Sunday, Jul. 17, 2011

Point After: Invasion has quirks, but charm

The first year of the Cary Invasion is in the books. And it wasn't without its quirks.

But yet for whatever faults it or its league may have, I kind of like this organization.

And it's not in spite of those faults, but because of those faults.

There was no more noticeable mishap than the miscommunication on the team's playoff format.

On June 19, the Invasion were still preparing to host a Friday night semifinal game. On June 21, less than 72 hours before that tentative semifinal contest, the Continental Basketball League released a statement saying it had decided to instead just play a championship on that day.

The explanation I got from owner Mark Janas was forthright - and somewhat self-deprecating: "That's minor league sports for you ... we jumped the gun on (announcing the format)."

That kind of honesty was almost endearing and certainly refreshing.

I caught a game against the Port City (Savannah, Ga.) Sharks - who later folded before the end of the season. The Sharks had just seven players. Two of them had gray hairs. They were demolished by Cary 141-99.

"This was probably the worst game you could've gone to," an embarrassed Janas said. "This isn't good for the league."

And he was right.

But Cary seemed to have a much better handle on what was needed to make a minor league basketball team thrive in an area where - thanks to 11 NCAA championships spread across 30 miles - we can be basketball snobs sometimes.

Watchability is key.

A number of folks who have grown to love college basketball can't even bring themselves to watch the NBA - so I wasn't sure how a minor league team would be received if it touted itself as a superior product.

Cary seemed to avoid any watchability problem by creating up-tempo and high-scoring games. Having a few players who used to play in the ACC - or in Chuck Ward's case, the Globetrotters - certainly helped.

Then there was the way the team marketed itself. Janas never thought of his team as giving fans a level of basketball that would rival those college ones seen during the winter months.

Right down to its pint-sized cheerleaders, the Invasion attracted kids and build a community feel to his franchise.

It was a different route to go by, but it worked. So too, did this team.