Re-printed with special permission from the Kansas City Star.
ORLANDO, Fla. — After several months of chaos, COMO has finally been able to narrow down its contenders to two. The Chaska Moose and Sunnyvale Slayers are in the midst of an entertaining—though clearly unorthodox—COMO Finals. They survived a group semifinal that eliminated four teams, and, provided COVID-19 steers clear of the bubble, one of them will be crowned champion. The league did its best to make this as normal of a process as possible. And it deserves kudos for doing so. But it can't completely cover up the talent vacuum in Orlando. Saturday's announcement of the All-COMO teams (voted on in February) made sure of that. Look no further than the Kansas City for proof. The Monarchs won the regular season championship with a 63-19 record. Damian Lillard, LeBron James and Luka Doncic all earned All-COMO first team honors. Yet, the Monarchs were somehow bounced from the playoffs in their first round of action, and were not invited to the restart. (Previously, the Monarchs had only landed four selections on an All-COMO team in six seasons; Lillard and Marc Gasol on the second team in 2014-2015, Lillard on the third team in 2018-2019, and LeBron James on the second team in 2018-2019.) Based on player performance in the NBA bubble, the Monarchs would've likely blown through the COMO field, had they still been eligible. Players such as Michael Porter, Jr., have taken star turns on the NBA side, while Nowland and a crushed Monarchs fan base are watching, helpless. Mad-hattan Kansas City lost, fair and square, in March, so it's hard to feel too much despair for them. If you're going to give your sympathy to a franchise, make it Manhattan. The Monarchs landed two players on the All-COMO second team—Trae Young and Domantas Sabonis—but neither one was available to play in the restart. Also missing from action: future first-ballot COMO Hall of Famer Stephen Curry. "Selfishly, it just is tough that I realistically have a much worse shot at winning now," GM Alex Krause said in late July. "Even though my team was the next best team up after KC got beat." Sure enough, the Spiders folded like a cheap Samsonite as Chaska and Sunnyvale—both healthy and at the peak of their power—distanced themselves from the rest of the field. Other All-COMO players who missed the bubble, either due to elimination or injury, included the following: Paisley Park's Anthony Davis and Ben Simmons, Duval United's Andre Drummond, Newport Beach's Russell Westbrook, and Tampa's Karl-Anthony Towns and Jimmy Butler. Right timing for Moose, Slayers If you're scanning the All-COMO teams for a member of the Chaska Moose, you'll be looking forever. There isn't a single one. It's the first time in league history that a Finals team doesn't have a regular season All-COMO selection (and the league didn't even name three teams until last year). But, thanks to the timing of the bubble, Chaska is poised to win its first title. The Moose feature a strong, veteran group of guards (Chris Paul, DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry) as well as fully healthy Zion Williamson and a peaking Kristaps Porzingis. Throw in other vets with Finals experience—Paul Millsap and Al Horford—and you've got a winning formula. Meanwhile, the top-heavy Sunnyvale Slayers are looking just as worthy for the crown. Top-loaded with James Harden, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard, they're hitting their stride at the perfect time. COMO fans are surely pleased with such an intriguing matchup, but it's also fair to wonder what might've been in April. Here's a look at the three All-COMO teams. All-COMO 1st Team
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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. |
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