The Blog is Back...The Blog is Back

The blog is back in town, the blog is back the blog is back. Due to a tiny bit of demand, the Martz Madness Blog is now back in session after over a year layoff. I credit the return of this blog fully to one season ticket holder Ken Lauer. Ken asked me when I was going to return to blogging, and the sole fact that I knew at least one person read and enjoyed my blog was all the motivation I needed!

This blog will be all about bringing you as much inside news on the team that I can get away with giving away before Jeff Potter drops the hammer on me. As well as some fun behind the scenes stories.

So let us dig right in and bring us up to date on all things Mad Ants!

The team is currently 3-3 and we have a double header weekend this Friday (tomorrow) and Sunday against Iowa and Springfield. As with most teams in the NBA D-League we will be playing without a majority of our original starting lineup due to players going to NBA training camps. For those who have not been playing along at home, here is where all our players landed:

Ron Howard - Milwaukee Bucks
Walker Russell Jr - Detroit Pistons
Darnell Lazare - Indiana Pacers
Cameron Jones - Miami Heat

Cameron was released by the Heat on Wednesday and is already back in Fort Wayne (or the "Wizzle" as Darnell Lazare refers to it). He was at practice yesterday and will play on Friday. Cameron said it was a great experience for him, and I am sure it only drives his ambition to make it back to an NBA roster. I hope to have a video interview with him soon of his experiences in Miami with the big 3!

Another big story that will be unveiled this Friday, is that a former Mad Ant will be returning to the line up! It is not officially official yet so I will drop a couple hints for you.

A.) He last played for the Mad Ants during the 2009-10 Season
B.) He has often been said to resemble THOR
C.) He may or may not have been spotted sitting courtside at the game on Dec. 9th.

Also, here is a random picture from the game on Dec. 9th. Apparently we had an Ashton Kutchner look-a-like at the game...



With the team at home for the next four games, this is a big chance for us to get out in front with some wins. If we can stay strong over the next few games, we will most likely see some of our NBA training camp players return soon. Of course I would like to see all the guys make an NBA roster, but there are only so many roster spots available. From what I have heard around the office though, all of our players have been doing really well in their respective camps.

Here is my prediction for the starting line up on Friday:

PG Tory Jackson
SG Corey Allmond
SF Cameron Jones
PF Marvin Phillps JR
C Antonio Smith

Looking forward to a fun game on Friday, hope to see everyone there! Make sure to introduce yourself if you read the blog and see me running around at the game like a maniac.