Muslim Basketball's back for another exciting season! Last year we saw amazing talent week by week as the top players in the division played their hearts out trying to lead their teams to glory. These players went the extra mile for their team and without them on the court their teams would fall in shambles. The effect they have on the court can be seen through both what does and does not show up on the stat sheets; it's the little things they do that help fuel the fire of their teams. Through their leadership and great play, week in and week out, they hope to do everything in their power to elevate their teams to the next level. These aren't any ordinary players, these are MVP caliber type of players. Welcome to this week's edition of the KP MVP Ladder.
1. Mohamed Amin, Sana'a
Another solid outing for Mohamed Amin equals another Sana'a win. The MVP candidate finished this week with 17 points on 60% shooting, 12 boards, and 3 steals. Sana'a didn't play the prettiest game this week shooting 34% from the field but they got the job done led by none other than Mohamed Amin. Sana'a currently leads the league in points allowed per game as well as rebounds per game, all benefits of having the big man holding it down.
Last Week's Ranking: 1
2. Bernie Pimental, Alexandria
Alexandria has had its mix of decent scorers in the past but never had that one guy who could consistently put up points on the scoreboards for them on a weekly basis. Newcomer Bernie finished this week's win with 19 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals. He's now averaging 20.5 points per game, again in a limited sample, but could very well be the missing piece Alexandria has been searching for these past few seasons.
Last Week's Ranking: 3
3. Abdul Mutaleb Popal, Palermo
Wow. Talk about electric; he's playing with a spark in his step playing like a man on a mission. If only his team were winning more games.. he'd absolutely be higher up on this list. 48 points on about 56% shooting from the field (top 3 single game scoring all time D2), 6 boards, and 3 steals. Sorry Anas Zubi but you're streak of consecutive scoring titles is over and we're only just getting started. This dude is something else, if you have his team on your schedule coming up double, triple, quadruple team him whatever you got to do to get the ball out of his hands.
Last Week's Ranking: 4
4. Omar Abbassi, Islamabad
If you weren't already, it's time to open your eyes and be very very scared. Omar Abbassi and Islamabad are on a mission this year and they're coming to a court near you to pick your team apart. Omar finished this week's rout of the defending champs with 18 points on 7/12 shooting, 15 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals. Man is this guy good. His leadership and high basketball IQ will lead Islamad far this season, beware.
Last Week's Ranking: 5
5. Raza Nassim, Mombasa
What happened to last year's MVP? I wondered the same thing after a disappointing outing and week 1 loss from Raza and Mombasa. It seemed like everyone was still in summer mode but now they're back and so is he. He finished this week's win with 22 points, 11 boards, 7 assists, 5 steals, and no turnovers. He's sending a message to the rest of the league that his work is far from over. Look out everyone Raza's back!
Last Week's Ranking: N/A
Next Five Up: Mujtaba John S, Jakarta; Omar Qasem, Granada; Johnathan Mingo Jr., Beirut; Moayad Abul-Huda, Amman; Ameer Koyas, Dhaka
Next Up?
Edriss Froogh: Now here me out for a second. The veteran has spent his days in D1 before settling for D2 only recently. Has he been putting in work in D2 regardless of his number of shots per game? Yes. Take him off this Fez team and they would not win a game this season. Is he leading his team to victories, the numbers don't lie. He had a shootout with aforementioned MVP candidate Abdul Mutaleb Popal, matching his 48 with 36 of his own. He tacked on 4 boards, 5 assists, 4 steals, and 2 blocks. If Fez is going to compete this season it starts and ends with him and big man Jason Weiss.
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