Starting last week 41 teams began their quests for the HBS intramural championship on April 9, 2007. While claiming the intramural championship is a great honor, only one team can win in each league. And in many ways the 400 women and men participating in intramural basketball will be more focused on winning an even more important prize-The Shad Scholarship. The Shad Scholarship was created back in 1972 and is awarded annually to the top 5% of players who demonstrate unselfish teamwork, skill, and honor on the court of competition. The Scholarship was once a lowly prize, comparable to run-of-the-mill accolades like first year honors or graduation with distinction. However, several years ago Prof. Rick Ruback had the foresight to create a mandatory basketball statistics disclosure system. Since then the prestige of the Shad Scholarship has grown and today it is an imprimatur requisite for any sterling HBS pedigree. With a Shad Scholarship headlining your resume, offers from KKR, McKinsey, Blackstone, Google and others will be at your feet within days. However, unlike the Baker Scholarship, the Shad Scholarship can not be obtained with borrowed case write-ups and over-eager classroom comments. Only performance and the respect of your teammates will suffice.
While the primary purpose of this article is to remind the student body of the importance of the Shad Scholarship and importance of all players aspiring to its ideals, it is also valuable to take this opportunity to create excitement for the upcoming season and highlight the some of the teams and players who bring intramural basketball to life. So, for the throngs of fans eager to read every detail, here is the 2007 Pre-Season Preview.
2007 Pre-Season Preview
Staff Team – A League Team
An annual favorite to win the overall championship, the staff team utilizes its capabilities of long-range shooting, team continuity, and deceptively powerful “man strength” to dominate opponents.
Players to watch: Ramone “my elbows are” Sharpe
OJ – A League Team
Thanks to a glitch in the patented HBS section selection algorithm OJ ended up with its cupboard stocked with goliaths. With an average section height of 6’7″ they are sure to “posterize” more than a few teams.
Players to watch: Matt “get off me son” Christensen, Frank “the tank” Torti, Duggan “inside-outside” Jensen
OE – B League Team
Don’t snooze on OE’s B league team. Spotted in Shad back in August running suicide wind sprints and dribbling drills, OE is clearly committed to making a run at the B League title. OE star Robin Cherry recently commented: “last year we were close but we just need to put in a little extra work to get over the top. In the off-season we made a pact-the championship is a team priority and we will put in the work to win. Some players on our team have even discussed beginning romantic relationships with skilled basketball players from outside the HBS community so that we can utilize the partner eligibility rule to improve our talent. We have not needed that yet but we will use it if we need to.”
Players to watch: Josh “I have a motor” Callahan, Alex “I grew up on the hardscrabble courts of Shaker” Rawson, Quincy “I got nothing but love for Yaa” Stanley
OB – A League
Dubbed “The Napoleons”, OB comes to battle with a line-up of four guards and a lot of hustle. Star player Rob Buxton underwent a successful experimental calf reduction procedure while on a medical tourism trip to India this year. Buxton commented, “The reduction is going to be great-my speed and quickness will be improved as I won’t have to lug those puppies around anymore. I was able to donate my excess muscle tissue to a player on our B League team, Peter Bowen. Peter used my muscle for a quadriceps enhancement, nearly tripling his leg girth. This will be a big boon for the B League team as well.”
Other players to watch: Todd “I must protect this house” Maher
OF – B League
Coming off their 2006 B League championship, OF could not be reached for comment as they were playing the Pakistani national team as part of a holiday trek. However, they were able to send along a telegraph that read: “we r going 2 repeat.”
NA – A League
These upstarts can play. Having retired professional hoops player Robbie Reid and Israeli phenomenon Nadav Topolski on the same team will make them a team to watch. Nadav commented, “I want to bring some international flava to the league this year. International basketball is dominating the world right now and I am going to keep that trend going.”
Other players to watch: Greg “beast on you” Comella
In closing I want to wish all the 41 teams best of luck for a fun, inclusive, and injury-free season. And as we begin the 2007 season let us keep in mind the core ideals of the Shad Scholarship-skill, teamwork, and, above all, honor. Whether we win or lose we can all proudly aspire to being Shad Scholars. Let the games begin!
Please email Seth (sblackley@mba2007.hbs.edu) or co-president Rob Buxton (rbuxton@mba2007.hbs.edu) with any questions about basketball at HBS.
