Since its inception, the CDBA has upheld its mission to bring some of the best men’s basketball talent from the area together to compete in one six week long summer league in order to determine who is, in fact, the best of the best. The 2012 campaign, which is being presented by the Recovery Sports Grill, promises to bring us the same professional-quality basketball that we have come to expect from the CDBA.
Many CDBA veterans return this season. Of the seven team’s that will compete for the 2012 Donald R. Led Duke Championship Trophy, are four newly formed teams, most notably Eric Medved’s team of youngsters led by NCAA Division I players Evan Hymes, Galal Cancer, Jamel Fields, and Trenity Burdine. 2011 champions Shake N’ Bake return to try and defend their title. Shake N’ Bake are captained by Steve Hunt and anchored by some pretty impressive horses in Siena’s O.D. Anosike and Davis Martens. Local guys Brian Humor and Brian Ledbetter join in the mix to make for one very formidable cast of characters. One team that could prove to be very tough competition is the Zach Bye-captained Bye or Dye. Although only seven players make up their roster, all seven are guys who on any given night could carry a team. Two-time Northeast-10 Player of the Year and current professional ball player in Europe Steve Dagostino is the most notable player on the team. Former Saint Rose standouts Shea Bromirski and Devin Grimes also join Bye and Dagostino. Brett Barnard joins the team this year from 2011’s disbanded Miller Genuine Draft. Barnard is a big man with a nice shooting touch. With Dagostino and Bromirski filling the guard spots, Bye and Grimes wreaking havoc as they use their athleticism to slash through the lane, and Barnard’s solid presence is the middle, Bye Or Dye could be a major obstacle in the way of Shake N’ Bake’s road to another title.
Somethin’ Nice, captained by former Saint Rose Golden Knight Phil Sellers and made up of Golden Knights of yesterday and today, could provide very entertaining basketball as well as could a new team, Team Deas (captained by Devonaire Deas), who are led by Tiki Mayben. Datwan Hemingway, who finished second in the league in points per game last year with 21.4, leads newly formed American Energy Care, captained by Leo O’Keefe and consisting of some Bishop Maginn High School alumni as well as other past Section II stars. Filling out the field of seven is team SEFCU, captained by Harley Fuller. SEFCU is a very scary team because of the talent they have. Albany Legends guard and 2011 CDBA points per game leader E.J. Gallup headlines the talent on this team. He’s joined by Amsterdam High School alum T.J. Czeski, who went on to play at Division I Wagner College, as well as Sharon Springs and Saint Rose standout Evan Lane. The trio of Gallup-Czeski-Lane could be enough to set this team above the rest.
Will Shake N’ Bake win it all again? Will it be one of the other two returning teams or will it be one of the four newly formed squads? Does Eric Medved’s team, with all of their current college players, have enough experience to compete with these other great athletes (think Oklahoma City Thunder)? All of these questions and more will be answered when the CDBA kicks into gear on Thursday at the Rensselaer High School Gymnasium. See you there!
Games for the CDBA are Monday’s and Thursday’s at 6:30, 7:45, and 9:00.
All games are played at Rensselaer High School: 25 Van Rensselaer Drive, Rensselaer, NY, 12144.
Mike Long Jr. – Staff Writer
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