Sponsored by KABAB PARADISEAfter a few short months off, Muslim Basketball has returned once again for another season filled with promise and championship aspirations. Sixteen teams began their journeys to what they hoped will be the beginning of something special. Some teams returned with the same core of guys, others made some key offseason additions, and others started from scratch. The making of a championship Muslim Basketball team does not happen overnight and it takes having at least one special player whom the team can rely on through thick and thin to deliver when the team needs him the most. You don't have to be the most prolific player and take the most shots on the team, rather your presence is immediately felt as you step onto the court with opponents wondering how on earth can we take this guy out of the game. You make smart decisions on the court and lead your team in any way you can to allow your team the best possible chance at victory. It might be a little premature having this debate now, but the discussion must begin somewhere. Ladies and Gentlemen, here are your KP MVP candidates based off of Week 1, January 8, 2017.
1. Mohamed Amin, Sana'a A top 5 player playing in this division this year without a doubt, Mohamed Amin starts this season's campaign with 17 points 15 boards 4 assists, and 2 steals. This is the type of guy that can take a team from being average to great and possibly a championship contender. His presence is felt on both sides of the floor with his 6'4 frame being able to dominate and run the floor like a guard. Sana'a has struggled in seasons past to crack into the top 8 of the league and there is no doubt in my mind they will finish that high this season. He shot over 50% from the field and was able to get his teammates involved in a blowout victory week 1. Expect to see his name floating around this blog for weeks to come.
2. Raza Nassim, MombasaMombasa played with only 4 guys this week to open up the season and were crushed in a finals rematch with Dhaka exposing the lack of man power and riding off to victory. Raza has dominated this division for as long as I could remember and he starts this season off with an impressive stat line finishing with 29 points 4 boards 4 assists 3 steals 1 turnover. Raza knows how to run the floor extremely well and has a high basketball IQ which limits his mistakes on both sides of the floor. He is a tough opponent to plan for because of his agility and speed on the court. He shot just under 50% from the field and only turned the ball over once. Mombasa may have lost this game, but as long as Raza continues to play at this high level the sky is the limit for his squad who always seems to find a way to make it back to the finals.
3. Salman Ilyaas, Dhaka The defending champs bring back the same squad this year including big man Salman Ilyaas who continues to make his presence felt in the paint. Here's a guy who averaged a double-double last season in his team's championship campaign and has started this season off in similar fashion finishing with 10 points and 19 boards. He has a great supporting cast around him of shooters, part of why the team had one of the highest scoring offenses in the league last season. He plays a clean game, is able to get boards and finish off his teammates misses, and dominate in the paint when fed the ball. His efforts go unnoticed at times because of the great players around him, but without this man guarding the paint this team will struggle.
4. Mahmoud Hamdan, Istanbul Istanbul hoists one of the more fundamental offenses in this league. The ball rotation is very smooth and they settle for the best of shots. These kind of offenses normally only work when you have a great point guard leading the charge. With Ammar Saymeh leaving the team this season, Mahmoud Hamdan steps up to take on a leadership role on this team and he started off this season's campaign with a little of everything finishing with 9 points, 7 boards, and 6 assists while only turning the ball over once. An extremely efficient game from him, and if he can continue to put up similar numbers and help lead this team I have no doubt Istanbul will continue to keep opponent's hands full.
5. Moayad Abul-Huda, Amman It's still only Week 1 but Moayad Abul-Huda has assembled a solid team of young guys on this new look Amman squad. He did a little of everything this week finishing with 8 points, 7 boards, 4 assists, 3 steals, and a block while only turning the ball over once. There are plenty of prolific shooters on this team so it might get difficult especially with a young group of guys to spread the ball and see the bigger picture but Moayad did a solid job in this opening week in playing an efficient game and leading his team to victory. This team is going to need a lot of help in the long run and take better shots but if Moayad can work out these rotations and keep the ball moving his team can be dangerous.
Next Five Up:Ramy Abukwaik, Granada
Ammar Ildelbi, Mecca
Hosam Karkis, Damascus
Muhanned Natsheh, Baghdad
Jahanzaib Tahir, Alexandria
Next Up? - Anwar Ahmad; Lahore: Lahore had a tough gritty game this week against a Jakarta team that sent an early message to the rest of the league that points will not come easy against them limiting Lahore to 34 points, a number Anwar is capable of scoring on his own. He's averaged 16 points and 8 boards throughout his career thus far and is absolutely capable of turning it up at any point during any game. He finished this week with 4 points, 6 boards, 2 assists, 1 steal and only one turnover but keep an eye on him in next week's game against Kazan. Lahore has always been an offensive powerhouse, don't expect them to ever score this low for the remainder of the season.
Edited by user Wednesday, January 18, 2017 8:36:15 PM(UTC)
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