So the BBL Championship season is well underway and BBL Fans is looking for this season BBL M.V.P last year’s winner Jeremy Bell is no longer at the Cheshire Jets, he is now in Plymouth, while Andrew Sullivan has taken his talents to Leicester. With all teams now having played a minimum of two games, we give you this season 1st ‘Race to M.V.P’ ranking the top 10 players in the league.
1. Demarius Bolds – MK Lions – Being among the league leaders in a majority of statistical categories, Demarius is 1st in point per game with an average of 27.3 p.p.g, 6th in assists with a 4.5 a.p.g average, 1st in steals with a ridiculous 4 per game and 10th in rebounds with 8.8 r.p.g. Unfortunately his team currently sits in 8th place in the BBL Championship with just 1 win and 3 losses they are however 2nd overall in team points with 87.50.
2. Cameron Rundles – Leicester Riders – A few weeks ago Ayron Hardy was considered the M.V.P of this team, then there’s Andrew Sullivan who has always consistently been near the top of M.V.P votes, however as of late it Cameron Rundles who is finding his groove, averaging 20 points per game (4th) 5 assists (5th) and shooting an out-standing 44% from deep.
3. Mychal Green – Glasgow Rocks – With his team sitting at 4th in the table, Mychal has been the main reason, in 6 games this season Mychal has averaged 20 points per game and a total of 120 points, he has dished out 3.8 assists (8th) and is 3rd in steals with 2.5 per game, he is also helping his team lead the league in points per game with 88.67.
4. Joe Chapman – Newcastle Eagles – Winning count for a lot in this ranking and no-one has won more than the Eagles, currently un-defeated in Championship play at 5 – 0. Despite being a well-rounded team with a lot of solid players, it is Joe that has stepped up his scoring averaging with an impressive 19.8 points per game while assists in 4.2 buckets per outing.
5. Adam Brown – Cheshire Jets – With Matthew Schneck going down to injury Adam seems the next most deserving Jet to earn a place in the ‘Race to M.V.P’ averaging a league leading 6 assists per game across 5 games while scoring 16.8 points per game plus a solid 2 steals. His numbers should increase with the scoring load lost by Matt Schneck.
6. Ralph Bucci – Durham Wildcats – in 3 games Ralph is 4th in assists with 5.3 a.p.g, 5th in rebounds with 10 per game and 19th in points with 15.7, solid all-around numbers and a consistent double-double threat, added to that he is contributing 2 steals per game and hitting 40% from beyond the arc.
7. Bradd Wierzbicki – Leicester Riders – If I told you the 2nd Rider on this list wasn’t Andrew Sullivan or Ayron Hardy, you would find it hard to believe me, but Bradd is averaging 17.3 points per game, good for 10th in the League while being tied 8th in assists with 3.8 a.p.g, ahead of both Andrew Sullivan & Ayron Hardy in those statistical categories (both of which don’t even make the top 20 in points per game).
8. Bill Cole – Cheshire Jets – Another Jet on this list & this time it’s Bill Cole, averaging 7.8 rebounds per game (12th) while scoring 18.4 points per game (6th), look for both his scoring and rebounding to increase in the absence of the current leading rebounder Matt Schneck.
9. Jeremy Bell – Plymouth Raiders – Last year’s BBL M.V.P is currently averaging 22.5 points per game (2nd) to go with 6.5 rebounds and 2 assists, look for him to move up this ranking rapidly in the coming few weeks.
10. Tayo Ogedengbe – Guildford Heat – Currently the league’s worst record belongs to the Guildford Heat, Tayo however is leading his team with 18.2 points per game (7th) while getting 5.8 rebounds to go with 1.8 assists, with the Guildford Heat coming back with a new look in a couple of weeks look for him to have improved & his team with him.
Honourable Mention:
Fabulous Flournoy (Eagles) averaging 5.6 assists (3rd), 7.2 rebounds (18th) and 6.6 points.
Darius Defoe (Eagles) averaging 11.6 points and 10.2 rebounds (4th).
Andrew Thomson (Eagles) averaging 17.8 points (8th), 7.8 rebounds (12th) and 2 assists.
Justin Dobbins (Sharks) averaging 9 rebounds (8th) and 15.6 points (20th)
Sherrad Prezzie-Blue (Wolves) 16.3 points (16th) 3.8 assists (10th) and 4 rebounds.
Matthew Schneck (Jets) averaging 13.8 rebounds (1st) and 16.8 points (13th).
Feel free to criticise the rankings in the comments section below, if you feel I missed someone or someone is better than someone else I want to know about it!
Check back in two weeks for the updated rankings.
Sam Raphael Chadwick is currently an Assistant Quantity Surveyor, Part-Time University Student and Co-Head Coach of the Solent Kestrels Under 14’s, I also contribute for www.ballineurope.com you can find me on twitter @chadwick9
