FAQ

I just finished registration. Now what?
There are lots of exciting modes here at SSW, the best ways to start are either creating a player or choosing an available team to coach. A great way to find the info you need to get started is by looking through the Starter's Guide. You should also check out the forums for any current news about what’s going on with the site.

Is basketball the only sport available?
Yes, currently basketball is the only sport offered at SSW. It's possible that other sports will be developed in the future but currently there are no set plans to do so.

What are different ways I can get involved?
Being active on the forums is always a great way to get involved. We also have posses that exist to help out new users and give people a group of other users to work with and get to know better. If you want to really get involved, ask somebody on the forums to add you to our SSW Skype chat. It's a text-based chat that will give you access to lots of experienced users who are always willing to answer questions, and you may even get some face-time with lilprog (the game devleoper).

What is a posse and how do I join one?
A posse is basically a group of users with common interests who try and help each other out to make the game more fun. Posses are a great way to learn more about the game from guys who have been around for a long time and to discuss strategies or ideas you have to improve your team. You can join a posse by visiting the Find A Posse forumand posting in the thread of the posse you'd like to join.

Can I customize things?
Yes! From the customize tab you can change the names of conferences and teams, alter logos, and upload new courts. This is all a local customization which means you are the only one that sees it, but many users have begun creating different sets of courts that can be used by anyone. All customizations require a local customization card which can be easily found in the basic card set.

What are tokens and card points?
These are the different currencies of the game and have a variety of different uses. Check out our currencies article for full details.

Do I have to spend money to play?
Absolutely not! There are free ways to play in every mode of the game. Of course, paying does give you advantages over playing for free, but there will always be a way for you to get your SSW fix without having to pay.

What is the point of cards?
Cards basically give you a way to get some extra perks and bonuses like exhibition games or cards for Circuit 21 at a discounted price from if you used points to acquire those things straight up. The pack value is based around valuing each card at 50% of it's actual value. With cards, you can also make things even cheaper by auctioning off cards you don't want in the Marketplace. This can get you some return and potentially even pay for more card packs.

What are player dollars, and how do I get them?
Player Dollars are the currency used within player mode. You can get them by purchasing cards, and you also receive them as a salary when your player is in college and in the pros. Player Dollars are used for improving your player, both by training and by getting upgrades in the Player Store.

How do I create my own player?
Player creation is available by clicking on the player tab from the main SSW screen. High School juniors are free to create and can be made at any point in the season. There is a maximum of 1 free player per user and after that you must use tokens to create additional players.

How do I make an older player?
Creation of older players will be available from card packs and also available to create at certain times of the seasons for a small token cost. Older players will start at a higher level to approximately match up with a player who was created earlier and has had more time to train.

How do I make my player better?
The primary way of improving your player will be by daily training. Each day your player will get one free workout and will also have the opportunity to use player dollars to workout additional times. In addition to training your player, you can use player dollars to purchase boosts and upgrades from the Player Store. For more detailed information about Player's mode, check out our Player Guide.

Who controls my player's team?
Different leagues have slightly different rules on who controls the team. In college and professional leagues, the team is run by a coach who gets to choose the team's strategies. High school however, is governed by captain's mode which essentially gives the coaching power to the player on the team with the highest overall rating.

My game is scheduled for 15 minutes ago, but it still hasn’t played. Why is this?
Because we don't have unlimited server space right now, a maximum of 8 games from a league can be simulated at once. Often, there are more than 8 games scheduled to play at a certain time so the simming engine picks random games from the list to begin the simulation process. All games at a scheduled time are usually played within the hour barring any unusual circumstances that cause games to get backed up. Even if this happens, we try and fix it as quickly as possible and you will never lose a game from your schedule.

When can I watch my game?
Typically a game will start simulating somewhere close to your scheduled gametime. After 5-10 minutes of simming, it will become available to watch. 30-40 minutes after it becomes watchable, the box score will become available. Games are saved and available to be watched at any time. For more info, see our article on the Game Viewer.

How does recruiting work?
College recruiting essentially works by teams spending recruiting time to raise the interest level of recruits in their particular school. Recruits then sign with the team who has gotten the most recruiting point on the player by signing day. More info can be found on the College Recruiting page.

Can I pick what college I go to?
In order to preserve the integrity of the recruiting process, you cannot specifically choose which school to go to. Your player must attend the school which has spent the most recruiting time on them. However, you are more than welcome to try and convince a particular school to recruit you if you have an interest in a particular coach or program. College transfers will also be allowed if your player gets stuck on a team with an inactive coach or a team you don't like. Before deciding to transfer though, be warned that your player will again go to the team that spends the most recruiting time on your player so you still will not be guaranteed to get into any particular school.

How do I get my own CSBA team?
CSBA teams can be claimed on the CSBA Teams page. All available teams can be purchased for a certain number of tokens based on tier, or can be claimed for the remainder of the current season for free. Taking a free team can be a great way to get into the game and learn the ropes of coaching, but the risk you take is that someone else will purchase the team when they all become available again at the end of the season. Teams can be renewed at any time from the team management page.

What do I do after getting my team?
There are lots of things to do after getting your team, including setting your lineups, changing your strategies, recruiting if you have a college team, and many more. For full info check out our Coach Guide.

How often are games played?
Games are played every day throughout most of the season. For specific schedules you can visit your team's page. You can also view a cross-league list of when teams play on our Generic Site Schedule.

Is there a postseason?
Yes, in college there are conference tournaments as well as a 64-team end of season tournament to crown the national champion. In the pro league there is a playoff between the top 8 teams in each conference. In high school, the top two teams at the end of the season based on power ranking will play each other for the championship.

Why do I have a salary cap? How does it work?
A salary cap is in place in order to keep the teams of the league on a more level playing field. Each player on your team will have a minimum salary they must be signed to based on current overall rating. A player will always play out the length of his contract so signing long-term deals on players who will grow in the future can allow you to have a bargain player later down the road. The sum of all contracts for players on your team must be less than or equal to your league's salary cap.

Is there a rookie draft?
Yes, every season there will be a 2 round draft for each pro league where teams can select from all players who have declared to enter the draft. This group will mostly be seniors but will occasionally include younger stars who have decided to begin their pro career early.

What do I do if the SBA Elite is full?
Currently SBA Elite is our only pro league, so if it's full and you'd like to join the only option is to wait until the next season begins and take over a team that does not get renewed. However, please let us know that you are interested in participating in a SBA league even if you can not get in right away. We have plans to add some new leagues as soon as there is enough demand to support them, so letting us know that you're interested will be more reason for new leagues to get added!