Who are the best players in East and West?

[Ibl Fan]

Theres debates going on about the best players in East and West. Lets hear your opinion.

[not so fast]

I am not sure about best player(s) , but I think the best player skill and athletically would be Keith Gayden of Elgin.

I also would think Anthony Kyle of Battle Creek is the best point guard.

Cedric Moodie of Elkhart is the best two guard.

Barry Bradford of Windy City is the best leader on the court of any team in the league. He has that team of non paid players winning. Without him, they would not win a game.

After that, I couldn't tell you.

[bballnut]

As far as point guards are concerned Anthony Kyle is a fine point guard. However, you have to look at Tim Pledger from Ekhart. This guys is a vet and knows how to play the game. I also think Dennis Springs from Holland is a excellent point guard in this league. I really like D'Anthony Bouden from Gary. Last year he was one of the best around. LA has Vinson and Murray. Those guys can still play.

[besl]

I haven't seen any teams play back East, so I'll just comment on what I've seen in the West:

Edmonton's players seem to be generally overrated. JR Patrick will score points, but only because he jacks up a bunch of shots. He guaranteed a win to the local media against Bellingham last weekend and it pretty much backfired. Rashaun Broadus and Teon Knox complement each other well at the guard and forward positions for the Chill. It will be interesting to see how Sean Dockery fits in once he recovers from his injury.

Snohomish County's players seem to be in disarray right now. Their roster seems to change by the day, but right now Donald Watts is probably their best player. Jemaine Blackburn played well for them too, but I think he may have left the team. They also have very little inside presense. They can't get Powell and Murray back soon enough.

Bellingham's got a few players who are scoring all of their points. Ryan Diggs and Lukas Henne pretty much singlehandedly beat Edmonton last weekend. Jacob Stevenson has been dubbed "The IBL's version of Danny Ainge" by a Everett Herald reporter and is good for 20 a game. Erroll Knight has been a bust for them, but they have been able to make up for it in other areas.

Tacoma has the opposite problem of the Explosion -- great inside players but no guards. Alex Adediran seems to give them a double double every game, and Dontay Harris has always been a great player.

Vancouver has some very solid players. Kevin Tyner can score and distribute the ball, and Bloodsaw, Troupe, and Carlisle are good scorers as well. Gary Muzzy is an awesome rebounder but doesn't provide much offense.

Portland's got David Lucas back, who has proven to be a great player in this league. In his absense, Marc Williams was scoring a lot of points but I suspect he won't be getting as many touches with Lucas back in the mix.

Central Oregon is essentially a non-factor in the West. All their players can score, but they also play zero defense so its hard to say how good anyone is. It's like they're trying to run the Grinnell Offense down there in Bend.

I haven't had a chance to see L.A. play yet, but I'm curious what is going on down there. Vinson might be past his prime a but, because he doesn't seem to be playing like he did for Santa Barbara or the Beijing ABA team a couple years back. Murray is going to have to carry that team if they're going to accomplish anything.

[Ken, Steelheads fan]

Originally Posted by bballnut

As far as point guards are concerned Anthony Kyle is a fine point guard. However, you have to look at Tim Pledger from Ekhart. This guys is a vet and knows how to play the game. I also think Dennis Springs from Holland is a excellent point guard in this league. I really like D'Anthony Bouden from Gary. Last year he was one of the best around. LA has Vinson and Murray. Those guys can still play.

I also like the inside play of Elkhart's Tim Pledger and Keith Gayden of Elgin. See, I'm not as big a homer as I seem...Naw, just kidding. Kenyon Gamble of Gary is a better player inside than both of the beforementioned. All three could easily make an East all*star team though.

While Shaun Fountain was with Gary, he was easily the best point guard in the east. Yeah, Cedric Moodie is the best shooting guard in the east...at least he was the best the night Elkhart defeated Gary at Gary. He won the game for Elkhart.

[Ibl Fan]

Originally Posted by not so fast

I am not sure about best player(s) , but I think the best player skill and athletically would be Keith Gayden of Elgin.

I also would think Anthony Kyle of Battle Creek is the best point guard.

Cedric Moodie of Elkhart is the best two guard.

Barry Bradford of Windy City is the best leader on the court of any team in the league. He has that team of non paid players winning. Without him, they would not win a game.

After that, I couldn't tell you.

I can't believe you said,"without Barry Bradford the Soldiers would not win a game". I've seen a couple of their games and they have a few quality players on their team(Spencer, Rhinehart and Bolton).

[not so fast]

just call me pastor jerimiah wright, you are taking my words out of context.

What I meant was Barry is a leader, and teams we all know need leadership. I know there are talented players on the windy city team, but again with no pay, and yet they win, someone has to get these young men to buy into a vision. That takes leadership, thats my only point.

now on the issue of big men, kieth gayden is much better player than kenyon gamble, and I know both of them and have worked with them both.

Kenyon is a great shot blocker without a doubt, kieth gayden is the best player in the IBL. I find it hard to believe there is anyone better. Of course i have not seen everyone, so let me edit my own words, he is the best player that I am aware of.

[Ibl Fan]

Originally Posted by not so fast

just call me pastor jerimiah wright, you are taking my words out of context.

What I meant was Barry is a leader, and teams we all know need leadership. I know there are talented players on the windy city team, but again with no pay, and yet they win, someone has to get these young men to buy into a vision. That takes leadership, thats my only point.

now on the issue of big men, kieth gayden is much better player than kenyon gamble, and I know both of them and have worked with them both.

Kenyon is a great shot blocker without a doubt, kieth gayden is the best player in the IBL. I find it hard to believe there is anyone better. Of course i have not seen everyone, so let me edit my own words, he is the best player that I am aware of.

Jerimiah Wright, thanks for the clarification. I agree with you. But there are still players in the world that just love the game not the money.
Kenyon Gamble is overrated. He's a great shot blocker and thats it. He should be! He's 7ft!

[Ken, Steelheads fan]

Originally Posted by Ibl Fan

...Kenyon Gamble is overrated. He's a great shot blocker and thats it. He should be! He's 7ft!

Seven feet tall, great shot blocker, and gets a few put backs per game. What more does he need?!?

[winds55]

Saw Kieth Gayden play last night against the Express; he was impressive. I don't think you can beat Tim Pledger or Cedric Moodie on knowing the plays, hustle, leading the team, and getting the fans into the game.