Celticsblog Mock GM Press Conferences: Pacific Division

[Evantime34]

Wow I went to take a nap and everyone turns on my team. Just because KMart is on the team doesn't mean we don't win the division. Does anyone remember how well he played against our Celtics when he was on the Nets? The Nuggets were a poorly coached poorly put together team not his fault.
I have the best two players at the two most important positions. The two positions that are hardest to find good players at. Hughes was touted as a great player but he never was in a system that fit him until he was on Washington, where he earned the huge contract that had him spurned. Al Thornton is a wildly underrated, the second half of the season he averaged over 16 ppg, scoring his career high of 39 (as a rookie). Bowen is a first team all defensive player and Gordon is a top 10 pick who played half of his freshman year with a broken hand and still led his conference in scoring.
As far as the clippers.
Dirk- jump shooter, although he did go to the hole more last year.
RIP- jump shooter
Steven Jackson- Jump shooter, clinically insane (if you have a problem with KMart and not Jackson you are crazy
Mo Williams- Jump shooter
Oberto- Bum

His team doesn't have a consistent scorer to go to the backet. None of those guys is a top notch defender. I don't see how his team is better than mine.

[Evantime34]

Golden State Warriors
Finally an up tempo team that can score and play defense

Roster
PG- Steve Nash/ Sergio Rodriguez/ Dan Dickau
SG- Larry Hughes/ Eric Gordon/ Gary Forbes
SF- Al Thornton/ Bruce Bowen/ Darius Miles
PF- Kenyon Martin/ Yi Jianlian/ Robert Horry/ Alexis Ajenca
C- Dwight Howard/ Stromile Swift

Evantime, I like the starting five. Some questions:

1. Can you explain your comment about defense? Outside of Bowen, and arguably Martin and Howard, you have players who either aren't known for defense, are (as of right now) defensive liabilities, or are complete mysteries as to how effective they'll be.

2. How concerned are you about the prospect of Rodriguez and Gordon having to log minutes? Both are undersized for their positions. Rodriguez, while capable of gaudy highlight-reel assists, is inconsistent, if not turnover-prone, and Gordon will struggle adjusting to life in the NBA this season, especially when faced with the quality of SGs in the league.

3. Considering that Dickau is in Europe this year, you have an open roster slot. What type of player will you fill it with?

1. The comment on defense is thought of like this: Bowen first team defender, Howard second team defender, Hughes a great theft artist (once led the league with 2.9). Al Thornton is a big strong guy who played real good defense in college. Kmart averages 1.2 steals and points. Gordon can play some good defense. I just wanted to make sure that my team wasn't lumped together with all the teams that play absolutely no defense like the real life warriors.

2. Rodriguez will get better and so will Gordon, their upside is so large I would take it over a mediocre proven player. Miles can also log some of the minutes that Gordon would get if he is healthy.

3. I think I will look for another point gaurd with Dickau's spot. Possibly a back up big man a la PJ Brown to help out with the younger ones.

[The Walker Wiggle]

I can't vote for a team with Kmart to win anything.

Care to elaborate on this Roy?

I don't understand the skepticism you and others have shown regarding Kenyon Martin? He remains one of the better defensive power forwards in the NBA; aggressive, great stance, active hands, good anticipation, contests a lot of shots, rebounds at a serviceable rate, averages better than a steal and a block per game. He's a limited offensive player with a flat jump shot, but he can put the ball on the floor and finish around the rim. Also, he'll get his points outside of the offense, something a lot of our GM's seem to greatly undervalue.

I love GS one thru seven (if I count Bowen ahead of Hughes) that said, I don't think Evantime's expectations for Swift and Rodriguez hold any water; both where 3rd stringers on lottery teams.

Rodriguez averaged 2.5 ppg on 35% shooting and 1.7 apg in 8.7 mpg and seems at least one more season away from putting it together.

Swift is 20 mpg journeyman forward with great athleticism but questionable ethic and on court decision making. 6.1 ppg and 3.7 rpg on the season.

[Evantime34]

Id say right now its:

Clippers
Suns/Warriors
Lakers
Kings

I think this is the year Steve Nash really starts to show his age, and I don't like the thorton/Martin combo at all. It'll be a dogfight between the suns/warriors for second place, but I think they'll (or we'll if you're evantime) both finish inside of the top 8 for the conference. I think people are underestimating Dirk and S-Jax. They're both guys that can will their teams to a win.

This year I don't like the lakers in the playoffs. Bosh is great but I don't think Duhon is a guy that can manage a team like the Lakers, and I don't think OJ Mayo is ready. The Lakers will be a special team, I just don't think it will be this season.

My thoughts exactly. The Clippers vets ought to perform at a consistent level over the course of the season, which gives them the edge, for me, over the Warriors (suspect bench, especially in the backcourt) and the Suns (younger team, more potential for up-and-down play). But I think a case for any of the three winning the Pacific could be made.

The Lakers aren't far behind this year; in a couple years, I think they leapfrog to the top of the division, or challenge the Suns for it.

Yeah...  after thinking about it some more, I actually changed my vote.  I think the Warriors have the two best players, but I think the Clippers probably have the better team.  I can't vote for a team with Kmart to win anything.

You changed your vote? Thanks a lot Fredo

[Roy Hobbs]

I can't vote for a team with Kmart to win anything.

Care to elaborate on this Roy?

I don't understand the skepticism you and others have shown regarding Kenyon Martin?

Sure.  The guy is a punk, and I'm of the opinion that teams that rely heavily upon punks very rarely win.  The same goes for Larry Hughes.  That's 40% of the starting lineup filled with guys with poor attitudes.  I do think chemistry and character matters, and I don't see it with those two guys.

Also, Kmart was outproduced by his opponent's last year at both power forward and center.  Hughes was outproduced in both Cleveland and Chicago, including by a *huge* margin while with the Cavs.  Finally, even Al Thornton -- a kid I like a lot -- was outproduced last season at both forward positions.

That means that 60% of the starting lineup was losing matchups with its opponents on a regular basis last year.  I'm not sure that that bodes well for the Warriors division hopes, especially as Nash continues to age and have a creaky back.

I do like the team, because Howard and Nash are both dominant.  However, the other guys just aren't of the same caliber as some of the other players in the division.

[Evantime34]

thanks for the backup.
As far as Stro Swift, if you look at his athleticism like in that youtube video you get the sense that he is someone who would do really well in an uptempo system. Players like Matt Barnes have went from rarely used to a valuable player when put into the right fast break system.

Roy can I see some numbers as far as being outperformed. Hughes was unwanted and in the wrong system last year and that's what lead to his poor production. KMart being a punk is probably increased in your mind (and in others minds) because he used to tool on the Celtics during the O'Brien years. He was in a terrible situation for a punk last year but with veteran players like Bowen Nash and Horry around him he'll be put in his place or he'll be moved.

[The Walker Wiggle]

Honestly, I'm caught off guard. TPs to anybody that can point me to an article on Martin. Anyway, unless there are strip club incidents I'm unaware of he's no worse a personality than Alonzo Mourning. Cough, cough. As far as losing match ups, I'm seeing that Martin was a net positive on the floor for Denver at 82games, but if I'm wrong, I'd still suggest his struggles last season were the results of pace, poor schemes and questionable team culture.

You and I feel the same way about Larry Hughes. The only allowance I'll make for him is that not every pro can redefine their game following a debilitating injury. Some of Hughes' comments and behavior can  be explained away as the frustration of a player that once relied heavily on - now lost - agility and quickness. McDyess is the perfect counter-example.

Thornton, I expect will improve considerably on the defensive end this season, simply by cutting down on cheap fouls.

[celticmaestro]

I originally had the Clippers as the #1 team in the West, let alone the division. But they made a trade (my memory escapes me) that I thought made them worse, not better.

I think it's a coin flip really between the Clippers and Warriors as to who's better. I think Golden State edge it.

[Lucky17]

Honestly, I'm caught off guard. TPs to anybody that can point me to an article on Martin. Anyway, unless there are strip club incidents I'm unaware of he's no worse a personality than Alonzo Mourning. Cough, cough. As far as losing match ups, I'm seeing that Martin was a net positive on the floor for Denver at 82games, but if I'm wrong, I'd still suggest his struggles last season were the results of pace, poor schemes and questionable team culture.

You and I feel the same way about Larry Hughes.

Thornton, I expect will improve considerably on the defensive end this season, simply by cutting down on cheap fouls.

From Wikipedia:

In the 2004 NBA All-Star Game, Martin scored 17 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and had 3 assists. Martin and teammate Alonzo Mourning almost fought when Martin mocked Mourning's life-threatening kidney disease.[2] Martin later admitted that he had made a mistake and apologized to Mourning. He received a taste of his own medicine when then Knicks forward Tim Thomas remarked on Martin's speech impediment and eye twitching tic.[3]

In 2006, Martin was suspended from the Denver Nuggets indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team."[4] During halftime of game two in the first round of the 2006 NBA playoffs between the Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers, Martin got into an argument with head coach George Karl over his playing time, and proceeded to refuse to play for the second half of the game. During the offseason, Karl and Martin apparently "patched things up."[5]

Martin had microfracture surgery on his right knee and missed all but two games of the 2006-07 NBA season.[5] He was on the opening day roster of the 2007-08 NBA season and changed his uniform number from 6 to the number 4, which he wore in college.[6]

During the third-quarter of a 2006 game against the Chicago Bulls, a fan sitting two rows behind Martin yelled at him, "Suit up, you chump," referring to the fact Martin was in the midst of one of his various stints on the injured reserve and in street clothes behind the Nuggets bench. All accounts indicate that the fan did not use any profanities. At that point, Martin is said to have stood up, pointed at the heckler, and then motioned to one of his 'bodyguards' to go confront the heckling fan, ordering "shut him up". His friend then stood up and yelled at the heckler, "Shut your mouth before we take you outside and beat your (expletive)!." He also apparently screamed at a Nuggets fan named Don Miller--who, along with his teenage son, happened to be sitting next to the heckler--calling him a "fat (expletive) white boy." Martin was subsequently fined $15,000.[7][8]

On February 11, 2006, after a Denver win over the Dallas Mavericks, a volatile Martin was involved in a heated and profanity-laced locker room exchange with a local reporter.[9]

[celticmaestro]

Honestly, I'm caught off guard. TPs to anybody that can point me to an article on Martin. Anyway, unless there are strip club incidents I'm unaware of he's no worse a personality than Alonzo Mourning. Cough, cough. As far as losing match ups, I'm seeing that Martin was a net positive on the floor for Denver at 82games, but if I'm wrong, I'd still suggest his struggles last season were the results of pace, poor schemes and questionable team culture.

You and I feel the same way about Larry Hughes.

Thornton, I expect will improve considerably on the defensive end this season, simply by cutting down on cheap fouls.

From Wikipedia:

In the 2004 NBA All-Star Game, Martin scored 17 points, grabbed 7 rebounds and had 3 assists. Martin and teammate Alonzo Mourning almost fought when Martin mocked Mourning's life-threatening kidney disease.[2] Martin later admitted that he had made a mistake and apologized to Mourning. He received a taste of his own medicine when then Knicks forward Tim Thomas remarked on Martin's speech impediment and eye twitching tic.[3]

In 2006, Martin was suspended from the Denver Nuggets indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team."[4] During halftime of game two in the first round of the 2006 NBA playoffs between the Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers, Martin got into an argument with head coach George Karl over his playing time, and proceeded to refuse to play for the second half of the game. During the offseason, Karl and Martin apparently "patched things up."[5]

Martin had microfracture surgery on his right knee and missed all but two games of the 2006-07 NBA season.[5] He was on the opening day roster of the 2007-08 NBA season and changed his uniform number from 6 to the number 4, which he wore in college.[6]

During the third-quarter of a 2006 game against the Chicago Bulls, a fan sitting two rows behind Martin yelled at him, "Suit up, you chump," referring to the fact Martin was in the midst of one of his various stints on the injured reserve and in street clothes behind the Nuggets bench. All accounts indicate that the fan did not use any profanities. At that point, Martin is said to have stood up, pointed at the heckler, and then motioned to one of his 'bodyguards' to go confront the heckling fan, ordering "shut him up". His friend then stood up and yelled at the heckler, "Shut your mouth before we take you outside and beat your (expletive)!." He also apparently screamed at a Nuggets fan named Don Miller--who, along with his teenage son, happened to be sitting next to the heckler--calling him a "fat (expletive) white boy." Martin was subsequently fined $15,000.[7][8]

On February 11, 2006, after a Denver win over the Dallas Mavericks, a volatile Martin was involved in a heated and profanity-laced locker room exchange with a local reporter.[9]

Yeah, Martin is a waste of space and a punk and a few other names I can think of but are against site rules.

Good luck with that one, Evantime.

[The Walker Wiggle]

Thanks Lucky, I appreciate it, I forgot entirely about the incident involving Martin's bodyguard. Still, I can excuse much of the rest - fighting with opposing players and arguing with his coach. I've little sympathy for Mourning (though I was glad for his recovery).

[Roy Hobbs]

I'm seeing that Martin was a net positive on the floor for Denver at 82games, but if I'm wrong, I'd still suggest his struggles last season were the results of pace, poor schemes and questionable team culture.

Where are you seeing that?  I'm looking at 82games.com, and I'm seeing:

Net production (based upon PER): -2.5
On Court / Off Court: -3.4 points per 48
Roland rating: -2.9

I'm deferring to the issues cited by Lucky17 above in terms of Kmart's attitude.  (I think you're being way too dismissive of Kmart's refusal to enter the second half of a playoff game.  You see that as fairly minor?)

[Lucky17]

Martin's probably not the worst apple of the bunch. Regardless, his greatest strengths (passion, emotion, propensity for physical play) are his Achilles heel.

Any team relying on him to stay happy, healthy, and productive during the course of an entire season needs to temper expectations.

[Full disclosure: I once approached Evantime about a trade involving Martin, back when I still had JO and wanted to pair him with an enforcer.]

[Lucky17]

Thanks Lucky, I appreciate it, I forgot entirely about the incident involving Martin's bodyguard. Still, I can excuse much of the rest - fighting with opposing players and arguing with his coach. I've little sympathy for Mourning (though I was glad for his recovery).

As I said, Martin's not the only one guilty of bad behavior. I do think his conduct, however, can too easily cross the line. Sitting out a playoff game because you felt disrespected by your coach is just childish.

I've always thought Mourning was a bit thuggish/prone to histrionics as well, actually.

[crownsy]

Kings Press Release


Let me first state that very early on, i identified, based on my pick location and first pick, that i would probably be best off building for future trades/ talent improvment. When one gets the middle picks in a serp draft, you have to pick either a "win now by trading alot to get higher picks" or "sit back and develop a cool outline thats fun to read on why your team will be good later" i went with the latter.

First, My first 10 Picks and the thought process behind them, then a short write up of our strategy for getting to the top of a hotly contested division.

1. AL Jefferson, http://www.nba.com/playerfile/al_jefferson/index.html,  PF.

After trading with roy to move up to 13th, I quickly identified Big al as the player i would be building around. We all know that Al is one of the most skilled young big men in the game, a 20/10 guy that will demand a double team at all times. While his defense will need work, I felt that Al would be a Fantastic young player to pick around.

Couple that with the fact that at 13, most of the really "franchise" players were gone, and i Had my choice.


Al will be our starting PF for as long as we can keep him. He has shown no character issues in his short time in the league, and is known as a hard worker and leader coming into his own. I fully expect to develop his defensive skills, and to this affect, we will be focusing our training with him their. Al is The rock of our foundation and we couldn't be happier to have him. I see him maintaining his 20/10 skill level, and adding to it a very good, if not elite, defensive post game.

2. Ray Allen http://www.nba.com/playerfile/ray_allen/index.html SG.

I took alot of heat for this pick, both when it was made and afterwards. Many called it a homer pick. Outside of hedo, i really saw very little choice at the 45th pick to get me what i wanted.

What i wanted was two things, both of which ray allen exemplifies. I wanted a mature clubhouse presence, someone who could teach the young players i was drafting the right way to play and behave. I also wanted a knock down SG, who big Al could kick out to.

Not only does ray allen fill both those roles to a Tee, he also, some of us seem to forget, is much more than a spot up shooter. Returned to his role of "lead guard", much like his Seattle days, i fully expect ray to give us 20+ points a game and 5 boards and 5 assists.

These numbers are not pulled from thin air, they are a likely decline of his last full season as a main option in Seattle after coming off a all star season and a near NBA finals MVP award as a third option. Teamed with a monster low post presence, something he lacked in Seattle as a main option, ray will easily give us 20/5/5 for the next two seasons.

Beyond those two seasons, ray gives us a lasting sense of professionalism and hard work, a mentor for our extremely young but talented  guard group, and an attractive trade chip when it is time for him to move on.  several of the better GM's have contacted me with good offers for ray allen, and i expect that some of the teams closer to contending would be interested in the future as well.

Ray is our bridge to the future, and i couldn't ask for a better one.

3. Jordan Farmer, http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jordan_farmar/, PG.

Jordan may have been a slight reach here, but with no 4th round pick, I identified the player i wanted to train as our PG and took him.

Jordan brings us shooting ability, defensive harassment, and speed. as he showed the world in the playoffs, Jordan is neither afraid of taking the big shot or being asked to pester the opposing teams PG full court.

in his first year, jordan averaged nearly 10 points a game and 3 assists, along with a steal in 20 minutes. he also shot a very respectable 37% from downtown. In the immediate future, i expect him to average 15/6 with his minutes extended, along with 2 steals a game due to his pesky defense. This will help our offense spread the floor, and as we have seen with KG, when you have an offensive presence like big al, you need to both be able to shoot and feed the beast from the point. I believe jordan can do both.

Long term, jordan will have 2 years to learn everything he can from ray allen, one of the best guards in the last 15 years. Reports out of LA are that jordan is a hard working, clean cut young man. Exactly the type of player i was targeting to pair with Ray allen. Allen's work ethic and teachings will no doubt rub off on jordan. I feel confident saying he will develop into at worst a solid starter under ray allen, with a chance for more.

4. Ryan Gnomes http://www.nba.com/playerfile/ryan_gomes/index.html SF

Ryan was the best 3 avalable here for a young team, and once again, he keeps with my theme of taking upstanding young players with talent who work hard to learn from one of the most hard working players in the game in ray allen.

Last year in Minnesota, Ryan, in his first year starting, averaged 16/6/and 4 assists. Certainly not earth shattering numbers. He also showed the ability to play solid wing defense. His three point shooting is also good, at 34%, and thus i have 2 good and one HOF 3 point shooters around big AL.

Ryan's already good play, combined with the envorment we will be putting him in learning from a future HOF'er and NBA champion will only help to maximize his growth going forward.

5. Spencer Hawes, http://www.nba.com/playerfile/spencer_hawes/, C

I wont suger coat this one, this was the 7th round (having traded 4 and 6 to get 3 spots up to take al) and i needed a center. Would i have taken hawes if i had a free pick here? no, but i evaluated the centers, and arrived at the following.

Hawes is very young and raw. In his first year in the NBA, he fought to find time on the floor, ending up at  at about 6 and 4, in 10 minutes a game. however, he showed flashes of being a very capable rebounder, and having a nose for the put back. He also showed some toughness on the low block.

For me, hawes is my perkins, only with more offensive talent and less defensive talent. Would i have liked it the other way around? sure, but for a center selected in the second round, I felt a hard nosed kid who likes to rebound and attack the rim could be a steal. in the locker room enviorment i plan to put forth, i expect him to have every opportunity to have games like his last 3, in which he started and played very, very well.

Breaking here to stop the wall of text, and allow comments while i write up the rest.

again, i make no bones about it. we will probley take our lumps in what is a stacked division in the short term. My fellow GM's did a heck of a job. I belive however, that our future is bright.

 Hopefully this will let some people see my thought process in the draft however. please, tell me what you think