GRANADA / ISLAMABAD - Granada's first 8am game. I dont like it. Islamabad is a veteran at 8am.

FEZ / KABUL - Adam Froogh will be suiting up.

DELHI / ISTANBUL - Delhi full squad is nice. Dont let their record fool you. Aymen/Muhanad/Lil Abdelghani = Big 3.

TEHRAN / CAIRO - Tehran just too good right now. Cairo having some attendance issues.

MECCA / JAKARTA - GAME OF THE WEEK. BRING YOUR POPCORN. DO NOT MISS THIS ONE.

SARAJEVO / PALERMO - Leonard Lee - no one can stop him. Especially not the worst defensive team in the league.

AMMAN / SANA'A - Sana'a playing great team ball. Got some time off to rest some injured players. Amman can give them a run, but Sana'a should take this game.

CORDOBA / MOMBASA - Cordoba's big bodies will give Weiss and Dan issues down-low, but Raza and Yo Shah can run them off the court.

SUBA / RIYADH - Probably going to be a sloppy game all around.

ALEXANDRIA / BEIRUT - Should be a very good game. Giving the slighest edge to Alexandria.

DAMASCUS / DHAKA - Defending champs vs young bucks.

Edited by user Tuesday, September 19, 2017 7:25:50 AM(UTC)  | Reason: Not specified

GRANADA / ISLAMABAD - Islamabad has the edge here, should be a competitive game. I expect Granada to go toe to toe with them in a tight one.

FEZ / KABUL - Can Kabul contain Ed and Jason? if so, they have a shot. If not, it's over.

DELHI / ISTANBUL - Istanbul has the chemistry and experience; Delhi has talent but they are still gelling.

TEHRAN / CAIRO - Tehran wins this one as cairo has trouble getting 5 guys to show up.

MECCA / JAKARTA - toss up, but will give the slight edge to jakarta as they have the best player on the court.

SARAJEVO / PALERMO - Sarajevo takes this game easily.

AMMAN / SANA'A -

CORDOBA / MOMBASA - Mombasa has more chemistry and speed. This could get ugly fast especially if Cordoba does not have their full team.


SUBA / RIYADH -

ALEXANDRIA / BEIRUT - I don't see anyone on Alexandria that can legitimately shut down Jon Mingo. With him and the chemistry his squad has, Beirut should have their way in this one.

DAMASCUS / DHAKA - Dhaka wins in a blowout.

Dhaka winning by 15+

Please prove me wrong

I hope not, I haven't gotten off my butt yet. I'm gonna be suckin wind big time Saturday morning.

Granada/Islamabad- Not going to predict my own game.

Fez/Kabul- Is Hamza playing? If he is, this should be a tight one, Fez has the offense, but Kabul has the defense to try and match it. I can't trust Hamza being there being he missed the last couple of games. Even if he is there, I think I might give Fez the slight edge.

Delhi/Istanbul- I like the way Malik put it, their is a lot of ego on this Delhi team. If you guys are frequent readers of the predictions, you guys would know I've been high on Delhi all season however. I really like this team, I think they have the outside shooting and the inside game to go with it. Istanbul hasn't proven anything this season, but I wouldn't be surprised if they step up now down the stretch of the season. Delhi has to put their egos aside, move the ball, and play like a team.

Tehran/Cairo- Tehran ended my team's undefeated season hopes and they did the same to Sana'a. Tehran is a very good team with quick guards that can get to the basket and shoot. They have a big 6'5 man. Their best attribute though, is their defense. Their perimeter defense is outstanding. Joe Pipitone guarded me when I played them, and I took time out of the game to let him know how great his defense is. He puts in the effort and it pays off.

Mecca/Jakarta- 2 really good teams. Malik and Ed already said it, bring your popcorn. I don't know why, but I feel a great game coming from Jawad. Mujtaba is obviously the best player on his team, their's only one way to guard him, you can't. Shareef is a monster inside, and Himey hustles. For Mecca, I played with Malik last season and I'll be the first to tell you, he can GET HOT. And when he gets hot, he's hot. Jaber could take games over, but Jawad, Mujtaba, and Himey are all defenders they could throw at Jaber and Malik. Im excited to see how this one plays out.

Sarajevo/Palermo- Palermo is a one man show and that just won't win you games.

Cordoba/Mombasa- I don't know if people realize how fast Raza truly is. (Allahybarik feeh) When I play Mombasa, Raza is always my assignment, and he's the hardest cover for me. He's not the best in the half court game, but he runs and runs and never gets tired. If Cordoba can make this a slow half court basketball game, I wouldn't be surprised if they win. But if they allow Raza to get out on the break, watch out.

Suba/Riyadh- Riyadh has a good big man with good shooters. I see Riyadh winning this one.

Amman/Sana'a- this should be a fun game to watch. Amman has two guards that can really play and if Omar Mana shows, he'll control the paint. But, Sana'a specializes in defense. If they come out with intensity, they should pull this one out.

Alexandria/Beirut- I just don't see who on Alexandria can guard Jon Mingo. If they double him, he has shooters camping at the 3 just waiting for the pass. Should be a good game, but Beirut pulls it out.

Damascus/Dhaka- Damascus is a team that plays with heart, but they don't have enough offense. Dhaka has guard play, big men, Mairaj included, and the chemistry. Mairaj has been playing well and that should be a boost for this team come playoff time. He won't back down from anyone, he plays with heart, and so you have to take care of Salman AND Mairaj. It's going to be a mighty task.f

Kids were away at soccer all day so I had a chance to watch some games…

SARAJEVO/PALERMO - Pretty much what I expected...a lot of offense. Popal was fire with the 3ball (9/13). I think Sarajevo should’ve switched up their defense a few times and make AMP work harder. If Abubacr was there it would’ve been more interesting I think he would match up well against Rameez

CORDOBA / MOMBASA - Well at least it was a close game while it lasted

SUBA / RIYADH - This game came down to the wire and Suba was more composed and executed down the stretch. Big game from O’Neal and Yaqob. Suba got the dub but didn’t exactly make a case for moving up in the rankings a whole lot.

DAMASCUS / DHAKA - We barely, and I mean barely escaped with the W so hats off to the Damascus boys this was definitely a fun and challenging game. They made a lot of tough shots in the second half and proved some people wrong.

AMMAN/SANA’A - Just when I was thinking Sana’a was not quite the same as last season, they come up with a big win. Ball movement on offense was crisp, and defensive effort in transition and half court was excellent - like the 2nd half of last season. It’s looking like Sana’a may be getting hot at just the right time. Amman really struggled they were out of sync. With Moayad, Mo Shabazz and Mana there I was expecting a closer game especially with Raied and Salman out.

Didn’t see these games but:

GRANADA / ISLAMABAD - I’ll say it again, all about getting hot at the right time, is Granada’s big 4 finally clicking? Yes Islamabad was shorthanded but the squad they had on the court is still dangerous

TEHRAN / CAIRO - Week in and week out it seems like Tehran really challenges themselves to shut down the opposing teams best player especially the guards. This weeks victim was Kareem. They held him to his lowest FG% and point total of the season by far. As an old school cat it’s always nice to see guys take pride in lock down defense. Tehran made yet another big statement with this win. A bright spot for Cairo has been Omar’s play lately. He’s a smart player and their emotional leader, they’re going to need him as a solid 3rd option and to keep them composed if they want to make a playoff run.

MECCA/JAKARTA - Definitely another game I wanted to scout!! Looks like Muj couldn’t be stopped the guy only missed 1 shot against a very respectable defensive squad. Argument could be made for player of the week status there. Most importantly how’s Obada doing? Praying for good health my brother. Mecca’s definitely one of the most mentally strong and resilient teams out here.