dh52 draft league XLII team roster and commentary Topic

    1. banditone:  Moses Malone, Elton Brand, Walt Frazier, Paul Pressey, Mike Riordan, Spencer Haywood, Nate Williams
    2. pennsylvania:  Wilt Chamberlain, Bobby Jones, Steve Nash, Danny Green, Brandon Rush, Alex English, Steve Kerr
    3. tricky24:  Lebron James, Mel Daniels, Horace Grant, Wesley Person, Pau Gasol, Ed Davis, Rodrigue Beaubois
    4. natenoy:  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Nance, Wes Unseld, Rajon Rondo, Ryan Anderson, Nate McMillan, Rick Barry
    5. thomcat:  Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, Bo Outlaw, Alvin Robertson, Cadillac Anderson, Danny Ainge
    6. seapilots:  Dennis Rodman, Tyson Chandler, Paul Pierce, Kevin Johnson, Blake Griffin, Bob Lanier, Jordan Farmar
    7. iccoachb:  David Robinson, Ray Allen, Shawn Kemp, Adrian Dantley, Mark Price, Dana Barros, Cedric Ceballos
    8. ashamael:  Dwight Howard, Clyde Drexler, Terry Porter, Chris Webber, Clifford Ray, Michael Redd, Dan Gadzuric  
    9. theyard:  Karl Malone, Jerry Lucas, Deron Williams, James Harden, Steve Novak, Jerome Williams, Michael Smith
    10. malone9975:  Kevin Durant, Buck Williams, Gary Payton, Walt Bellamy, Troy Murphy, Joe Dumars, Charlie Edge
    11. badja:  Chris Paul, Bob McAdoo, Kobe Bryant, Samuel Dalembert, Lamar Odom, Jim Les, Erick Dampier
    12. mikee1:  Shaquille O’Neal, Donyell Marshall, Robert Parish, Maurice Cheeks, Terrell Brandon, Anderson Varejao, Jameer Nelson
    13. vancem:  Charles Barkley, Chauncey Billups, Andrew Bynum, Brent Barry, Arvydas Sabonis, Red Robbins, Nicolas Batum
    14. coachcroft:  Artis Gilmore, John Stockton, Tracy McGrady, Swen Nater, Rodney McCray, Dale Davis, Kyrie Irving
    15. 98average:  Jason Kidd, Alonzo Mourning, Willis Reed, Marques Johnson, Bill Bridges, Jason Williams, Marcin Gortat
    16. longtallbrad:  Ben Wallace, Bill Walton, Jerry West, Gerald Wallace, Ron Harper, Gheorghe Muresan, Sergio Rodriguez
    17. sixernuggets:  Kevin Garnett, Dikembe Mutombo, Derek Harper, Kevin Love, Chris Mullin, Jon Barry, Chris Gatling
    18. felonius: Tim Duncan, Anfernee Hardaway, Tom Boerwinkle, Kenneth Faried, Emeka Okafor, Eddie Jones, Nick Anderson
    19. maglor1: Shawn Marion, Julius Erving, Mookie Blaylock, A.C. Green, Kermit Washington, Hot Rod Williams, Kirk Hinrich
    20. tarheel1991: Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson, Serge Ibaka, Dirk Nowitzki, Kris Humphries, Clarence Weatherspoon, Joel Przybilla  
    21. dh555: Dwyane Wade, Hakeem Olajuwon, Andrei Kirilenko, Tree Rollins, Larry Sanders, Charlie Ward, Chris Anderson
    22. steelers821:  Bill Russell, Manu Ginobili, Stephen Curry, Joakim Noah, Zelmo Beaty, Boris Diaw, Al Horford
    23. eleibowitz:  Larry Bird, Marcus Camby, Carlos Boozer, Andre Iguodala, Andre Drummond, Rashard Lewis, Jamal Tinsley
    24. slymonium:  Scottie Pippen, Kevin McHale, Amare Stoudemire, Jose Calderon, Andrew Bogut, Jason Terry, Roy Tarpley
10/26/2013 5:19 PM (edited)
  1. banditone:  Moses Malone, Elton Brand, Walt Frazier, Paul Pressey, Mike Riordan, Spencer Haywood, Nate Williams – Moses probably shouldn’t go higher than third in this draft, and my guess is most owners would put him in the second half of the top 10.  Still, he’s a virtually unique asset and very easy to build around since he gives you so much in one package.  I loved the start, with Brand and Frazier following Moses as sim staples who were good value where they were taken.  Pressey and Riordan were surprises, not because they’re sim dogs but because they don’t fit with the big guy well or fill the holes that needed filling.  Overall, this squad brings strong defense and (depending on the seasons chosen) enough passing and usage – and low enough bad stuff – to be competitive on any given night.  They project to be woefully light on rebounds, which is a shame given Moses’ presence.  Elton really only fits at SF in this league unless he’s paired with Rodman at the forward spots.  Brand and Riordan don’t grab many boards between them for a pair of $52 mil league starting forwards, Riordan and Pressey don’t help spread the floor for Malone’s inside game.   A difference-making move could be to start Haywood alongside Moses and bring a low minute version of Riordan off the bench.  Some seasoned owners here are low on Spencer, mainly because of his mediocre efficiency, but he gives you solid rebounding and few mistakes spread over a heckuva lot of minutes.  I can’t figure out the Nate Williams pick, since he doesn’t seem to stand out at anything in particular.  C-
  1. pennsylvania:  Wilt Chamberlain, Bobby Jones, Steve Nash, Danny Green, Brandon Rush, Alex English, Steve Kerr – Wilt was a great start, and penn absolutely did the right thing by keeping him.  Wilt is a rich man’s Moses, adding either a lot of usage or ast% depending on the vintage, and blocked shots to boot.  Jones was drafted a round early in my opinion, but all five starters definitely belong in this league.  The question is whether they belong together.  Jones brings most value at SF because his rebounding numbers are a strength there but a liability at PF.  Both Green and Rush belong at SG, teaming with Nash to space the floor and keep opponents from collapsing on the Big Dipper.  Nash is a turnover-prone matador but he’s surrounded by good defenders, takes care of the assists and doesn’t miss many shots.  If penn is going with conventional wisdom and using 66-67 Wilt, then there isn’t enough usage.  If, as I suspect, one of the honkmama high-scoring editions is in the chute, then he’ll provide the needed usage but he needs much more help rebounding.  That could still have been found at the bottom of the draft.  English has been drafted before in this league, and I could see using one of his late ‘70s seasons to back up SF and/or SG.  Kerr does nothing but shoot threes; he does that well, but it may not be worth the minutes used on him given the team’s more pressing needs.  Kudos to penn for getting his hands on individual players who can contribute to a strong team in a $52 million league.  As designed, this squad looks to be on track to lose the possession battle despite the presence of Wilt and Nash.  They may be lacking usage depending on the Wilt used, and they’ll definitely be hurting on the boards regardless of the Wilt used.  C-
  2. tricky24:  Lebron James, Mel Daniels, Horace Grant, Wesley Person, Pau Gasol, Ed Davis, Rodrigue Beaubois – tricky must have had to towel himself off when he realized the only other contender for greatest player in simworld had fallen to him.  I could nitpick about Daniels’ relatively lower D for this cap or about his foulage, but he’s a great find at the bottom of the second round.  He’s a legit board lord and low-post threat.  Grant is a quiet stud who won me over as the glue of my team last season.  He’s not amazing at anything but he boards and defends well at SF, and scores inside at a high percentage.  Person is a nice complement; he doesn’t do much but pour in threes and defend well, but that will be enough to earn his keep.  Gasol is a mixed bag since he doesn’t clean the glass well enough for my taste, but I know wiser heads than mine are fond of him in this league and depending on the season he can score efficiently and pass the ball while serving as an above average defender.  Davis is a very good backup, especially at SF.  Beaubois only has one stellar season and it comes with only 700 minutes, but I imagine that’s the one tricky’s interested in for the 59 efg% and 24.8 usg% A well-constructed bunch overall, and a near-lock for the playoffs.  A
  3. natenoy:  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Larry Nance, Wes Unseld, Rajon Rondo, Ryan Anderson, Nate McMillan, Rick Barry – There’s a lot to like about this team, starting with Lew Alcindor’s deadly efficient interior scoring at high volume, and including great D at three positions and the fact that Rondo’s presence means little help is needed with playmaking in the starting unit.  Nance’s boards are a little light from the SF position for this league, but the right season of Rondo helps fill that hole.  This team needed a gunner in a huge way, and Anderson provides efficient perimeter shooting although the pick puzzles me since neither he nor Nance can play SG.  I assume McMillan will man the 2 spot, bringing either good defense and more assists than will be needed of Rondo’s running mate, or great defense and some 3s but very few minutes.   Without more 3s than I can see from this lineup, the temptation for defenders to collapse on Kareem will be strong.  The main attractions of Barry’s 68-69 season are his propensity for drawing fouls and his ability to make nearly all of his free throws.  I’m guessing he’s slated as the backup SG, where he’s 97% effective.  B
  4. thomcat:  Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Charles Oakley, Bo Outlaw, Alvin Robertson, Cadillac Anderson, Danny Ainge – Jordan is a great cornerstone and just about impossible to pass up here.  Ewing’s stock has been rising in the sim for his efficient, high usage scoring and strong defense.  He and MJ suck up all the usage, and the rest of the starting unit are appropriately role players.  I’ll be curious to see which version of Oakley is used; one of his two “board lord” seasons are probably needed to compensate for Ewing’s low rebounding numbers.  Outlaw is a defensive utility guy, and Robertson is a mixed blessing with his high positives and high negatives.  He’ll have some monster games of filling up the box score and smothering opponents, and some games of shooting 6 for 18 before fouling out.  I don’t see many threes despite the addition of Ainge, but Ewing may be enough of a midrange guy to keep defenses from adjusting.  I’m guessing Cadillac’s 93-94 season will make him the first big guy off the bench.  Defense is strong across the board (except for Ainge), but the general fouling habit will be expensive.  It will be fun to see how this group gels.  B-
  5. seapilots:  Dennis Rodman, Tyson Chandler, Paul Pierce, Kevin Johnson, Blake Griffin, Bob Lanier, Jordan Farmar – For a few rounds this looked like a bunch of sim marvels who didn’t belong together, but the fifth round was a charm.  Rodman and Chandler are a great start on the boards, and Pierce and Johnson are a do-it-all backcourt (presuming the “right” season of KJ is on the roster).  I’m curious to see which of Griffin’s seasons sea is using since each of them brings a different advantage, but any of them round out the team nicely with inside scoring and supplemental rebounding and assists.  Johnson and Griffin add up to as much of a defensive liability as a team in this league can afford, but I was seeing playoffs ahead for this group after the fifth round.  Not sure what sea wants with Lanier, but I assume one of those lower minute mid-70s seasons will slot behind Chandler and Griffin.  Farmar has some pluses, although his better passing seasons come with lower efficiency and/or poor defense.  B+
  6. iccoachb:  David Robinson, Ray Allen, Shawn Kemp, Adrian Dantley, Mark Price, Dana Barros, Cedric Ceballos – The Admiral and Shuttlesworth are a fine inside-outside pairing.  I was still believing the experiment with the addition of Kemp.  While his combination of fouls and turnovers will leave a sour taste in many games, the 95-96 edition is an efficient inside scorer who rebounds and defends well and gets the line a lot.  This adds up to a lot of usage pounding away inside, but Allen is a great start at balancing the attack.  Price helps also, although a Price-Allen tandem will get lit up at times on defense.  Dantley is the cog that doesn’t fit, since the additional load of his usage will result in paying for a lot of wasted possessions, he’s a poor defender, and he doesn’t rebound well enough for a SF in this league.  Efficient as he is, I don’t think his few upsides warrant his taking shots away from Robinson or Allen.  A different choice here could have had the team pushing at the edge of the playoffs, but a salvage job was needed in the sixth round as well as some shuffling of roles.  Ceballos’ 96-97 season gives very productive minutes backing up the 2 and 3 spots.  Barros has a couple of backup seasons where he shoots well, but the twin facts that he doesn’t pass much and is only 96% effective at SG could make it challenging to put the right pieces around him.  C+
  7. ashamael:  Dwight Howard, Clyde Drexler, Terry Porter, Chris Webber, Clifford Ray, Michael Redd, Dan Gadzuric  – Howard was a steal where I plucked him last season, and #8 overall is legitimate for him given that he’s unique in a good way.  Only four player seasons have at least 10 oreb%, 28 dreb%, 55 efg%, 80 def, and 22.1 usg%...and they all belong to Superman.  Throw in his FTAs and a few blocks and it becomes easy to forgive him for the fouls and turnovers.  I like Drexler and love Porter.  I didn’t see Webber coming, but the 96-97 season is worth the 3% discount at SF with its efficiency, passing and boards.  Ray is the right kind of guy to round out the starting five, although the fouls are starting to accumulate.  The 01-02 Redd looks headed to back up the 94-95 Drexler, with a few surplus minutes behind Webber, and Gadzuric is a rebounding fool off the bench.  This is vintage ashamael:  heavy on boards and efg% with better-than-mediocre defense and possession factors pretty carefully balanced.  Should go deep into the playoffs.  A 
  8. theyard:  Karl Malone, Jerry Lucas, Deron Williams, James Harden, Steve Novak, Jerome Williams, Michael Smith – Malone’s one of those rare studs who in my opinion has multiple “best seasons,” and the choice becomes a matter of taste and strategic emphasis.  He’s expensive but worth it.  Lucas gives you solid rebounding, efficient but low-usage scoring, and few mistakes, but he’s not a notable defender and might never block a shot.  I don’t really get the pairing of him and the Mailman; angling for Chandler, Dalembert or even Boerwinkle would have made more sense to me.  Deron fits well,  and I was probably one of many owners hoping he’d slide further.  I like the Harden pick if the 11-12 season is the version used.  (His most recent season is definitely the wrong usage/efficiency ratio to run with Malone and D-Will.)  Novak gives you a ton of 3s and absolutely nothing else.  He’s a terrible defender and doesn’t rebound or pass, so the fifth round seems early for him.  Jerome Williams is another terrible defender who does nothing but rebound, but is 97% at SF so I’m guess he and Novak share that spot.  Smith seems to be Jerome’s twin in this sim, so I’m unsure why both are needed when better players (swing forwards who grab boards but play better defense) were available.  I like or love three of the first four picks and can sort of see my way to the Lucas pick, but the last three are mysteries to me.  I’d love to be surprised and wrong, but I think this group misses the dance.  B-
  9. malone9975:  Kevin Durant, Buck Williams, Gary Payton, Walt Bellamy, Troy Murphy, Joe Dumars, Charlie Edge – An interesting bunch.  Durantula is a good foundation with the tenth pick.  Buck I get, although he might have been available in the next round.  Payton is a third round steal.  Bellamy’s a bit sloppy but he’s a good second or third rebounder and he scores inside.  Murphy helps space the floor and he gobbles up defensive boards in his limited minutes, but he needs to be hidden well on defense.  I’m curious to see who the starting SF is – Buck at 95%, or the scrappy half-timer Edge.  This squad has offensive balance, probably enough defense to cover for most of Murphy’s lapses, good board control, and a scoring beast in Durant.  I’m not feeling the chemistry and I think Bellamy’s spot might have been better used on Gasol or an even better defender, but malone’s a savvy vet and no doubt has a vision.  Feels like a bubble team to me.  B
  10. badja:  Chris Paul, Bob McAdoo, Kobe Bryant, Samuel Dalembert, Lamar Odom, Jim Les, Erick Dampier – This seems early for Paul, but I’ve coaxed 22-4-15 out of him in other theme leagues.  I’ve come to prefer building around the higher FTA version of him, and letting other guys take care of the 3s.  McAdoo is a little blah but a reasonable fit with Paul.  I’ll be curious to see whether McAdoo’s already high efficiency (given the right season) gets an upward bump.  Kobe makes less sense.  He’s amazing in most respects, but like McGrady he’s a classic case of a relatively inefficient high-usage dude.  Still, if McGrady belongs with Stockton then maybe Paul will be good for Kobe.  Dalembert brings needed rebounds and interior defense.  Odom won’t hurt, but more D would have been nice here and his assists seem like bringing coal to Newcastle given all that the backcourt provides.  Les is a super-efficient, low-usage, defenseless assist hound, and Dampier is a very sensible first big guy off the bench for this team.  The chemistry doesn’t seem quite right to me, but it’s close enough that I wonder if choosing the right version of Paul to make the rest click could be a difference-maker.  B
  11. mikee1:  Shaquille O’Neal, Donyell Marshall, Robert Parish, Maurice Cheeks, Terrell Brandon, Anderson Varejao, Jameer Nelson– Good value here with Shaq, who could have gone 3 picks higher.  This squad is all about efficient inside scoring, and Shaq and Parish will feast happily as long as there’s enough balance to keep opposing teams from collapsing on them.  I keep shaking my head at the fact that Marshall is a second round fixture, but there really isn’t another guy exactly like him.  Marion comes closest and usually goes even earlier.  The twin towers are a bit light on D but I think it may be worth the tradeoff.  Cheeks seemed like the wrong fit at first since he doesn’t stretch the floor at all, but his D and usage fit with what’s needed and I can understand the urge to grab him in the fourth.  Threes, more defense and more dimes are in order going into the money rounds, and Brandon, Varejao and Jameer combine to fit the bill.  The usage mix and assist load seem well-designed to get the most out of O’Neal.  Boards feel a little light compared to what some owners have assembled, but the frontcourt efficiency should offset that.  I see playoffs ahead.  A- 
  12. vancem:  Charles Barkley, Chauncey Billups, Andrew Bynum, Brent Barry, Arvydas Sabonis, Red Robbins, Nicolas Batum – This is about as high as Barkley should go in this draft because of defense and turnovers, but he shouldn’t go a lot lower because high-usage inside scoring, boards at the 3 position, and supplemental passing.  I’ve used Billups more than any other player during my WISNBA tenure and he’s not magic like he used to be…either I’ve lost my touch (which is possible) or the engine just doesn’t give him the shooting bump it used to.  He can still get the assist bump going full-speed, though, and his combination of 3s, FTAs and strong defense from the PG spot makes him a great second rounder in this draft.  Bynum is a rich man’s [name of player not yet taken], with very low negatives, and Barry is a terrific glue guy who rounds out the assists, will grab a rebound and helps space the floor for Chuck’s interior design work.  At a glance this team is on track to be the thinnest defensively, help is needed on the boards, and usage is arguably maxed out, so I would expect the fifth guy to be a defensive-minded rebounding fool who only shoots when he’s standing under the basket by himself, which means (in the fifth round) either that he’s a part-timer or that he racks up fouls.  Aaand the last starter is a high quality part-timer who fouls a lot and doesn’t bother much on the offensive glass but does most everything else well.  Sabonis helps with ball movement, defensive boards and a bit of usage.  Robbins fills the substantial minutes hole created by the low flying time of the other two bigs.  You won’t notice he’s there but he’ll quietly round out the squad’s strong presence on the boards.  Batum shoots a good percentage from the arc and – depending on the season – can be an above average defender, but he doesn’t do much else.  This is a sim-friendly bunch with muscle on the glass, a fat wad of ast%, and generally strong efg%.  They might be in the bottom 5 in points allowed, so they’ll need all the cylinders firing on the offensive end.  A good team that’s probably headed for the playoffs, but they may favor one side of the court too much to go very deep.  B+ 
  13. coachcroft:  Artis Gilmore, John Stockton, Tracy McGrady, Swen Nater, Rodney McCray, Dale Davis, Kyrie Irving – Artis is growing on me and has already grown on sim owners better than me, with good boards and defense, and great efficiency and minutes.  This is about where he should go, give or take 3 spots.  Stockton is a terrific complement, and hopefully he’ll boost McGrady’s shooting percentage by a couple points.  Efg% is the only wart on McGrady’s best season, not because it’s abysmal but because you want it to be higher for someone who rarely lets go of the ball.  Nater is absolutely one of the best glass cleaners but got hugely (and maybe appropriately) nerfed on defense during the last major sim redesign.  The D around him needs to be consistently strong for him to be usable.  This team badly needed a SF who doesn’t do much but rebound, guards his man well, defends, and avoids messing up.  Bring in Rodney McCray!  A very good fit.  Davis is a decent but not amazing fit.  His dreb% is on the low side for a role-playing big in this league, and his D rating fluctuates hugely so the vintage matters.  Irving’s two seasons are just about interchangeable.  He takes care of usage off the bench and can supply most of the minutes backing up both guard spots.  Overall there’s a lot to like about this team.  The pieces mesh well, offense is balanced, and for every time the Mailman goes off on Nater, the 1-2 punch of Gilmore and a Stockton-fed McGrady will take it to opponents.  A-
  14. 98average:  Jason Kidd, Alonzo Mourning, Willis Reed, Marques Johnson, Bill Bridges, Jason Williams, Marcin Gortat – Another strong team shaping up from 98.  No “board lord” here, and Mourning’s light on creb% for this league but he definitely belongs with his efficient scoring and defense.  Kidd (at least in his 09-10 season) is one of those players who, even as a disembodied algorithm, seems to make his teammates better, but he needs a little help spacing the floor.  At this point in the draft 98 shouldn’t have any trouble finding the right guy.  The tandem of Mourning and Reed make for formidable defense in the paint but they’ll need solid help from the bench since there are likely to be games when both are in foul trouble.  Bridges, even if slightly discounted at SF, contributes boards, defense and a respectable number of FTAs.  His presence suggests that Marques is playing SG at 98% effectiveness.  I’m guessing 98 is using J-Will’s very handy 09-10 season to back up Kidd.  Gortat is a very nice addition.  A very solid team overall, although they look a shade light on assists.  B+
  15. longtallbrad:  Ben Wallace, Bill Walton, Jerry West, Gerald Wallace, Ron Harper, Gheorghe Muresan, Sergio Rodriguez – Big Ben and Walton give me boards and interior D, and Walton’s passing helps.  West could have gone anywhere from round 3 on or not at all, but I wanted his defense, FTAs and handful of 3s.  G. Wallace and Harper round out a thematic emphasis on strong defense.  I can’t believe I just drafted Lurch, and I couldn’t pick Rodriguez out of a police lineup.  Still,their stat profiles seemed to be the best available versions of what I was looking for given that the ten players on my draft board had just been gobbled up.  This team is shaping up to be more of a nuisance than a contender, but after winning the championship last season I’m focusing more on playing with the sim to see “what if” this time around.  They should generate some low opposing field goal percentages, but I forgot to draft the one player who fills up the box score and puts this team on his back in crunch time.  I had a good feeling about the last team that I don’t have this time around, but hopefully this batch will be fun to watch.  B
  16. sixernuggets:  Kevin Garnett, Dikembe Mutombo, Derek Harper, Kevin Love, Chris Mullin, Jon Barry, Chris Gatling – A great start on boards, strong enough defense except for the swinging door that is Kevin Love, and Harper and Garnett take care of the assists.  I’m assuming sixer is using the monster Garnett season at SF, which gets knocked for tepid efg% but otherwise is stellar.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen Garnett bring home a ring in this league, but bad juju shouldn’t get in the way of trying.  Overall these four don’t make many mistakes, and they should outwork most opponents on the boards.  The lack of a higher usage paint scorer to counterbalance the perimeter games of Harper, Love and Barry may invite some +2 experiments on the part of opponents, but this team seems well designed to win a lot of possession battles.  B+
  17. felonius: Tim Duncan, Anfernee Hardaway, Tom Boerwinkle, Kenneth Faried, Emeka Okafor, Eddie Jones, Nick Anderson – Each of the first three guys went about where he should, and the last four were arguably steals.  Looking forward to seeing which version of Duncan felonius uses (I’m guessing 97-98 or 06-07).  Boerwinkle was a perfect addition, complementing Timmy on the glass and making up for Penny’s relatively modest passing.  Faried solidifies the boardwork and is an efficient interior scorer from the floor.  Okafor was arguably the best available big to fit this group’s needs, with above average D, strong rebounding, and a few efficient points a game if he’s left alone.  He fills the vacuum created by Boerwinkle’s low minutes, and will back up the Big Fundamental some too.  And Jones and Anderson are also great additions.  Looking at the player season options I’m guessing Anderson is the starter at SG.  If I were to pick a nit with this group I would wonder whether they combine for enough FTAs, but I really like the result of felonius’ monkeying around.  Potentially a contender here, which would be a nice feather in the cap of the much-maligned Mr. Duncan.  A
  18. maglor1: Shawn Marion, Julius Erving, Mookie Blaylock, A.C. Green, Kermit Washington, Hot Rod Williams, Kirk Hinrich – Marion was a reach in the first round but the Doctor could legitimately have gone in the late first, so the value washes out.  Great defense and a good start on rebounding from the three perimeter positions, and Erving’s mistakes with the ball are offset by the tidy games of Marion and Blaylock.  Green has become a fixture in this league, although his main pluses are that he doesn’t do anything very wrong and he can rebound well from the SF position.  Adding him to the mix seems to detract from the edge on the boards that seemed to be materializing.  I actually thought Lanier met a lot of the team’s needs, and I don’t understand the additions of Kermit, Hot Rod and Hinrich, who are good defenders but don’t bring the inside scoring or supplemental rebounding this squad needs.  Like a lot of defense-oriented teams, this one will frustrate opponents’ shooting and make for interesting box scores.  I don’t see them winning the possession battle on a consistent basis, though.  In the end, they’ll go as far as Dr. J can take them, and he hasn’t yet seemed to be a guy you ride to the finals.  B-
  19. tarheel1991: Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson, Serge Ibaka, Dirk Nowitzki, Kris Humphries, Clarence Weatherspoon, Joel Przybilla – Seems unfair to grab two of the studliest PGs, and I’m still waiting for the mega-ast% strategy to net a title in a prominent ongoing theme league but someone will do it eventually.  For this to be the season, this team some interior scoring, which may be hard to find without a lot of warts in the later rounds.  Magic and Oscar provide a good start on boards from the backcourt but will rack up turnovers together.  Ibaka made sense in the third round, although poor man’s versions of him will be available in later rounds and a legit big man might have been a safer pick here.  I’ve never loved Nowitzki in this version of the sim, although he’s a good candidate to get an efficiency bump from the pass-happy backcourt.  Humphries, Weatherspoon and Przybilla ensure enough boards to keep the team competitive.  Ibaka is the only notable defender, so success rides on the supreme guard duo coaxing enough points out of Dirk and each other.  This group doesn’t seem designed to dominate but they will sell a lot of tickets and are likely to make the dance.  B
  20. dh555: Dwyane Wade, Hakeem Olajuwon, Andrei Kirilenko, Tree Rollins, Larry Sanders, Charlie Ward, Chris Anderson – I’m guessing it’s no coincidence that dh drafted four guys likely to take the floor with 100 D ratings.  I look forward to seeing how long that trend can continue, but whether it does or not this should be a fun experiment to watch.  Wade and Hakeem went about where they should have, in my opinion, but pairing them results in usage being maxed out on mediocre efg%.  Tree is infamously short on minutes and long on fouls, but he brings offensive boards and blocked shots.  dh shrewdly nabbed a holy trinity of role players in Sanders, ward and Birdman, to set up the two scorers, grab their misses and make few mistakes.  I’m guessing Ward starts, with AK-47 at SF and Sanders backing up Tree.  The heavy emphasis on D with far fewer 3s than conventional wisdom suggests is more than a mad gamble.  I think it’s a trend in higher cap leagues, recognizing that this version of the sim (unlike its predecessor) values strong defense.  This bunch will foul their way out of some games, but they’ll be unpredictable hell to play against and should easily lead the league in pesky blocks and opposing FG%.  I don’t see them winning it all but I don’t see them missing the playoffs.  A-
  21. steelers821:  Bill Russell, Manu Ginobili, Stephen Curry, Joakim Noah, Zelmo Beaty, Boris Diaw, Al Horford – Russell and Ginobili were a great 1-2 start.  I’m not sure Curry was worth a third round pick given the need for interior scoring and the amount of usage that will now be firing away from the perimeter.  Noah was a smart choice, presuming he’s headed for the 3 spot.  I had thought the fifth round was make or break for this team, and Beaty was a good choice with his efficient scoring, low mistakes and just enough rebounding to carry his weight.  I don’t understand how Horford fits given Russell’s huge minutes and Horford’s inability to swing to SF or play much D.  Diaw provides some valuable boards and lots of assists as a backup SF, although he’s a terrible defender.  I think this team will win some it’s supposed to lose and lose some it’s supposed to win. B-
  22. eleibowitz:  Larry Bird, Marcus Camby, Carlos Boozer, Andre Iguodala, Andre Drummond, Rashard Lewis, Jamal Tinsley – Great value for Bird at the end of the first round.  His stock continues to slip in this sim, but I think a championship team can be built around him.  The selections of Camby and Boozer give the team a fine start on the boards, but Boozer’s offensive efficiency is offset by the fact that he’s a swinging door at the other end of the floor.  I’m not sold on Iguodala here…there were better wings available, but he’s a decent Swiss Army knife who plays a clean game in most of his seasons.  Drummond’s rookie season is a thing of beauty, although he only begins to fill the gap created by the low minutes of the guys he’s here to back up.  Tinsley makes perfect sense.  I’m not sure I get Rashard, since he only does one thing well and he seems to project as the team’s starting SF.  Lots to like here, but I’m still struggling to grasp the master plan.  B
  23. slymonium:  Scottie Pippen, Kevin McHale, Amare Stoudemire, Jose Calderon, Andrew Bogut, Jason Terry, Roy Tarpley – This squad is full of staples, and I’m having trouble seeing them  knit together but sly is far craftier than me in the ways of the sim.  Bogut brings much needed rebounding and interior defense, assuming one of two partial minutes seasons is used.  The addition of Tarpley significantly boosts overall rebounding strength, although there should be fewer loose balls to grab given that three starters are likely to have efg% north of 57.  Terry brings efficient bombing and some passing, without many mistakes.  A nice job using the money rounds to fill the gaps and bring some cohesion to this squad.  B+  
10/26/2013 3:30 PM (edited)
Seemed early for Moses, who shouldn't go higher than 3.  I have him somewhere in a second tier that include Kareem, MJ and Rodman.

Howard went right where he should, in my opinion.  Shaq's stock seems to be falling somewhat, but mikee is a good candidate to build a contender around him.  Kidd went higher than he usually does, but I'm sure 98 has a plan in mind for building around him.

10/14/2013 3:52 PM
Name Team Pos Usage% 2pt%# 3pt%# eFG% OReb% DReb% Ast% Stl% Blk%
  74def Bill Russell 63-64 Celtics C 14.8 44.0 0.0 43.3 12.2 32.4 11.3 1.3 3.9
  74def Manu Ginobili 07-08 Spurs SG 29.2 49.7 39.8 54.0 3.1 14.2 19.7 2.3 0.9
10/15/2013 4:16 PM
steelers has revealed his plan.  He will only use guys with 74 defense!
10/15/2013 4:27 PM
LTB revealed his as well: only draft guys with initials BW.
10/15/2013 7:08 PM

Personal takes from a "1" championship owner not in this league, but following along:

banditone:  Moses Malone  - Love him in this league, especially with higher cap. The more you can build around him, the better.
pennsylvania:  Wilt Chamberlain - However, this guy probably should be the true #1 especially with high cap, because Moses' extra usage isn't always beneficial. I am a Moses lover, but still...
tricky24:  Lebron James -  check
natenoy:  Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - check
thomcat:  Michael Jordan - Epic
seapilots:  Dennis Rodman - Beast
iccoachb:  David Robinson - Beast
ashamael:  Dwight Howard -  Beast
theyard:  Karl Malone - Not sure why he goes so low. An absolute beast. 
malone9975:  Kevin Durant - Beast Lite. The Oreb gap is an issue, even at SG...but better than any bigs left, except maybe Shaq
badja:  Chris Paul - Don't think he should go so early, but hard to hate if you want to use him. Question is, what's the pairing?
mikee1:  Shaquille O’Neal - Could see argument for Shaq 2 spots higher.
vancem:  Charles Barkley - Defense too suspect to warrant this spot? Big Barkley guy, but the SIM Def is really strong right now
coachcroft:  Artis Gilmore - Have never used him, but only because I'm green.  Clearly, a well-loved staple.
98average:  Jason Kidd - Too high in my view, but has a path.
longtallbrad:  Ben Wallace, Bill Walton - Love Wallace, meh on Walton - specifically, the low minutes and I want to see more usage paired with Ben.
sixernuggets: Kevin Garnett, Dikembe Mutombo - Rock solid, lots of directions to go in rd 3 and stay solid.
felonius: Tim Duncan, Anfernee Hardaway - Duncan gets negative feedback but the numbers are there. Penny has a good season.
maglor1: Shawn Marion, Julius Erving - Very nice, would have loved Magic + Dr J a touch more
tarheel1991:  Magic Johnson, Oscar Robertson - Don't really get Oscar after Magic but love Magic that late

dh555: Dwyane Wade, Hakeem Olajuwon - Wow. Talk about a controversial duo. Gets the double benjamins on D, but suspect usage?
steelers821: Bill Russell, Manu Ginobili - Promising start, the next pick could swing this team the most of any.

eleibowitz:  Larry Bird, Marcus Camby - Can't say this is my style, just seems a little too "B+"
slymonium:  Scottie Pippen, Kevin McHale - If using McHale at SF, he's very good. But never seems to play as a 2nd best player, more of a 3rd...but a good turn next set could bring this team up a notch.



10/15/2013 10:10 PM (edited)
I noticed that too, sly.  We'll see if I can keep it up.

After the shrewd owners in front of me decimated my draft board I almost took another guy who shouldn't be on the board much longer.  But I'm...trying something.

10/15/2013 7:43 PM
jk please don't mention undrafted players
10/15/2013 7:56 PM
thanks JK - btw Walton has a 30+ pt advantage over that other dude in defensive rating and enjoys some other positives in secondary stats you might be overlooking (he's a lot less foul prone, has more blocked shots, slightly higher usage at slightly higher efg et al)

I'd take Walton is the second in this league without feeling too bad about it - heck I'd even argue his short minutes are an advantage here in that you can cobble together a more potent 3 man PF/C rotation with him and the right couple of other guys on board

speaking of which why does Timmy "get negative feedback"?
10/15/2013 9:07 PM
Posted by slymonium on 10/15/2013 7:08:00 PM (view original):
LTB revealed his as well: only draft guys with initials BW.
several of those out there...I think he should keep drafting them
10/15/2013 9:08 PM
Posted by felonius on 10/15/2013 9:08:00 PM (view original):
thanks JK - btw Walton has a 30+ pt advantage over that other dude in defensive rating and enjoys some other positives in secondary stats you might be overlooking (he's a lot less foul prone, has more blocked shots, slightly higher usage at slightly higher efg et al)

I'd take Walton is the second in this league without feeling too bad about it - heck I'd even argue his short minutes are an advantage here in that you can cobble together a more potent 3 man PF/C rotation with him and the right couple of other guys on board

speaking of which why does Timmy "get negative feedback"?
Walton's turnovers and lack of foundational minutes scare me off so early, and the comp with not to be named is across multiples rounds. Of course he is better, but I don't view it as a value. No worries, I love seeing others build with him, everyone has their guys. The more I look, the more I could be very wrong on this pairing - perhaps Walton/Wallace is quite brilliant.

Duncan is an odd case. Often described as "underperforming" but looks completely reasonable. Better value than Howard or DRob I suppose this late in the 1st.
10/15/2013 10:12 PM (edited)
minutes are a larf in a big salary cap - better to have short minutes intensity in this case and cobble cobble cobble
10/15/2013 11:42 PM
Duncan was a monster for me last season. If I had built a smidge better around him, would've been a final four team.
10/16/2013 1:45 PM
Posted by malone9975 on 10/15/2013 9:08:00 PM (view original):
Posted by slymonium on 10/15/2013 7:08:00 PM (view original):
LTB revealed his as well: only draft guys with initials BW.
several of those out there...I think he should keep drafting them
Agreed.
10/16/2013 4:44 PM
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