Vistabula the Chicago Story

(A Continuation of NBA News)

Our team of beat reporters and bloggers attended last nights Cook County Recreational C League Game between the Deerpark Water Playaz and the Jordan 2K7's. The Playaz came away with a 72-56 victory in which Ramana Vistabula's replacement Chaoom Armstrong (league rookie) dominated the defensive paint. Armstrong shattered the league records for blocks in a game with 4 and also drew three charges.

"So much more graceful and mobile then Vistabula," gushed Harry Jefferson of the Cook County Recreational Services.

"He (Armstrong) was everywhere on the court, it's really tough to get shots up over him," said Casey Kimm of the 2K7's.

"An enforcer," said Tighe Moon of the 2K7's.

What follows are excepts taken from an extensive interview with Edward Purnell coach/general manager/owner/player/team doctor/ballboy/cheerleader of the Deerpark Water Playaz.

"It was tough to let Vistabula go, but the $22.56 was enough to help put us under the Gatorade cap number for next season. That gives us more flexibility in the long run and hopefully we'll be able to bring in some flavors to supplement our current supply of Gatorade Fierce Grape."

On the teams newest addition Chaoom Armstrong.

"Armstrong was unbelievable tonight. I've never seen anyone control the defensive paint like that. The idea to bring Armstrong on came to me at work today after I realized we would struggle to replace Vistabula's defense. I was watching the Better Basketball video series and they were working on a shooting drill using a broom to encourage the players to shoot the ball with more arc. The coach would run at the shooter with the broom and the player would be forced to put the shot up higher to avoid being blocked. So after lunch I taped a broom to an extra folding chair we had and Chaoom Armstong was born."

On the name.

"Armstrong happened to be the name brand of the broom. . . "

Our team gathered some additional quotes and stories from Purnell and other players on both teams, so look for an overall update from Chicago in the coming days. We'll hopefully be joining you from L.A. soon to give you an update on Vistabula's progress.

~ The Scoop

NBA News:

The NBA season is just a few weeks old and already plenty of stories abound. Can anyone beat Boston? Will the Sonics win a game before they move to Oklahoma City? Is Marbury finished in New York? Is Gilbert's knee injury worse then initially thought? Lost in the news was a seemingly smaller transaction that took place around 5:00 pm Eastern time on November 11th.


"11/11/07 - Los Angeles Lakers acquire Ramanan Vistabula from The Deerpark Water Playazs of the Cook County Recreational C League in exchange for $22.35 and a conditional case of beer to be named later."

The Lakers released the following press release through their website, Lakers.com

"In an effort to provide Kobe Bryant some additional interior help in the 2007-2008 season the Lakers have acquired Ramanan "The Compeller" Vistabula from the Deerpark Water Playaz. The Compeller averaged close to two points a game last season in the Cook County Recreational C League while leading the league in blocked shots at .016 per game."

We here at Scoop headquarters were ecstatic to hear that Vistabula was back in the basketball scene, and we promise not to rest until we are able to give you a complete account of all the details surrounding this story. For now we leave you with the following quote from Brian Demulder (a player on last seasons 2-10 Deerpark Water Playaz)

"I've never played with anyone like him (Vistabula). He's always just a blur of arms and legs. Not very graceful mind you, he kinda reminded me of a clumsy giraffe crossed with a sickly tree. I will miss him though, he always had plenty of Gatorade to share."

~ The Scoop