September 12, 2024 Nolan Hughes
The Lucky Strike L.A. X were the final team to qualify for the PBA Elite League presented by Snickers Playoffs. L.A. snuck into the postseason with a 5-9 record after staving off the feeble late-season crawls by Dallas and Waco.
Jason Belmonte, the only player to compete for the same franchise in all 11 seasons of the PBA League, was promoted to player-manager before this season.
The franchise has yet to bring home an Elias Cup title, but owns three runner-up finishes (2014, 2015 and 2019).
Roster
Player-manager: Jason Belmonte
Protected players: Jason Belmonte, Kevin McCune
Draft picks: Dom Barrett, Tomas Käyhkö, Darren Tang, Keven Williams
Belmonte’s first decision as player-manager was retaining Nuke. He then brought in four new players, including Barrett with the top overall draft selection.
High Point: Round 8
Across their four games in Indiana, L.A. X averaged 230.5, the second-best among all teams that week. Their Round 8 sweep of Dallas raised L.A. X’s record to 4-4 and kept them in fifth place, one game ahead of Motown.
Through eight rounds, four teams were averaging north of 215, including L.A., while the other four teams averaged below 207.
Low Point: Round 12
All season, the Go Bowling Dallas Strikers and Waco Wonders stepped on rake after rake, seemingly trying to get eliminated from the playoffs. L.A. wouldn’t let them.
Their Round 12 loss to New Jersey marked their fourth straight loss. With two rounds to go, they led Dallas by just one game for the final postseason berth.
Turning Point: Rounds 9-10
L.A. turned a corner with their emphatic Round 8 win — and were met with the giant hand from Jackass 3D. They were swept twice and fell into a spiral, averaging 198 across their next eight games.
Fortunately for L.A., they ended the four-match losing streak just in time, defeating Waco in Round 13 to clinch a playoff berth.
Biggest Strength: Nothing to Lose
The Wonders showed the power of an underdog mentality during their Elias Cup title run last year. A team playing with no expectations is one to be feared, said L.A.’s player-manager.
“The good news for us is when we go to Portland, we’ve really got nothing to lose,” Belmonte said back in April. “I actually think that’s what makes this team gel a little better together is being those underdogs. I’m hoping that’s the narrative the other teams are thinking because that’s just going to play right into my team’s hands.”
Biggest Weakness: Left Side, Strong Side?
It’s no secret that a talented southpaw is a crucial component to winning on the 42-foot Roth pattern at Bayside Bowl. Every championship team dating back to 2017 has featured a left-handed player.
Motown’s Justin Knowles led the league in strike percentage, Graham Fach didn’t miss a year ago in Portland. Meanwhile Las Vegas (Matt Russo), Akron (Jesper Svensson) and New Jersey (Packy Hanrahan) each have title-winning southpaws.
L.A. has Williams, who posted the fifth-lowest strike percentage (44.23%) among players who bowled at least 20 frames in the PBA Elite League. The only lefty with a worse strike percentage (Ryan Ciminelli) was dropped by his team.
But if Williams turns his season around, L.A. X could take flight in a hurry.
Non-Bowling Team Comparison: 2022-23 Miami Heat
Remember when the Heat stumbled into the playoffs as the eight-seed, then Jimmy Butler turned into Michael Jordan for six weeks and led Miami to an improbable NBA Finals berth? It’s not hard to envision Playoff Belmo leading the way as a grizzled L.A. X squad makes a similar deep postseason run.
I hear Belmo’s already reserved space at Bayside Bowl where he will be selling jars of his new salsa brand DIP’IN. Their official slogan: Our salsa is so bold, you’ll want to use two hands.