval just like we are blessed to have Alexander Smith as commish of this league." Tired of making comments after a never-ending deluge of great performances, Fairburn had nothing more to add. Smart money says Durant does. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Perhaps the strongest organization is the one with the most secrecy.
As small forward Kevin Durant picked up his third COMO Player of the Week award, it's clear that Duval United is excellent on the court. And, given the team's talented roster, the front office is apparently doing its job. But what, exactly, is going on in Jacksonville? The only media contact made this season has been with general manager Matthew Fairburn. Co-manager Joe Dreyer has not been heard from, and no one has been able to watch the team's games this season due to a strict blackout rule enforced by owner Shad Khan, who watches games live with only select family and business associates. "Khan's strict system completely contradicts the idea of 'Duval United,'" Chaska owner Joseph Fafinski said. "In reality, he is a soul-sucking big corporation. Small-market teams like Chaska help this league thrive. Nobody wants to play in front of evil Khan." When approached with questions about Durant's performance, Fairburn responded with a cult-ish statement he wrote for both his owner and star player: "Thank you based Durant for the blessings you have bestowed upon the fine people of Duval," Khan's statement read. Durant's "response" was similarly eery, with odd insults thrown in at the Green Bay Packers (Fafinski's other sports property): "Thank you based Khan for founding this franchise in Duval County and not Appleton, Wisc. or some sh-thole like that," Durant's statement read. "My POW honors are the least I can do. We're gunning for that cheese d-ck Fafinski." JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — You can call Kevin Durant the king of Sunday nights.
One week after posting 60 COMO points to vault Duval into the top half of the standings, his 41 bones yesterday were enough to pull off a second straight Player of the Week award. It looked as if Shorewood's LaMarcus Aldridge (35.5 average over four games) had the hardware locked up, but Durant (36.25 over four games) came through when he needed to most. "It has been said that the Lord rests on Sunday," general manager Matthew Fairburn said. "But that's when Duval's God does his finest work." Durant is the second player in COMO history to post back-to-back POW campaigns (Chaska's Kevin Love was the first this November). No one has been able to grab three straight yet, but if Durant is red-hot. "Will he win three straight?" Fairburn asked. "Does Joey Fafinski sleep with a night light? No question." JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Kevin Durant only contributed three starts to the Bold City Brigade this week, but he made them count.
Specifically, he made his Sunday performance count with the league's largest COMO point total of the season (60 points). Playing against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Durant became the first player since Michael Jordan in 1988 to notch 30 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, four blocks and four steals. Durant's big game boosted the Brigade from a likely seventh-place finish to third place in the Week 5 standings. Duval is now tied with Newport Beach for the fourth and final playoff spot. United general manager Matthew Fairburn — still salty over Chaska owner Joseph Fafinski's arithmatical comments from November — fired back late Sunday night. "Here's some simple math for you, f-ck boy Fafinski," Fairburn said. "Sixty points equals Player of the Week." COLUMBIA, Mo. — Word reached the league office that a deal between the Minnesnowta Chill and Duval United fell through in the wee hours of Thursday morning.
Duval was apparently interested in budding shooting guard Eric Bledsoe, a fourth-year man from Kentucky who has averaged 23.8 COMO points in five games this season. Their offer allegedly included big man Enes Kanter and some combination of Luol Deng, Andrew Bogut or a 2014 draft pick. After a couple re-workings, though, the sides stopped discussions. Is Bledsoe legitimately on the trading block? "Not to pull a Rick Spielman or anything," Chill owner Matthew Taylor said, "but any player is trade-able for the right price." |
Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|