Post by delap on May 25, 2022 8:33:58 GMT -5
The Playoffs, where champions are made… or assigned a championship by the correct sequencing of 4 d20 rolls. Through 27 seasons we’ve seen GMs come and go, and some enter the playoffs every year (
to heebs and 20s). Over the course of the years, some teams have had a penchant for squaring off in the postseason, meeting far more often than others. Yes, teams that tend to be IN the playoffs every year will pop up more on this list, but some names may surprise the reader, especially among those who have either left us, joined later, or taken a break in the middle.
to heebs and 20s). Over the course of the years, some teams have had a penchant for squaring off in the postseason, meeting far more often than others. Yes, teams that tend to be IN the playoffs every year will pop up more on this list, but some names may surprise the reader, especially among those who have either left us, joined later, or taken a break in the middle. I’ll make note (in list form) of the GMs who have played each other 4 times, and dive deeper into the bigger rivalries (5 or more match-ups).
Finally, we’ll take a look at the Finals… and how strangely unique they’ve been, with very few repeat partners.
The Baby Rivalries
This group of GMs have squared off 4 times in the playoffs.
Dirt/Trofie (tied 2-2)
Druce/Tim (Druce leads 3-1)
BK/Chap (tied 2-2)
Tim/Chap (tied 2-2)
Tim/Pete (Tim leads 3-1)
Pete/Trofie (Pete owns it, 4-0)
Dirt/Chap (tied 2-2)
Tim/Dirt (Dirt owns it, 4-0)
The Big Rivlaries
This is where we get real, where familiarity breeds contempt.
VS. 
Years Played: 3002, 3003, 3009, 3010, 3012
Series Leader: Druce, 4-1
Signature Series: 3010 (WCF, Grizzlies 4-2): The Grizzlies knock out the Chaps to reach their 3rd Finals appearance, preventing the Chaps from their 4th. The Grizzlies win a tight Game 5 to take control of the series after a Papaloukas 3 misses at the buzzer (http://simleague.site/TMBSL6/3010/pbp/151-1.txt). The teams haven't played in what seems like a sim eternity, but I'm sure Chaps is still chapped by his poor performance.
VS. 
Years Played: 3008, 3014, 3015, 3021, 3025
Series Leader: BK, 4-1
Signature Series: BK owns the series, but the most important match-up came in 3008, where the 'Migos slid past the Grizz in 6 to reach the WCF. This was an important stop on BK's first West title run.
VS. 
Years Played: 3011, 3012, 3013, 3016, 3020
Series Leader: Pete, 3-2
Signature Series: 3011, a hard-fought 7-gamer in the Western Semis, closed out with a monster 35/15 game from Nik Vucevic in front of a raucous Canadian crowd to cruise to victory.
VS. Years Played: 3014, 3015, 3016, 3017, 3022
Series Leader: BK, 4-1
Signature Series: 3016, a classic 7-gamer in the WCF. Los Amigos take revenge on their SoCal brethren after falling in 7 the year before. The Lakers had knotted it up after being down 3-1, but BK took Game 7 on the road behind a balanced attack that saw 4 players score 20+ points.
VS. 
Years Played: 3004, 3006, 3007, 3008, 3009
Series Leader: Chaps, 4-1
Signature Series: In a perfect encapsulation of this rivalry, the Chaps swept the 'Wolves in the WCF in 3009, effectively ending Ian's tenure in 6.0. Chappy made him quit.
VS. 
Years Played: 3011, 3012, 3020, 3021, 3022
Series Leader: Tim, 3-2
Signature Series: Sonics over the Spurs in 7, WCF, 3020. Dwight posts a 20/15/4/4/3 in Game 7, as the Sonics win by a scant 3 points. Al Jefferson added 31/18 with no TOs, outdueling an en fuego CJ McCollum who dropped 42 on 6/6 shooting from 3.
VS. 
Years Played: 3013, 3014, 3015, 3018, 3022
Series Leader: Tim, 3-2
Signature Series: 3018, 1st Round. 4 of the 5 times these 2 have squared-off it has been a first round affair... and none of them have gone longer than 5 games. So, the Sonics' 5-gamer in 3018 is the perfect encapsulation of this rivalry.
The Bigger Rivalry
Only one match-up in this tier, where teams have faced off 6 times... and we see a surprising newcomer. Despite joining the league later, KC has made a good number of runs in the playoffs. Strangely, he's played no one (except in the example below) more than 3 times... yet he's gone toe-to-toe with this in-state foe.
VS. Years Played: 3008, 3018, 3023, 3024, 3025, 3026
Series Leader: tied, 3-3
Signature Series: A close series deserves a 7 gamer to be representative. In 3026 (just yesterday!) the Chaps narrowly edged out the Rockets in 7, ending a series where the home team won every game.
The Biggest Rivalry
Out West there is one that stands above all others, where these teams have done the deed 7 times. It's a bit lopsided, but that doesn't make it any less bitter. Just like in nature, the Grizzly takes down the Deer.
VS. 
Years Played: 3001, 3002, 3005, 3008, 3013, 3016, 3017
Series Leader: Druce, 5-2
Signature Series: We go all the way back to 3001, where this blood feud started. WCF, Game 7: Jarvis Lang puts the Grizz up by 2 with 0:24 seconds in the game. Cletrell Pope is fouled on the next play and CLANGS both free throws, allowing the Grizz to nearly run out the clock. Milwaukee never gets another shot off and Vancouver advances to the All-Canadian 3001 Finals, where they find easy victory over the Raptors for their 1st TMBSL 6.0 title.
The Baby Rivalries
This group of GMs have squared off 4 times in the playoffs.
This group of GMs have squared off 4 times in the playoffs.
20s/Heebs (tied 2-2)
20s/Odin (Odin leads 3-1)
Delap/Ank (Delap leads 3-1)
Delap/Odin (Odin leads 3-1)
Heebs/Sapular (Heebs leads 3-1)
JHB/Odin (tied 2-2)
The Big Rivlaries
This is where we get real, where familiarity breeds contempt.
This is where we get real, where familiarity breeds contempt.
VS. 
Years Played: 3016, 3019, 3020, 3021, 3026
Series Leader: 20s, 4-1
Signature Series: The 3016 series saw the #8 Pipers upset the #1 Cougars... and that wasn't a good idea for BA. Since then, the Carolina squad has made quick work of the Pipetowners. Example: 1st Round, 3021: The Cougars end it in 5, but a thrilling 5 games where no game was decided by fewer than 6 points.
VS. 
Years Played: 3009, 3010, 3012, 3021, 3024
Series Leader: Ank, 5-0
Signature Series: The most lopsided series in 6.0, the New Yorkers beat up on the District so consistently you would think they are still bitter about Alexander Hamilton giving away the capital. Indicative of this lop-sided affair, we can look at the 3010 ECF and see a desultory sweep where the Irving/Embiid combo was in full effect, blowing past the upstart Bullets on their way to Ank's 1st title.
VS. 
Years Played: 3018, 3019, 3020, 3024, 3025
Series Leader: Heebs, 4-1
Signature Series: These two managed to avoid each for nearly 2 decades... and now can't seem to get enough of each other. Ank probably wishes they remained apart, though. Their first match-up, in the 3018 ECF was a classic, with the Pacers clinching a trip to the Finals in a thrilling Game 7, where Thomas Bryant played the game of his life, posting 25/20 along with 5 blocks and holding KAT to a paltry 8/26 from the field.
The Bigger Rivalries
Here we see a familiar face, as well as a GM we all miss, as the East elite have all become very well-acquainted with each other over the years. These squads have faced-off 6 times.
VS. 
Years Played: 3012, 3013, 3014, 3016, 3018, 3020
Series Leader: Ank, 5-1
Signature Series: The Knicks knocking out the 'Cats in the ECF in 3014, on the way to Ank's 2nd title. Games 3-6 were close and competitive, but the triumvirate of Irving/Embiid/Butler combined for 89 points in the close-out Game 6, where Kyrie calmly hit a game-winning 19 footer at the buzzer to bounce Charlotte.
VS. Years Played: 3010, 3012, 3019, 3020, 3022, 3026
Series Leader: Heebs, 5-1
Signature Series: After dropping a close series in 3010 to the Bullets, the Pacers have hit the gas and not looked back. The next time they met, in 3012 in the Eastern Semis, the Pacers swept the Bullets cleanly in 4, winning each game by double-digits.
The Biggest Rivalry
Here we really see teams that know exactly what is in store, as they've met up 7 times.
VS. Years Played: 3011, 3012, 3013, 3015, 3016, 3018, 3024
Series Leader: Heebs, 5-2
Signature Series: The most common series of the 30-Teens in TMBSL 6.0, the 6-letter P words rivalry culminated in the 6th match-up, where the Pacers got revenge for their 3016 loss by CLEANING the Pipes in an Eastern Semis sweep. The series turned when Indiana went into Pittsburgh in Game 3 and snuck out a tight victory... then ran over a demoralized squad in Game 4 to end it.
The Mega-Biggest Rivalries
Here we get to 2 octets, featuring the 4 East GMs who have dominated the conference for the past 10 seasons.
VS. Years Played: 3002, 3011, 3015, 3017, 3018, 3020, 3021, 3023
Series Leader: Ank, 7-1
Signature Series: This is truly a tale of how 1 team has dashed the hopes of the good people of North Carolina. They hate those big-city ne'er-do-wells. In a typical clash, we turn to the ECF of 3020, where the Knicks made short work of the Cougs in 5 games, on their way to their 3rd TMBSL title.
VS. 
Years Played: 3000, 3010, 3016, 3019, 3022, 3023, 3025, 3026
Series Leader: Delap, 5-3
Signature Series: They faced off in the 1st Round of 3000 and have now seen each other in 4 of the last 5 years. The Raptors' narrow lead is exemplified by the ECF of 3023, where they held on to beat the Pacers in Game 7 behind Kareem's 29/11 with 6 blocks, where he fouled out not only the starter, but also the backup center.
The Ultra-Mega-Biggest Rivalry
And now the biggest one of all. These teams have shared the court so much that the direct flight from Greensboro to Toronto is now available year-round. Nine times (9!!) these teams have ended the season of the other.
VS. Years Played: 3001, 3009, 3019, 3020, 3021, 3022, 3024, 3025, 3026
Series Leader: Delap, 6-3
Signature Series: Just like the 'teens were the domain of the Pacers/Pipers, the Roaring 20s have been copyrighted by the number himself and his co-conspirator, yours truly. In 3025 they met in the ECF and the Raptors edged the Cougars in 6 games, winning their 4th East title. All in all, the Raps have kept the Cougs out of the Finals on 3 occasions.
The Finals
Due to parity in the extreme in the early years, it took over a decade before we saw the same GMs meet for a 2nd time in the Finals. At this juncture, only 4 times in 27 seasons have we had repeat match-ups in the Finals between 2 GMs, which is pretty incredible honestly. No 2 GMs have faced off in the finals 3 times. So, who are those 4 pairs and how have they fared?
VS. Years Played: 3014, 3016
Series Leader: tied 1-1
A pair of 6-game series, one going the way of each team, they each have had the honor of the defeating the other GM for their own 3rd title. With a potential re-build upcoming in Anaheim, we may not see this one again for a while.
VS. 
Years Played: 3015, 3017
Series Leader: tied 1-1
Like the pair above, these franchises each won their 2nd title at the expense of the other. The Lakers peaked in 3015, with resounding sweep of the 'Cats. With Odin gone, this is another match-up that will likely sit at 2x for quite a while.
VS. Years Played: 3021, 3022
Series Leader: tied 1-1
After the Sonics' triumph in 3021 and a 2-0 lead in 3022, the Raptors clawed back for their 1st TMBSL (and only) title of 6.0 to date. 5 seasons ago, with the powers of Jefferson/Howard against Kareem, I would've predicted more match-ups for these teams... but now the rise of LeBron may curtail a budding rivalry of the ~45th parallel.
VS. 
Years Played: 3025, 3026
Series Leader: Dirt, 2-0
9 games played, 8 wins for Big D. This one isn't even a real rivalry, just a speedbump for the Mavs so far. This is the most likely Finals match-up to get a 3rd go-'round in the near future, but it's hard to envision the Raptors evening the series.
