$2,500 Grand Prize In 2014-15 NFBKC Draft Champions

[Greg Ambrosius]

We are ready to start drafting in the NFBKC and the first contest to get us going is the NFBKC Draft Champions National Championship. We'll start taking signups now and start these "slow drafts" once they fill. Drafts start at 1 pm ET the day after they fill and owners have 8 hours per pick. Everyone who signs up for this contest should be ready to draft when the leagues form and keep things rolling once the drafts start. Thanks all.

The top prize in each league is $800, while the grand prize is $2,500. Here are the rules for this year's DC:

Official Rules and Regulations of the NFBKC Draft Champions National Championship

1. Overview:
The NFBKC Draft Champions National Championship will consist of multiple leagues, each comprised of 12 teams/managers. Each team will compile 25 NBA players through a serpentine draft, using 3RR (3rd Round Reversal). Teams will compete in a year-long competition for the highest number of overall rank points within each league and within the overall standings. The NFBKC regular season will extend from the first game of the NBA regular season through the final game of the regular season. Cost of entry is $150 per team.

Teams will compete for accumulative stats in 8 categories, with each category weighted equally. First place in each league category will be worth 12 points, second place 11 points down to 1 point for last place in each category. Categories include:

• Total Points
• Total Rebounds
• Blocked Shots
• Steals
• Assists
• Field Goal Percentage
• Free Throw Percentage
• Three-Pointers Made

The team at the end of the year with the most cumulative points in each league will win the league title. Teams will also have their cumulative stats positioned in an overall Rotisserie-style ranking (with each category weighted equally among all teams in the NFBKC Draft Champions) with the top finisher overall winning the grand prize.

2. Draft:
All NFBKC leagues will hold their drafts online at NFBKC.stats.com. Leagues will be formed and closed as soon as full 12-team leagues are comprised. All teams entered in the $150 Draft Champions Leagues are eligible for league and overall prizes.

These Draft Champions Leagues will start the day after a league of 12 owners is formed. Once that league is full, owners will get an email stating when the KDS deadline is the next morning and the draft will start the day after the league fills. Be ready to set your KDS preferences after signing up and be ready to draft shortly after signing up. An email will be sent to each owner after every pick and owners will have 8 hours to make their pick.

All NFBKC draft leagues will use 3RR (3rd Round Reversal) in 2014-15, meaning that the draft order will go back down to 12 to start Round 3 and then continue in serpentine fashion after that. Draft orders will be 1-12 in Round 1, 12-1 in Round 2, 12-1 in Round 3 and then 1-12, 12-1 from Rounds 4 through 25.

If an NFBKC participant does not show up on time for the draft, the computer will auto-pick players based on the site’s pre-ranked list. Should that owner not show up at all, the computer would make all of the picks irregardless of position requirements. A legal lineup would need to be submitted prior to Week 1.

3. Roster Requirements:
Maximum of 25 players at all times.

4. Starting Lineup Requirements:
Starting lineups will consist of:

• 4 Guards
• 4 Forwards
• 2 Centers
• 2 Flex Spots

The NFBKC will list all of the position eligibilities on the draft site and all positions will be finalized beforehand to make sure everyone knows where all players qualify. Those lists will be final before Draft Day and available on NFBKC.stats.com. Some players will have dual position eligibility.

If no Week One lineup is submitted, the NFBKC will determine your starting lineup based on the order of your draft picks. After Week One, if no starting lineup is submitted, your starting lineup will be that of the previous week.

A. League Management Web Address: You can access your league via the Internet by going to http://NFBKC.stats.com. You will need an ID and a password to access the game site. Contact Tom Kessenich at [email protected] if you are signed up for the contest and don’t have an ID and password.

B. Lineup Submission: All lineups may be submitted on the league web site and are due five minutes before the scheduled start time of each player’s first game on Monday and Tuesday. NFBKC owners will be able to finalize their starting lineups on Tuesday with players who had no game on Monday, locking in those final roster spots five minutes before their scheduled start time on Tuesday.

5. Scoring:
The National Fantasy Basketball Championship will use an 8-category Rotisserie scoring setup. Cumulative totals will be used for the following categories:

• Points
• Rebounds (total)
• Blocks
• Steals
• Three Pointers Made
• Assists
• Field Goal Percentage
• Free Throw Percentage

6. Position Eligibility:
The NFBKC will determine each player’s position eligibility before Draft Day. All decisions by the NFBKC are final.

7. Free Agents:
There are no free agent pickups in Draft Champions Leagues. What you draft is what you have to manage for the entire season. All 25-man rosters remain intact from Draft Day through the end of the season.

8. Trades between managers:
Trades between managers: To minimize the possibility of collusion, there will be no trading allowed.

9. League Structure:
Each league will consist of 12 teams competing in a Rotisserie style format for the league championship. Meanwhile, Overall Standings will be held for an overall championship using the same statistics. If the NFBKC Draft Champions National Championship finishes with 180 teams, first place in any category in the overall standings will be worth 180 points, second place 179, etc. all the way to one point for last place. This will occur in all 8 scoring categories. Payoffs will be for the first three teams in each league and for the top five overall finishers.

10. Prize Breakdown:
• Each League Champion = $800
• Each League 2nd place finisher = $300
• Each League 3rd place finisher = $100

• Overall Prize Structure:
• 1st Place = $2,500
• 2nd Place = $500
• 3rd Place = $250
• 4th Place = $100
• 5th Place = $100

11. Time Limit For Draft:
All drafts are held online at nfbkc.stats.com. These drafts last 25 rounds and owners will have 8 hours to make their picks during each round of the draft. Each draft pick will be emailed to each owner so that everyone has an easy way to keep track of the current draft results. If a participant does not make a selection in the allotted time, there will be an auto-pick by the computer. You are allowed to pre-rank your players or the computer will pick from the pre-ranked list done by the web site. The NFBKC reserves the right to allow the draft moderator to roll-back the draft if a technical error occurred, but if the desired player had already been selected before the draft was stopped, that player is no longer available to be drafted. All decisions by the draft facilitator are final.

12. Random League/Draft Order Selection:
The NFBKC Draft Champions Leagues form on a first-come, first-served basis. Leagues are formed once 12 owners have signed up and those leagues are then set to begin the next day. A KDS deadline of the next morning is set after the league is filled. The KDS process allows owners to rank their order of preference for Draft Day, ranking their preferences 1 through 12 BEFORE the leagues are selected. If an owner wants the third pick and is selected No. 1 overall in his league, he would choose that option and he would then be moved to third in that league on Draft Day. NFBKC officials will look at every owner's Draft Preferences after the leagues and orders are randomly selected and then announce the draft orders for each league. If you decide not to rank your preferences, your preferred order will remain 1 through 12. Owners can change their Draft Preferences right up until the announced deadline is set. An example of a KDS preference would be: 1, 2, 3, 12, 11 7, 8, 9, 4, 5, 6, 10. If you were picked fourth out of the hat for your league and the top three teams took 1, 2, and 3, then you'd be slotted in the 12th spot (your fourth preference) on Draft Day.

13. Eligibility; Registration:
The National Fantasy Basketball Championship is open to individuals who are at least 18 years of age (or the age of majority in your state of residence) and are a resident of the United States of America or Canada. Notwithstanding the foregoing, residents of Washington State, Louisiana, Montana, Arizona, Iowa, and Vermont are not eligible to register or play in the NFBC. All registrations must be in the full legal name of the primary team owner, though owners will have the option to add a co-manager(s).

14. Official Rules:
Registration for, and continued participation in, the National Fantasy Basketball Championship constitutes your full and unconditional agreement to these official rules (“Official Rules”) and to STATS’ decisions relating thereto. STATS’ decisions in regards to these Official Rules and all matters pertaining to the National Fantasy Basketball Championship are final and binding.

15. Refunds:
Once a participant submits valid payment, no money will be refunded unless the NFBKC event for which such participant has registered has been canceled. A team spot is considered filled when the entire entry fee is paid. STATS reserves the right to cancel any entries which are not part of a full league. In addition, STATS retains the right to deny, at its sole discretion, eligibility of any individual to register for any NFBKC game or event and/or participate in any NFBKC game or event, even after the registration fee has been paid, but in such case, the entry fee will be refunded. Under no condition shall STATS be held responsible for any loss or liability related to any expenses incurred by a denied entrant or any person affiliated with that denied entrant. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, in the event that any participant or co-manager is banned from the NFBKC as the result of any violation of the Official Rules, then no refund will be given.

16. Cancellation:
At its sole discretion, STATS reserves the right to terminate any NFBKC game, event or league at any time prior to the completion of the season due to any acts of God, natural disasters, terrorism, change in applicable law, interruption of the season (including strikes, lockouts and/or use of replacement players), or any other situation beyond the control of STATS. In the event of any such termination by STATS, all entry fees will be refunded, with the exception of any live event fees (if such live event has already occurred).

At its sole discretion, STATS reserves the right to terminate any NFBKC game, event or league (including the National Fantasy Basketball Championship Main Event) if there are an insufficient number of teams prior to the scheduled start of the league. In this unlikely event, STATS will refund all entry fees within 48 hours of cancellation notice and/or provide a new application form with the newly stated prize figures. In this situation, all pre-registered applicants have the right to a full refund or to agree to play for the newly announced prize structure. STATS is not responsible for any loss or liability incurred by any participant or co-managers due to cancellation of any NFBKC game, event or league, including but not limited to travel or hotel expenses, time taken off from employment, etc.

17. Code of Conduct:
All participants and co-managers are expected to behave in lawful, respectful and sportsman-like fashion at all live draft events, throughout the NFBKC season, and during use of any NFBKC website, including, but not limited to comments posted on any NFBKC message board. Additionally the NFBKC events, games and/or leagues may not be used for any form of gambling. Any conduct or message board post by a participant, co-manager or other person which is deemed by STATS, in its sole discretion, to be unlawful, or to have the effect of intimidating, harassing, offending or otherwise harming any other participant, co-manager, guest, or NFBKC/STATS representative, is strictly prohibited. STATS reserves the right, in its sole discretion to ban any person from current and/or future participation in the NFBKC and/or from use of the message boards if such person engages in any such prohibited conduct or is otherwise in violation of any of these Rules. In addition, any person engaging in such conduct forfeits any rights to a refund, as well as any potential rights to a prize award. STATS shall not be responsible or held liable to any person for damage to property or personal injury or death arising from the acts or omissions of any third parties. Any participants or co-managers who collude, or attempt to collude, or who attempts to blackmail, bribe or otherwise influence any representative of STATS/NFBKC, or who otherwise attempts to sabotage the league, in an effort to alter the results or outcome of any NFBKC game will be disqualified and will be prohibited from winning any prize award. If a participant is banned from participation in a current NFBKC game, then STATS reserves the right, to take those actions which it sees fit, in its sole discretion with respect to such banned participant’s team. Any criminal behavior may be referred to the appropriate authorities.

18. Errors:
The deadline for submitting any dispute or claim regarding the operation of any league draft is one hour after the conclusion of the draft itself; further, leaving any live draft event without submitting any dispute or claim regarding the draft constitutes your waiver of any right to challenge any aspect of the draft. You are strongly urged to double-check your lineups, trades, and free agent moves throughout the season, as STATS/NFBKC will not be held liable for any errors in entering lineups, trades or free agent moves, and STATS/NFBKC will not intervene or alter a transaction after lineups, trades or free agent moves are due.

19. Prize Splitting:
Prize splitting amongst the principal registrant and co-managers is available, provided that the principal registrant has authorized payment to his co-managers in writing and in advance of the completion of the season. In order to authorize prize-splitting, the principal registrant must completely fill out and sign the authorization form designated by STATS (including the name and address of the co-manager(s) and the applicable prize percentage to be paid to each co-manager(s)). Both the principal registrant and each co-manager designated on a prize-splitting form will be required to fill out a W-9. No prize money will be distributed until all necessary forms have been received by STATS. Both the principal registrant and the co-manager(s) will receive IRS Form 1099 reflecting the prize money paid to each. If STATS deems, in its sole discretion, that the appropriate documentation and/or authorization has not been received, or has not been received in a timely fashion, then STATS will pay prize payments only to the principal registrant.

20. Communication and Access:
All NFBKC team owners must have internet access and a valid e-mail address for communication. STATS is not responsible for any issues which impede or interfere with the transmission or receipt of any transaction, including but not limited to, draft selections, trades, free agent moves and lineups. STATS is also not responsible for the failure of any telephone networks/lines, internet connections, software/hardware, or internet congestion/transmission rates.

21. Hold Harmless:
Each participant and co-owner hereby releases and holds harmless STATS and its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries, and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents and representatives from and against any and all liability for any injuries, losses or damages of any kind to person (including death) and property, arising in whole or in part, directly or indirectly from participation in any NFBKC event, game or league, as well as acceptance or use of any prize award.

22. Disputes; Limitation of Liability; Disclaimer:
Each participant and co-owner agrees that (i) all issues and questions regarding the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or your rights and obligations in connection with the NFBKC shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the state of Illinois, without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules; and (ii) any and all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with the NFBKC or any prize awarded will be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, and exclusively by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, or the appropriate state court located in Cook County, Illinois; and (iii) in no event shall STATS liability to you for any and all damages, losses or causes of action exceed $250; and (iv) in no event shall STATS, its parents, affiliates, and subsidiaries, and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents and representatives, be liable for any punitive, incidental and consequential damages. If your jurisdiction does not allow limitations or exclusions of liability for incidental or consequential damages, the above may not apply to you. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, EACH NFBKC GAME, EVENT, LEAGUE,WEBSITE, AND BULLETIN BOARD/FORUM IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. IF YOUR JURISDICTION DOES NOT ALLOW FOR THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, THE ABOVE MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.