Muslim Basketball

The epitome of inconsistency lead by a player who embodies that feat. He’s played well as of late, but week to week, we just don’t know which Omar Singer will show up. Between Shadi and now Omar Qasem, Granada has two more guys who can dominate a game, but Omar Singer’s dynamic style of play will be the factor that propels Granada into the second round and beyond. They face a familiar foe in Kazan who will be seeking revenge.

At this point, we should just flip a coin to predict how Granada will play. They came out with a purpose and looked like the better team for all forty minutes. Shadi is on a different level, and if he isn’t getting any love out of the MVP Ladder, he is definitely Granada’s most valuable. Good statistical game from Omar Qasem, but the stats don’t show the full picture. Even though Mark finished with 21, he had to work extremely hard to score. Omar did a terrific job denying him and keeping him away from the rim. In the postseason though, Omar Singer will have to step up and match the play of Shadi if Granada has any hopes of making a run. They did themselves no favors by losing some winnable games earlier in the year – they need a win against Jakarta to solidify their playoff positioning.

They’ve found the recipe, but foul trouble really plagued them. Shadi Dahduli has become the big man the league expected him to be. He has taken control of the Granda offense, getting them easy transition baskets with his speed and strength. Now, it is up to the rest of the squad, specifically Omar Singer and Omar Qasem, to complement Shadi and find a way to get Granada over the hump.

They have played two terrific halves of basketball this season – the first half against Mecca and the second half against Amman. If they played anywhere close to that level for 40 minutes a week, they would be at the top of this list. Problem is, they don’t. They are far too inconsistent to make me believe that they can take on one of the top six teams. It seems though, that they may have found what they’ve been looking for. Shadi was extremely aggressive and other than getting blocked a few times, he had Omar Mana’s number the whole game – that is not an easy feat. They played terrific team defense in the second half and they showed us why they rank third in points allowed. They just need some more consistency – the defense is there, they have playmakers, now can they put it all together and sustain it. It seems like everyone has a tough schedule to close out the regular season and it is no different for Granada. They take on Lahore in what has t

Granada giveth, Granada taketh. They played a solid first half, but then relinquished all their momentum early in the second half. Turnovers will allow your opponent back into the game and they learned the hard way. Shadi needs to find a way to assert himself, whether it is through offensive sets or rebounds, but he has to take it upon himself to dominate. Sana’a does not have a legitimate big, this was a chance for Shadi to take over. It did not happen, but they will need him to have a huge game next week against Omar Mana and his Amman squad.

Grenada – Omar Singer finally threw his coming out party and the Zubi brother’s were the first to attend. Offensively, he asserted his will from the get go, hitting couple 3s too get Granada off to a fast start. Defensively, he stifled Anas Zubi and frustrated him early on. This was the kind of game Granada needed from him, and everyone else showed up to the party. Ramy continued his solid play, adding an efficient 12 points, Omar Qasem added 15 points, and Shadi had another solid double-double. Every aspect of the game clicked for this squad and this performance could be foreshadowing what they can do as the season goes on. Their second half of the season is no cakewalk – they may arguably have the most difficult 5 game stretch. They’ll need to build on this victory and string a couple wins together. If they can do so, look for them so make some serious noise.

Again, they struggled to put away a team after taking a 12 point halftime lead. They struggled to score to start the second half, but still found a way to hold on and get the win. Any win in this league is much needed as significant parody has developed below the top two teams. Everyone is beating each other and wins need to be had when available – they got it. A date with Mecca looms, a game that, rumor has it, Granada circled to start the season.

They flashed some terrific play, unfortunately they couldn’t overcome a small deficit with roughly 10 minutes left. Week after week I say that they have tremendous talent, probably as much as the top 5 teams – It just hasn’t translated yet. It’s strange looking at their box score and even the feel of the games overall, they just never really possess the ball. They took 10 less attempts from the field, took better care of the ball, and outrebounded their opponents, yet it just feels like they cannot get the ball in the hoop. With the pace Omar Singer likes to play at and with a running big man, they should be taking 50+ shots a game. They played solid defense, ran when they had the opportunity, and played with solid intensity. The whole team seemed engaged, but they just could not get it to click. I think there will be a play this season or a string of plays that flip the switch. Shadi had a solid game for a big, but he is much better than the level he is play

Disappointing loss for a team that has the potential to be terrific. We still see that potential, but we had to knock them down a few spots because of some terrific play around the league. If it wasn’t for 7 steals, one would think Omar Singer did not participate. Bright spot is that Shadi Dahluli showed that he is a force and if he is able to build on this game, he may be able to cover up the rest of his team’s shaky offense. They were able to hold Muhannad Natsheh in check, which is no easy feat. They have a championship caliber defense, but Omar Singer NEEDS to take control of this offense. In seasons past, we’ve seen what this team can do when he is that catalyst, but we have also seen them fall face first when he struggles – and he is struggling mightily right now. Grenada takes on an undefeated Istanbul team who’s only weakness is giving up points – Grenada should have a chance to get their offense cooking.

Took every second for Granada to sneak out a win against a team they should have been able to put away early. We’ll give them a pass to start, as they have a couple new faces and were missing Shadi. Rough game for Omar Singer, who struggled for most of the first 35 minutes, but had two cold blooded buckets with under a minute left. Omar Qasem was able to win it on two clutch free throws with just a few ticks remaining. The bigs will have to do more if Granada as any hopes of going to the promise land – the return of Shadi should help them significantly. They’ll be tested by a solid Baghdad team next

 Enough is enough, this team has had issues with big men every year they have participated in this league. They decided to address this issue by reacquainting with Shadi, adding Hamza Saleh, and introducing a new face in Mohammad Nawaz. That front line, combined with what could be a potent backcourt, will have the opportunity to compete game in and game out. The difference maker will be Omar Singer, as we have seen in seasons past that this team goes as he goes. If he can make this team mesh quickly and play at an MVP type level, they will not be sitting at 8 for a long time.