There should be a British Basketball Royal Rumble
I have a stupid idea for a fun event. The British Basketball League should hold a Royal Rumble. Hear me out.
As most kids that grew up in the 1990s, pro-wrestling was a huge part of my life. The WWF, later the WWE, had me crotch-chopping in the playground, telling people to “know their role” and to “give me a hell yeah”. If you know, you know.
The Royal Rumble is an annual event in the pro-wrestling calender, held in January, which sees two competitors start in the ring who try to throw their opponent outside the ring, over the top rope, with both feet landing on the floor outside. If that happens, the wrestler whose feet hit the floor is eliminated. A new wrestler is added to the ring every two minutes and the last man standing wins.
As with many things, I've thought long and hard (maybe too long and too hard) about how a basketball Royal Rumble could work, and I think I've cracked it: Introducing the “1v1 Winner Stays On Basketball Royal Rumble”.
How it works
30 players from across the league (three from each team) are selected and given a number between 1-30. The players that select numbers one and two head to a 3x3-style half court setup to play one on one.
Player number one gets possession first and will attempt to score on their opponent. It's a ‘first to score’ game, so the first made bucket wins. As with the rules of the blacktop, if that player misses or loses possession, then the player two needs to clear the ball past the three point line before they attempt to score.
The drama
Seems like a simple game, right? Wrong.
The genius behind the Royal Rumble format is that the clock is continuous. Every two minutes a new player emerges from the locker room to announce that they've “got next”. To add to the occasion, maybe this new player comes out to entrance music and pyrotechnics.
It's in the interest of the players already on the court to dispatch their opponent quickly. If a player scores in 30 seconds, then they can catch their breath for a minute and a half, before the timer hits two minutes and the next game starts. If the current game of 1v1 takes six minutes, then the winner will see three fresh opponents on the sideline ready and raring to go.
Some games will be over quickly, some games will take more time. Some games will have huge mismatches with the opportunity for a David and Goliath-style giant slaying. Some games will see teammates square off against eachother for ultimate bragging rights. A young rookie could get an upset victory over an established star. The possibilities are endless.
The player who draws the coveted #30 would have the best chance of winning, as all he has to do is score one bucket on a player who may have been in the game for a while, but the chance of a Herculean effort by someone drawing #1 and beating everyone to eventually win the whole event would surely go down in history.
I think this would be a fantastic addition to the British Basketball League calendar. With January already given over to the fun and excitement of the British Basketball League Trophy, and the Final Four Weekend already shaping up to be an unmissable event, why not add this unique event?
Mr Radin, you know where to find me.