2025 CelticsBlog Fantasy Draft: '05-'25 Edition

[snively]

OK, I think I have a handle on my team posting in the team thread.

[smokeablount]

Did Mikal Bridges end up getting drafted?  He was another guy I strongly considered, but I would have probably drafted one of his Phoenix seasons.  He was more focused on defense back then.

The Jokic team took Mikal. Indiana.

I would?ve taken him with my 2nd pick yesterday over Bam if he wasn?t taken earlier (and assuming Chet was still off the board)

[Roy H.]

Really interesting decision here, Who:

KG = 2007-08 = 32mpg

How do you compare 2008 KG, as opposed to 2005 KG coming off of an MVP?

[Who]

Really interesting decision here, Who:

KG = 2007-08 = 32mpg

How do you compare 2008 KG, as opposed to 2005 KG coming off of an MVP?

Yeah, I don't know which way to go with that. I am tempted to go with 2005 KG who is quicker and more mobile to better cover Embiid and better defend small ball SF/PF type players.

KG was such a monster in 2008. The leadership. The efficiency. The defense was perfection. Won the title. In the hindsight, KG should have won the MVP over Kobe that season.

In the end I went with the extra efficiency.

[Moranis]

The Cavs absolutely hunted Curry. In the Cavs title season, not only did Irving far out perform his season averages in the finals, the physicality they inflicted on Curry caused him to be significantly below his season averages across the board.  He could not handle them muscling him up and that is with a relatively small and weak PG in Irving.  Even the first year when Irving was out after game 1, Curry was way below his season averages.  The Cavs went at him relentlessly, they just didn't have the talent without Love and Irving to pull out the series win (which is partly why Curry despite being league MVP was not Finals MVP). Durant changed the dynamic as the Cavs could no longer play the same way, but even still in 17 when Irving was there, he was better than Curry basically across the board.  Curry is a small poor defender. Putting a small SG next to him and an equally small and poor defender behind him is not a recipe for success.

One of the things that has always cracked me up about these drafts is people being disingenuous.  Just to keep people honest with their criticisms...

Curry isn't a bad defender, but he is not an elite defender.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Curry is a bad defender, but he just isn't a great defender.

[Curry] is a good defender, but certainly not great or elite).

in the 9 years since I've come around on that. Curry does generate steals though much the same way Iverson did.  But we have enough evidence now to say Curry is a bad defender especially in a league that has filled with great players.  Curry does ok in a normal league, but he is small and weak and we've seen time and time again teams pick on him.  In much the way you want to call out injured Luka in the finals against Boston, teams did the exact same thing to Curry. 

[Roy H.]

The Cavs absolutely hunted Curry. In the Cavs title season, not only did Irving far out perform his season averages in the finals, the physicality they inflicted on Curry caused him to be significantly below his season averages across the board.  He could not handle them muscling him up and that is with a relatively small and weak PG in Irving.  Even the first year when Irving was out after game 1, Curry was way below his season averages.  The Cavs went at him relentlessly, they just didn't have the talent without Love and Irving to pull out the series win (which is partly why Curry despite being league MVP was not Finals MVP). Durant changed the dynamic as the Cavs could no longer play the same way, but even still in 17 when Irving was there, he was better than Curry basically across the board.  Curry is a small poor defender. Putting a small SG next to him and an equally small and poor defender behind him is not a recipe for success.

One of the things that has always cracked me up about these drafts is people being disingenuous.  Just to keep people honest with their criticisms...

Curry isn't a bad defender, but he is not an elite defender.

And don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Curry is a bad defender, but he just isn't a great defender.

[Curry] is a good defender, but certainly not great or elite).

in the 9 years since I've come around on that. Curry does generate steals though much the same way Iverson did.  But we have enough evidence now to say Curry is a bad defender especially in a league that has filled with great players.  Curry does ok in a normal league, but he is small and weak and we've seen time and time again teams pick on him.  In much the way you want to call out injured Luka in the finals against Boston, teams did the exact same thing to Curry.

Or, were your observations at the time more accurate, and you've gotten confused as your memory has faded and you've watched Curry age into a 36 year old man?  Or, perhaps you're even advocating a bit against a team that you see as a rival and superior to yours?

You called him a "good" defender, and it's not like that observation was a one-time thing.  And, you were doing that while still arguing that Lebron was a better player, so it's not like your observations were biased in favor of Curry.  (I also argued Lebron was a better overall player than Curry, by the way, and still feel that way).

The good thing about fading memories is that we have much more recent evidence of Luka being a fat defensive sieve, and we know that Fat Shaq couldn't defend the pick-and-roll or the perimeter.   And, Luka has always been a fat sieve, it wasn't a one series thing. 

Two weaknesses at the point of attack if I'm understanding you correctly.

[Who]

But we have enough evidence now to say Curry is a bad defender especially in a league that has filled with great players.  Curry does ok in a normal league, but he is small and weak and we've seen time and time again teams pick on him. In much the way you want to call out injured Luka in the finals against Boston, teams did the exact same thing to Curry.

Are the PGs any better defensively in this fantasy league than in the Real NBA?

It feels like there are few high end defensive PGs in this league. Quite a few above average defensive PGs, ditto for middle of the pack defenders and a number of bad defensive PGs. But few high end defensive PGs.

I don't know who to use as the PG for Cleveland. Luka or LeBron? I'll go with Donovan Mitchell for the reserve PG.

Luka Doncic
Chris Paul
Steve Nash
Damian Lillard
Chauncey Billups
Steph Curry
SGA
Tony Parker
Kyle Lowry
Rajon Rondo

Donovan Mitchell
Fred VanVleet
Tyrese Haliburton
Derrick White
Deron Williams
Jalen Brunson
Jason Kidd
Andre Miller
Mike Conley
Russell Westbrook

Kyrie Irving
Jamal Murray
Derrick Rose
John Wall

Even the above average defensive PGs, most of them are not top level defenders.

[Who]

Speaking of Gallinari ...

Danilo Gallinari's wife has reportedly been bitten by what experts believe was a shark in Puerto Rico.

Captain Ruben Moyeno of the Carolina Municipal Police confirmed that the woman suffered an open wound to her thigh. He also stated that she is in stable condition and confirmed she is Gallinari?s wife.

Notably, the 39-year-old woman is currently pregnant.

Gallinari, 36, is currently playing for the Vaqueros de Bayamon in Puerto Rico, who are set to begin the league?s finals on Sunday.

Crazy

[Moranis]

But we have enough evidence now to say Curry is a bad defender especially in a league that has filled with great players.  Curry does ok in a normal league, but he is small and weak and we've seen time and time again teams pick on him. In much the way you want to call out injured Luka in the finals against Boston, teams did the exact same thing to Curry.

Are the PGs any better defensively in this fantasy league than in the Real NBA?

It feels like there are few high end defensive PGs in this league. Quite a few above average defensive PGs, ditto for middle of the pack defenders and a number of bad defensive PGs. But few high end defensive PGs.

I don't know who to use as the PG for Cleveland. Luka or LeBron? I'll go with Donovan Mitchell for the reserve PG.

Luka Doncic
Chris Paul
Steve Nash
Damian Lillard
Chauncey Billups
Steph Curry
SGA
Tony Parker
Kyle Lowry
Rajon Rondo

Donovan Mitchell
Fred VanVleet
Tyrese Haliburton
Derrick White
Deron Williams
Jalen Brunson
Jason Kidd
Andre Miller
Mike Conley
Russell Westbrook

Kyrie Irving
Jamal Murray
Derrick Rose
John Wall

Even the above average defensive PGs, most of them are not top level defenders.

I meant he does ok defensively in a normal league because every team isn't stacked with top level PG's.  You are absolutely correct this league, just like the NBA, doesnt have a ton of top level defending PG's. That is why I made the decision to draft Dyson Daniels as my backup PG. I wanted a big fast defender.  Curry's size just isnt an issue most of the time, but as we've seen in plenty of playoff series he can be targeted and neutralized.  It isnt just the Cavs either.  Smart just wasn't a good enough player to do it when Boston lost to Golden State.  If Boston had Holiday instead of Smart, I believe Boston would have won the 2022 title. Smart just couldnt put enough pressure on Curry to wear him down.

[Roy H.]

I don't want to clutter up the How's My Team thread with my analysis, so I'll give some of my thoughts here:

New York Knicks

Starters

G: Steve Nash
G: Manu Ginobili
F: Andre Iguodala
F: Kevin Garnett
C: Joel Embiid

Bench

G: Tyrese Haliburton, Kyrie Irving
G: Joe Johnson
F: Khris Middleton, Ron Artest
F: Jaren Jackson Jr
C: LaMarcus Aldridge

Team Identity

The team will be based around the creativity of the two starting guards. Nash will be our main man on offense. Pulling the strings. Manu his sidekick. Embiid will slot into that Amare type role where he will lead the team in shot attempts and scoring but play off of Nash. Work that PnR game and then turn into some isolations for Embiid if nothing materializes. Same as with Amare.

KG will take over that Amare role when Embiid goes to the bench. KG will slide over to center. Jaren Jackson Jr will slot in as a stretch PF to open the game up for KG inside. And do the same for Embiid when JJJ is partnered with him. KG will play a more opportunistic role like Marion did next to Amare when KG is alongside Embiid.

Haliburton will step in to replace Nash and keep the offense buzzing. I wan the PGs to push the ball hard in transition and get everyone involved. Keep everyone happy.

Team Passing

We have strong passing throughout most of the team. I think the starters have some of the top ranked ball-handlers and passers at their respective positions at PG (Nash), SG (Ginobili), SF (Iggy), PF (KG). The C in Embiid is a good passer and an excellent ball-handler for a center.

Then we go to the bench. We have one of the top passing PGs in Haliburton. Strong passing & ball-handling wings in Joe Johnson and Khris Middleton. Both have had seasons of 5.0+apg with 2:1 AST:TOV ratios. JJJ is a strong driver with the ball but a limited passer. Aldridge is a low mistake low creativity passer. Not that good but he doesn't screw up.

The Defense

Most of the defense is based around the big men. KG is one of the best defensive bigs of All-Time. Jaren Jackson Jr is a high level defensive PF and former DPOY. Embiid is a plus defender. Aldridge gives the team a 4th 7 footer in the rotation who is a good defensive PF or adequate defensive C. We want to control the paint defensively as much as possible. Most nights we should be able to do that.

Iggy is our main man defensively on the perimeter. Our only top level perimeter defender. Ginobili is a very good team defender but average man defender. Joe Johnson is a plus man defender but average team defender. Khris Middleton is a solid all-round defender. Then we have a break in case of emergency option with Ron Artest. A 2nd top notch wing defender. 

The PG defense is weak. Nash is a weak defender. Smart positionally but limited in speed and size. Haliburton is a mixed bag. Inconsistent but capable of good D. He is a better team defender than man defender. He uses his size and length well on team D to create turnovers.

Shooting

One of the best shooters in NBA History in Steve Nash. A very good shooter in Haliburton behind him. Another top level shooter in Kyrie behind Hali. Quality shooters at SG with Ginobili & JJ. High level shooter in Middleton. Dodgy shooter in Iggy. Decent shooter in Artest.

The bigs will provide good spacing for the team. All four of them can stroke it with range making it difficult for the opponent to camp out in the paint. Aldridge and KG were two of the best midrange and long 2 point jump-shooters in the league. Embiid has a strong midrange game and a little 3 point game. JJJ is more of a slasher / driver and three point shooter who can stretch the floor further. The bigs are designed to open up the floor for others. To make it hard to seal off the paint.

Midrange shot making is big weapon for this group. The bigs have. JJ and Middleton are very good at this. Nash is excellent. Kyrie is excellent. Hali is very good there. A lot of guys who can make that midrange J when the paint is cut off and they are run off the 3 point line.

Really, to me, this team comes down to how highly you think of Steve Nash.  As I recall, you've always been quite high on him in these drafts.  I've been a bit lower.  It's a combination of two things:  I don't like PGs who I perceive as ball holders, and I don't think Nash's defense was adequate.

Now, Nash isn't a true "ball holder", necessarily.  Not in the way that somebody like Trae Young is, or even CP3.  He got a ton of his assists early in the shot clock.  But, he also never really shared the ball with another guard or point forward in more of a true time share.  So, personal prejudice, I tend to like to see a backcourt with two guys around 5.0 assists, rather than one guy with 10.0+. 

And, regarding defense, he never really played on a great defensive team; most weren't even good.  In Dallas the teams he started on ranked 13th, 25th, 9th and 26th in DRtg; in Phoenix it was 17th, 16th, 13th, 16th, 26th, 11th, 25th.  In fairness, some of this was coaching, and some was relying on Amare as a defender.  But, there's no proof that Nash can be part of a very good defense.

That said, he's one of the most efficient shooters of his era, and he was a brilliant passer. 

In terms of your starting wings, I love them.  They're two of my all-time favorite players.  I don't mind Manu's defense as much as you do; he's a guy who contributed to great defensive teams.  Iguodala played the best defense on prime Lebron that I can recall:

When Iguodala was in the game, LeBron James shot 38.1 percent from the field, scoring 26 points per 36 minutes with 2.9 turnovers. With Iguodala on the bench, James shot 44 percent, averaging 35 points per 36 minutes with 2.2 turnovers. With Iguodala as the primary defender, opponents shot 37.2 percent overall, and he gave up free throws the same percentage of time (10.8 percent) that he forced a turnover, via Synergy Sports. Those are steller defensive numbers.

KG is a maniac.  His mentality totally changed Boston's approach to basketball.  I do think you probably get that same intensity out of 2005 or 2006 KG without some of the very slight mobility issues that came with him aging.  His rebounding really seemed to take a hit in Boston, too.  But, those are quibbles:  KG is a first-tier player in any league.

Joel Embiid is a trollish loser who shoots way too many jumpers and who is mentally soft.  He's also an MVP who can play like a DPOY-candidate when he puts the effort in.  I like reveling in his failures, but he's immensely talented. 

I guess one criticism of your bigs is that neither likes playing in the post.  They both have a preference for long jumpers.  They frequently make those jumpers, but who do you go to when you want a high-percentage inside shot?  It's sort of like this year's Celtics team, with an over-reliance on outside ball.  This will be mitigated somewhat by having so many smart, excellent passers.

The bench has a lot of really nice shooting, and yet more efficiency.  Any of them could sub in for a starter without losing much at all.  Is the bench too similar to your starters?  I'm not sure that that's a thing that I worry about.  Haliburton, Johnson and Middleton can all shot, and they have good passing skills.  Jaren Jackson will struggle against beefy guys, but he brings defensive intensity.  LMA will give you a consistent scoring threat within the arc.  The defensive overall from the bench is sort of average to a slight tick below average, but it's chock full of guys who performed well for a decade.

In terms of your deep bench, I know they're not anticipated to play, but I like what Artest could potentially offer you in matchups with certain teams.  I don't think that Kyrie adds much of anything to your team.  I think I would have preferred you to take a hyper-athletic PG.  Was Rose still available?  Otherwise, maybe Ja Morant?  Just don't let him and Artest party together.

[Roy H.]

But we have enough evidence now to say Curry is a bad defender especially in a league that has filled with great players.  Curry does ok in a normal league, but he is small and weak and we've seen time and time again teams pick on him. In much the way you want to call out injured Luka in the finals against Boston, teams did the exact same thing to Curry.

Are the PGs any better defensively in this fantasy league than in the Real NBA?

It feels like there are few high end defensive PGs in this league. Quite a few above average defensive PGs, ditto for middle of the pack defenders and a number of bad defensive PGs. But few high end defensive PGs.

I don't know who to use as the PG for Cleveland. Luka or LeBron? I'll go with Donovan Mitchell for the reserve PG.

Luka Doncic
Chris Paul
Steve Nash
Damian Lillard
Chauncey Billups
Steph Curry
SGA
Tony Parker
Kyle Lowry
Rajon Rondo

Donovan Mitchell
Fred VanVleet
Tyrese Haliburton
Derrick White
Deron Williams
Jalen Brunson
Jason Kidd
Andre Miller
Mike Conley
Russell Westbrook

Kyrie Irving
Jamal Murray
Derrick Rose
John Wall

Even the above average defensive PGs, most of them are not top level defenders.

I meant he does ok defensively in a normal league because every team isn't stacked with top level PG's.  You are absolutely correct this league, just like the NBA, doesnt have a ton of top level defending PG's. That is why I made the decision to draft Dyson Daniels as my backup PG. I wanted a big fast defender.  Curry's size just isnt an issue most of the time, but as we've seen in plenty of playoff series he can be targeted and neutralized.  It isnt just the Cavs either.  Smart just wasn't a good enough player to do it when Boston lost to Golden State.  If Boston had Holiday instead of Smart, I believe Boston would have won the 2022 title. Smart just couldnt put enough pressure on Curry to wear him down.

How many minutes will you be playing Dyson Daniels on Steph Curry, and what result are you expecting from that?

In games he's played against Daniels, Curry has averaged 24.7 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.4 assists, 1.5 steals, 42.3% 3PT%, and .582 eFG%.  And, we're talking about 35 and 36 year old Curry in these head to head matchups.

Meanwhile, Daniels has averaged 8.4 ppg.  He gets steals -- 1.8 spg -- but doesn't contain Curry in any way.  Again, that's old man Curry. 

Daniels is unplayable as a primary backup PG in this league.  He simply isn't a credible enough scorer.

EDIT:

The above stats are through basketball-reference's versus finder.  According to Land of Basketball, the disparity is even greater:  30.4 points vs. 6.8 points for Daniels.

[Roy H.]

OK, I think I have a handle on my team

Starters:

Billups/Kobe/Jimmy/Horford/Yao. Other than maybe Al, who is my most essential glue guy, most of these guys will not be playing heavy minutes. A Team USA approach.

On offense, Kobe and Yao as focal points, with Jimmy as 3rd option slasher/cutter/match-up hunter, Chauncey as set-up guy and Horford as high post facilitator and floor spreader.

Defensively the perimeter trio as intense attack dogs. Horford as shot-caller and switchable 4. Yao as paint monster closing off the paint.

Pau and Granger the first two off the bench coming in for Yao and either Kobe or Jimmy. A similar offensive philosophy but with more range from Granger and mobility from Pau in the middle. When playing one of the massive teams, Pau can come in for Al and super-size the frontcourt.

Then comes the line change and a big shift in playstyle. Deron Williams and Eric Gordon (pre-injury when he was a lightning quick slasher and on ball defender) take over the backcourt and Zion comes in as their primary scoring partner at the 4. Pau or Al stays on as the highskill 5, working off the penetration of Zion and the guards. When we want all shooting/scoring on the floor we put in Gallo anywhere from 2-5. Chandler is there for defensive substitutions.

I will edit in minutes and seasons later.

I'm curious to see what season you pick for Kobe.  His general reputation with me is that he's hyper-focused on winning (with a few exceptions of him pouting), but that he generally hasn't trusted his teammates.  That's led to him taking some very inefficient shots.

The counter to that is, Kobe has much better teammates here.  Because he *does* care about winning, he's going to defer to an open Billups over taking a contested shot himself.  I can buy into that argument to a large degree, but not 100%.  In an ideal world he gets his eFG% up to around .520, but could he ever truly go beyond that?  And, efficiency is what matters in this era.

I love the defense of the starting guards / wing.  Chauncey, Kobe, and Butler will thrive on slowing down opposing guards and wings.  Offensively, I would have loved to see a better shooter than Butler, but I think he's got some seasons where he shot from outside pretty well.

My thoughts on your front court are contingent on what season you take for Horford.  He's always been able to hit from mid-range, but ideally you'd have a member of the front court who could hit threes.  Boston Horford adds that, while also probably being the best passing version of him.  Really good defensive pairing here.  You don't want to see Yao brought out to the perimeter, so mitigate against that.

The bench has really high-level players in Pau, Granger, Deron and Gordon.  Again, seasons matter, because the overall efficiency of some of those guys wasn't as high as truly elite options for some of their career.

And, Zion is an X-factor.  Is 2024 the only season he has finished healthy?  I guess you'll have to "settle" for 23 / 6 / 5 / .573 eFG%.  That's a nice luxury.

[snively]

I thought Nash shared a lot with Diaw in 2006. That I thought was the funnest year for the Suns. No Amare but Nash and Diaw carving teams up,  but also putting guys like Marion, Raja Bell, Barbosa and Tim Thomas in positions to score.

With Nash as first point of attack and Manu attacking adjusting defenses, with KG and Embiid in finishing roles I think they would be devastating offensively.

Embiid is the wild card tho. Does he slow the ball down and turn everyone else into a peripheral player? Does he put Nash in that Dallas mode?



 

[Who]

I was watching a youtube clip of Joe Johnson talking about Steve Nash and the 2005 MVP award. The question was did Nash deserve it over Shaq. JJ responded with how bad they were without Nash when he was injured for a few games.

Anyway, it was what he said about those games vs having Nash on the floor. The team was rolling. Beating everyone in sight. Then Nash is out and suddenly every little thing is difficult. Nash made everything easy for everybody else.

That is what I want in a PG. Someone who makes the game easier for the other guys.

Tracy McGrady made a similar comment about Jason Kidd. Some Team USA practices that McGrady had to pull out of. But he got to practice a few days with Kidd first. McGrady was blown away. He was begging for Kidd to be his PG. Kidd made the game so easy for McGrady. He couldn't believe it. He loved Kidd.

I like that sort of PG.

[BitterJim]

Found it! Thank you RodyTur for the idea, I'm gonna try picking a team from this exact point (right after CFF selected OG in the 8th round)

I like Tim's combo of Love and Camby as well. I had Love in my previous draft (like five years ago) and I was strongly considering him, but my team's style will be to push tempo, be disruptive with high ball pressure and closing passing lanes against all these offensive powerhouses.

And although Love is a great rebounder, outlet passer and follow-up shooter I thought he was a bit of a mismatch for my team.

Still such an abundance of talent out there. If someone came in now and was allowed to take eight straight picks he could still make a respectable team despite the ridiculous competition.

I'm actually really happy it works out this way, because the last 5 picks of the 8th round had some really great players. Anyway, here it goes:

With the first overall pick in the 2025 CelticsBlog Fantasy Expansion Draft, the Charlotte Bobcats select a man who looks great in orange: Carmelo Anthony!

With the second pick, the Charlotte Bobcats select Melo's teammate in Denver, the 2001 NBA MVP: Allen Iverson! Likely his 2004-05 season.

Obviously this pairing is terrible defensively, but the scoring is undeniable (and that's at a real premium this late in the draft) and they have a proven fit, making the WCF in '08-'09 and finishing with 50+ wins twice.

With the third pick, the Charlotte Bobcats finally pick up some defense and rebounding (along with a ton of dunks): DeAndre Jordan!

With the fourth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats round out their defensive big duo with a 3-time All-Defensive team member, Serge Ibaka! I'll probably go with a season after with All-Defensive teams/DPOY votes so I get his 3-point shooting, but we'll see.

With the fifth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats complete their starting lineup with one of the best 3-and-D SGs of all time, Danny Green! This pushes AI to PG rather than SG, but you are who you cover and AI can't cover SGs in this league (not really PGs, either, but that's what you get for missing the first 75 picks). I considered going for more offense here or at PF, but with AI and Melo both likely having 30%+ usage in the seasons I pick there's only so much ball to go around. I'll probably fill in my bench with more scoring to help when they're off the floor.

With the sixth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats send their bench in a totally different direction, taking Tyrese Haliburton to be their backup PG. He will be DeAndre Jordan's best friend, and move the ball around to help everyone get the ball.

With the seventh pick, the Charlotte Bobcats go for defense at the Center position once again: Brook Lopez! Even though I loved him on the Nets, I'll go with a Bucks season to get his defense and 3pt shooting. Putting him and Serge Ibaka on the floor together will allow for some great 5-out lineups, giving tons of space for the offense to operate.

With the eighth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats take a former DPOY as their backup SF: Ron Artest/Metta World Peace! Basically the complete opposite of Melo. I'll probably go with 07-08 for his better overall scoring efficiency and 3pt shooting.

With the ninth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats finally take another player known for their offense, Donovan Mitchell! I considered a lot of players here, but decided to take a page out of Roy's book and go for a player that I like.

With the tenth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats take their backup PF. This one took a lot of thought, because there were two players that I really wanted to take would really struggle defending bigger PFs in this league, and are a bit too similar to Melo (who will definitely play some PF on this team). So we'll stick with the Lob City 2.0 theme and go with the 2011 Slam Dunk Contest Champion: Blake Griffin! He's gonna help this second unit run and dunk over absolutely everyone.

With that in mind, I might swap DeAndre Jordan and Brook's roles. With Melo at SF DeAndre's rebounding is less important, while moving him to the second unit really lets us get out and RUN. Haliburton, Blake, and Jordan make Lob City 2.0.

With the eleventh pick, the Charlotte Bobcats take one of my absolute favorites. With our guard rotation lacking anything even closely resembling defense, we need a combo guard that can REALLY defend. So who better than that than the 2022 DPOY: Marcus Smart!

With the twelfth pick, the Charlotte Bobcats once again look to fill a role that we're missing: scoring from our bigs. To add that dimension, I just had to go with: DeMarcus Cousins!

For their 13th man, the Charlotte Bobcats take another one of my favorites: The King in the Forth himself, Isaiah Thomas! I'm tempted to cross out IT and have something about MJ writing his own name in as 13th man, but I just love IT too much.

So, there's my take on RodyTur's comment. The order would probably have been different if it was 8 picks then joining in with the normal draft, but that's impossible to figure out at this point. I'd like to put together a rotation, too (even though this team isn't actually part of the draft), but this took a couple of hours to put together so it's not happening tonight. This team is going to be pretty bipolar, with the starters looking to slow down the pace and iso with two of the best to do it, while the bench just goes out and runs all over you. We have some glaring holes in our defense, but it's very difficult to find good 2-way players this late. Maybe I should have gone all in on offense with an AI/Mitchell/Melo/Siakam/Boogie starting lineup, but I wouldn't really want to watch that team so I went for a more balanced attack instead. Hopefully it turned out okay.

Starters:
G: Allen Iverson (2004-05)
G: Danny Green
F: Carmelo Anthony
F: Serge Ibaka
C: Brook Lopez (2022-23)

Bench:
G: Tyrese Haliburton (2023-24), Marcus Smart (2018-19)
G: Donovan Mitchell (2022-23)
F: Metta World Peace (2005-06)
F: Blake Griffin
C: DeAndre Jordan, Demarcus Cousins

Deep Bench:
G: Isaiah Thomas (2016-17)