CBL Retro Power Rankings
We have had a great start to this campaign with some amazing games, some big names added into the mix and some huge matchups to look forward to. Let’s dive into where they stand at this point of the season.
1) Tigers (3-1) - This is a close battle for the top spot but the Tigers with an impressive beatdown of the Legend Killers fueling this number one space. This three headed monster of Amrit, Sy and Ruhel is tops in the league. They are averaging 43 points amongst them and only seem to be building chemistry as the season progresses. They are also getting big games from their auxiliary pieces each game to round them out with a big opening night from Dully and Idrees being key in their win last week. Captain Jibar seems to be particularly happy with his roster seemingly having much more fun than he did last season. Word on the street is Ruhel is going to miss several games in the coming weeks and we will see if they can manage that absence without tanking in the standings. An early game of the year is coming up when they play the undefeated Primetime tomorrow which will let us know who the top dog is.
2) Primetime (4-0) - I know what you are thinking, how is the undefeated team not first. Well two of those victories were against teams missing their star players and then the game they played against Legend Killers was a one point sweat while the Tigers took them down handily. Primetime has continued their regular season dominance from last year. They are a balanced team, having an unbeaten record despite MVP candidate Imran having a slow start but getting an uptick in scoring from Ali and a well rounded season from out corrupt commissioner Moody. Add in the ever steady Aadil and new addition Umer off the bench and we will see if they can break through that ceiling they seem to hit every year. If they can take down the Tigers tomorrow it will be a clear statement that they are the top dog in the league this season.
3) Bricklayers (3-1) - What does this guy Hyder have on the commissioner that he keeps bringing these high end teams to the league. While they might not have an MVP like they did for their finals run last year like Umer Saleem, this team is incredibly deep. David in his sophomore season is proving he is a flat out baller, coming through with big buckets in spurts to fuel huge runs for the Bricklayers. Ferrukh is the steady hand that keeps the offense moving and Arvin has made his Retro debut showing that his fundamental play translates in any setting. We have not even mentioned Atif, Hassan or Salman yet. This team went full depth and have a solid rotation all around. They will absolutely be a force to take down. Hyder does it again!
4) Phantoms (1-2) - Ok they may have lost to the La Familia team that is coming up very soon but there is one thing we know will happen to a team led by Tayeb. They will get better as the season goes on. He has already gotten career performances out of Uzair and Hugo is looking like an MVP candidate as his running mate. Haseeb and him provide a huge defensive anchor inside and captain Qasim is always a pest on that end. This team has the feel of one that can go on a late season surge and make a run in the playoffs that surpasses their regular season performance.
5) La Familia (2-2) - Captain Yusuf went for a full rebuild this season. Not many from last season made the roster but in doing so has built a really fun team full of great guys in the Crescent community. They are led by maybe the current MVP front runner Tosin who is averaging 20/6/6 along with 4 steals and at times absolutely takes over games on both ends. Add in Asif and his usual disruptive defense and transition play, Ibby Splash who is always good for a three pointer or two and then the constant torrent of guys who may not be a star but will make enough plays to get them the win. They bring the most energy with the whole team hyping up all their opponents like last game when Akif had his guys Labib and Alif cheering him on bucket after bucket. The concern I have for this team is that their star is undersized and while that is not always a problem in Retro it is not optimal. Though as Yusuf has shown every year he has been at the helm his team creates problems in the playoffs, gunning for a third straight semis appearance with even bigger goals.
6) Legend Killers (1-3) - The record tells one story but not the whole tale. Their losses are to the top three teams in the league and they barely went down to Primetime before looking like they are coming apart a little the last two weeks against the Bricklayers and Tigers. Their top three guys of Umer, Talha and Fahad are matching that of teams like the Tigers averaging 42 between the three of them. The problem lies in the other contributors, after a huge week 1 Danyel has struggled to score though he has been huge on the boards. Zia provides his usual gritty play and will hit a three every now and again but they will really need someone to step up and be that other guy they can rely on when the opposition is focusing on those top three guys. The top two of Umer and Talha are what keeps them from being lower. Umer has shown he can drag a team to the finals with big performances come playoff time.
7) Imaan (1-2) - What a weird team. They have only played one possession games with a plus minus of exactly zero. Faiq has taken over and the team is trying to thread the needle between having big center types with guys like Dev and Riz along with energetic slashers like Isa and Moe. What they did try at the end of the game last week but did not work was giving draft MVP Umair the ball and letting him work. We cannot criticize them too much because they are a couple of buckets away from being undefeated. There is something about this team and the way they do not have an identity that worries me as the season continues. Maybe they will find that and then they will be a scary matchup.
8) All Day (1-3) - Talha Shanawaz is back. He was the savior last time around leading All Day to a career year, this year has started out a little rougher. They had a thrilling win against Imaan shockingly on two made free throws by Talha to get the victory. Outside of him Tan has had a really solid start to the season working well to carry some of the scoring load. Captain Aqib has done more on court whining than scoring. Jishan has more warnings that his team is gonna be great on Whatsapp than threes hit for the season. The simple recipe of drop in Talha and go is not going to work this season but we think they will improve and they have guys who can score they just have not gotten it going yet. It is because of that track record they won’t occupy the bottom of this list.
9) Knights (1-3) - The boys from Brooklyn started out the season with a close loss then a close win. Since then it has been two rough losses, both games in which they are keeping it close and even having leads only to see them slip away in the second half. Hassan may be the most underrated superstar in the league, he can score at all three levels and plays hellacious defense. The problem is he disappears for stretches of games not asserting himself at the detriment to the rest of his team. New captain Mohsin is the opposite, a total bulldog who is on the attack at all times. The most consistent performer all season has been Ali averaging nearly a double double though is the victim of some bad shot quality at times. All these things are fixable and they have played some tough teams but this team may need to have some difficult conversations with each other to get this ship righted.