In the Key with "A. D. B."

Vipers versus Maine... and MORE

2010-02-20T17:51:00.000-06:00

What time is it? Game Time...! Only tonight it is a little later than usual. The Vipers have tipped off most of their regular weekend night games at 7:30. Tonight tip-off moves to 8 pm because both the RGV's hockey team and the Vipers play games today on February 20th. It is 3:44 and the hockey game has just ended. The State Farm Arena, (still getting used to the name) has promised us that they will have the arena ready for an 8:00 pm tip-off. The arena crew is busy as we speak hopefully they get it done in time.

Back to the basketball... The Vipers haven't played a game since February 9th. That's a 10-day lay-off which included the All-Star Break and some roster moves as well.

Let's re-cap

February 8th - Garrett Temple earns Gatorade Call-up to Houston Rockets. Will Conroy's 10-Day expires, returns to the Vipers. Vipers acquire guard/forward Russell Carter.

February 9th Vipers beat Ft. Wayne Mad Ants 118-101. Will Conroy posts triple-double

February 10th - Vipers scheduled game versus Springfield Armor is postponed due to weather conditions in the Northeast. Vipers return home to RGV. Mike Harris and Vipers coaching staff travels to Dallas, TX for D-League All-Star Game.

February 13th - Mike Harris scores 14 points to help Western Conference All-Stars beat East All Stars 98-81

February 15th - Vipers release Center Julian Sensley and acquire Forward/Center Kevin Rogers

February 16th - Vipers release Russell Carter before he ever played a game with the club.

February 18th - NBA Trading deadline deal by Rockets. Rockets acquire G - Kevin Martin , F/C- Hilton Armstrong from Kings and G/F Jared Jeffries, and F/C Jodan Hill from Knicks. Rockets send Joey Dorsey and Carl Landry to Kings. Tracy McGrady to Knicks.

February 19th - Rockets re-assign Jermaine Taylor to Rio Grande Valley. Vipers acquire G- Kenny Hasbrouck.

February 20th - Rockets sign Garrett Temple to second 10-Day Contract.

Whew... obviously a lot of activity going into game one of the weekend double-header with the Maine Red Claws who have had their own share of roster turn-over this season. They still sit at the second spot of the Eastern Conference.

One of the more intriguing story-lines is the two former Rice Owls, Mike Harris for RGV and newly acquired Morris Almond for Maine. Although they play different positions they are two of the top scorers in Rice history (Harris 1, Almond 4 all time), and are two of the top scorers in the D-League.

It should be a fun match-up at the Dodge. Looks like the 8pm tipoff is gonna happen. As I am finishing this post. The arena crew is just about done setting up. Oh Happy DAY!

Gotta go for now... I gotta do the pre game interview. For now.. always remember... Rule #76: No Excuses Play like a champion...

Vipers Win...All Stars and MORE!

2010-02-02T19:16:00.000-06:00

I know it has been a long time since I have posted but I will do my best to keep updating much more regularly. Fact of the matter is finding time to blog has been tough. My on-road responsibilities have increased this season, and I find myself with less time to post as I had in our previous two seasons. I will make an effort to post as much as I can moving forward. I told the Doctor Professor I would....and promised the same thing to Scott Schroeder at RU. So here goes nothing...

The Vipers won today 106-88 at Tingley Coliseum in one of the stranger games you will ever see. The Vipers were down by as many as 16 points in the first half only to come back and lead by as many as 20! There was only one tie, and one lead change. Once the Vipers grabbed the lead, they never relinquished it. This game also saw the Vipers score 44 3rd quarter points,, a new franchise record. (I don't know what the D-League record is for this, but it has to be close.) The Vipers scored more points in the the third than the T-Birds scored in the entire second half (39)! Strange game indeed.

Chris Finch told me in the post game interview that he was embarrassed by the play in the first half. Who could blame him? He hasn't been happy with the effort over the last few games, even if the team is on a six game win streak. He thinks his club should be playing with more of a sense of urgency. The team seems to be a bit lost with Will Conroy up with the big club in Houston. Today they had Garrett run the offense coming out of the intermission and it seemed to energize everyone on the floor. The Vipers played with Temple, Antonio Anderson, Jermaine Taylor, Ernest Scott and Mike Harris to start the second half. Obviously... (Jonah says I say obviously a lot... so I threw it in here for fun) the adjustment worked.

The Vipers are beating the mediocre teams right now, but will that get it done later against the elite? I feel there are five potentially elite teams right now in the D-League. RGV, Iowa, Austin, Maine, Idaho. Right now these are the only teams I feel have any shot of winning the championship. The Vipers have handled Austin so far this year 4-1 record (when they didn't have Malik Hairston) but Austin is playing much better. The Vipers also swept Iowa at their building(s), but they now have a much more in-shape Jeffers, Cartier Martin back from Golden State and now Courtney Sims. We have yet to play Maine and Idaho added a couple solid pieces the last couple of days in Andre Barrett and Joe Dabbert. They are MUCH better than their 13-11 record would indicate.

Can the Vipers, as they are currently assembled, beat any of these teams in a three game series? If they get Joey back from Houston...which is a big IF, I think we could beat 2 of the four. I do think the Vipers need to make a move to solidify their position as a championship contender.

There are a lot of questions on what to do to improve the roster, because there are a lot of "What-Ifs". What if Will Conroy comes back when Lowry is healthy in Houston. What if Joey doesn't come back from Houston or gets traded in a deal for McGrady. What if Mike gets an offer he can't refuse from overseas? What if Antonio Anderson gets a call-up from an NBA team. A lot of questions that when answered can impact what type of move the Vipers need to make.

There was some good news to pass a long today other than the Vipers win over ABQ. ALL_STARS!!

The Vipers have three players that have been recognized as D-League All-Stars. Mike Harris, Antonio Anderson, and former assignment player Joey Dorsey. Also because the Vipers are in first place Chris Finch and his staff (Paul Mokeski and Jai Steadman) along with trainer Joe Resendez will be in charge of the Western Conference All-Stars.

The Vipers have never had an All-star actually play in the game. CJ Watson was named to the team in year one, but had been called up to Golden State by then.

This is a huge honor for everyone involved and for the entire Vipers organization. This year has been great, and it is only getting better.

By the way don't forget the Watch Party at JACKSONS tomorrow! Also Will Conroy and the Rockets are in action tonight...!

For now.. ADB telling you.. always remember... Rule #76 Play like a Champion!

Return By Harris Sparks Vipers Win Over Energy

2010-01-09T22:29:00.002-06:00

DES MOINES, Iowa – Mike Harris may not have started in his return to the Rio Grande Valley line-up, but he made his return to the squad count. Harris tallied a double-double by scoring 27 points and hauling in 12 rebounds at the Vipers knocked off the Eastern Conference leading Iowa Energy 109-100 Saturday night at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium. The loss was the first at home all season for the Energy.

The Vipers got out a strong first half start by scoring the first eight points of the game. Rio Grande Valley led by nine at the end of the first stanza 30-21. The second quarter was more of the same for Rio Grande Valley. The Vipers pushed the lead to as many as 16 and led by 11 at the end of the first 24 minutes 59-47. Garret Temple scored 16 first half points, including four three pointers to help lead the Viper charge.

Iowa Head Coach Nick Nurse, who is Viper Head Coach Chris Finch’s assistant for the British National team, rallied his troops in the third quarter. After the Vipers began the quarter on a 9-4 lead to push the lead to 17, The Energy rallied by going on a 15-0 run, led by Pat Carroll’s seven points on the charge and trailed 68-64. With 1:34 remaining in the third quarter Sean Barnette’s three pointer gave Iowa their first lead of the game. Iowa lead 79-76 going into the final period.

The Vipers rallied behind Harris who scored 13 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter. After falling behind by seven with 9:27 remaining in the game, the Vipers proceeded on a 13-2 run to give the Vipers a 91-87 lead with just over five minutes remaining. It was a lead they did not relinquish. The Vipers outscored Iowa 33-21 in the final frame to earn their fifth road win of the season.

Harris led five double-digit Viper scorers with his 27. His double-double was his third of the season. Temple finished the game with 21, with four assists. Meanwhile reigning D-League Player of the Month Antonio Anderson finished two rebounds shy of a triple double as he scored 14, while dishing out a game-high 11 assists. Will Conroy added 14 points and nine assists, and Houston assignee Joey Dorsey scored only 7 while hauling in 11 boards.

Carroll’s 29 points lead all scorers as he led the Iowa charge. He hit 12 of his 17 shots, including four three pointers. Curtis Stinson finished the game two rebounds, and two assists shy of his second straight triple-double as he scored 16. Former Viper Jeff Trepagnier struggled with his shot as he hit just three of his 12 shots scoring only nine points.

The Vipers and Energy will square off again on Sunday night. The venue will shift however, as they will move to the normal Iowa home building, the Wells Fargo Arena. Tip-off for Sunday’s match-up is scheduled for 6:00pm CST.

DORSEY DOMINATES IN SHOWCASE WIN OVER JAM

2010-01-06T21:19:00.000-06:00

BOISE,Idaho – Houston Rockets assignee Joey Dorsey tied a career high with 27 pointsand set a new career high in rebounds with 22 as the Rio Grande Valley Vipersknocked off the Bakersfield Jam 115-107 Wednesday afternoon at the NBADevelopment League Showcase in Boise Idaho. The Vipers are now 11-4 on theseason while the Jam fall to 3-13 on the year. The win for RGV is just theirsecond in franchise history at the 2010 NBA D-League Showcase.

Ina game with little rhythm the Vipers took a 58-50 lead into half time. TheVipers went on a 9-2 run capped off by a Joey Dorsey tip-in at the 3:31 mark ofthe second quarter to take a 50-40 lead. They would expand their first halflead to as many as 13 before going into the locker room with an eight pointlead.

TheJam would not go quietly, especially in the third quarter. The Jam, afterfalling behind by nine, proceeded on a 14-5 run, capped off by a Rodney Webjumper to tie the game at 70 with a little over four minutes left to play inthe half. The rest of third quarter was mostly Vipers. RGV hit fourthree-pointers, including three by Ernest Scott on a 16-5 run to end thequarter to go into the final stanza with an 86-75 lead. The Vipers would leadby as many as 16 in the final quarter en route to the eight point victory.

Dorseywas perfect 11-1 from the field o lead all scorers with his 27 points, tyinghis career high set on 12/21 versus the Reno Bighorns. Five additional Vipersscored in double-figures Antonio Anderson had a strong bounce back game afterscoring just four points on Monday, he tallied 17 and dished out seven assiststo help the Viper cause. Ernest Scott hit four three-pointers off the bench totally 12 points, while Will Conroy pitched in with 14 points and seven assists.The Vipers dominated on the boards, out-rebounding the Jam 47-36.

Bakersfield’s Amara Sy finished a rebound shy of a double-double after tallying24 points. Jeremy Wise and James Jackson each added 19 points in the loss forBakersfield.

TheVipers will continue their stretch of games away from Dodge Arena on Saturdaywhen they travel to Des Moines, Iowa to face the Iowa Energy. It will be thefirst of back-to-back games against the Eastern Conference leaders.

Showcase Day 1 Re-Cap. Other Stuff

2010-01-05T17:46:00.000-06:00

Hello Viper Nation...

Well we are finished with Day 1 of the 2010 D-League Showcase.

Seeing as I am sitting next to the great Scott Schroeder, who is to blogging as this guy is to professional wrestling, I figured I should go ahead and try to put in a thought provoking blog on ITK. So here goes...

The Vipers dropped their first game in five tries today, but you knew that already. The real story is that the Vipers are once again trying to find themselves after making the big trade to bring in the D-League's all-time leading scorer Will Conroy in. Anytime a team makes a move its for a reason and the reason to bring in Conroy was simply this, THE ROCKETS REALLY LIKE WILL CONROY.

Conroy was the last person cut off of the Rockets training camp roster. The Rockets instead with Pops Mensah-Bonsu who of course has since been waived and has subsequently joined the Toronto Raptors... again. Now let me remind everyone that Houston does not have an open roster spot at the moment.

When Mike Harris was called up to the big-club that ate up the 15th and final spot. But you should also be aware that January 10th, all players with non-guaranteed NBA contracts become guaranteed for the remainder of the season. So expect Houston or a lot of other NBA teams to be letting some of these players go.

Remember if Harris is waived by Houston, he would have to clear NBA waivers first, then (if he chooses) he can return back to the D-League with RGV. He could also sign a pair of 10-day contracts with Houston, after he returns to the D-League to further prove himself to the Rockets front office brass, and make a little NBA money.

One remote possibility is that the Rockets allow Harris' contract to become guaranteed and send him to the D-League as an assignment player to further enhance his development. I don't see this happening, even though Harris does have assignment eligibility as he is considered a second year NBA player as we speak.

The Vipers will hope to bounce back against Bakersfield, who have struggled since the start of the season. There are rumors floating around that they may be acquiring THIS GUY. But I don't think he will be here in time for tomorrow's game. THANK GOD.

Here are a couple of other notes from the Showcase so far.

Frisco Head Coach Nancy Lieberman is in the house. Nice to see her here, they start play next season. Going to try and snag an interview with her later.
There is a Paul Woolpert sighting in the building. It was kind of awkward watching him watch his former team in action.
Sundiata Gaines was called up today by the Utah Jazz... hey I guess the showcase served its purpose eh?

More later from Day 2.

VIPERS FALL TO THUNDERBIRDS IN SHOWCASE OPENER

2010-01-04T15:37:00.002-06:00

BOISE,Idaho – The Rio Grande Valley Vipers were outscored 56-42 in the second halfen-route to a disappointing 101-84 defeat to the Albuquerque Thunderbirds inthe opening game of the NBA Development League Showcase Monday afternoon atQwest Arena in Boise. The Vipers are now 0-3 in their first game of a D-LeagueShowcase.

TheVipers were playing the second half of a back-to-back after winning in LosAngeles on Sunday, the travel seemed to affect them as they scored just 42points in the first half. The Vipers also committed 13 first half turnovers buttrailed only by three at the half. The Vipers kept it close thanks to GarrettTemple’s 13 first half points.

TheVipers (10-4) never saw the lead for the remainder of the game. Albuquerque(5-9) began the third quarter on 13-4 run capped off by a Yaroslov Korolevthree-point play to give the Thunderbirds a 58-46 lead with 8:12 remaining inthe third quarter. The T-birds would close out the third stanza on a 7-0 run tolead 77-64 at the end of three quarters. Albuquerque would lead by as many as19 as they cruised to the win.

Templeled all Viper scorers with 18 points. Will Conroy scored 13 and hauled in sixrebounds in his first start in a Viper uniform. Craig Winder and JonathanWallace scored 11 and 10 points respectively off the bench in the losing effortfor Rio Grande Valley. Houston Rockets assignee Joey Dorsey hauled in a teamhigh 11 rebounds for RGV.

Korolevand Carlos Powell each tallied 20 points to shoulder the scoring load for theThunderbirds. Korolev also added a team-high seven rebounds. Antoine Agudio,starting for the injured Keith McLeod, scored 15, hauled in 5 boards and dishedout five assists while Shane Edwards chipped in 14 points off the bench in thewin for Albuquerque. It was the Thunderbirds first win versus Rio Grande Valleysince January 9^th of 2009.

TheVipers will return to action on Wednesday when they round out their 2010D-League Showcase appearance with a match-up against the Bakersfield Jam.Tip-off is schedule for 2:45 Central time.

VIPERS DROP SECOND STRAIGHT IN OT LOSS TO TULSA

2009-12-19T22:32:00.000-06:00

GAME RECAP

The Rio Grande Valley Vipers surrendered an 11 point fourth quarterlead and missed several opportunities late, as they dropped their secondstraight game 94-89 to the Tulsa 66ers in overtime Saturday night at the TulsaConvention Center. Saturday gave the Vipers their first pair of consecutive lossesduring the 2009-10 season.

TheVipers began the game sluggish offensively for the second straight nightshooting just 39% at the end of the first period and trailing Tulsa 20-16.Vipers trailed by only one at halftime after outscoring Tulsa 21-18 in thesecond stanza.

TheVipers began the third quarter hot and looked like they would pull away. Theyscored 10 of the first 13 points in the third frame and eventually outscoredTulsa 35-23 in the period to take an 11 point lead into the final frame. In thefourth quarter Tulsa exploded on a 20-2 run and led 81-74 with four minutesremaining in regulation. The Vipers would answer back with a 9-2 run of theirown to close out the quarter and had a chance to take the lead before Tulsafinal fourth quarter possession, but Viper forward Mike Harris missed the firstof his two free throws and could only tie the game at 83. Mustafa Shakur misseda jumper on Tulsa’s final possession of regulation, and Garrett Temple missed afall-away jumper at the buzzer from 18 feet out to send the game into the extrasession.

TheVipers once again struggled to find the bucket in overtime. With RGV down 91-89the Vipers had three consecutive possessions on which they could have tied ortaken the lead. The most dramatic of which involved a designed play out of timeout for Ernest Scott who missed a three-point attempt from the top of the keywith 15 seconds left on the game clock.

Harris netted a new career high for pointswith 35 on Saturday night. Harris added 12 rebounds to tally his second double-doubleof the season. Houston assignee Joey Dorsey added his fifth double-double ofthe season, scoring 10 points and tying his season high with 18 rebounds. AntonioAnderson scored 17 while Garrett Temple added sixteen to round out the double-digitscorers for RGV. Larry Owens led the scoring output for Tulsa with 19, whileMustafa Shakur added 13 points and six assists in the winning effort.

TheVipers return home Monday for the first of three straight games at Dodge Arenawhen they host the Reno Bighorns. Former Vipers Desmon Farmer and MarcusHubbard will make their returns to Dodge Arena in visiting uniforms. Tip-offfrom Hidalgo is schedule for 7:30 pm

Vipers vs Tulsa 12-19-09 Pre-Game

2009-12-19T18:38:00.002-06:00

Tulsa Convention Center - 7:00 PM Tip

Greetings from Tulsa... for the final time this season. Yes the schedule makers in the D-League have given us two trips to Tulsa which happens to be our second closest league opponent, but they are both within the first 9 games of the season. Very odd, but our trips to Tulsa come to an end tonight.

OK lets talk about last night... but please not for long. The effort by the Vipers last night was non-existent. RGV had an abysmal third quarter. Tulsa began the stanza on a 22-2 run, after they already led by nine at half-time, and ran their lead to 29 which put the game out of reach early in the second half.

The Vipers didn't dominate the boards, they didn't distribute the ball well, and they did NOT shoot the three well either. The Vipers were taking poor shots, contested threes, threes in transition, and were missing lay-ups. Look for the lack of effort to change tonight.

I mentioned to Coach Finch in our pre-game interview that sometimes teams who are winning, but not playing at their best need to get "punched in the mouth" in order to wake up. He agreed and said he got punched in a few other places last night, I agreed.

Once again OKC asignee Byron Mullens is listed as questionable and won't play. I have not seen him in the building. It is likely that he is in OKC getting treatment on his undisclosed injury. I am sure its no where near as gruesome as the one Carl Landry sustained last night in Dallas. OUCH. But hey that's one way to get Dirk out of game... lodge three pieces of your teeth in his elbow.

Pre-game show for tonight begins at 6:50. Tip-off will be somewhere around 7:10. Follow all the action on 104.9 JACK FM. OR don't forget to watch the game, (with the radio up of course) on NBA Futurecast

Vipers starters remain the same

C - Joey Dorsey

F - Mike Harris

F - Antonio Anderson

G - Garrett Temple

G - Jonathan Wallace.

for Tulsa here are their starters

C - Steven Hill

F - Larry Owens...(he was money last night)

F - Cecil Brown .. (two points off his career high last night)

G - Mustafa Shakur.

G - Moses Ehambe.

PS. Don't forget to stop by the Vipers pro-shop at 4500 North 10th Street in McAllen. We have a great holiday package available. Check out the details HERE

VIPERS WIN STREAK COMES TO AN END IN TULSA

2009-12-18T23:06:00.000-06:00

TULSA,Oklahoma – The Tulsa 66ers expanded on their nine point half time lead bystarting the third quarter on a 22-2 run to put the game out of reach as theyended the Rio Grande Valley Vipers six-game win streak with a 108 -90 winFriday night at the Tulsa Convention Center. The loss was just the Viperssecond of the season with both defeats coming on the road.

Friday’sgame looked like it would be a tight game early. The two squads traded the lead14 times in the first 12 minutes. The 66ers then led by as many as 11 in thefirst half. The Vipers notched the final basket of the second quarter, a latelay-up by Antonio Anderson hoping it could lead to a momentum boost to startthe second half. That boost did not happen as the 66ers outscored RGV 34-21 inthe third stanza of hoops to take an 89-67 lead into the fourth quarter.

“Wedidn’t come to play tonight,” Vipers Head Coach Chris Finch said. “I could kindof smell this one coming, we had a good week of practice but were not ready toplay this one tonight.”

MikeHarris, the D-League’s second leading scorer, tallied 17 of his 19 points inthe first half while chipping in with six rebounds in the loss for the Vipers.Antonio Anderson scored 17 of his team high 23 points in the second half whilealso dishing out a team high six assists. Houston Rockets assignee Joey Dorseyfinished a rebound shy of a double-double as he added 11 points, scoring all ofthem in the first half.

Tulsa’sLarry Owens led their scoring output with 27 points, chipping in with sevenboards and four assists in the win for the 66ers. Mustafa Shakur dominated thepoint guard match-up scoring 16 points dishing out eight assists and hauling insix boards with just one turnover. Cecil Brown knocked down four three-pointhoops and scored 22 points, just one off of his season high.

TheVipers and 66ers will meet again Saturday night at the Tulsa Convention Center.It will be the final time the Vipers will play a game in Tulsa during the2009-10 season. Tip-off for there-match is schedule for 7:30 pm. Viper fans can follow all the action on theradio by tuning in to104.9 JACK FM.

GAME PREVIEW 12/18/09 - VIPERS (6-1) vs Tulsa 66ers (4-5)

2009-12-18T17:49:00.002-06:00

Tulsa Convention Center

Game #8 - Road Game # 5 - RGV record vs. Tulsa in 2009-10: (2-0)

Greetings from Tulsa, OK. The Vipers will try for the their 7th straight if they can get another road win in Tulsa. The last time RGV was in Tulsa they struggled in the first half, mostly due to an early and topsy-turvy travel day on the second half of a back to back. The Vipers rallied in the second two periods to knock off Tulsa 94-89.

First lets break down the 66ers. They have made a few key changes to personnel in the last few days. Forward Keith Clark was waived due to injury earlier in the week, but just today he was re-acquired only to be shipped off to the L.A. D-Fenders for forward Deron Washington. Washington was the third overall selection in the D-League draft by LA and was averaging 9.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists for the D-Fenders before the deal.Devon Hardin was waived due to injury to make room for Washington on the roster.

Guard Zabian Dowdell was also added. Dowdell was a legit scorer and play maker at Virgina Tech and overseas in Italy. He gives Tulsa much better depth at the guard position.

Tulsa also added center Steven Hill back to their roster. He might be the reason for a new player rights rule in the D-League as well. Last season Hill was an assignment player for Oklahoma City in the 2008-09 season. He was waived by the Thunder and could not go back to the 66ers when he signed a D-League contract. He was claimed off of the waiver pool by the Utah Flash and the 66ers had to trade their best player at the time (Ronald Dupree) to Utah to get Hill back. Not only did this deplete the 66ers (who were awful last year) they didn't get to use Hill much as he ended up missing the rest of the season after January 27th. Now the league allows D-League affiliates to retain rights of players who have played or have been on the active roster of an NBA team for a certain period of time.

One quick note, OKC assignee Byron Mullens is not expected to play tonight. He is a strong offensive player and rebounder for Tulsa do the Vipers depth in this department should shine through.

Tulsa should be rested for this one. The Vipers will need to play string out of the gate if they are to win their seventh straight.

For the Vipers. How else can I put it, they are the hottest team in the Western Conference. The Vipers are winning at home and on the road and lately have been winning convincingly and not letting games come down to the final possession.

Vipers Head Coach Chris Finch said at lunch today that he still doesn't know yet how good his team is. The reason? The Vipers have only played three teams in their first seven games. They will only play three different teams in their first nine. Other than their home game Monday versus Reno, the Vipers will play only Tulsa, Austin, and Albuquerque over their first 12 games. The Vipers won't play a team outside their conference until January 9th when they travel to Iowa.

As for the game tonight expect the Vipers to try to keep the pace up and let the offense of Mike Harris, Garrett Temple, and Antonio Anderson continue to carry them. The point guard match-up is huge. Tulsa point man Mustafa Shakur must be contained and forced to make uncomfortable decisions with the ball. Expect the Vipers to give him a few different defensive looks.

The Vipers in my opinion have better personnel, however that does not always mean a victory for you especially on the road.

Here are the Vipers starters

C - Joey Dorsey
F - Mike Harris
F- Antonio Anderson
G - Garrett Temple
G - Jonathan Wallace.

UPDATE:

Tulsa brings out this starting line-up

C - Steven Hill
F - Larry Owens
F - Latavious Williams
G - Moses Ehambe
G - Mustafa Shakur

Mullens is not playing and I do not even see him dressed or on the bench yet. Not many other surprises in the starting line-up

Don't forget to follow all the action on 104.9 JACK FM and on NBA Futurecast. Don King is the broadcaster for Tulsa... no... not this Don King. Kinger is one of the Vet broadcasters in the league. He calls a good game and is a heck of a nice guy. He will have the call on Futurecast tonight

Mike Harris featured by the D-League

2009-12-18T17:20:00.004-06:00

FINALLY A.D.B. HAS COME BACK TO THE BLOGOSPHERE!!!

2009-12-18T12:50:00.000-06:00

Ok so its not as momentous as THIS NEWS out of the pro wrestling world, but hey a broadcaster can dream can't he? After a very long hiatus, ITK (That's stands for IN THE KEY) :) , is back and better than ever. We've gone with a new layout design, currently working on a header, and we hope to put a ton of multi-media stuff on here.

The Professor Jonah Goldberg and I, (ok mostly him) work very hard on putting a lot of our multi-media stuff together for RGVIPERS.com and on the Facebook group, but we figured we had another venue for Vipers info right here so lets utilize it better.

Here are some of the things you will find on ITK moving forward.

Home and Road game stories

We have done this before and you can find these on the main site. But when the team is on the road the D-League puts up the home team's story. Our game story will have a little more info on the Vipers.

Pictures/Video from the road.

I learned shortly after I purchased it that my Iphone takes awesome pictures and video. So I am going to use it to upload random things from time to time from our travels. Expect a lot of pics come D-League showcase time.

Random Thoughts.

I like to give my thoughts on potential expansion sites, the D-League's best players etc. You can find those posts here as well.

Post-game video blogs.

Here we will also post the video blogs Jonah and I do from the Dodge after homes games. I am also attempting to do a video blog for road games as well.

I look forward to frequent posts here on the blog and hope we get a ton of feedback. I would like to get a Q and A going with our fans. If you have any questions for us e-mail us at Vipersradio@gmail.com . We would love to hear from you.

I will have a preview for you up on the blog before tonight's game and I will also link to Jonah's game notes as well as soon as they are up.

Don't forget tonight's game will be tipping off at 8pm and not 7pm because of a high school game in Tulsa. You can follow all the action on 104.9 JACK FM or on NBA Futurecast.

That is it for now. I'll chat with you later on tonight.

-ADB

PS here is a pic from today's shoot-around.

VIPERS SLITHER PAST STAMPEDE WITH OT WIN

2009-03-15T00:49:00.000-05:00

Jared Jordan’s jumper with 2:20 remaining in overtime turned out to be the game winner as the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (16-24) knocked off the defending D-League champion Idaho Stampede (25-15) Saturday night at Qwest Arena. With the win the Vipers sweep the season series against Idaho 2-0

Both teams had a chance to win the game near the end of regulation. Idaho had possession of the ball with the game tied at 103 and 23 seconds remaining. Kevin Burleson, in an attempt to find Brent Petway in the right corner for potential game winning jumper, over shot his teammate and threw the ball out of bounds giving the Vipers a chance to win it with 14 seconds remaining in regulation. Trent Strickland missed a jumper as time expired sending the game to overtime.

The Vipers outscored the Stampede 5-3 in the overtime period to earn the victory. It was a tight game from the opening minutes. The Vipers and Stampede traded the lead 21 times and were knotted up eight times. The Vipers are now 3-1 lifetime against defending D-League champions in their history.

Strickland tallied his first double-double since February 20th with a team-high 24 points while hauling in 10 rebounds. Jordan recorded his seventh double-double of the year with 15 points and 13 he assists, finishing three rebounds shy of a triple-double. Jawad Williams scored 22 and Quin Humphrey scored12 to round out the double-digit scorers for RGV.

The Vipers will finish their six game road trip on Friday night when they face the Albuquerque Thunderbirds for the final time this season. Tip-off from Tingley Coliseum is scheduled for 8:00 pm CT.

COLORADO SWEEPS SERIES OVER RGV WITH 126-109 WIN

2009-03-12T23:42:00.001-05:00

March 12, 2009

BROOMFIELD, Colorado-

The Colorado 14ers, led by Colorado assignee Sonny Weems’ 26 points, won the 4th quarter 34-15 en route to a 126-109 victory over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers Thursday night at the Broomfield Event Center. The 14ers closed out the season series with RGV taking all seven match-ups. The loss drops the Vipers franchise’s record against Colorado to 1-14 all time. The win is the fifth straight for the 14ers and the ninth in a row at home.

The Vipers and 14ers fought back and forth for the first three periods. The team’s traded the lead nine times with 11 ties on Thursday. The Vipers had leads in the each of the four quarters but could not hold on. Marcus Hubbard’s three pointer from the top-of-the key with 1:36 remaining capped off a 10-0 run gave the Vipers their largest lead of six points. Rio Grande Valley started the 4th quarter up 94-92.

Despite all kinds of shooting woes in the first three periods the 14ers scored at will to begin the 4th. Weem’s two free throws with 9:21 remaining in the 4th capped off Colorado’s 12-2 run to start the 4th quarter, which gave the 14ers the lead for good. John Lucas scored 13 of his 20 points in Colorado’s huge fourth quarter.

Jawad Williams scored 28 points and hauled in five rebounds to lead all scorers. Kurt Looby posted his sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and 15 rebounds while also swatting five Colorado shots. Quin Humphrey was the only double-digit scorer off the bench for RGV with 16.

Eddie Gill finished two assists shy of a triple-double scoring 16 points and tallying 10 boards. Josh Davis, despite a poor shooting night still scored 17 points and brought down a team high 12 boards.

The Vipers will continue their six game road swing on Saturday night when the Vipers face the defending D-league champion Idaho Stampede at Qwest Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 pm CT

COLORADO SWEEPS SERIES OVER RGV WITH 126-109 WIN

2009-03-12T23:42:00.000-05:00

Colorado vs. RGV 1-12-09 2nd Half

2009-03-12T21:28:00.001-05:00

6:29 remaining in the third. Colorado leads 78-74

Both teams have scored 12 so far in the third. Vipers need to shoot their free throws better only 48% from the charity stripe

1:59 remaining in the third Vipers lead 87-84

Vipers are on a 13-6 run and have taken the lead on Colorado. The three-point shooting woes are really hurting the 14ers. Colorado is just 2/17 from downtown. Josh Davis is 6/16 from the field but 0/4 from 3. If the Vipers could make free throws they would be up big

End of the 3rd Vipers lead 94-92

The Vipers continue to force Colorado to shoot from the outside right now because right now they aren't making their threes. Whatever works I guess. RGV outscored the 14ers in the third 32-26. I can't remember the last time we held Colorado to fewer than 20 points in a quarter... We'll get our interns on that one.... Oh by the way the 147 points from Tuesday is a D-League record.

9:21 remaining in regulation 14ers lead 102-96.

Colorado has started the 4th on a 10-2 run thanks mostly to Sonny Weems. FYI 'Melo Anthony and some other Nuggets are in the building tonight to watch Sonny Weems play.

6:27 remaining in regulation 14ers lead 113-101.

Colorado isn't missing. John Lucas has taken a step or two in and the Vipers are taking bad shots.. and missing them. Colarod is outscoring the Vipers 21-7 in the quarter so far.

Game Over Colorado wins 126-109.

Colorado and Eddie Gill live for the 4th quarter that was no different again tonight. Re-cap coming later on.

Colorado vs. RGV 1-12-09 1st Half Running Blog

2009-03-12T20:00:00.000-05:00

5:59 Remaining 14ers lead 17-12

The Vipers are trading baskets right now with Colorado, well at least they were early. The Vipers are making Colorado shoot outside jumpers rather than the lay-ups they were getting on Tuesday. The problem? Colorado isn't missing right now. Free throws coming up for Looby out of the time out..

2:52 remaining 14ers lead 29-21

Why is Sonny Weems in the D-League? He just threw another one down alley-oop style and made a bad John Lucas pass look good. The pass was behind Weems, he caught it with one hand from behind and slug his arm up and forward for a thunderous slam...Still not enough stops for the Vipers...

End of the 1st 14ers lead 35-28

Right now the teams continue to go back and forth. Neither team is going on a run, and that may be good for the Vipers. The Vipers have more points in the paint 24-14. Meaning a lot of Colorado's points are coming from jumpers. Make a team beat you with outside shots. That's the only way to beat Colorado. Another important number Fastbreak points. Vipers with 6. Colorado with only 2

2:56 remaining in the half Game Tied at 55

The Vipers had a lead for a bit as they led 54-48 at one point. But Colorado is on a 7-1 run to tie the game back at 55-55.

Halftime 14ers lead 66-62

Colorado always comes back... a little run at the end of the 2nd has the 14ers back on top at the intermission

Vipers vs. Colorado March 12th Pre-Game

2009-03-12T19:35:00.000-05:00

Back we are at the phenomenal Broomfield Event Center. It will be the last time the Vipers will take on the 14ers this season, and perhaps ever unless someone buys this team and does a MUCH better job of marketing it to Broomfield and the outlying communities. Crowds here are sparse to say the least and with the problems that Tim Wiens (Owner of the 14ers and Rocky Mountain Rage) is having it is unlikely that the 14ers will survive. Although the league is pretty adamant about not letting teams die. We will have to just wait and see I guess.

As for the game, the Vipers will need to get off to a much better start than they did on Tuesday when they were down 30-20 at the end of the first and shooting the ball at a 9/31 clip. That's just not gonna get it done. As I've said before the 14ers are the Mongoose to our Snake, Or is it the Snake to our Mongoose?? Either way it's bad... I don't know animals. :)

The Vipers are 1-13 against Colorado... 0-6 in Broomfield...I'd like to say they are due...but Colorado is the best team in the league. I don't think its close. But I don't think they will win the 2009 D-league Championship. They just remind me too much of Phoenix and in a one and done, a bad shooting night for Colorado could mean an early exit. I am going to try to blog during the game. But the info at each time-out will be short.

We are the only night game in the D-League tonight. Iowa lost to Tulsa 108-107 in overtime... (wait what?) Yes the Tulsa 66ers beat one of the best teams in the D-League on their home floor earlier today. Don't know how that happened. But hey if there is one upset in the league today, why can't we have another one in Broomfield tonight?

Starters are out here they are

RIO GRANDE VALLEY VIPERS

G- Jared Jordan
G-Stanley Asumnu
C- Kurt Looby
F- Jawad Williams
F- Trent Strickland

COLORADO 14ERS

G - Eddie Gill
G - Dominique Coleman
C - Joe Dabbert
F- Trey Gilder
F- Josh Davis

Tip-off is coming up shortly... check out all the action on ESPN 1240-AM.. Or you can watch on Futurecast and listen to Chad Andrus who is one of the better broadcasters in the D-League...Or follow the live stats on D-League.com

D-League Expansion..Rumblings.. etc.

2009-03-12T14:24:00.000-05:00

A lot has been happening around the D-League lately. There has been a lot happening around the Vipers as well. I apologize for not updating In the Key a little more often. The travel has been crazy and I have taken on some new responsibilities as well. But I should be able to spend a few minutes to blog.So here I am.

I posted several weeks back about possible D-League expansion. D-League Maine has already been announced. Congrats to Abby Pierce who is head of their marketing efforts. She was in RGV when we started up and I think she's awesome. Maine made a good hire. They will be the Maine (Insert Nickname here). They want to market to the whole state and didn't want to be confused with the Trailblazers home city. They also will not be the Shamrocks... which I thought would have been awesome since they will unofficially-officially be the Celtics affiliate. You can help choose the name HERE.

Now you can't just add one team right? But where else is the D-League expanding to? There were a lot of rumors and the D-League did a great job this year of keeping the potential additions hush-hush as opposed to last year when we all knew it was Erie and Reno. We knew about Portland since last season, but the 18th team was a mystery. Just rumors. Well it appears the secret is out finally as Springfield, MA (the home to Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, and the birthplace of basketball) will be home to a D-league franchise.

It will be interesting to see who Springfield will be affiliated with since Boston appears to be going to Maine. Although I think it doesn't really matter it's out in Western, MA. You could easily put the Nets, Sixers or, Knicks in this same area. Or even both NJ and NYK.

The real questions is will the D-League be at 18 teams next year? Or will it still be 16? We have documented on this blog before and Scott over a RU has as well, the financial problems the Colorado 14er owners are having. The word on the street is that Anaheim may be in even worse shape than that of Colorado...If that is even possible. It's a shame that the nicest building in the D-league (Not named Staples Center) may not be back but it could be a reality. Kroenke apparently would only have interest in managing the arena... not buying the 14ers, and it doesn't appear anyone wants to buy the team and move it to Loveland, CO to the Budweiser Events Center. Will the league operate this team until a buyer can be found? Will the new "Hybrid Affiliation System" change the Nuggets mind? I guess we will have to wait and see.

I will post my thoughts on the Hybrid System soon.. I want to get more details and get some thoughts from D-League coaches.

I will post a brief pre-game blog before tonight's game versus Colorado as soon as I get to the building.

14ERS SCORE TEAM RECORD 147 POINTS IN WIN OVER RGV

2009-03-11T12:28:00.000-05:00

March 11, 2009

BROOMFIELD, Colorado-

The Colorado 14ers scored a franchise record for points, including 49 in the fourth quarter, and led from the opening tip as they knocked off the Rio Grande Valley Vipers 147-119 Tuesday night at the Broomfield Event Center. The 147 points is the most Rio Grande Valley has ever allowed in franchise history. The win for Colorado extends their home win streak to eight straight and their fourth straight overall. The loss ends RGVs season high three game win streak. RGV is now 1-13 lifetime versus Colorado.

Rio Grande Valley struggled from the opening tip. The Vipers could not find the bottom of the hoop in the opening frame as the shot 29% from the field and were outscored 30-20. The Vipers could not stop the bleeding in the second frame. Julian Sensely’s jumper with 5:54 remaining in the half capped off a 22-4 Colorado run that ran their lead to 28 points. The Vipers did manage to close out the quarter on a 15-5 run to cut the deficit to 18 at the break.

The Vipers attempted to chip away at Colorado’s lead in the second half, cutting the deficit to as few as 11 on a Craig Winder three-point play with 6:18 remaining. Colorado pulled away outscoring RGV 49-40 in the 4th to finish off the win.

Williams’ 29 points led Rio Grande Valley’s scoring load. Kurt Looby tallied another double-double with 10 points and 12 boards. Denver assignee Sonny Weems led the 14ers in scoring with 27 points. Eddie Gill scored 21 and dished out five assists in the Colorado win.

The Vipers will play Colorado for the final time in 2008-09 on Thursday night. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 pm at the Broomfield Event Center.

Running Game Blog 3-10-09 vs. Colorado 2nd Half

2009-03-10T21:12:00.000-05:00

The second half is about to begin, and I am still not one the air. The phone line guy for the arena is here and working on the issue. Still no go. I have never had phone line issues here. This isn't Chad Andrus's fault. He's always got stuff goin right. Erin Pahl too. This is the arena being terrible...Hmm where have I heard that before..

Phone works now... If you want to listen to the game head on over to 1240 AM ASAP.

5:43 remaining in the 3rd. Colorado leads 75-64

The Vipers are starting to chip away at this Colorado . They've score 19 points so far in the 3rd. The Vipers are doing a much better job at making Colorado work.

2:48 Colorado leads 85-70

After the Vipers cut it down to 11. It's been back and forth ever since. The lead has stayed between 13-15 the last few minutes. Jawad continues to dominate for RGV. Weems for Colorado.. although it is Gill who leads Colorado in scoring with 14.

End of the 3rd Qtr. Colorado leads 98-79

That's it... Eddie Gill just gets up for RGV. His first game with the club this year after no practice... he nearly gets a triple double. By the way did I mention tonight is the one year anniversery of Eddie Gill's 15 assist performance against us. That is by the way the most assists an opponent has had against RGV in their history.. I am just saying..

5:17 remaining in 4th Qtr Colorado leads 118-104

The Vipers have made this interesting, but it could be too little too late.The Vipers have cut the deficit to 11 a few times in this 2nd half... but Colorado comes back each and every time and pushes it to 15 16 or 18. It has been the second unit shining for RGV with a lot of hustle and slashes to the basket.

Game Over... Vipers lose 147-119

Colorado scored 49 points in the 4th.

Re-cap is coming soon...

Running Game Blog 3-10-09 vs. Colorado 1st Half

2009-03-10T20:18:00.000-05:00

I am having technical issues with my radio broadcast tonight, which hopefully will be alleviated by the 2nd quarter. But for you will have to settle for the blog. (Which I know hasn't been updated in forever).

6:09 remaining Colorado 18 Rio Grande Valley 10

The 14ers have gotten out to a hot start. What else is new? Colorado is 6/8 from the field, RGV is 5/18 from the field. The Vipers need to start better and dig out of this hole... and fast.

In case you didn't know the Vipers are 1-12 lifetime versus the 14ers. They would love a reversal of fortunes in a rivalry (can you call it that?) That has been ALL COLORADO.

More updates as we move along..

It is always tough to play in this building. Why? BECAUSE THERE IS NEVER ANYONE HERE!!. The financial problems of Colorado's ownership has been well documented. Don't forget that the altitude plays a factor and the floor has the tendency to be a little slippery. I hope Colorado doesn't go away next season. Wait... what am I saying. No in all seriousness. I love their building, the town, the front office, the press table. This is a trip I always look forward to. Except for the 0-5 record here in the Broomfield Event Center. I hope they find a buyer for the team. But in this financial landscape, I find it highly unlikely.

1:00 min remaining in the 1st Qtr. Colorado leads 27-20.

We got our first look at John Lucas III. He's a guy that's as good as any point guard in the NBA, but his size limits him tremendously. Right now they have Lucas and Gill on the floor at the same time. Gill is struggling right now he already has 4 turnovers, but he does have 4 points. (One turnover was Dominique Coleman not paying attention so I'll spot Gill one)

Coach said before the game that Jared could have 25 assists in this game... well he has 5 already. Not quite on pace for 25... but pretty close. The Vipers have closed the gap.. but need more defensive stops... or of course Colorado could miss a few shots...(sigh) wishful thinking sometimes.

End of 1st Qtr. Colorado leads 30-20

The Vipers can't buy a bucket tonight. We've seen a couple airballs and a ton of shots that haven't been close. Colorado does a nice job of switching up their defenses. Half court trap, zone defense, etc. RGV is shooting a terrible 29% right now. They need to find some offense somewhere. so far Jawad Williams leads the team in scoring with 6.

Can I just say that Eddie Gill is another one of those players you love when he is on your team, but loathe when he is a opponent. Not just because he's good... which Gill is. But he's good and he plays hard, and with a little bit of a swagger...I love to hate Eddie Gill. He reminds me a little bit of Stockton...you know as a player you love to hate.

8:52 remaining 2nd Qtr Colorado leads 42-24.

12-4 run to start the second period for Colorado. They are absolutely relentless. They just keep coming at you and THEY DONT MISS SHOTS. They are like the Mike D'Antoni Phoenix Suns... a ton of points... no defense. Maybe that's why their the best regular season team in D-league history. But with no championship to show for it. Did I mention every 14er who has entered the game has scored. This may be a long night.

6:34 remaining 2nd Qtr Colorado leds 50-24.

Did I say 12-4 run? I meant 20-4 run. No offense...We've been scoring at will lately. Just not tonight. Colorado is not good defensively we just cannot make shots. RGV is 11/38 from the field. Math majors that's 28.9 %. Last time a team won shooting under 30% from the field. They were still shooting at peach baskets with no holes on the bottom.

By the way Sonny Weems is REALLY GOOD! He has nine points, two alley oop dunks, but the second was not intended to be an ally-oop just a pass to him in the lane. But he was so athletic he caught the ball while jumping and still elevated above the rim for he Jam. With the way the Nuggets have been playing lately. I think they should call him back up, like tomorrow. Please?!

Ok It's official. The 14ers are the Utah Jazz of the D-League. For a team who is up... 58-33 as I write this, they COMPLAIN about EVERY CALL. Pick your Jazz team.. the late 90's team or the current Jazz team. They are exactly the same. I know. I know I am a Rockets fan, so I am supposed to hate the Jazz... but the 14ers are the Jazz... don't try to argue this point with me.... jus't don't. I mean D-league fans of other teams....do you or do you not hate the Colorado 14ers... I rest my case.

Halftime - Colorado leads 63-45.

In the imortal words of this guy "AYE AYE AYE AYE AYE" We just cannot buy a bucket right now. Meanwhile the 14ers continue to do what they do. Score, SCORE and SCORE MORE!! It will be interesting to see what happens to the rights to all of the players if the 14ers don't come back. Six 14er players have eight or nine points. No one is in double-figures for them. Lucas and Weems both have five assists.

On the Viper end of things Jawad has been getting to the foul line where he was 8-8 to aid in his 14 point first half. RGV still shooting an AWFUL 33.3 % from the field including 1/10 from downtown. RGV will have a tough time coming back in this one sorry to say. Unless Colorado misses a bunch of shots.. and when I say a bunch... I mean like...35+ The 14ers don't surrender big half time leads... they just don't. The Vipers may have to play for Thursday now and watch their minutes for guys like Jordan, Williams, and Strickland.

FYI last time we were here , there was no William T. Goat and no dancers. Today we have both. Too bad they are performing in front of a crowd of about... 200, and I am not joking. This is the best facility in the D-League. I hope I get to come back. SOMEONE BUY THE 14ers!!!

Jordan out 2-3 Weeks and other Rumblings.

2009-01-23T14:06:00.000-06:00

The Vipers continue to be snake-bitten... No pun intended... I am really bad with that. Jordan suffered a high left ankle sprain in the third quarter on Wednesday night's loss to Tulsa. Jordan is expected to miss three, perhaps even four games. He did not travel with the team yesterday and is in RGV recuperating.

Obviously this is tough for both Jordan..who had been playing out of his find the last few games for RGV. Also the Vipers will have to entrust Mo Carter with the offense for the time being.... did I mention the next four games are against Austin (1st SW Division) and Colorado (2nd SW Division) who the Vipers are a combined 0-4 against this year... YIKES.

Coach Moser has been workin the phones a lot so I expect some moves to be made...I don't know what he has planned, but all I can say is stay tuned.

OTHER NOTES

A lot of people have been asking me about any new teams for next year in the D-League....I think there may be some interesting changes next year and they don't just include expansion cities, but perhaps some teams being re-located, sold, or folding. The state of our US economy has not been kind to minor-league sports and lets face it, there are some teams in this league that just don't work. There are some markets with little to no fan support, and others who do really well. Minor league teams will always last until the fans stop coming or the sponsorship pool runs dry.

This news broke about Colorado...I have to say it doesn't surprise me. Broomfield is way to close to Denver and if I have a choice of wether to go to a Nuggets game or a 14ers game... what do you think I am going to choose. The development around the arena is going to be awesome... but they almost built the event center too close to Denver and not around anything else. The fact is they should have built that arena closer to Boulder. It looks as if Rio Rancho, NM is having similar problems with their CHL team. Global keeps building these arenas where no one lives. Rio Rancho is too far outside Albuquerque for them to draw much from those bigger cities into the suburbs.

But, back to Colorado, I think the D-League has a few options... (also it depends on who is managing the building)

1. Sell the team to the Nuggets and have them operate it and keep it in Broomfield

It seems as if Kroenke sports group may be interested in managing the facility. If that happens I would also expect the Nuggets to buy the 14ers and keep them alive in Broomfield. The development will eventually happen around there and if it is a separate front office... (currently their front office works hockey, basketball, and events at the same time)

2. Sell the team to the Nuggets and move them to Loveland, CO

Loveland-Ft. Collins would be a nice little extension of the Nuggets much like Austin is for the San Antonio Spurs. It is far enough away that it is a separate market of fans who aren't likely to make the drive to Denver everyday. But its close enough that everyone in Loveland who is a basketball fan is a Nuggets fan. The CHL team at the BEC has sold out every game since they opened the building 6 years ago. The D-League would salivate at selling out half the games in the same period. The one problem is... the Eagles are king in that building. Battle for quality dates would be tough...but if the Nuggets own the team that may not be a problem and the Eagles sellout no matter what day of the week they play....Personally I love this scenario because Loveland-Ft. Collins are SPORTS FANATICS and I think the Nuggets would be looking great to their Ft.Collins fans if they put their owned and operated team in their backyard.

3. Fold the team.

This is the worst case scenario. I think the D-League likes being in Colorado...somewhere in Colorado. But if something can't be worked out, and if the Nuggets don't want to buy the team...then the team will go away. I expect the D-League and the NBA will do everything they can to keep the team somewhere in Colorado... but again you never know.

EXPANSION

The team that will be coming in for sure is Portland, Maine and that is no secret. As for other teams joining. Halifax wants in BAD. But they are so remote, I doubt the other teams would want to add them into the fold. I wonder if you could take a boat to Halifax from Portland? I keep hearing a lot of the same cities we always here. Frisco, TX, Trenton, NJ. Springfield, MA, Hamliton, Ontario. But nothing is really concrete. Honestly people just aren't willing to buy teams right now. It is a HUUUGE investment. Unless NBA teams (who are trying to save money themselves right now) buy D-League teams... I expect expansion to slow down a little bit. But, I have been wrong before.

The D-League wants to be strong in the markets they are in, and they want to strengthen the relationship with their NBA affiliates. Expansion just for the sake of expanding would not be smart right now. One thing I would like to see the league do one the league is above 20 teams. Have two conferences with two divisions each. Either East and West or North and South conferences. Stay with the 50 game schedule. Have two showcases and play only within your conference to cut down on crazy travel. Triple-A baseball has two different leagues who don't play each other... the D-league should look at it like that. This is no longer a bus league and you can save a lot of franchises from going under if you help cut down their travel.

That's all for now.. I'll have another post from the arena tonight.

66ERS BIG FOURTH QUARTER ENDS VIPERS WIN STREAK

2009-01-21T22:07:00.000-06:00

January 21, 2009

HIDALGO, Texas-

Keith Clark scored 19 of his game high 25 points in the second half as the Tulsa 66ers ended the Rio Grande Valley Vipers two game win streak with a 113-103 win at Dodge Arena Wednesday night. The win by Tulsa ends a three game losing streak and it’s the 66ers first win over Rio Grande Valley this season.

The Vipers led at half time after outscoring Tulsa 25-18 in the second quarter to lead 59-50 at the intermission. Vipers point guard Jared Jordan was on pace to shatter his career high point total he set in Tuesday’s win over Anaheim. Jordan would leave the game with 8:40 remaining in the third quarter with an undisclosed foot injury and did not return. Jordan finished with 18 points and four assists.

The Vipers held an 94-90 lead with 6:06 remaining in regulation after a Trent Strickland dunk. Tulsa then went off on a 13-0 run over the next 3:26 seconds, with seven of the points scored by newly acquired Gary Forbes, to take a 103-94 lead with 2:40 to play in the game. Forbes finished with 14 points in his Tulsa debut.

Marcus Hubbard tallied his first double-double of the season in the Viper loss. Hubbard scored 11 and hauled in a career-high 17 rebounds. Alpha Bangura’s streak of 20+ point outings also ended on Wednesday as he scored 19 points in the loss. Quin Humphrey and Stanely Asumnu scored 13 and 12 points respectively for Rio Grande Valley.

The Vipers will travel to Austin on Friday night as they face the Southwest Division leading Austin Toros with a 7:30 tip-off time at the Austin Convention Center. The 66ers will travel to Orem, UT on Friday night to face the Utah Flash.

Vipers versus Colorado 1-14-09 Pre-Game

2009-01-14T18:37:00.000-06:00

Live from Dodge Arena... it's The RGV Vipers versus the Colorado 14ers. Let me just say this, if I was a fan of the Vipers, and I'm not, since I am employed by the team, I would HATE the Colorado 14ers!. They are the mongoose to our snake..Ok yeah that was a bad joke... but, they DOMINATE RGV. The Vipers are 1-9 lifetime against Colorado including two losses this season. They are good and they lead the league or are among the league leaders in every major offensive categories, they score, they go to the line, they distribute. However, they don't play defense, which may bode well tonight.

Clay Moser, not to be confused with Robert Loggia, told me they have added a new offense, one that encourages consistent ball movement and discourages stopping the ball. We will see how it works tonight.

As for Colorado, they are in second place in the division and have played great basketball, but like RGV have had a ton of changes lately. Gone are James Mays, Cheik Samb and Sonny Weems. Sean Williams is with the club from the New Jersey Nets and he along with Josh Davis, who has been incredible lately, will be Eddie Gill's go to guys tonight.

Don't forget you can follow all the action on Futurecast , or you can get the live box and play-by-play here or check out Todd Mavreles' live game blog

Dorsey Recalled...Other Rumblings

2009-01-12T21:53:00.000-06:00

The Rockets recalled Joey Dorsey after Friday's game in ABQ. Yes I know... I would have had this up sooner, only I wasn't with the team, the stats from the game didn't come out till the wee hours of the night because of some problems with their stats computers and only the D-league even so much as posted it on their website. Never the less Dorsey went up to the big club for a little bit. They are at home, they may need his body in practice for a bit, maybe he is working with this guy on the finger wag after a shot block... but who knows..I am fairly certain he will be back, and very soon. But at least he gets to enjoy the NBA life again for a little bit.

Now to the Vipers who will face Colorado on Wednesday night, they need some work and they desperately need a win. The chemsitry wasn't there with Smush and now they are looking for it with who is left on the roster. I think Coach Moser wants to make a move, only the choices are pretty slim for players who are in the pool and the Vipers are still near the bottom of the waiver pool. The Vipers were looking for a 6-0 maybe 5-1, or 4-2 stretch over the last six, but if you would have told me that the club would go 1-5 I would have thought you were crazy. But the T_birds are on fire now, thanks to Will Conroy and Keith Mcleod, and where the heck is Reno comin from... WOW.

Colorado is the opponent tonight... They had a couple thrillers with Austin the last couple of games. They are shorthanded tonight with only eight dressed for the game.

I am looking forward to seeing Marcus Hubbard for the first time tonight. He joined the club at the D-League showcase, I think he is going to start.

The Vipers need to make some player moves, but who needs to go?

SMUSH PARKER TO CHINESE BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION

2009-01-08T14:32:00.000-06:00

I am not the first to break this story but here it is. I just got off the phone with Head Coach Clay Moser and he confirmed a report Todd Mavreles had that Vipers guard Smush Parker has left the team to play for a squad in the Chinese Basketball Association believed to be the Guangdong Tigers. Smush averaged 17.2 points 4.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game. Smush also led the league in turnovers at 5.1 a game.

That's the news. Here is my commentary and is not the opinion of anyone else but myself.

This is not a shock to me that he is gone. According to Coach Moser a team in Italy had a standing offer for whenever he was going to take it. But the team in China kept in contact with Smush's agent and finally it was an offer he couldn't refuse. Funny though how his departure coincided almost to the day of his terrible D-League Showcase Performance in which representatives from every NBA team were there. It didn't look like a call-up was coming his way so he took the money. Honestly, this is what I thought would happen, if he didn't get a call-up by the Showcase or didn't play well, he was going to bolt.

Its no secret that Smush didn't really gel with this Viper squad. He was lackadaisical with the ball, (leading the league in turnovers) had spurts where he didn't get his team mates involved, rarely passed the ball into the low post, and took horrible shots. Some games he was great but to sum it up the only thing he was ever consistent in, was being inconsistent. His NBA shot may not have passed him by, he is still a great athlete, but for this season Smush has to focus on why he is struggling and fix that. He will have a chance to do that in China now.

How does this affect RGV? Well you lose your top scorer and assist man, but there are people to pick up the slack. I am curious to see Jared Jordan as the starter, I though he was very good in his two starts. The question is, can he play extended minutes? His only back-up right now is Craig Winder who has been a DNP three times this season and is NOT a point guard. Alpha and Trent need to pick up the load scoring wise. They have been.. but they will need to even more so. Alton NEEDS to get more touches and stay out of foul trouble, and Quin needs to shoot the dang ball when he is in the game.

Clay also confirmed to me that that they are 11th on the waiver wire pool, so still a long way to go if a solid player comes into the pool.

I want to thank Smush for helping us create a little buzz...but he didn't fit...The Vipers will have to move on.

D-League Showcase Preview;

2009-01-04T21:33:00.000-06:00

Greetings Viper Enthusiasts:

Well that time of year has come, and its come a little bit earlier. The 2009 NBA Development League Showcase kicks off in Orem, Utah tomorrow morning. Kudos to the Utah Flash for hosting the event this season. I traveled to the Showcase last season and it takes quite a bit to put it on. You have to have all 16 teams, D-league front office staff, Scouts and General Managers from all 30 NBA clubs in hotel rooms. Oh did I mention all the referees, referee evaluators with the NBA, Media relations staff for all the teams and team Presidents and Owners from all 16 D-league clubs. Yeah and that is just lodging. Food has to be ordered, games need to be scheduled. All the games will be aired on Futurecast, many teams local radio outlets will need to pick up the feed for their local broadcasts. Game Notes printed...etc etc etc..... Trust me it is a lot of work and much of it is worked on by the host franchise, while already having their games to worry about.

I will not be going to the Showcase this year. My duties with FOX Rio 2 and the fact that some of the best play-by-play guys in the D-league will be handling the duties for the league and we can pick up the feed we felt it best that I forgo this trip. I do like visiting with all the other folks in the league, but since I travel to just about every game I can chat with them when I visit all the other buildings.

But I digress. Coach Moser was very disappointed at the Vipers effort on Saturday night. I can't blame him. He has referred to his team, as a Jekyll and Hyde team. Usually this season its been a tale of two halves. Last night it was a tale of two games. The Vipers played great on Friday, built a huge second half lead, actually dominated a third quarter and showed how much better they were than what I belive to be a TERRIBLE Albuquerque team. Then on Saturday we just did not show up mentally. Coach Moser told me in the post game interview that team lacked the maturity at this point to win back-to-back games. It takes a certain moxy to string wins together, right now the Vipers are mediocre, because they don't have that moxy. Will they find it...I guess we will have to wait and see, but this is a stretch of games where they can put a little cushion between themselves and the bottom of the division, they need to take advantage of it so they can be one of the eight teams in the playoffs and not on the outside looking in again.

Here are some thoughts on the Vipers and the showcase.

Vipers vs. Reno - Monday 8:15 CST

Viper Reunion

Jesse Smith played in all 50 games for Rio Grande Valley in their inaugural season and has started all 14 games for the Reno Bighorns this season. I was very fond of Jesse as a player and as a person. He is a quiet and a little reserved; but very intelligent and a genuinely nice person. I had hoped he would return but it was not in the cards for us. I am glad to see he is doing well stats wise, too bad his team is struggling. but, lets hope they don't turn the corner against RGV.
Vipers need a win, and should win. They have better bigs than Reno. They have better guards. No excuse if you don't get this win. NONE
Reno does not come to Dodge Arena this season because of this match-up. RGV won't see Reno again until April 2nd

THUNDERBIRDS DOMINATE BOARDS, BEAT VIPERS 116-10

2009-01-03T22:36:00.000-06:00

HIDALGO, Texas-

Albuquerque guard Will Conroy, the D-League’s leading scorer, tallied a game high 25 points and dished out 10 assists in the Thunderbirds 116-105 victory over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers Saturday night at Dodge Arena. The Thunderbirds led the game by as many as 26 points en-route to just their third victory of the season. Rio Grande Valley lost their first game of 2009 and fell to 7-9 on the season. The Thunderbirds dominated the glass by outrebounding the Vipers 47-31.

The Thunderbirds scored at a frantic first half pace and did not let up. Cory Underwood’s jump hook with 4:40 remaining in the second quarter capped off a 10-2 run and gave the T-birds a 45-35 lead. The Vipers would not get within eight points the rest of the game as the Thunderbirds continued to put the offensive pressure on into the third quarter where they outscored RGV 32-26 and led 93-73 going into the final period.

All five starters and scored in double figures and forwards David Monds and David Noel hauled in double-doubles to help in the Thunderbirds victory. Monds scored 21 and brought down 13 boards, while Noel dropped in 21 points and 11 rebounds. Cory Underwood added 19 points shooting 8/10 from the field.

Smush Parker scored 18 points and dished out five assists to lead the Vipers in the defeat. Quin Humphrey and Alpha Bangura each chipped with 14. Houston Rockets assignee Joey Dorsey played 27 minutes and scored 11 points and tallied six rebounds in the Viper loss.

The Vipers and Thunderbirds will both travel to the D-League Showcase in Orem, Utah. The Vipers will face the expansion Reno Bighorns on Monday night at 8:15 pm CST. The Thunderbirds face the Sioux Falls Skyforce at 11:00 AM MST on Monday.

Vipers Knock of T-birds 108-96

2009-01-02T21:39:00.000-06:00

HIDALGO, Texas-

Smush Parker and Joey Dorsey each tallied double-doubles and the Rio Grande Valley Vipers dominated a third quarter for the first time in a long time en-route to a 108-96 win over the Albuquerque Thunderbirds Friday night at Dodge Arena. The Vipers out scored the Thunderbirds 31-18 and handed Albuquerque their second straight defeat and their tenth loss of the season.

The Thunderbirds kept the game close early with a strong second quarter performance. RGV built a five-point lead after the first, but the Thunderbirds answered back with a 29-point second to take as much as a four point lead in the period, and a two point halftime deficit.

Vipers forward Trent Strickland and guard Alpha Bangura scored 11 and 10 points respectively in the third quarter surge. RGV closed out the period on an 8-2 run and took a 14-point lead into the final period where they lead by as many as 27 before closing out the 12 point victory.

Parker scored 19 and dished out 13 assists for his fifth double-double of the season. Dorsey hauled in his first career double-double with a 16 point 12 rebound performance. Kurt Looby was a basket shy of a double-double as he hauled in 10 rebounds, his second career double-digit rebound performance. Will Conroy scored 26 points to lead the T-birds in scoring.

The same two squads will battle again Saturday night at Dodge Arena with tip-off scheduled for 7:00 pm. Saturday will also be Affiliate Night Presented by Adidas. The Vipers will be wearing the home uniforms of the New Orleans Hornets which will be auctioned off after the game. The Vipers fans will also be entertained by Hugo the Hornet and the HoneyBees Dance Team.

Vipers vs. T-Birds 1-2-09 3rd Qtr

2009-01-02T20:31:00.000-06:00

8:37 remaining 3rd

T-Birds 57
Vipers 53

The T-Birds have started the 3rd on a 10-5 run and now lead it by 4. David Noel has five 3rd Qtr points for ABQ. The Vipers have Alton Ford on the bench with 4 fouls

2:47 remaining 3rd

Vipers 71
ABQ 62

Wait... are the Vipers dominating a third quarter???? Ok maybe not but they are winning one and going on a nice run to take their largest lead of the game at 9. Trent Strickland is starting to heat up with eight 3rd quarter points.

End of 3rd Qtr

Vipers 79
T-Birds 65

Ok the Vipers just DOMINATED a third quarter. They outscored ABQ 31-18 in the period and finally were able to get Trent Strickland and Alpha Bangura involved the offense. Strickland scored 11 points in the third period, Bangura scored 10 of his own..Nice third quarter.. lets keep it up

Vipers vs. T-Birds 1-2-09 Halftime

2009-01-02T20:15:00.000-06:00

Halftime-

Vipers 48
ABQ 47

Red Panda is performing right now.

Vipers did a nice job of regaining the lead with .3 to go... another offensive rebound by Joey Dorsey and a put back. Dorsey has 12 and eight rebounds, while Smush Parker scored eight of his game high 13 points in the second quarter to lead the scoring load for RGV. Trent Strickland has only take six shots, it would be nice to get him going a little more.

Meanwhile Will Conroy continues to be a pest. 11 points , 4 assists three boards, and a steal. The Vipers should have a much bigger halftime lead but they let the T-birds stick around. Give ABQ credit they are doing the little things to chip away, mostly drawing fouls, getting to the line, and making their foul shots.

Expect more inside play in the second half with Ford, Strickland, and Dorsey doing a lot of posting up. The Vipers are terrible in the transition game right now, they need to get back on D.

Second half about to start....HERE WE GO!!

Vipers vs. T-Birds 1-2-09 2nd qtr

2009-01-02T19:44:00.000-06:00

4:23 Remaining 2nd qtr

Vipers 36
ABQ 34

The Vipers are allowing the T-birds to hang around. Cory Underwood has come in to give the T-birds some good 2nd qtr minutes. Big Jasper Johnson, who has a striking resemblance to this guy hit a long three. Not bad for the 275 pounder.

2:59 remaining 2nd Qtr.

Vipers 37
ABQ 38

The T-birds have gone a nice little run to regain the lead. We have have had eight lead changes in the game. No Viper is in double figures Parker and Dorsey each have eight

Vipers vs. T-Birds 1-2-09 1st qtr

2009-01-02T19:25:00.000-06:00

Here is the running gamer. You can follow the game here... or of course... here

5:54 remaining in the 1st

Vipers 11
ABQ 9

Vipers off to a nice start Doresy is a beast on the boards he already has 5. 4 of them are offensive rebounds.

2:40 remaining in the 1st

Vipers 15
ABQ 14

Vipers are getting great all-around production, But Dorsey continues to be a beast. The Vipers are out rebounding the T-birds 12-7.. this is HUUUGE

End of 1st qtr

Vipers 23
ABQ 18

Dorsey pacing the offense for RGV with 8, but the rebounding continues to be the story Vipers outrebounding ABQ 17-7 after the first period. Six of those boards are Dorsey's. Conroy who is the league's leading scorer has just two points

Vipers vs Albuuerque Thunderbirds Pre-Game 1/2/09

2009-01-02T18:33:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year Viper Fans.

With the new year hopefully comes a new attitude for Rio Grande Valley as they begin a very important six game stretch where they play five of their next six games against two of the worst teams in the D-League. Tonight the first of back-to-back home games against the division rival Thunderbirds.

The Vipers knocked of ABQ back on Dec 14th with 122-99 win at Dodge Arena. The T-birds may be 2-9 but have been playing better recently. The beat Idaho back on Dec 26th and had a couple of tight home contests with the division leading Austin Toros.

Will Conroy continues to lead the league in scoring. He is a pesky player, probably the peskiest in the league. He is one of those players that you hate when he is on the opposing club, but you love when he is on your team. He makes good plays, scores the basketball, gets his steals and his assists. A solid player, who likes to put pressure on the refs and flop a little bit too... See what I mean about he is a player you love to hate?

The Vipers have had a couple of long and intense practices, and they needed it. They worked on pick-and roll defense and worked on getting Joey Dorsey aka Ray Lewis with a basketball...along with Jared Jordan aclimated to the offense. Lets hope it helps.. Also still no replacement for Kendall Dartez we will let you know when we hear something.

Dont forget to tune in tonight on NBA Futurecast or on ESPN 1240-AM

Here are the starters

RGV

G- Smush Parker

G- Alpha Bangura

C- Alton Ford

F- Joey Dorsey (Houston Rockets)

F- Trent Strickland

I am going to attempt a running gamer tonight... but bear with me as I am calling the game...but I will try...

GO VIPERS

History Repeats itself

2008-12-20T14:51:00.000-06:00

Greetings Viper fans.

Seeing as how my blog is now a feature on RGVIPERS.com, it is probably a good idea that I start posting on a more regular basis. By the way my thanks to our new webmaster Jonah Goldberg, he is also the Vipers new Media Relations Manager. By the way he also serves as our Home Color Commentator on our radio broadcasts.

Let me just start by saying, RGV is a much better team than the record indicates. The Vipers have had a crazy schedule, even the eight game homestand was crazy. You had the last two D-League Champions, ( Dakota, Idaho) Two other playoff clubs (Sioux Falls, Colorado), and a very solid Utah club that had two NBA Assignees. Right now the Vipers cannot finish games. Coach Moser cant quite put his finger on it. But coaches don't like to make excuses. Since I am the broadcaster and subsequently a Viper apologist I will make the excuse. The Vipers are tired and have little to NO practice time. The first 12 games were in 24 days. 8 home games, against some of the clubs I mentioned, one was a day game with two back to backs. The the first road trip happened. 4 games in six nights in 4 different cities. Game one in frigid Colorado. Only day possible for practice was the Monday before and the floor was not maintained and slippery. Play Tuesday night. Fly for Tulsa on Wednesday, no practice just rest, why? Thursday the game was at 11:00 AM, no shoot around obviously. Win that game. Head over to Tulsa airport, wait, and wait, and wait. Flights are cancelled. Can't get to Des Moines, IA. We bus at 1:00 AM to Kansas City, that's as far as the roads would let us go. Stay the night in a great hotel in KC. Bus at 1:00 pm to Des Moines. Arrive in Des Moines at 5:30om head straight to arena. Play overtime game against Iowa. Fly out next morning at 5:30 AM for Austin. Play Austin on Sunday at 3:00 pm, bus home that night.

Look this is pro basketball, but you tell me that this was an easy stretch of games for a club that needs more practice time and I'll say that you need your head examined. Hopefully these next few days of practice will do the club wonders.

- Next item on the agenda, the assignment of Joey Dorsey. I was excited about the possibility of his assignment since draft day. I knew he wouldn't get any minutes with the big club, but I knew he would make the big club. He is a bruiser, a defensive force and someone who could develop into a strong Ben Wallace type of player. He needs playing time, and he will get a ton of it in RGV. He really is the type of player the Vipers need right now. A strong rebounder ( especially on the offensive side of the glass), shot blocking bruising defender, and a player to take some pressure off of Alton Ford, who can focus more on scoring with Dorsey in the line-up, and also to challenge Alton on the glass. I hope this is an extended assignment. I think it will be, although the Rockets have been mum as to just how long he will be on assignment.

- And now the bad news. Kendall Dartez is the latest Viper to graze in greener pastures overseas as he is off to China. Dartez had some interest from some clubs to join an NBA roster, likely after the showcase, but nothing ever panned out, he got an offer he couldn't refuse. I wish him the best, but now the Vipers will have to search far and wide for another big man, which are hard to find. This adds another hole to this club, who already needed a big, (before Dorsey's arrival), and a sharp shooting three-point specialist. Sadly the Vipers don't get any benefits in the waiver list because of Kendall's departure, that only happens with Gatorade Call-Up.

I am going to try to blog more... our friends over at Ridiculousupside...Who I have added to the blog roll, have challenged me to update more so I will. It's tougher to maybe link as much as I have in the past but I will try.

Untill later...Stay outta the paint

Vipers Game Blog

2008-12-04T19:11:00.000-06:00

Halftime Vipers 52 - Wizards 42

Solid first half for Rio Grande Valley although Smush Parker is taking some terrible shots right now. He looks like he is just trying to get into a rhythm but hasn't been able to so far tonight. Craig Winder and Trent Strickland both have 11 points with Winder's coming off the bench. Alton Ford is drawing fouls from any Dakota players the crosses his way and he is making them pay as big Al has 12 points, but most importantly is 8 for 8 from the foul line. As for Dakota the don't have a single player in double figures. Quemont Greer has nine points to lead the way for Dakota. The Wizards have played all 11 players. Let me just say that Hamed Haddadi is a beast. He needs ALOT of developing... but he is a beast!!

5:44 Remaining 2nd Qtr Vipers 40 - Wizards 35

Dakota must like spotting its opponents big leads and coming back. Vipers have led by as many as 12 but the Wizards have brought the game back into close single digits. Craig Winder has looked good off the bench with 9 points including two three pointers. Mo Baker is just a pest defensively and he has also put up seven points...He is a really good player on what could be a good Dakota team.

Second Media timeout 2:44 remaining Vipers 25, Wizards 13

Trent Strickland looks like the Trent Strickland from the weekend. He has nine 1st quarter points and is 4-5 shooting from the field. Quin Humphrey has been agressive in the early going as well with seven points.

Vipers are shooting over 70% from the field right now.. Lets see if they keep it up

Pre Game Versus Dakota Wizards

2008-12-04T18:22:00.000-06:00

Hello Friends:

Well the Vipers got the stomach punch of the century in the third quarter of last night's game versus the expansion Erie BayHawks. The Vipers were nearly tripled up, outscored 35-12 in the third and dropped their first game of the season with a 101-86 loss. Personally I think it's better that it happened sooner than later.

This Vipers team has a ton of talent, but has been developing some bad habits. They turn the ball over too much and think they can turn on a 10-0 run whenever they want. It doesn't always work that way in this league; especially when you play everyone in your division seven times.

Tonight's opponent is Dakota. We saw Dakota twice last season and it is probably safe to say that they are the San Antonio Spurs of the the D-League and of minor league basketball. They just always win. I don't know what it is that draws people to Bismarck, North Dakota, but they put a winner on the floor year in and year out. They have four championships in the 12 year history of the franchise. One IBA championship, two CBA titles, and one D-League title. Duane Ticknor is their head coach, another minor league coaching legend. The schedule makers were not kind to the Vipers. Four of the first five teams the Vipers have faced this season have coaches with at least one minor league championship on their resume... NOT COOL!!!

The Wizards are 0-2, they suffered a home loss to Iowa to begin their season and started their road swing with a heartbreaking overtime loss to Austin last night despite coming back from a 19 point deficit. So Ticknor and the Wizards are dying for a win, lets hope they can wait till they go home.

Game Two vs. Utah Flash

2008-11-29T18:27:00.000-06:00

Greeting my fellow Viper fanatics.

Well game one is in the book and the Vipers came out on top 83-82 to division rival Tulsa. The game ended up being much closer than it needed to be, but outstanding guard play down the stretch by Tulsa kept the Sixers in the game. Trent Strickland played a monster game scoring 24 and hauling in eight boards

Last night was not without its problems, shot clock did not work throughout the game. Public Address announcer Tony Forina had to give 10 second warnings with a countdown at 5 for every possession. There were issues with the live stats as well. Game started a tad late (7:23), and our official webcast NBA Futurecast was not operating.

Hopefully we've worked out the kinks and are ready to go tonight. Tonight the Vipers take on the Utah Flash. Oddly enough, even thought the Vipers only won 21 games last year, the Snakes beat every opponent in the D-League at least once except for one....Who was it...???? Yep you guessed it the Utah Flash.

This is seemingly the model franchise of the D-League. their owner Brandt Anderson is like the Mark Cuban of the D-League. Internet billionaire buys a basketball team, builds sparkling new practice facility, has largest front office in the D-League and is very active in the community. They do a great job in Utah, hence while they will be hosting the D-League showcase in 2009.

Random Notes: I am really digging the Snake Charmers secondary uniforms. They have a huge Vipers logo belt buckle which really stands out. Also I must say the Snake Charmers have improved from year 1 to year 2. A good mix of returnees and rookies. I like the squad Nora.

So far I like what this team has. Some good rebounding ability, great athleticism, good character players, and most importantly, veteran leadership. This team has the potential to be very good, provided there is a contingency plan if a certain Mr. Smush Parker gets a Gatorade Call-up.

TRAINING CAMP STARTS TODAY!

2008-11-14T15:36:00.000-06:00

The day has finally arrived. Season 2 of Rio Grande Valley Vipers Basketball begins today. Well at least the training camp part of it. It seems as if the D-League decided to give coaches a couple extra days to get their camps started and whittle down their rosters from 17 all the way down to 10 for opening night.

Speaking with Coach Moser on the Vipers Coaches Show (Every Thursday at 5:00 pm on ESPN 1240) he was stoked about the team he was able to put together for this season. He was especially excited about former Lakers point guard Smush Parker dropping all the way to the 12th spot right into his lap. According to Parker's agent he is excited about the opportunity to showcase his game and get back to the NBA.

I am going to break down the 17 man training camp roster as best as I can. I am still getting to know the team and where they have been so bare with me.

Returning Players

G/F - Trent Strickland 6-6 Wake Forest
G - Quin Humphrey 6-4 Youngstown State
F - Stanley Asumnu 6-5 - Tennessee
G - Craig Winder 6-2 - Texas

Evaluation:

Sorry to say it is not the strongest returning line-up in the D-league. The Vipers will sorely miss Ivan Johnson who is a presence on the inside. Jesse Smith is now in Reno and should be a solid role player for that expansion franchise. The most important returnee is without a doubt Trent Strickland. Strickland is the quintessential pro hoops player. He fits into any role you give him. Early in the season Strickland played an off-the bench role but as the Vipers started to lose players to overseas defections he stepped up and filled in nicely and averaged over 13ppg. Strickland should continue to provide valuable minutes to the squad. As for the rest of the squad, Humphrey and Asumnu are very strong defensive players and both played big minutes last year, but they didn't have big nights offensively every night. Humphrey is a big time rebounding guard and both players work hard on both ends of the floor. As for Winder a very good, but streaky shooter. Stepped up for some big games and ran the offense late in the year along side Kris Collins (who is now in Austin).

I like all of these guys and they can all contribute, but will they all make the squad? Who knows. I think Strickland is a lock but not sure who else is. Coach Moser is keeping a tight lip on this. But these guys should know that no one has been guaranteed a spot on the roster or the rotation, they will have to earn it.

Allocation Players/Local Tryout:

C/F- Alton Ford - 6-10 - Houston
C/F- Kendal Dartez - 6-10 - Louisville
G -Damone Morris - 6-3 - Eckard College

EVALUATION -

SIZE!! This allowed Coach Moser to draft best available player and not need. Alton Ford is a familiar name to local hoops fans. He played at Houston Milby who played down here in the Valley in the Los Fresnos Tourney several years ago. He was a McDonalds All-American and was a Clyde Drexler recruit at Houston.. although he never played for Coach Drexler. He has bounced around the NBA and overseas. He is a big body who can score and rebound. Dartez much of the same, although not as big of a body. Long. Can block shots and rebound and has a couple years of D-League expereince. Not gonna light up the score sheet but can contribute off the bench. Damone Morris, the local tryout player,looks like he could be a steal. I am a big fan of small college guys who put up big guys. Why? They play with passion that some big time college program players don't. They play with a chip on their shoulder because they didn't get recruited by the big guys. Morris averaged 17 ppg for NCAA D-2 Eckard College in Florida and looks like a scorer in every sense of the word. I like this pick-up

Drafted Players - by round

G - Smush Parker - 6-4 - Fordham - LA Lakers
F- Delonte Holland 6-7 - DePaul
C- Kurt Looby 6-10 - Iowa
G - Alpha Bangura - 6-6 - St. Johns
G- Thomas Sanders 6-3 - Texas Pan American - Garnder Webb
C/F - Boomer Herndon - 6-10 - Belmont
C - Jeffrey Day - 6-9 - Creighton
G/F Lance Perique - 6-8 - Georgia State
G - Keoni Watson - 5-10 - Idaho
F - JR. Harrison - 6-6 - Rice

Evaluation:

Without a doubt the Vipers are thrilled to have a hungry NBA ready guy to lead the offense, until he gets a Gatorade Call-up of course. I like the Smush Parker selection.. Why? I know some of you might be saying, " But A.D.B. he's just going to get called up, won't that hurt us?" Well in a sense, yes. Parker has something to prove, it is always nice to have a guy who is hungry on your team. The other thing is, the Vipers start the season with 8 home games. Personally If I am a Team President, I love this pick because we have an NBA name guy to help put butts in the seat and to help my coach get off to a great start to the season.

Vipers Coaches Show is Back!!

2008-10-03T14:53:00.000-05:00

The Vipers den is open for business again. After several months of hiatus the Rio Grande Valley Vipers Head Coaches show is back on the air. You can listen in every Thursday at 5:00 PM on ESPN Radio 1240 AM. As of right now the show is a 30 minute chat with Clay Moser and any other special guests we will have throughout the year. More on that later. However, we are discussing the possibility of doing the show on remote once a month and extending the time to an entire hour. This will give the fans a chance to interact with the show, and potentially win some great Vipers prizes.

We had our first show yesterday, and it went as smooth as possible. I have to say this.. Coach Moser is a great interview. He can give you the nuts and bolts, and he can give you a one liner. He can be serious and funny. But most of all he is informative and straightforward and those are two huge keys for a coach and his dealing with the media. He will make an entertaining guest week in and week out on the Vipers Coaches Show (Thursday's at 5:00 pm ESPN RADIO 1240 AM) .

As for potential guest on the show. The Rolodex is certainly full.. expect D-league President Dan Reed at some point, Daryl Morey (GM of Houston Rockets), Maybe other memebers of the other Rockets and Hornets Basketball operations department. We may be able to get NBA Commissioner David Stern at some point as well. There are all kinds of guests we can get if you have any suggestions, leave a comment, or send an email vipersradio@gmail.com . We will try to make it happen.

That's it for now... be sure to tune in to get all your Vipers info every Thursday!!

Back by Popular Demand

2008-09-21T13:52:00.000-05:00

Seeing as we have had a lot to report, and I have remained silent on the sidelines. I feel it is about time I catch up with the Vipers blog. After all, I am the Voice of the Vipers. Well this voice has been awful quiet during the offseason, and for several reasons. We didn't have lot to report for a good majority of it, but lately there has been a lot to report now and I thought I would give some brief commentary on the news.

Story 1: Vipers Hire Clay Moser as Head Coach

This was a long time coming but the Vipers finally announced a new permanent Head Coach since Bob Hoffman's departure for Mercer University. I like Moser's resume, I like his demeanor. I like how he is with the media. I haven't spoken to him much. Obviously he has been spending time preparing for the draft and has been doing a lot of scouting etc. But from the little time I have spent with him, he seems like an energetic guy, ready to get back into coaching, (He has been an advanced scout for several years in the NBA) He also has an obvious sense of humor and is obviously very witty. (Which is great for a radio guy like me because he is always there for a good sound bite). I like the hire.. we will see how things go. It's no secret that I was back and forth in my favorability of Hoffman. I was never critical of him. (although he felt otherwise) But I don't think he understood the pro game as well as he should have. He was a great hire for the expansion team. A familiar face who was liked by sponsors and basketball fans alike. Long term though..we figured out he wasn't the right fit. But you live and you learn. As for Moser, so long as he never throws his headset on the table during a postgame interview, he will be ok with me.

Story 2

Vipers Hire Brian Michael Cooper as Team President-

Before I talk about Cooper. Who I think is a tremendous hire, I wanted to share more info on the Vipers front office and ownership. When the team started majority ownership was elsewhere. Ryan Murphy (former Team President) did a great job getting the ball rolling and getting the franchise down here. However it was obvious fairly quickly that there was an extreme disconnect between the Vipers local owners and the Front Office that was hired by the original majority owners. While I don't think anyone is truly right or wrong in these situations, it was fairly obvious that once Alonzo Cantu took the reigns as majority owner that changes had to be made. Our owners are very hands on, which in this situation is very good. They know how to do things first class, they run the Vipers operation as a mini NBA franchise. But, they need people to fit their mindset of how the franchise should be run. Now they finally have their man to head the operation. It was a long time coming, but did they find a good one.

Brian Michael Cooper's resume is so impressive, all that was missing was a military award like a Purple Heart of a Medal of Honor. This guy has had an amazing education, both in the classroom and in his professional life. He is a lawyer by trade, but knows the sports business like the back of his hand. He has worked on some high profile cases involving sports leagues, he has also been a player agent in the NFL and NBA. This guy knows his stuff. I met him the day of the presser and I was impressed by the fact that he had read the blog and said he enjoyed it. That makes me feel good and also tells me that he does his research. He should be an excellent fit for this Vipers franchise.

Time is ticking down to the home opener and I am excited for the season. I will be blogging more as more news becomes readily available. More in the coming days and weeks.

WALSH WINS TWO STRAIGHT FOR DEBUT

2008-03-31T18:24:00.000-05:00

Not a bad debut for Brian Walsh as Vipers Acting Head Coach. No one from ownership or from the basketball operations department would admit that this is an audition for Brian Walsh to be the permanent Head Coach of the RGV Vipers, but we all know that it is. Frankly in two games, with the energy that the Vipers have shown, and of course the back to back wins against a team that had won six of seven coming into Dodge Arena, I think Walsh has put himself in a strong position to be named the head coach permanently.

I have been asked by a lot of people in the last week about Brian's credentials and if he should be the coach. I have always begun my answer with, "He has won everywhere he has been." He is a winner, and he knows the minor leagues. I know that Bob Hoffman was probably the right fit last May. Brian Walsh is the right fit this April. He knows the pro game. He is looking to do two things. 1) Put a winner on the floor every night. and 2) Get to the NBA.

We all kind of knew what Coach Hoffman wanted to do when he came back to the RGV last year. We all knew he was going back to the college game at some point. It just happened to be on weird terms. I don't fault Hoffman for doing what he did like some people do. But, here is the thing now, Hoffman was not the right fit, Walsh is.

Walsh won a title in the USBL, been to the final game of the CBA Finals with Dakota, been to the Finals in the D-League with Colorado. I could go on with his resume, but you get the point.

Names aren't going to win you games. They may sell tickets in the beginning, but you know what sells tickets from the midpoint on... WINS. Look at the coaches who are the winners in this league.

Brian Gates (Idaho Stampede)- A long time minor league coach. USBL, CBA, D-League. Never played a minute of college basketball let alone pro hoops, and he is going win (likely) his second straight D-league Coach of the Year award.

Dan Panaggio(LA D-Fenders)-Coached in the CBA and at the NBA level as an assistant. They have also clinched a playoff spot and are plus 30 wins.

Joe Wolf (Colorado 14ers)- Coached in Idaho before Brian Gates...former NBA player but was not a name by any stretch. The were one win from the D-League title last year.

Duane Ticknor. (Dakota Wizards) another minor league guy.... See a pattern here?

I could go on... but you get my point... Give him a chance. He has earned it, and he wants to be here.

Toros Ram Past Vipers

2008-03-20T22:30:00.001-05:00

A strong defensive effort from the Austin Toros, and a poor shooting night from the entire Rio Grande Valley roster led to the lowest point total in franchise history as the Vipers fell 110-75 to the Austin Toros Thursday night at the Austin Convention Center. The win for the Toros breaks their four game losing skid, and the loss for the Vipers is their third straight defeat away from Dodge Arena.

The Vipers kept the game close in the first half despite shooting just 31% from the field. They lead for the majority of the first quarter before surrendering the lead at the 4:45 mark on a Serge Angounou bank shot from the wing giving the Toros a 14-12 advantage. The Vipers unfortunately would not sniff the lead for the remainder of the game. The Toros outscored the Vipers 22-18 in the second quarter and led 46-36 at intermission.

After the Vipers closed a 10-point halftime deficit to three, the Toros exploded for a 19-3 run and would lead by 25 at the end of the third quarter. Rio Grande Valley did not fare much better into the fourth as Austin outscored RGV 33-23 and ran their lead to as many as 40 points as the Vipers could not find the answer offensively to the stifling Austin defense. Rio Grande Valley shot just 32% from the field in the loss.

Ivan Johnson led the scoring load for the Vipers with 18 points off the bench. Vipers leading scorer Desmon Farmer was limited to only 17 points on 5-16 shooting. Kris Collins in his second straight start for the banged up Quin Humphrey scored 13 on a poor shooting night for him as well.

The Toros had six players tally double figures, and everyone on their roster scored. Marcus Williams scored 25 to lead the way for the Austin. Justin Bowen added a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards, while DeMarr Johnson scored 19 in the Toros 26th win of the season.

The Vipers 75 points on Thursday, is the lowest point total in the young history of the franchise. The Vipers will play their final game versus their in-state rival on Friday night with a 7:00 pm tip-off at the Austin Convention Center.

Pre Game Austin vs RGV 3/20

2008-03-20T19:06:00.000-05:00

Well its time for the Vipers to return to the city where we last saw CJ Watson. The Vipers played some entertaining games versus the Toros this year. Most specifically this one back on January 5th a Double OT defeat to the Vipers and see the end of CJ Watson tenure with RGV and he went out with a 42 point explosion.

Celebrity watch: Round Rock Express broadcaster Mike Capps is in the building. We hope to have him for a halftime interview. Also The Monitor's Sports Editor Wade Baker is in the building as well.

End of 1st qtr--

Vipers 18
Toros 24

Vipers started strong and sputtered out at the end of the period. Ivan Johnson is a difference maker and the big news is Ian Mahinmi is in foul trouble again as he picked up two quick fouls.

5:06 Remaining 2nd Qtr
Vipers 33
Toros 38

The game has slowed down a bit and there have been more missed shots. Both teams are playing pretty good defense. Ivan Johnson is on the bench, but he continues to play well for the Vipers as he is sitting with 12 points now and has a huge block shot off the backboard.

LAST ROAD TRIP; COACH HOFFMAN NEWS

2008-03-19T16:55:00.000-05:00

Well I am sure a lot of you were wondering where I have been lately. Well lets just say first of I was recovering a bit after a long last weekend. Calling three games in three nights in two cities with travel mixed in took its toll on my body and voice So I am waiting till Wednesday to blog on a great many things.

First, congrats to the Vipers on their big win over Austin at the Dodge on Sunday. They have been playing great basketball lately. Even in their loss in Tulsa they have been fighting hard for each and every minute. I like this team. I like being around them. They are fighters and they work hard. They deserve a better hand than they have been dealt. Oh and here is a interesting fact, if the Vipers can win these next two games in Austin, they will have split the season series with the Toros. I think they can do it. They are a very different team without Keith Langford, and the Vipers are a very different team with Ivan Johnson. I am expecting at least a split in Austin. They aren't the same dominant team without Kris Lang and Keith Langford.

Secondly, congrats to the Houston Rockets on their 22 game winning streak. I know there are still a lot of people including this guy who think the Rockets are not a true title contender, and maybe they aren't but you have to give them credit for making history over the last month and a half. This is a fun team to watch and it completely exemplifies what the D-League is about with all the former D-Leaguers that are on their roster. The energy is back in Houston for basketball, and it was wonderful to see Toyota Center packed and rocking at the opening tip. I have been to the Toyota Center and seen the late arriving crowds, or the non existing crowds. I was a kid when they won their back-to-back titles and I remember how raucous The Summit would get. I am really enjoying this ride by Houston. Title or not this year, they are winning games without their biggest star. Take your hat off to them, they have earned it.

Also I am sure you have all heard by now that Vipers Head Coach Bob Hoffman has interviewed for the vacant head coaching position at Mercer University. There is always a ton of movement in college basketball around this time, check out the current death pool on this nice page on ESPN.com. It is no secret that Coach Hoffman is a much more comfortable in a college environment. It is one of the things that is hard about pro coaching, especially in the D-League where you can lose players all the time to either Europe or to the NBA. Whichever situation is chosen I will be happy for coach, because he always makes the best move in which to take care of his family, which is admirable. If coach does decide to leave I would nominate Vipers Assistant Coach Brian Walsh for the job. He is a winner, and knows the minor leagues like the back of his hand.

NOTES: Stay tuned for my March Madness Blog...FYI The D-League announced team #16 this week, and as I predicted it is in Erie, PA. Also it should be noted that the former Vipers owners Mark Pollock and Steven Demetriou are involved with the project. Expect the Cavs affiliation to move here. The question now is will the Vipers be down to only two affiliates. It looks that way, as the D-League is at 16 teams teams now which is more than half of the NBA's 30 teams. The Spurs and Lakers have their teams, so that drops the NBA total to 28 and the D-League total to 14. A perfect fit for two affiliates each. We know one will be Houston , will New Orleans be the other? Or could we see another Eastern Conference team? This news also popped up about one of the best teams in the ABA...boy that was an oxymoron huh, that's like being the best hockey player in Mexico. Sounds like they want in the D-League, but who knows how serious their application will be taken serious. It wouldn't be a first for the D-League to admit an ABA team, but your talking about an outrageous boost in expenses, especially with the team being in Canada. I just don't see it happening.

Vipers Comeback Falls Short at Tulsa

2008-03-14T23:10:00.000-05:00

Tulsa, OK; March 14, 2008-

Despite falling behind by 18 points on a hot shooting night by the Tulsa 66ers, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers fought their way back to tie the game at the end of regulation, but ultimately fell short of the win. The Vipers fell to the Tulsa 66ers 123-117 in overtime at Expo Square Pavilion Friday night. The Vipers loss now guarantees a below .500 season for the first year franchise. The loss is their second straight overall and on the road.

The Vipers fell behind early, due to the sizzling start by Tulsa. The 66ers shot 80% from the field and from three-point range in the first quarter and led 43-27 after the first period. Tulsa would relinquish their double-digit lead only twice for the next two quarters. Tulsa led 87-75 after three quarters.

A 16-8 run to start the 4th quarter pulled RGV to within four points and prompted an immediate timeout from 66ers Head Coach Joey Meyer. The Vipers did not lead for the entire game until there was 2:53 remaining in regulation when Kris Collins scored to give RGV a 103-102 lead. The Vipers would lead just once more in the rest of the game.

Tulsa led by three points in the final minute of regulation until Desmon Farmer tallied a three-point play that tied the game at 108. Rio Grande Valley had a chance to win it with 2.7 seconds remaining in regulation, but Trent Strickland’s runner in the lane fell short, forcing overtime.

Adam Harrington was lights-out from the outside for Tulsa. The former Auburn Tiger scored a season high 36 points before fouling out. Harrington hit two big threes in overtime on back-to-back possessions to give the 66ers a six-point lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Farmer scored a new Vipers franchise record 44 points in the Viper loss. Farmer was four points away from his career high set last season as a member of the 66ers. Five other Vipers scored in double figures including Ivan Johnson’s 14 points and 12 rebounds in his Viper debut. Kris Collins was two assists away from a double-double after scoring 14 points of his own.

Rio Grande Valley will play three straight games versus the Austin Toros with the first being at Dodge Arena on Sunday night. Tip-off for Sunday’s game is 5:00 pm.

Vipers at Tulsa

2008-03-14T18:48:00.000-05:00

Last 10 games of the year, can't hold anything back now. I am sure that is what both team's are thinking as the two Southwest Division foes renew acquaintances for the first time since February 1st. The Vipers did not fare well the last time they played here but it was also the first time RGV had Desmon Farmer on their roster. Since then Desmon has been a big time scorer for the Vipers since then, including the 40 points he put up on Monday versus Colorado.

BREAKING NEWS:
Milwaukee releases David Noel, so his assignment with Tulsa is also over and he will not play.

ALSO FYI: Congratulations goes out to UTPA beat writer Jason McDaniel's marriage to his fiance' Sylvia today.

End of the 1st Quarter-

Vipers-27
Tulsa-42

Vipers trail after a red hot first quarter from the Tulsa 66ers. Adam Harrington, who has stepped up his game recently has 12 1st quarter points. The 66ers shot 80% from the field 16/20 in the first period of play.
Note: Ivan Johnson had his first basket as a Viper. Offensive rebound and a thank you very much dunk... Welcome to RGV Ivan.

2nd Qtr update--5:49 remaining

Vipers-36
Tulsa - 49

66ers have cooled off a bit, but the Vipers can't seem to close the game as of yet.

2nd Qtr update 2:28 remaining

Vipers -43
Tulsa- 61

Vipers can't find their touch and the 66ers can't miss. Chris Ellis has been a beast for them. He has at least three dunks in this game. The offesnive sparkplug Kris Collins has finally hit a hoop.

3rd Quarter Update--

Vipers 60
Tulsa 68

The Vipers have started the third quarter on a 12-3 run including back-to-back threes from Desmon Farmer and are within 8 promting a Joey Meyer Time-out.

End of 3rd Qtr-
Vipers 75
Tulsa 87

A twelve point differential is doable, but will be difficult. A back and forth quarter saw the Vipers pull within eight. However this 66er squad stops any rally the Vipers throw at them. Desmon leads all scorers with 26 points.

4th Quarter Update 8:11 remaining.
Vipers 91
Tulsa 95

A nice run by Rio to start the 4th. 16-8 run to be exact. Desmon Farmer, Ivan Johnson and Trent Strickland all have 3-pointers. They are within 4. Lets see if they can keep it going.

4th Qtr Update- 3:14 remaining.

Vipers 101
Tulsa 102

Well they kept it going. The Vipers and 66ers both want this game. Joey Meyer Time-out. Vipers have possession. Stay tuned.

4th Quarter Update- 25.7 remaining.
Vipers 108
Tulsa 108

Big and-one by Desmon Farmer Tulsa ball...

2.7 remaining.

Adam Harrington misses a potential game winner. Vipers rebound. Timeout

End of Regulation
Vipers 108
Tulsa 108

After a horn blunder.. The Vipers got it into Trent Strickland who missed a runner in the lane to send the game into overtime. Great Comeback by the Vipers!!!

End of Game
The Vipers were outscored 15-9 in the overtime and fell 123-117. Desmon Farmer scored a Franchise record 44 points but the Vipers comeback fell a few possessions short. Stay tuned for the release.

Final Stretch for the RGV Vipers

2008-03-13T16:56:00.000-05:00

Every time I get involved in a homestretch of a season it has always been under different circumstances. There is something about the final 10 to 15 games of any season that is interesting. Sometimes you are involved in the playoff races, sometimes you are way ahead and clinched your playoff spot weeks ago and are trying to make sure you are healthy and clicking come playoff time. Other times you are the team on the outside looking in and trying to play the spoiler roll. Then there are sometimes where you are just bad, and have nothing to play for at the end.

We are still in the playoff hunt, but lets face it, the teams that are in front of us are going to have to completely have a tailspin for us to crack the postseason. We are in that spoiler roll and making sure we have the right core of talent to build on for next year. Recruiting will only be that much easier for the Vipers next year because of the core we have assembled for next year.

But I want to get back on the topic of the last few games of any season. It is just odd how everyone and every team will look at these last few games differently. For example in 2004 when I was broadcasting with the Edinburg Roadrunners, we clinched a playoff spot in June and the playoffs weren't until late August. The team didn't let up but the last few days what did Chad Tredaway do? He set up his rotation for the playoffs. Made sure all the bullpen arms got their work in, and tinkered with the line-up to make sure he had the right one come day one of the playoffs. What happened, well the team went 6-0 in the postseason and we hoisted the championship trophy.

Well what about my first year with UTPA. We had a team that had won only 2 D-1 victories the entire season, and frankly just went through the motions the final 10 games. It wasn't fun. Plus the kids had nothing to look forward to. No postseason tournament since they weren't in a conference, and no hope what so ever about being the in NCAA tournament.

This is really my first year in the spoiler roll. Oddly enough our arena mates seem to be in the same boat. Frankly, it has some advantages. There is no pressure, the games are exciting because we are playing hard because our guys are playing for pride and for jobs on either the Vipers or other D-League teams next year. Plus, we are trying to keep the teams we are facing out of the playoffs.

FYI: We aquired Ivan Johnson from Anaheim in a very odd trade. Not because it was the first 3-team trade in D-League history. No. It was because we traded a player that not only never played for us, but we traded a guy who we thought we were going to get assigned to us all season long in Adam Haluska. He was with the Hornets, got hurt. Was wearing a boot for a few months and seemed like a perfect fit for a New Orleans assignment. It never happened, Haluska was then traded, oddly enough to our other affiliate in Houston in the Bonzi Wells trade. So we thought he we will finally get him since there is no way he will be in their rotation. Well he wasn't in Houston's plan at all and was released. He signed a D-League contract and we claimed him and sent him to Iowa. Probably better for Adam, he played college ball at Iowa, he is from Iowa and will help them draw some fans. Plus we needed a big man anyways. So lets hope Ivan make basket.... many of them.

Also Todd had Coach Hoffman on this week on Living the Beat, or Riding the Beat, or Beating the Beat, Or whatever his little videocast is called. Frankly I am a little hurt that I haven't been a guest on the show yet. But, you know what, Todd has his reasons, and I am not going to get all "feelings" like this guy did when I didn't place him on my blogroll. HA HA.. kidding Brian...only kidding. By the way I just found out Brian is a sports genius...How? He Stumped the Schwab!! ... Here is the info

Well I will close this post, I will try to be more frequent here over the course of the weekend. A lot of people ask why I don't post more and why my post's are so long. Frankly it is because I need time to write, something interesting to write about, and the motivation to write. I love to write and when I write, I write long and take a lot of time with posts, because I want my readers to be well informed with the information I present.

By the way, I welcome comments and e-mails. E-mails at vipersradio@gmail.com or comment below. I would love to have a mail-bag every so often to answer your questions. Even if they are for some of the guys, or Coach Hoffman I will be happy to pass the question along and post the answer here.

Until next time...Stay out of the paint...

FINALLY CLIMBED THE 14ers!!

2008-03-10T14:21:00.000-05:00

It took seven tries but Sunday the Vipers were able to finally scale the 14ers with a 114-110 overtime victory at Dodge Arena. It was one of those "Everyone contributed", and "It was a team effort" type games. While this was true, the Vipers rode the backs of two guys. Desmon Farmer and Kris Collins. The game was more about Collins down the stretch. He scored 8 points in the overtime alone and frankly was stellar and just in a zone. In fact he made a sick reverse lay-up a lot like this guy did in his return from basketball in 1995. Broncs' play-by-play man Jonah Goldberg thinks I should embed it in the blog so here it is for all you lazy blog readers who can't click on the link.

The Vipers need continue on this trend if they want any shot of sniffing the playoffs. Hey I know it seems like a longshot. But stranger things have happened. Sorry Frank Mentesana, but the Mets did blow a huge division lead to miss the playoffs last year. Maybe the Vipers can be like the Phillies.

Anyways we get Colorado for the final time tonight. Frankly I do not want to see them again. They have killed us this year. Bring on Tulsa and the ABQ. We have a ton of games left with them.

D-League Expansion

2008-03-03T19:32:00.000-06:00

If any of ya'll know me you would know that one of the pieces of news I find most intriguing when it comes to minor league sports is expansion, team movement, and team foldings. I have been in professional sports for six years now. I have worked for two teams that have folded (In Harlingen and in Edinburg), a baseball league that has folded. I have seen a new league formed in the old league's place. I have seen countless teams relocate, added, and fold in the Central Hockey League, Arena Football 2, all over indy baseball and even in the D-League and CBA. It evens happens in the NBA Heck in the last decade this team has played in three different cities and frankly judging by these numbers, they could stand to move again.

Memphis used to be in Vancouver, Charlotte was added after these guys moved, The Nets are supposed to move here. The Sonics are set to move here. So even in the NBA these type of things happen. Heck even this year in the CBA we have seen one team cease operations, and another cancel their remaining home games, when did the CBA become the ABA?

But I digress. The D-League is growing and will continue to grow and will never die at least not on David Stern's watch. The D-League is his baby and his way to pull a fast one on this idiot coach of the New York Team. Remember Isiah Thomas owned the CBA ran it into the ground and tried to sell it to the NBA??? The David Stern said.. yeah um no... let me start my own league.

We have already hear the announcement of one team for next season. Reno, Nevada. Which technically isn't really an expansion team, it is basically a re-location of the dormant Ft. Worth franchise, but its a new town. Reno is a rapidly growing city, they will be getting a Triple-A baseball team down the road and frankly indoor sports make much more sense in Reno than baseball. Just my opinion. I love baseball, but Nevada is a desert. I am not going to watch a game in the desert. Sorry not happening.

There will be a second new team. Yes Two New NBA D-League Teams...AH AH AH AH although there is talk the league will still have 14 teams next year. Does that mean the end for Bakersfield or Anaheim who frankly have more people on staff than in the stands? But if the league is at 16 next year, the D-League will be officially past the halfway point of a one-to-one affiliation. Which is the D-League's eventual goal. Also expect the 09-10 season be another 4 team boom. There are plenty of markets interested and a lot more NBA teams interested in a set-up like Los Angeles and San Antonio have with their D-League teams. Don't be surprised to see Toronto, Cleveland, and Dallas get involved sometime soon.

There are many rumors as to who the other expansion team is for next year. Portand, ME? Frisco, TX? Youngstown, OH? Harlem, NY? Trenton, NJ? Manchester, NH? Buffalo, NY? Hamilton, ONT? Or maybe some old CBA towns like this one or this one?

I have a hunch that this town in Pennsylvania will be the lucky winners this year. However don't expect the rumored Cleveland affiliation to last for more than one season, if the Cavs succeed in taking over this building.

Coach Hoffman and I discussed expansion on last week's coaches show.

WARNING!! SHAMELESS PLUG: Vipers Coaches Show Friday's at 5:00 pm on ESPN RADIO 1240AM

It is always exciting to see the new towns join the league. It will add some variety to the league and maybe ease on the travel. I can see a scenario in which the League changes the Divisions around a bit and perhaps have a Northen and Southern Conference. 16 teams might also see a playoff expansion. Obviously if the league also ever went to a one-to-one affiliation the Rockets would be our team. It would be nice to see more people embrace the Rockets down here. I know, I know this is Spurs country. But, you can't tell me you didn't root for the Rockets during their title years. In fact a lot of Spurs fans were freakin Bulls fans in the 90's anyway. But logistically the Rockets would be our team farm system wise. The Spurs have Austin. The Mavs will likely place a team somewhere, probably in Frisco. The Rockets have the Valley. To me that is just perfect.

Who Wants to .... MUTUMBO!!!

2008-02-26T18:58:00.000-06:00

Well apparently I have..SNAKEBIT, again no pun intended, the Houston Rockets, one day after I post about the Rockets being a team to be reckoned with in the Western Conference... this happens. I officially put a hex on the Houston Rockets and I am ashamed. I also, just last week bought a Rockets Shooting Shirt since I had very little Rockets gear with the new logo. So for all my fellow Rockets fans, my bad.

By the way Yao being out does theoretically mean more minutes for the 2000's NBA version of Robert Parrish who happens to be Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo...Or just Dikembe. I have always been a fan of his finger wag and who could forget this memorable photo when the Nuggets became the first 8 seed to win a playoff series

Ok so after Tuesday's win over Fort Wayne we know that RGV is officially better than both the Iowa Energy and now the Mad Ants. I seem to believe we are a middle of the pack team. I think we are also better than Bakersfield, Anaheim as well. The team has definitely improved since the 10 game losing skid. Tremendously. We have had wins over LA and Albuquerque, now if we can just get over this stigma of playing Colorado and beat them I think we can make a nice respectable run to a 20+ win season.

We have a lot of time off before our next game against the 14ers..because the Dodge has been taken over by this great event which I will be partaking in this weekend.

Also... My next blog will be on Expansion of the D-League and the state of minor league basketball stay tuned.

Stuck in Harlingen.. For Now

2008-02-25T09:25:00.000-06:00

After a weekend of being away from the team. Yes, it has been killing me being away from the team. I am trying to rejoin the squad for their final game of the four game road swing in Broomfield, Colorado. Only problem is there is some sort of fog/visibility issue in Houston of all places. Honestly, has anyone ever heard of weather delays in Texas? That's like a baseball game being called off for rain in the Sahara. So although I am still scheduled to make it to Colorado with plenty of time, there are still no flights going in or out of Houston. Meaning all connections will be severely delayed as well

Luckily my cousin Michelle is a Southwest Airlines gate agent and can re-route me if need be. I am still waiting on an update. We will see if I have to find yet another pinch-hit broadcaster in Colorado.

Let's do a quick re-cap. RGV split their two games in the ABQ accomplishing a couple of things with the win Saturday. They broke a 15 game losing streak within the Southwest Division and earned their first win over Albuquerque this season. This leaves Utah and Colorado as the only teams RGV has yet to defeat this season. They will have another chance with the 14ers tonight, and my money is on the Vipers as they have played very well against them lately and.. the 14ers are without these guys... they are in Cleveland.

I will give an update later...for now I will be forced to surf the net to deviate from my boredom

PS. The Rockets are playing tremendous basketball. I know the RGV is technically Spurs country, but give Yao, T-Mac and the boys some props on their winning streak. Besides the Rockets are our local affiliate.

You Know What Really Grinds My Gears....(Airports and People at Them)

2008-02-20T20:20:00.000-06:00

In tribute to Peter Griffin I have decided to post a semi-regular entry on "In The Key" on things that really irk me or tick me off and I am affectionately referring to it as "You Know What Really Grinds My Gears".

Obviously traveling is part of the routine when you are a professional broadcaster. I have ridden in buses for 15 and 16 hour trips when I was doing baseball. I have been in a ton of airports and in airplane after airplane. I have gotten pretty good at this traveling thing. My frequent flier miles prove it. Here is the problem, there are way to many morons who are flying nowadays and they make traveling in airports and airplanes unbearable. People act like they have never flown before. Maybe some of them haven't. That is no excuse.. LEARN. You are pissing frequent travelers like me off.
First off... When they are boarding an aircraft.. listen to the gate agent... when she says rows 20 and higher... she doesn't mean row 19. Row 5... She means rows 20 and higher... But idiots still get in line to get on the plane and clog the process because they put their oversized carry-on in the overhead bin in Row 7... while my ticket which has me in the back of the plane has me waiting behind this dude when he shouldn't even be boarding the plane yet.

Secondly, learn how to get through security. Ever since 9/11 there is a pretty extensive security process now. It is for your safety and mine. But, there is still a way to expedite the process. YES EVEN YOU HAVE TO TAKE YOUR SHOES OFF!!! AND YOUR COAT. You are already in line get your laptop out already. Why wait and hold up the line! No a bottle of water is not allowed anymore. LIQUIDS... FOR THE LOVE OF GOD PUT THEM IN YOUR CHECKED LUGGAGE!! The secuirty process is long enough. Read These Before you ever get on a plane PLEASE!!

Also, the moving walkway is wide for a reason, if you are going to be lazy stand to the right, the left side is for people to walk to move along the long corridors faster! Move out of the way!! I know you want to talk to your friend about the awesome new shoes you bought...DO IT STANDING ON THE SAME SIDE OF THE WALKWAY/ESCALATOR!!

That is all....

On the Road again...

2008-02-18T14:08:00.000-06:00

The boys left this morning for Denver and I am still here. Why? Well for those of you who don't know I am still taking classes at Texas-Pan American and I have a big exam to get ready for. Hopefully I do better than this kid did. The owners felt it was also better for me to go up the day of the game. Hey I am not complaining. I get to take my exam... um yay? But, I also get those extra frequent flier miles on Continental. Gotta love it. I also will not be calling the games in ABQ this weekend. and yes I refer to it as ABQ because I can never spell Albuquerque correctly. I will be announcing this boxing event on Friday so I will re-join the team back in Colorado for the Monday game the following week.

ABQ is a beautiful town though so I am gonna miss the travels. Coach Hoffman found a broadcaster he knew during his travels that will be filling in. I am sure the RGV will be glad to hear a different voice for a change.

I have to say I didn't get to see any of the NBA All-Star game. For one we had a game and after all my post-game duties were finished I wasn't about to follow a meaningless game that was already in progress. So I joined my former Sportsline producer Danny "The Danny" Castillon at a local watering hole... Hey I am not gonna say who... no free advertising on In The Key... I joined Danny to watch this WWE PPV. Yes I know its fake..But whatever its entertaining.

Vipers Versus Los Angeles Pre-Game

2008-02-17T16:25:00.000-06:00

The D-League gets officially jipped during NBA All-Star Weekend. But hopefully that will be to the benefit of the Vipers today versus Los Angeles. Lets see, as the NBA prepares for its mid-season classic the D-League has three games on the slate. Although this one got postponed

Wait. Aren't we supposed to be using the D-League to promote the NBA in non-NBA markets? Shouldn't we want the D-League fans to be turning on TNT tonight at watching the All-Star game? Seems a little counterproductive to me.

Well I said that I thought there were three elite teams in this league earlier. Well the D-Fenders are one of them. It is hard to believe sometime that they play in, for the most part an EMPTY building since they play before the Lakers at STAPLES Center. Being close to the Lakers has helped the D-Fenders that is for sure. They run the triangle offense which of course is run by Phil Jackson and the Lakers, so if any of these guys get called up, they can fit right in with the Lakers.

Speaking of which, the Lakers have sent a player back down to the D-Fenders for further development. Coby Karl, the cancer survivor and son of Denver Nuggets head coach George Karl. He is a good scorer who tends to be on the flashy side, sometimes a little too much. Solid player but definitely needs some time in the D-League before he can contribute on an NBA roster.

Should be a tough test for the boys tonight, but if they have a defensive effort like they had against Iowa and can keep it close, they deffiniltye have a chance to steal one tonight at home. Lets also hope Jelani McCoy and Sean Banks are a little road weary from their All-Star travels.

We'll see what happens.

Notes:
I have added Brian Sandalow's Killer Bee blog to my blog roll since apparently his feelings were hurt that it wasn't on their initially. He has denied this, but several FOBs have confirmed his displeasure with my not having him on the initial roll. So you can check out the Sandman on the right hand side.

OH HOW SWEET IT IS!!

2008-02-15T13:09:00.000-06:00

Well it finally came. the nasty 10-game winning streak is over. I have to say it has been a long time coming. The guys certainly have earned wins a long time ago, but for some odd reason the scoreboard always seemed to favor the Vipers opponents. However, one win is fine and dandy like sour candy. But, it is still just one win. The Vipers have to build on this. I am reminded by Lou Brown's speech in Major League. "We won yesterday, if we win today that's 2 in a row, we win tomorrow that's called a winning streak. It has happened before!" I know we can turn this thing around and make it interesting. It will be a tough road to climb. But, the Vipers play a ton of games within the division and still a ton left at Dodge Arena. They may need to play .850 basketball the rest of the way. Stranger things have happened. It should be a fun ride.

The Indians of course made the playoffs and movie baseball history was made. I think there are 3 elite teams in this league (Los Angeles, Idaho, and Austin). Everyone else I think is a beatable team for the Vipers, but as we saw in the game on February 8th, the Vipers can match Austin hoop for hoop at times to. So going on a streak like Idaho went on, may be unlikely, but certainly very possible. I believe in these guys. I always chat with Quannas White, he is kind of my buddy on the team. We'll eat lunch together or what have you on the road. Anyways, he is a true floor general and although he doesn't light up the stat sheet, he makes his presence felt. He is an extension of Bob Hoffman on the court. Bob and Q have a great relationship, you can tell just by watching them in game situations. There is a reason Quannas has been MVP of minor league clubs in the past. He will be one of the big reasons this thing gets turned around.

By the way I have to say that FOB, Todd Mavreles our Vipers beat writer, who like me has covered every single pro sports team, is the ultimate flirt. I don't remember the exact quote from last night, or who it was directed towards. But, Todd "The Todd" Mavreles" is a ladies man.. so girls.. watch out.

Well we have reached the All-Star Break.. If you want to call it that. We have games bookending the break. We aren't sending anyone, which sucks in a way. But lets face it none of our starters were full time starters all season so it would have been tough for any of them to beat out any of the deserving guys that made it and CJ... although selected is an NBA guy now.. he isn't going to the game. So our guys actually get some much needed rest, unlike LA who has two of their best players competing in the game and having to fly in from New Orleans early Sunday to join them here in the Valley for their 5:00 pm game with us. Advantage RGV I think??

If you have a chance check out the D-League Dream Factory.. which is the D-League version of All-Star Saturday. It is all tonight the details are on the link above. It will stream live on D-League.com at 9 pm ET. The D-League All-Star Game will also stream live and be aired on NBA-TV at 3pm ET.

More posts this weekend guys...

Waiting impatiently....

2008-02-13T21:21:00.000-06:00

People always ask me what I do when the team isn't playing and I am not preparing for a game. Well the answer to that question has always been different. When I was working in baseball I would say, well we play everyday for the most part so our off days I am usually catching up on sleep. When I was calling Texas-Pan American hoops I was usually travelling on those off days. (They try to make sure the guys and myself included, were going to class as much as possible) or I was working a desk job. So this is really the first unique situation where I have so much time in-between games. Frankly its never racking. But I don't nervously

I won't work on my notes until the day of the game. The stats won't be right unless I do. So I spend a lot of my time catching up on what is going on in RGV and College and Pro sports. I check out this site daily because I like to catch up what is going on with new baseball parks and sports arenas being built. But to be honest with you during this off-time in between games I am trying to catch up with local and pro sports that aren't the D-league. One of the things that happens to you is you get so engulffed in the team you are covering, you neglect all other sports around you.

No joke I was at the Taco Ole in Edinburg a few days ago paying at the register for my fine mexican dining. When a lady stopped me and said, "Hey you are one of the guys from Action 4 Sports X-tra aren't you." (One of my many side gigs because I am the RGVs media hog). I said yes ma'am, Alex Del Barrio nice to meet you. She brought up some high school football rumor she had heard from Rio Grande City and I had no idea what she was talking about. I obviously had not been abreast of this situation regarding the RGC football program or anything RGV sports other than the Vipers. A 16 of 18 stretch on the road will do that to you.

Even though our FOB (Friend of the Blog) Todd Mavreles beat me to the punch. Did anyone see former Viper forward Steve Novak knock down the game winner versus Sacramento on Wednesday. If not here is the You Tube of it....God Bless the internet.

While we are on a You Tube rush... I felt the need to include this McDonalds commercial for a hockey stick promotion. funny stuff

More after the game...Vipers taking on the Iowa Energy on Valentines Day

These are the ones hurt

2008-02-10T14:23:00.000-06:00

In case you think that the travelling broadcaster does not have a rooting interest in the team he is employed by, think again. They hurt. In fact I would argue that a radio play-by-play man hurts the worst (emotionally) after a loss (other than the obvious coaches and players). I would love to tell you that I could care less who wins, and that calling the game is all that matters. This is not the case. I love what I do, and I love the teams I call games for. I am on the edge of my seat in the final moments of every close game and I hurt just like any big fan would hurt. I have had the opportunity to call games for some pretty good teams, and some pretty bad ones. But, I don't think I have ever been a part of a team that has had so many things go wrong for them in a sudden tail spin. I try to call the games down the line. I will say when we got hosed, and I will also say when I think we caught a break from these guys. I do have some journalistic integrity, but I also know who signs my pay-checks. It is all about playing that balance.

This team has too much talent to not get out of this. I spoke with Vipers assistant Brian Walsh in the post-game show yesterday after the game versus Colorado. We talked about how once this team finishes out a game, this whole thing will turn around. This team is getting leads against good teams, but putting the finishing touches on it is what is lacking right now. Things are going to get better, they already have been, but this team needs and deserves a win... bad.

So going back to the amount of emotion I put into my job. I threw my headset at one point during the overtime period during a time-out. Now the right-ear piece is no longer audible. I do have a history of this. So for those that think I dont care. I am violent with $400 headsets upset at losses.

By the way, I think I may have gotten in trouble with Jesse Smith's girl friend after I mentioned in Friday night's broadcast that Smith bore a striking resemblance to this WWE Legend. Trent Strickland agrees with me, Smith doesn't. Although he did say ,"Well if you guys think so, The Undertaker is awesome." So problem solved I guess. Comment and let me know what you think of our Viper center's resemblance to the phenom.

That's it for now. If you have questions feel free to send them to vipersradio@gmail.com. I will be happy to include them on the blog and maybe have a mail bag section every month.

-ADB

The Inagural Voyage

2008-02-09T17:28:00.001-06:00

Seeing as everyone else in the world of sports, especially all the relevant sports media folks in the valley, are partaking in this new internet fad of blogging. I figured it was about time that I joined this fraternity of the blog. Afterall I am ADB and I have felt the need to be involved with just about every professional sports franchsie in the Valley. Furthermore since I am the radio play-by-play voice of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the newest team in the RGV and I travel with the guys I feel I can give the Viper fans all the inside info they would enjoy to read about, and get to read about all the trials and tribulations of being on the road. I have to say I was inspired by Mr. Todd Mavreles who also coined the name of the blog. He has his own Viper blog so make sure you peek in.

Well I would like to say things have been going well in Viper land, but they haven't. The team has dropped nine in a row and it seems likes the hurdle is getting harder and harder to climb over. We have been snakebitten this year (no pun intended). Twenty different players have worn Vipers uniforms. Lets re-cap and count like this guy. The Vipers have had two season ending injuries (Kevin Bookout, Chris Taft), three players leave for greener pastures overseas (Jarred Merrill, Gabe Muoneke, Kenny Taylor), one Gatorade Call-Up (CJ Watson), and four players assigned by NBA teams that have come and gone, (Steve Novak, Aaron Brooks, Cedric Simmons, Shannon Brown). AH AH AH. Sorry I was a big fan of The Count.

Anyways back to the basketball. Anytime you go through roster changes like this it is going to hurt. I was talking to Killer Bees broadcaster Rich Bocchini (here is his blog)about this and he was reminded when the Boston Red Sox had virtually depleted their farm system through trades to help the big league roster throughout the 90's thus rendering the Triple-A PawSox with an overabbundance of players who either weren't ready for Triple-A or had to take time to get acclimated to their surroundings. Thus the team suffered in the win-loss column while several of the top Red Sox farm hands were blossoming elsewhere. Not the same situation exaclty here but when you lose leading scorer after leading scorer your record is going to suffer. The Vipers have done what is asked of the D-League. DEVELOP. The Vipers have the first Gatorade Call-Up to sign a contract for the remainder of the season in Watson, while sending three players to bigger and better deals elsewhere. I have no doubt that if even one of those scorers was still here the Vipers would not be at the bottom of the SW Division.

Tonight is a big one versus Colorado. The Vipers trail the 14ers by 7 games for the final playoff spot. If the team is going to drive towards the post-season it has to happen tonight. By the way I know what you are thinking.."ADB, What the heck is a 14er?" Great you should ask luckily wikipedia has that answer for us. I think this is a winable game for the guys. It is at home and we played the 14ers tough the last few times out. This is the night... I can feel it. I wont guarnetee it, but I will say we are due for a good game and a win.

Stay tuned to the blog. It should be fun.