Pick 2 Draft Roster Write-Ups

[Roy H.]

I know Bahku mentioned that he might be doing roster write-ups for each squad like he did so brilliantly last year, depending upon his time and availability.  Pending any contribution he can make, I figured I'd start this thread to allow people to present their teams, if they so desire.

If people want to use this thread for "press conferences" like we have in the past, perfect.  If they just want to use it for presentations, that's great, too. 

[Roy H.]

FOLSOM PRISON BLUE THERAPISTS

C: Brendan Haywood / Chuck Hayes
PF: Pau Gasol / Anthony Randolph / Anthony Tolliver
SF: Nicolas Batum / James Jones
SG: Kobe Bryant / Brandon Rush
PG: Chauncey Billups / J.J. Redick / C.J. Watson

Player	Position	Drafted	Age	Height	PPG	RPG	APG	BPG	SPG	eFG%	3PT%	Salary
Bryant	SG	Keeper	32	6'6"	25.3	5.3	4.9	0.1	1.2	.499	.321	$24,806,250
Gasol	PF / C	Keeper	32	7'0"	18.8	10.4	3.6	1.8	0.6	.528	N/A	$17,823,000
Billups	PG / SG	1(24)	34	6'3"	16.5	2.4	5.4	0.2	1.1	.538	.445	$13,150,000
Batum	SF	2(24)	22	6'8"	12.0	4.8	1.5	0.6	0.8	.522	.344	$1,196,760
Haywood*	C	3(26)	31	7'0"	9.1	9.3	0.6	2.1	0.3	.549	N/A	$6,900,000
Redick	PG / SG	4(26)	26	6'4"	10.4	2.0	1.6	0.1	0.4	.556	.411	$7,250,000
Hayes	C / PF	6(24)	27	6'6"	7.4	6.8	2.1	0.7	1.0	.579	N/A	$1,972,500
Randolph*	PF	6(26)	21	6'10"	11.6	6.5	1.3	1.5	0.8	.445	.200	$1,965,720
Jones	SF	7(24)	30	6'8"	6.7	2.3	0.6	0.2	0.5	.603	.425	$1,146,337
B. Rush	SG / SF	7(26)	25	6'6"	10.9	3.7	1.1	0.5	0.6	.519	.417	$2,069,040
Tolliver	PF / C	8(26)	25	6'9"	5.9	4.2	1.0	0.5	0.4	.519	.438	$2,200,000
Watson	PG	10(26)	26	6'2"	4.7	1.0	1.8	0.2	0.7	.410	.393	$3,600,000

* Stats are from the 2009-10 season, and should be more in line with player's current abilities; all salaries are for 2010-11.

Total salary: $84,079,067

Salary savings:  $6,302,149 (plus $6,302,149 in luxury tax)

Franchise Relocation:  Having taken over the most vile franchise in the NBA, ownership's first decision was to move the team to a more fitting location.  Folsom Prison was gracious enough to offer us their facilities, along with a bed for Employee #24. 

Along with the relocation, the team returned five BAA / NBA titles to Minneapolis, and 11 titles to Los Angeles.  Folsom Prison didn't earn them, and Folsom Prison doesn't want them.

Why this draft hurts...   We saw two of our players get taken in the top ten picks; that makes it hard to improve on a "real life" franchise.  A big advantage the Lakers have in "real life" is their size, and the versatility of Odom off the bench.  There's no real way to replicate that in this draft.

Oh, and it sucks picking behind The Walker Wiggle.  I was able to strategically jump him in the 1st and 2nd rounds (and then in the 6th and 7th rounds), but in the 3rd and 4th he predictably took the guys who were #1 on my list, Terry and Diaw.  Dang you, WW!

Why this draft helps...  The team was able to make major upgrades to its point guard, small forward, and bench depth.  Outside of Bynum and Odom, every other player is a significant upgrade over his Lakers counterpart.

Team Strengths:  Defense, Shooting and Experience  The Blue Therapists wanted a strong defensive squad that could shoot the ball.  We achieved both of those goals.  All five of the team's starters got votes for NBA All-Defense last year, as did Chuck Hayes.  Every player on the team is a good to very good defender, with the possible exception of J.J. Redick (who is an effort defender, and is continually improving.)

My favorite part of the team is its shooting prowess.  Folsom Prison have five of the top 29 three point shooters in the NBA (among players with over 50 attempts), C.J. Watson is shooting 39.3% from downtown, and Nic Batum has shot over 40% in the past.  Pau Gasol is an elite offensive player, and of course Kobe can create his shot from anywhere, even if his 3PT game isn't as efficient as it could be. 

The team also has a ton of experience, with Kobe, Pau, and Chauncey having played in a combined 12 NBA Finals.  Haywood, Hayes, Batum, and Redick are all used to being role players on very good teams, and even Brandon Rush led his team to an NCAA title.

Anthony Randolph?  Why?  Randolph was probably a bit of a reach, but he showed amazing potential in 2010, before getting into Mike D'Antoni's dog house this year.  He scores, he rebounds, he blocks shots, he's amazingly athletic, and he has a good attitude.  He won't be asked to do much more than Leon Powe and Glen Davis did for the Celtics in 2008, but long-term, he's the type of dynamic player that potentially could carry the franchise into the future.  However, even if he never produces more than he did in 2010, he'll be a valuable rotation player.  My trade with Redz allowed me to gamble a bit, as it left me with extra 6th and 7th rounders (while still getting the player I probably would have taken in the 5th, Chuck Hayes.)

Toughest Players To Pass Up:  The two big debates I had were Batum vs. Marion vs. Battier in the second round, and Randolph vs. Pietrus in the 6th.  I took Batum because I'm a big fan of his potential, and because he had the outside shooting that Marion didn't, and the youth that neither of his rivals possess.  I took Randolph because I like his potential and because I wanted some size, and because I figured a decent SG / SF would fall to me in the seventh.  Plus, Pietrus is having an absolutely lousy year, which didn't help his cause any.

Outlook:  The Fake NBA has a lot more parity than its reality-based counterpart, but the Blue Therapists still expect to reach the Finals, where they anticipate beating any team other than the Boston Celtics.

[indeedproceed]

Milwaukee Bucks

Roster
PG: Kyle Lowry, Jerryd Bayless
Swingmen: Landry Fields, Deshawn Stevenson, Paul Pierce, Reggie Wiliams
Forwards: Tyler Hansbrough, Shawne Williams
F/C's: Serge Ibaka, Drew Gooden, Andrew Bogut, Omer Asik

Salaries and Height and Stuff: (Click to expand)


Real Bucks' current salary: $69,543,506
Salary Savings: $19,617,990

Thoughts: This salary savings is not really significant, because it does not include Michael Redd's contract coming off the books. If we don't factor in Redd's contract, the salaries for the two teams are pretty similar, with a margin of only about 1.3 million.

Rotation: Player, (mins)
PG: K Lowry (32), J Bayless (16)
SG: Landry Fields (30), Reggie Williams (10), Deshawn Stevenson (8 )
SF: Paul Pierce (32), Reggie Williams (10), Shawne Williams (8 )
PF: Serge Ibaka (20), Tyler Hansbrough (15), Drew Gooden (13)
C: Andrew Bogut (35), Serge Ibaka (8 ), Omer Asik (5)

Anticipated Production By Mins In Rotation: (Click to expand)

Biggest Advantage In The Bucks As a Pick 2 Team:
In a word, AndrewBogut. He's rapidly become in the past 2 seasons the second best defensive center in the NBA, he's a rebounding force (5th among centers getting 20 mins or more a game, 11th in the league), and he leads the league in blocks per game. Any defense centered around Andrew Bogut should be in the top half the league, unless you're starting Andrea Bargnani or something.

Toughest Challenge:
The current Bucks' team is last in the NBA in scoring, with Brandon Jennings being its most potent weapon. Part of that can probably be blamed on Pace (how many possessions a team goes through a game..the Bucks play slow), but the Bucks' pace isn't all that different from Boston's. I knew I had to inject some scoring into the lineup, but nearly all the premier scorers in the league were assigned as keepers. The best scorers left on the board in the first round were either injury concerns (Brandon Roy), or just not that great being a primary scoring option (Stephen Jackson, Corey Maggette, Zach Randolph, etc).

Best move:
Trading my first round pick (Josh Smith) and 4th round pick for Paul Pierce and a 5th round pick. My team needed a premier scorer, and a vet leader, and Pierce can offer both. I already had Serge Ibaka to pair with Andrew Bogut by that time, so I didn't feel like Smith's interior disruptive presence really had that high a value to me.

Worst move:
Sigh. Trading Brandon Jennings for a pick in the 2nd round, which I used on Landry Fields. I had my eye on Kyle Lowry, who I knew I could get in the 3rd, and I didn't really like what Jennings was bringing to the table. He's a low % shooter, a poor finisher around the rim, but he's also a guy who can be an explosive scorer. I should've gotten more for him or kept him.

Toughest Draft Pick: My second pick in the second round
I had just traded Brandon Jennings, and was on the clock. I had my eye on Kyle Lowry, but nobody was really talking about him, and I thought he could wait until the 3rd round. I still had hope at that time that I could trade for a true scoring 3 (my first pick was a Josh Smith for Melo swap, but riah went for Stephen Curry instead), so I was looking for a defensively oriented but reliable shooting 2 guard. I was thinking about Arron Afflalo, but I thought he was a little too one-dimensional. I went with Landry Fields, because as a rookie he already plays like an elite role player, he's versatile, he's a good defender, and a good passer, and he's an efficient scorer (4th in true shooting % among SG's). I wonder though if he would've lasted until the 3rd round.

Team Strengths:
Defense and Rebounding) This team is first and foremost a defensive force. The starting 5 is a defensive nightmare, and if it isn't outright the best defensive starting 5 in the draft, it is in the top 3. Andrew Bogut is 1st in the league in blocks per game, and 4th in the league in blocks per 48 mins..one of the 3 guys ahead of him is also on my team Serge Ibaka. On top of that, Kyle Lowry is a very tough nosed defender at the point, and in the top 20 for steals per game, and Landry Fields has proven himself to be a solid defender at the 2, despite playing the 4 in college. Paul Pierce, as we all know, is a very good defender also. off the bench we also have Deshawn Stevenson, who is one of the better defending 2 guards in the league also.

Bogut and Landry Fields are both top 10 rebounders at their positions, while Ibaka and Gooden are also very good rebounders. The anticipated rebounds for the team total of 49 per game would easily lead the league, but that number would drop significantly when actually put to the test. I don't think though that it would fall out of the top 5.

Bawl Movement) While none of my guys are anywhere the level of a Rajon Rondo or Steve Nash, 4 of my 5 starters are good decision makers. Kyle Lowry is a top ten passer by assist ratio, Landry Fields is the second best facilitator in his rookie class, Andrew Bogut is known as a very good passing center, and Paul Pierce, while first and foremost a scorer, is also a gifted passer.

Versatility) While defense is our strong suit, the second unit is absolutely peppered with scorers. Reggie Williams, Tyler Hansbrough, and Drew Gooden are all versatile scorers, all capable of 'creating their own shot' (you know who those air quotes are for!!!). We also have a good mix of inside outside scoring, with Bogut and Gooden being gifted post scorers, Lowry and Pierce both being good at getting to the hoop, athletic finishers in Ibaka, Shawne Williams, and Fields, and good 3pt shooters in Lowry, Pierce, Fields, both Williamses, and Deshawn Stevenson.

Outlook:
I think this team is a 5-7 seed in the Eastern Conference right now. While the scoring won't be the most dangerous in the league, the turnovers and tough shots created by the defense will hopefully compensate for that significantly.

Did I improve the Bucks?:
Yes, I feel I absolutely improved the Bucks. While I don't have the proven scorers the Bucks have in John Salmons, Maggette, and Jennings, I do have high % shooters and versatile young scorers, who all appear to be on the upswing. On top of that I took a Bucks defense that was already good, and made it significantly better with impact players at all 5 starting positions.

[Who]

Squad

• Center - Andrew Bynum / Eric Dampier
• Power Forward - Tyrus Thomas / Marcus Camby - Joey Dorsey
• Small Forward - Danny Granger / Jared Dudley
• Off Guard - Shawn Marion / Mickael Pietrus
• Point Guard - George Hill / Goran Dragic / Lance Stephenson

Quick Evaluation

• Elite team in terms of defense and rebounding but a only a middle of the pack offensive team.
• Along with defense and rebounding, the team's depth is a major strength.
• Biggest weakness is the team's overall offensive ability. Two main areas stand out (1) lack of passing ability. The team will rank near the bottom, or at the bottom, of the league in assists per game / assists per field goal. The offense will also lack direction from time to time. (2) the lack of creativity offensively beyond Granger, Bynum and George Hill.
• I think this team is very close to being a title contender but is probably a little too short offensively to make the cut. A quality scoring sixth man would have helped considerably but it never quite came together.
• I consider this a 50-52 win caliber team ... less however much injuries hurt us. I do think the team's depth will allow the team to play at a good level while some key players are absent but there of course there will be a drop off.

Defensive Quality

• Two very talented interior defenders in Andrew Bynum and Marcus Camby.
• An elite defensive wing in Shawn Marion who can play above average defense 1 through 4. An excellent man-to-man defender in Mickael Pietrus and another very good defensive wing in Jared Dudley.
• A top defensive PG in George Hill and an above average defensive PG backing him up in Goran Dragic.
• Ty Thomas gives the team another above average and highly versatile defender.
• Danny Granger is the weakest defender in my team's rotation and is an average defensive player.
• The only below average defender on the roster is Lance Stephenson.
• Lots of size on the perimeter. George Hill is 6-3 and long. Goran Dragic is 6-4. Mario, Dudley and Granger are 6-6 to 6-7 and Pietrus is a big two guard at 6-6. All four wings and both PGs have good strength / power for their respective positions too.
• Andrew Bynum gives us a major physical presence in the paint at 7-1, 270lbs with great length. Especially when coupled with Marcus Camby (6-11) on the interior. They will be game changing defensive presences.

Offensively

• Danny Granger will be the team's main go-to scorer.
• Andrew Bynum will be the #2 option but the team will look to play inside out. Establishing him as a threat in the post is a priority.
• George Hill will be the third option. A very good shooter, a dangerous scorer on the pick and roll and he gets to the line a good amount for a PG.
• Shooters on the wing in Jared Dudley (sharp shooter) and Mickael Pietrus (streaky but dangerous).
• Ty Thomas has added a quality long range two point jump shot to his repertoire. He has shot 44% from this range over the past two seasons (Chicago and Charlotte) on 2.5 to 3.0 attempts per game in only 21-24 minutes a night. He is good jump shooter from this range.
• I like Marcus Camby as a high post passer. The team will be passing through Camby quite a bit. Also like Andrew Bynum in the low post. Both areas will help lower the responsibilities of our creatively challenged (passing wise) PG.
• The team will be opportunistic in the fastbreak ... looking to run whenever they create a turnover or get a rebound. This area of it's offense will be important for generating some easy baskets and lowering the demands on it's main offensive weapons.
• Shawn Marion will be used a lot like a Thabo Sefolosha would offensively ... no exactly the same but fairly similar ... not exactly the same because Marion has s better offensive skill-set than Thabo does for a two guard. One area in particular, Marion is a very effective post player against small wings or finesse wings (at small forward). As a two guard, since Danny will likely draw the SF, Shawn Marion will be a good post up option on a fairly regular basis and will get a couple of a post ups a night. Not a lot. Just a couple, 2 to 5 probably. Help give the offense a small bit of diversity and keep him involved and happy on both ends of the floor.

[Roy H.]

Let's give this until, say, Tuesday morning, and then we can start asking GMs questions in here.  In the interim, we'll allow GMs to post their writeups, while using the "How is my Pick 2 team?" thread to discuss rosters.

[GreenFaith1819]

The New-Look Playoff Bound L.A. Clippers, freed from the shadow of the Lakers, Thanks to Roy Hobbs (Thanks for the proper banishment).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ashia9geQc&feature=fvst



C: Emeka Okafor / Jordan Hill
PF: Blake Griffin / Kenyon Martin / Ekpe Udoh
SF: Hedo Turkoglu / Sam Jones
SG: Mike Dunleavy Jr / Thabo Sefolosha
PG: Baron Davis / Earl Watson / Jeff Teague

Player     Position Drafted Age Height PPG  RPG APG BPG  SPG   FG% 3PT% Salary
 
B. Davis   PG        Keeper  31     6'3"    12.9   2.9    7.1    0.6     1.4   .421   .307   $13,000,000
 
B.Griffin  PF         Keeper  21     6’10” 22.8  12.6   3.5    0.53   0.7   .511   .538   $5,357,280
 
Dunleavy SG/SF   3rd       31     6'9"    11.7  4.9    1.9    0.54   0.7   .463   .412   $10,561,984
 
Turkoglu SF          2nd       31     6'10"  10.2  4.0   4.4     0.44   0.89 .438   .392   $10,215,850
 
E. Okafor  C         1st        28    6'10"   11.1  10.1  0.5    1.8      0.35 .593   N/A   $11,495,000
 
KMart      PF        4th        33     6'9"    6.0    5.1    2.2    0.8      0.5  .484   .250    $16,545,454
 
E.Watson PG       6th        31     6'1"    3.5    2.1    3.0    0.17    0.7  .421    .313    $854,389
 
Sefolosha SG/SF  5th       26     6'7"    5.1    4.9    1.5    0.42    1.35 .458   .276    $3,250,000
 
J. Hill  C/PF         7th       23     6'10"  6.1    4.5    0.4    0.8       0.13 .464  .000    $2,669,520
 
S.Young SG/SF   8th       25     6'6"    6.3    1.6    0.6    0.31     0.82  .471  .278   $886,000
 
E. Udoh  PF        9th        23     6'10"  3.2    2.2    0.7    0.9       0.21  .500  N/A   $3,065,040
 
J. Teague PG     10th       22     6'2"    3.9    1.4    1.8    0.33     0.49  .432 .368    $1,476,840
 
Total salary: $79,377,357

Franchise Relocation:  With Roy Hobbs kindly dumping the franchise formerly known as the Lakers to Folsom Prison, The LA Clippers can now rightfully take the Lakers place as “LA’s Team”. THANK YOU ROY! (I’d bestow many TPs on you if I could).

Why this draft hurts...We lost a LOT of scoring punch with my choice to let Eric Gordon dangle. As I restructured my roster, I tried to make up for this in other ways, such as adding a Point Forward in Hedo, and Mike Dunleavy, which adds a good mix of SG/SF versatility at the 2-3 spots. I think we got better experience-wise, which was my goal. I chose Baron Davis because I wanted to have a playoff tested veteran PG who still has a lot of game left, and I’m glad I did. Baron Davis is playing really well right now in real life.
Hedo and Dunleavy will also stretch the floor considerably, meaning that Blake, KMart and ‘Mek can go to work down low.
 
Defensively? It was nearly as hard letting DeAndre Jordan go. As the “real” season progresses, he is playing really well. But I chose to go with ‘Mek due to his experience and double-double average in pts/rebs. Emeka is also a capable shot-blocker. I think my choices of KMart, Jordan Hill, Emeka Okafor and the rookie Epke Udoh will make a capable defensive presence up front.

Blake, KMart and ‘Mek will make for a solid presence in the paint. Blake can play off the ball, as well as some post-up to the tune of a .511 FG%, and Meka posts up with regularity and convert with a .593 FG%. I could see ‘Mek’s scoring average improving slightly, with Blake (who is a very good passer for a PF) playing off of him. Even at this stage of KMart’s recovery, I can see him providing timely baskets and rebounds in this setting.

By adding Thabo Sefolosha we brought onboard an NBA 2nd Team Defender from last year, which will improve our perimeter defense. Thabo is young and adds playoff experience as well.
Blake Griffin can help to offset some of the scoring punch that we lost from Eric Gordon, and Baron Davis, in “real” life, is playing really well and is hitting a stride offensively.

I’ve noted some deficiencies in Blake’s game, mainly on the defensive end. I think KMart will certainly help to mask those deficiencies as well as add experience and a rather capable big, as he plays himself back into shape from his injuries in real life. Emeka will cover defensively for Blake as well.

My draft spot (8th) afforded me a good spot to pick from. The only pick that I didn’t get was Andrew Bynum (“Who” picked him earlier-smart move). The way that Drew is playing right now makes him a look like a steal.

Why this draft helps...  I believe that I was able to replace a lot of untested youth with some veterans. The team was able to make slight upgrades to its Center, small forward, and bench depth.  I think we improved overall Defensively. More veterans will mean less turnovers and youthful mistakes is my frame of thought.

Team Strengths:  Slight Overall Defensive Improvement, Rebounding and Experience, and I think I improved these with Pick Two. We have over 27 rebound average among the starting frontline, and the starters overall round out at nearly 35 rebs/per game.

My favorite part of the team? I love our ability to stretch the floor at the 2 and 3 spots. Both Hedo and Dunleavy are long and shoot well from deep. Hedo is a decent defender and can help to facilitate the offense from the 3 spot if needed, which will help Baron. Blake Griffin is already an elite offensive player, and Hedo and Dunleavy are good scorers as well. Emeka is a proven low-post scorer, slightly better than DeAndre, IMO.
I was intrigued by DeAndre (and still am). The young man has a HUGE upside, but I wanted to go with the veteran Emeka.

The team has considerably more playoff experience, with Baron, Emeka, Hedo, KMart, and Thabo having played in several playoff series. Hedo has Finals experience. Baron is a hard-nosed, playoff-tested vet, having played a big role in upsetting Dallas in real life a few years ago.  KMart will provide starters minutes as the season progresses and he and Earl Watson provide valuable experience off the bench.

Ekpe Udoh, while young, will provide some spot minutes for us defensively, and is a long-term project. Sam Young is looking really impressive in real-life starters minutes in MEM, providing a scoring punch for the Grizzlies. Jeff Teague provides us an extremely quick, athletic PG in spot minutes. Jordan Hill is a solid 2nd year C/PF, in that even though he is a young player he appears t be rather polished even at this stage. I like him for 15-20 minutes per game at the C/PF slots.

Toughest Players To Pass Up:  I probably could’ve picked up a slightly better player at SF with my very first pick, if I recall, but I wanted to pick up the best center I could get with my 1st pick. Emeka was on my list (2nd, behind Andrew Bynum). I was still very happy to see Hedo left for my 2nd pick in the 8th round.

Outlook:  I expect the New-Look LA Clippers to reach the playoffs and potentially upset someone, reaching the semi-finals. Just reaching the playoffs was my primary goal, and I think I’ve constructed the team for that – their first playoff visit in a while.

[KCattheStripe]

THe Memphis Grizzlies:

C:Marc Gasol, Javale McGee,
PF: Brandon Bass, Darrell Arthur, Louis Amundson
Wings:Rudy Gay, Luol Deng, Courtney Lee,  Terrence Williams
PG: Jose Calderon, Eric Bledsoe,  Luther Head

Did the Pick Two Format Hurt the Grizz: A little. With a 3 top tier players it was a little difficult to choose whom to keep. But the ability to greatly improve the depth on The Grizz balanced out the talent dropoff at the starting PF spot.

Toughest Challenge: I'll be honest, I was able to go on auto-pilot for this draft. I had my sights on 3-4 players every round and almost always they dropped to me. I'd say my toughest challenge was convincing myself that Jose Calderon was the right choice despite my distaste for him.

Best Move: The Deng and Bass picks. Deng fits well next to Rudy and can be an effective scorer off the ball while Bass allowed me to slide McGee to the bench and greatly enhance my depth. Also, the McGee move worked exactly how I thought it might. I wanted Ibaka, but was pretty sure he'd be gone and thought McGee might be too so I was happy with that.

Toughest Draft Pick: Jose Calderon, because I'm not enamored with him but I think his deficiencies are masked on this team.

Team Strengths: Athleticism, wing and post defense, and potential.

Team Weakness: PG defense, the fact that the potential may not turn into results.

Outlook: Playoff team now, Contender if Bledsoe develops into an above average starter. We have a big window, we can wait.

Did I improve the Grizz: I think so, but I can see arguments to the contrary.

[StartOrien]

FUNKCITYGROOVE
Previously known as the Sacramento Kings

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYPqZlhpbQo

The Roster

C: Demarcus Cousins / Andre Bargnani / Hasheem Thabeet / Yao Ming
PF: Taj Gibson / Patrick Patterson
SF: Carmelo Anthony / Kyle Korver
SG: Andre Iguodala / Quinton Ross
PG: Kirk Hinrich / Toney Douglas

Minute Breakdown

2010:

Demarcus Cousins (30)/ Andre Bargnani (15) / Hasheem Thabeet (3)
Taj Gibson (35) /  Patrick Patterson (8 ) / Andre Bargnani (5)
Carmelo Anthony (35) / Andre Iguodala (13)
Andre Iguodala (22) / Kyle Korver (10) / Toney Douglas (10) / Quinton Ross  (6)
Kirk Hinrich (35) / Toney Douglas (13)

2011:

Yao Ming (15) / Demarcus Cousins (18) / Andre Bargnani (15)
Demarcus Cousins (15) / Taj Gibson (27) / Patrick Patterson (6)
Carmelo Anthony (35) / Andre Iguodala (13)
Andre Iguodala (22) / Kyle Korver (14) / Toney Douglas (7) / Quinton Ross (5)
Kirk Hinrich (30) / Toney Douglas (18)

Esimated Stats for Starters

Demarcus Cousins: 37 ppg, 21.6 rpg, 1.4 bpg, 3.6 apg
Taj Gibson: 23 ppg, 18.4 rpg, 5 bpg, 1 stl
Carmelo Anthony: 51 ppg, 15.6 rpg, 6 apg , 1.8 stl
Andre Iguodala 27.8 ppg, 11 rpg, 11.8 apg, 3.2 stl
Kirk Hinrich: 22.2 ppg, 8.8 apg, 4.8 rpg, 2.4 stl

That's an estimate of 160 ppg just out of sour starters. That's over 53 points higher than anyone else in the real NBA. Think about THAT.

Offensive Efficiency: First
Defensive Efficiency: First
Funkyness Efficiency: First
Squareness Efficiency: Last
  

FAQ

Did you improve the Kings?

Yes

How?

Because the Kings are a pretty terrible team outside their two young prospects

Best Move

Tyreke Evans for Andre Iguodala

I am an admittedly a very big Andre Iguodala fan, but putting that aside I do think this was a really strong move. Iguodala provided me the flexibility to do about a million things w/ my roster. He's a very strong defender, who can play two positions well, and as of late has shown that he's very capable of being a great playmaker, in his last 6 six games with the sixers he's had 53 assists on just 12 turnovers, and those numbers could be considered somewhat deflated based on the lesser offensive talent in compared to the team I've assembled

Is it a good time to get funky?
It's always a good time for funk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfydfBXlByk

Worst move?

Drafting DeAndre Jordan

I stated this before, but the night before the second round I was 98% sure I was going to have Carmelo Anthony. However I didn't recieve any kind of confirmation when it was time for me to pick at 2.1. At that point I had a nice team - Steph Curry, Andre Iguodala, Demarcus Cousins - but not one that was ready to compete. Because of this, I figured if for some strange reason that the Melo trade fell through that Camby would be a waste on my team so I drafted the younger Jordan.

In retrospect, I should've just selected Camby, and then if I had to I'd up the anti for Melo - which I didn't.

What do you realistically expect out of Yao Ming

Honestly, nothing. Unfortunately, I think next year's return for Yao will be similar to this one. But with the 6th round, with 3 big men already capaably of playing 25+ minutes per game I figured he'd be worth the gamble.

How do you plan on running the offense?

Off misses and on the break we'd like to get the ball into Iggy's hand. His unselfishness and excellent ability to finish makes him a real threat. Out of the halfcourt we'd mostly see Hinrich bring the ball up, and then go to work through Cousins in the high post. This system is flawless, as I tested it in 2k11 for however many hours there were between Celtics-Heat & The Grammy's. And anything that happens in 2k11 is 100% accurate.

How far do you really think this team could make it?

I think that this team could win the championship this year if we were somehow able to avoid the elite bigs in the league (P. Gasol, D12, etc). Elsewise, I think we're probably two years away from being able to realistically contend. We've got two young, elite wing players, and a really good post prescence. That can take us a long way.

Can I get one more funky track to go out on?

Right on

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpD8FpGpBjE

[33-00-32]

Roster

Center: Darko Milicic, Reggie Evans, Semih Erden
PF: Kevin Love, Amir Johnson
SF: Dorell Wright, Luc Mbah a Moute
SG: Rodney Stuckey, Christian Eyenga
PG: Mike Conley Jr., Daniel Gibson, Sebastian Telfair

Pick 2 draft objectives met:
With perhaps the worst starting situation having the 5th worst team and no real great keepers our objective was to use our high #1(5) pick to obtain the best player or package that we could. We ended up keeping Tayshaun Prince only because he was involved in the trade. We traded him and the #1(5) & #5(5)picks for one of the top young studs in the game, Kevin Love, along with the #3(2) & #4(2) picks. This made sense for us knowing we would have our top 7 guys signed by the time of the early 4th round and we would be starting with a top player to build around. Once we knew what we had to start, our objective switched to building the best foundation for a team that we could, with as much skill as possible while taking a look at positional needs, cohesiveness, defense and offense, and most importantly was flexibility.
Toughest challenge of the draft:
The most surprising thing that happened during the draft for us was how fast the true starting centers disappeared. We had to react and ended up going with Darko. Totally unintentional to have him paired again with Love but we know that they have been coexisting so that won't be an issue. Although Darko wouldn't be anyone's first choice in the middle, we felt like he was the best available and that he had a lot going for him. He's still only 25 years old and we have room to improve him. He is big and strong and fills the center position well. He is leading the NBA in blocks and is 9th in assists for true centers. We have $20m committed to him for the next 4 years which is very reasonable for a solid young 7 footer.
Toughest decision:
I know this decision will be frowned upon by more than one owner but when we selected Daniel Gibson as our first guard off the bench we wanted to build flexibility. He can play both guard positions thus backing up both Conley & Stuckey. On a very bad Clev team he's averaging 14 pts,3 reb and 3 asst while also being one of the top 3pt shooters in the league. He is signed for 3 years and is only 23 years old. We feel like if anything were to happen to either of our starters he could step right in and start.
Best move:
Trading our first round pick (Paul Pierce) and Prince for what ended up being Love, Milicic and Amir Johnson. When you factor in where Detroit was starting and what we had to work with we were ecstatic to end up with a 22 yr old stud averaging 22 pts and 16 reb per game. He is #1 in the NBA in reb and is near the top in 3pt % and he's only going to get better. We were able to back him up with our #1 big off the bench in Amir Johnson (23 yr old), a guy that mostly plays PF and is fast enough to keep up with a lot of SF as well. And then you throw in that we also added our starting Center for the next 4 years.
Biggest weakness:
Probably team defense and inexperience from our starters, but we are young and this team can grow together and change that into a strength. Also offense out of the center position. With Darko, Evans and Semih we probably won't be drawing up too many plays for our big guys. We will ask them to be blue collar players and they will be fine in that role.
Biggest strengths:
Youth, flexibility, rebounding, offensive fire power and cap room for the next 5 years. Our average age is 24.2 and that is with our only guy over 25 (Evans-30) expiring after this year. Out of our 12 guys we only have 3 that we wouldn't be completely comfortable playing at multiple positions (Darko, Conley & Telfair). All of the others are here because they provide a high level of flexibility. We have surrounded the #1 rebounder in the league with other guys that can also grab more than a handful per game. We will be a strong rebounding team. We feel like Conley Jr. is a very good floor leader and that he can find the open man and also knock down his own shot. We have guys that can create their own shots with Stuckey, Wright & Love. We also have 3 of better 3 point shooters in the league with Wright, Love and Gibson with others that can hit their jump shots as well. We have bench depth with Johnson, Evans and a couple of young guys who really know how to play defense in Eyenga & Mbah a Moute. Telfair provides us with an #11/12 who could spot start and get 20 pt 7 asst games and nobody would be surprised. Our final salary number ended up being just over $38m for our 12 guys, with our better, core guys locked up for multiple years. It was not our goal to be under the cap limit but rather to be young and flexible. We are under going a search for new ownership in Detroit and when they are found we will be able to bring in a few large/max contracts via FA and by trading some of our young assets.
Summary and outlook:
We are very young and depending on how well and how quickly our team gels will probably determine where we end up for this season. I have high hopes that our guys will give every team a battle every night and that we will win our portion of those battles. Where we end up is in ?'s hands but one thing is for sure and that is we will be around for many years to come and that is more than I can say about the current Detroit team. There is no doubt in our minds that Detroit is in a much better place now than it was when we started.

p.s.-thanks all for welcoming a newbie, I had lots of fun in dealing with everyone and look forward to kicking ....... at this and others many more times in the future !

[Redz]

If anyone wants to take a stab at presenting my team in a positive light, fire away.  I don't foresee having the energy to do a decent write up myself.

Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Marcin Gortat, Jamal Crawford, Corey Maggette, Mike Miller, Ronny Turiaf, Tracy McGrady, Marco Belinelli, Michael Redd, Brian Scalabrine, Francisco Elson

[indeedproceed]

If anyone wants to take a stab at presenting my team in a positive light, fire away.  I don't foresee having the energy to do a decent write up myself.

Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Marcin Gortat, Jamal Crawford, Corey Maggette, Mike Miller, Ronny Turiaf, Tracy McGrady, Marco Belinelli, Michael Redd, Brian Scalabrine, Francisco Elson

What do you guys think is his starting lineup/rotation?

[KCattheStripe]

If anyone wants to take a stab at presenting my team in a positive light, fire away.  I don't foresee having the energy to do a decent write up myself.

Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose, Carlos Boozer, Marcin Gortat, Jamal Crawford, Corey Maggette, Mike Miller, Ronny Turiaf, Tracy McGrady, Marco Belinelli, Michael Redd, Brian Scalabrine, Francisco Elson

What do you guys think is his starting lineup/rotation?

DRose
Crawford
Miller
Boozer
Gortat

9 Man: Magette, Turiaf, McGrady, Bellinelli

[StartOrien]

My best guess is:

Derrick Rose
Marco Bellinelli
Corey Magettte
Carlos Boozer
Marcin Gortat

I think McGrady and Crawford need the ball too much for a team that starts Boozer & Rose. I actually don't really like Maggette in the lineup for that same reason, but I think you have to b/c of his size & d (I also would fear having a lineup that would ever f/ McGrady, Crawford and Maggette)

[indeedproceed]

To both of you: exactly.

I really hate Maggette in a starting lineup with Rose, so I'm gonna go
Rose
Bellinelli
Miller
Boozer
Gortat

With Crawford/McGrady/Magette off la bench.

[StartOrien]

To both of you: exactly.

I really hate Maggette in a starting lineup with Rose, so I'm gonna go
Rose
Bellinelli
Miller
Boozer
Gortat

With Crawford/McGrady/Magette off la bench.

Thats what I initially had, but I think Bellinelli & Miller is anightmare defensively