Post by Lasagna and tears of failure on Nov 8, 2020 10:28:50 GMT -8
So I haven't done a round table in forever and saw harold asking for questions, so I was... why not do one again. Some nice replies here, and a few laughs, hope you all enjoy reading the replies as much as I did. Thanks again autumn harold , 2 years left , Galo and Stevie B for taking part!
Does any team in the East stand a chance against the Heat this year, or am I giving kobe way too much credit for the team he has put together?
Svedda: Way too early to call the East for anybody. Especially for a team that has been irrelevant since the league began. They have some great players but I do question their PG and SF positions. Not a big fan of either. They block a lot of shots as a team but not sure they have the scoring.
Galo: The Heat have a very strong team partially because you gave him Gortat AND Redick for a real bargain. I don't think he gave up a single asset he cared about and Gortat is among the most valuable bigs in the league. Wish you could have gotten Kanter, Shump or even Tobias. Hell I wish I made an offer if I knew that's what would have netted him. If Moiso was 3-4 years younger, it wouldn't that bad of a trade but none of those picks project to be any good. Redick is also very good and underrated in this league on a great contract. But what's done is done - time to move on. As for the Heat, they look nasty on paper so they should be the favorites in the East, but this is FBB after all so anything can happen. If they get an upgrade in one more position, they'll be title favorites for sure with a good blend of vets and youth.
Steve: Of course. Kobe has a very solid squad, but they are not some unbeatable juggernaut. It’s a good team. Really good. Not sure they are the elite of the East, however. Pacers are still there and added Noah. I think they are pretty good. You have the Nets in the mix, too. (Side note: I just typed more than Footy’s lone article!)
How do you think your team will do this year?
Habes: Tough to say. The outside offense led by Jamal and Klay will be fun, and we should be +6 or stocks per game. That said, we’re atrocious up front apart from the god Kris Humphries, and bad rebounding from Jamal and Klay will hurt us. I think I'm about to do an insanely bad deal just to have a crazy outside offense this year and pry Peja away from Jah, so things can always get worse
Svedda: Pre-season was encouraging but not going to read too much into that. Feel pretty good about my wings and big men but not sure about Bledsoe. The East is pretty bad so even if we are mediocre that is probably going to be enough for around 50 wins. With three years on the CY and all my picks I wouldn't be mad if we failed and were lotto tho!
Galo: I don't want to jinx my squad but we should be solid. Hopefully should make the playoffs again and be in striking distance of 45-50 wins again. I like adding Caron to this group to give us another scoring punch. Losing Landry sucked a lot but hopefully we can recover. The East is weak partly because of so many tanking teams and there just haven't been a lot of big trades in the conference this year.
Steve: In the weak East, I think we SHOULD win at least 50 games barring any bad luck with injuries. D-Rose has become a top 5 value piece in the league...thank the good lord. Melo is still an insanely efficient scorer. T-Mac supersub. Our bigs are solid. We need to bring that elite big into the mix to kind of take that next step...last year I kinda chilled, but hoping to make some moves to possibly give this team a real shot in the playoffs.
What are your predictions for the Conf finals, and which team is the surprise team to get there and why?
Habes: Sonics-Lakers in the West; Heat-Nets in the East. I’m not sure any of those are great surprises, but I’ll say that I think the Nets break through to the elite tier this year with Ingles looking like a better Ray Allen. Greeme’s still washed though. I guess it's suprising for the Heat to be here a season after tanking, but Kobe cleaned up this offseason and the East is empty.
Svedda: For the East I am going to go with the Pacers and Nets. Guess Joe Ingles is a top 5 player now and they have a good mix of depth around him. Pacers are bringing back a 60 win team. In the West I'll go with the defending champion Sonics and the Spurs. This is the year they will finally make a run.
Galo: Sonics vs. Spurs and Heat vs. Pacers right now. Some surprise teams in the East could be the Sixers or Cavs and in the West I could see the Suns, Blazers or Jazz making it. I really think the Suns have a nice squad that will play well together. They picked up Rondo very cheap and getting Rudy before he blew up in TC was also a major move. The Sixers/Cavs have potential to surpass their expectations and make it to the ECF with some luck.
Steve: Nets/Pacers...Pacers win. Sonics/Trailblazers...Trailblazers move on. Out West, who the F knows, man. Those playoffs will literally be insane. So many good looking squads. I don’t think there are going to be an surprises to reach the conference finals this season. Pretty straightforward.
What team do you think has the best chance of losing 70 games this season?
Habes: The Rockets.
Svedda: If the Knicks fully commit to the tank they look to have a pretty good chance. Problem is they are in the conference full of tankers so it'll be tough. So I'll go with the Nuggets as my prediction for #1 projected and a guaranteed 70 losses.
Galo: The only team that might come close to 70 losses is maybe the Knicks? This is Skillz first time really tanking in BBS in a VERY, VERY long time and he's off to a really good start. This roster is barren with talent but they've got picks, expirings and cap space coming their way. If the Wolves can unload Howard and Arvy, they can be in the tankathon as well but not sure if they'll be as bad as NYK as it stands now. The Nuggets are tanking as well but they have Blake and Kevin Martin plus a bunch of vets that can still play. I think they'll win more than 12 games as it stands now.
Steve: Nuggets for sure. Royal will no doubt make sure he loses as much games as possible. He’s pretty crafty and will do what is necessary. Eddie is certainly going to have a bad team, too. Raptors look pretty bad, too. Nuggets are clearly the worst team in the league right this minute.
What teams in BBS could be renamed “Miller High Life, Coors light, and Budweiser”; AKA popular, but not truly enjoyable as a franchise if this was IIRL?
Habes: The Jazz. Regularly in the mix because of LeBron, but they’ve gotten incrementally worse to the point where there’s really nothing else to like on that roster. Definitely a front-office-gets-fired-and-LeBron-walks situation IRL. Most of us aren’t meant to keep superstars forever. It gets boring having the same player and the same direction forever. Time for a trade.
Svedda: First team that comes to mind is the Rockets. If Brendan Haywood played PG in real life there would be riots in the streets even with how popular their GM may be. Be better.
Galo: I mean Orlando has been truly awful as a franchise in BBS20. Zero Playoff appearances in 10 seasons, constant GM turmoil and controversy including 2 CYed GMs and Lums turning over as well and they never seem to get great lotto luck or picks either. In real life, Magic fans have seen better days especially in the Penny-Shaq days. I love footy but wish he would move on from Tucker and Bynum. I'm not saying to give those players away but maybe try to retool by moving one or two of them? I'm not sure if they can make the ECF again with that roster but maybe they'll prove me wrong. Lastly, I also love Ahsan but man that Houston roster is kind of in shambles right now and without their pick, I don't know how they can dig their way out after landing in lotto last year.
Steve: Bucks? They’ve made the playoffs just once since we started back up...I think. The real life Bucks walk into 50+ wins per year but struggle in the playoffs. Lakers, maybe, too...with respect to winning big in the playoffs. Not the dominant franchise they are in real life. I don’t know, man. This question is kinda wack, lol.
What draft pick is your biggest regret, where you wished you had chosen someone that went later?
Habes: Hmmm. I don’t have any serious drafting regrets in terms of the guys I’ve selected; just a lot of guys I wish I’d kept a bit longer. If I had to pick one, I guess I’d say Rubio over Ingles, but I wasn’t really after Joe. Never expected this kind of volume. My bigger draft regret is being projected #1 for LeBron and Kawhi and missing out on both. Lotto odds favor the field, but I want those guys!
Svedda: Well, I have only made maybe a handful of picks before tanking this past season and they were all late. Hard to really have any regrets but I would have been better off with anybody else instead of Brandon Rush the year I drafted him. Hamed Haddadi was a wasted pick as well.
Galo: Recently, Justin Holiday doesn't seem like the greatest choice at 19 but there weren't a lot of good players that good TCs after him either and he might still have a chance so we'll see. I'll go with Dorell Wright who I picked over Kris Humphries and could have been a nice big for me back in 2004. I made the right pick with Telfair but just didn't keep him long enough to se the rewards and his development as he was in the Tim Duncan trade to Indy.
Steve: OJ Mayo...which honestly was just me trading down a couple of spots because I was still cool taking him. A lotta of my draft picks have really been good when I do have my pick and use it...Yao Ming, D Rose, Oden, and Ingles. Back to Mayo, I kind of wish I took Brook Lopez who I did like a bit but had him in the tier below. Live and learn.
Secret Sauce time: Is there something you look for in a late draft pick without notes that when you see it, gives you a warm tingly feeling?
Habes: I tend to look for the most developed guys or the guys who look playable immediately with camps. Guys like Jawad, Varejao, Hump, Hill. I usually don’t aim for surprise potential types because I think that’s a crapshoot. Obviously sorting by skills and looking for guys on the cusp of higher ratings helps.
Svedda: Usually look for a more developed player late that is easier to turn into a decent depth piece. These straight C players with potential possibly don't interest me much. It is nearly impossible to draft a good starter late so just not having wasted salary is a win.
Galo: I check if the player won a championship as a Golden State Warrior first and foremost. Secondly, there's some other indicators in terms of past BBS that might be a guiding force too. Obviously, their standing on the attribute page is key too and just reading their basketball reference or wiki pages to see something that Spence might gravitate to. It's weird but it can just be a gut feeling sometimes.
Steve: I usually look at the rebounding/defense mix. I think if the scoring is at a decent enough level, you can just pump +24 into that, and you might have a shot at that player becoming a thing. But yeah, I’ll usually sort the rebounding and defensive mix of a player on the draft file page and kinda see if they are close. It’s all situational, though. I think Spence really does a heck of a job trying to make different players have value which certainly makes things much more interesting.
For next year’s draft, who do you think the top 2 players will be (not including Davis), and who are you most looking forward to seeing other than Anthony Davis? Also am I wrong for assuming AD will be #1? Are you shocked John isn’t tanking for AD? 😊
Habes: Lillard and Beal are my answer to both. It’s a bad draft. Unless Spence adjusts it to make more players useful, I think I’d rather have a second rounder than a late lotto from this draft. AD will definitely be #1, and I hope he’ll be the best player here in no time. John is in good shape. He put his chips in for a ring and came up just short. He's definitely due for a retool, but KD is so young that it's not a big deal. Maybe that would entail a one-year tank, but I think the Dirk deal cost him his first this year, right?
Svedda: Bradley Beal and Damian Lillard are the clear two best after him. Both are great scorers that don't play much defense so not sure either is a franchise player. Seems clear it is an Anthony Davis or bust draft for most who are tanking.
Galo: Damian Lillard and Bradley Beal. Dame Lillard I'm more looking forward to of course because he's from the Bay area and should be a complete stud at point guard with unbelievable range. Beal should also translate well because of his great volume scoring and shooting. Draymond should be a top 4-5 pick as well but obviously will be flawed but sought after because of his defense, boards and stipulation with Curry and Klay.
AD will be the sure fire #1 pick without a doubt. He's a fantastic scorer inside and outside, an elite defender and rebounder and can get up and down the floor. He's gonna be a marquee player for a long time. I'm sure John will try to make a play for AD but not sure how he'll be able to pair KD with him at least not right away. John's UK blue blood lines run strong but KD is already a top 5 player in the league in terms of value.
Steve: Well, there are 3 clear candidates after AD. Beal, Lillard, and Drummond. I think given Drummond’s MASSIVE rebounding edges and the lack of true elite bigs in these next draft classes...I feel like Drummond has to be one of the top 2. I feel like given that we have so many PGs in this league, I’d take Beal ahead of Dame. I friggin love Dame in real life, man...but yeah, I think Beal could be taken ahead of him if he’s made the right way. Beal is so damn amazing. I’m intrigued to see what the philly boy Dion Waiters looks like, too. Nah, AD should be pretty clear-cut the number one pick if made properly...but I wasn’t too fond of Spence’s initial ratings he posted. Defensive grade was way too low iirc, lol. John likes to put an act on the boards with his players...it’s kind of old and weird.
When putting your team together, how important is depth beyond 7 deep?
Habes: Good question. It’s essential if you don’t have a supersub wing (or I guess a big who can backup 2-5), and somewhere between 10 and 15% of your minutes—more if you start <30 mpg bigs—go to third stringers anyway, so it helps to have more than seven reliable players. Having said that, depth is very easy to acquire, and my sixth and seventh best players when I won were Kyle Korver and DJ Mbenga, so…
Svedda: I like being 4 deep at big man and on the wing and then 3 deep at PG if possible. Third stringers aren't that important and can easily be filled with minimum players but you want someone there who can play 15-20 minutes in case of injury. If they aren't on IR they should be capable of providing value in some way.
Galo: It's important I think to have a few guys in certain positions especially in the frontcourt right now in case of injury. There's not a lot of above average bigs in the league right now as it's pretty scarce so I think it's important to have depth there. With a lot of hard capped teams, it might be difficult to make more trades because of higher salaries and it's tough to match at time. I think Leftover FAs were big this off-season due to everyone just trying to get some cheap depth without paying too much for it on the open market.
Steve: I think you should have a nice 8-9 player rotation. In the HC era, it’s pretty damn hard to have insane depth beyond that. I think as long as you have a nice 8-9 player rotation, you’re fine. Just having a good 7 player rotation is risky because a couple of injuries and then you’re in a pretty rough spot and just trying to survive.
Is Steph the new cheat code, and is there anything he could be traded for? In retrospect, do you wish you had tried to get him?
Habes: I’ll take the last part first and the first part last and then I’ll hang up and listen. I did try to get Steph, but so my regret is doing a bad job tanking. I had way too much talent on my roster that year and was lucky to land fourth projected.
Steph’s an amazing player for my friend Don. I like LeBron, CP3, KD, and Al Jeff more than I like Steph, and Kawhi should pass him soon. Maybe Cousins too, because there’s no second tier crop of bigs comparable to PGs like Livingston, Harden, Crawford, Lowry, Parker, et al. Honestly PGs do nothing for me in this league. So flooded. The other positions are way more interesting.
Svedda: Nah fuck him. Overrated here and in real life. Doubt the Blazers will be a dynasty anytime soon so not too worried about him really
Galo: Yes, he's going to be spectacular for a really long time. There's maybe 2-3 players you can trade him for in the league right now but why would you? He's barely entering his 3rd season and he's got more in the tank I think to get even better. CP3 and maybe LeBron or KD might be the only guys I would consider maybe moving for him but you know Steph is a favorite of Spencer's so he's gonna be at the top of the elite for some time. I guess do I regret not tanking in 09 to get him? Maybe - but not a big fan of Curry in real life but in FBB all those favorites go out the window so would have loved to have him! He'll probably be in Portland most of his career if I had to guess though as Dan will take care of him.
Steve: Steph is amazing, but I’d trade him for LeBron or CP3 in a heartbeat. He’s not the best player in this file. He’s probably the 3rd best player. Al Jeff is so sexy, tho.
