Post by Go Niners on May 30, 2020 17:39:41 GMT -8
Players in the LeBron Sweepstakes
While the Yao sweepstakes was the fun, the most franchise changing draft is expected to occur next season. While tanking may be the opposite of competing, the race to the bottom is as competitive as it gets. With GMs unloading every little bit of talent that they do not expect to keep for the future, just to get that coveted 15.7% chance at the #1 overall pick. The season will begin with more teams fighting for that #1 Overall Pick than the Championship. Some may argue that this pick is more important to the future of the league than a title this season.
This season, there are at least 10 teams expected to attempt to tank for LeBron. While some may seem too talented on the surface, a combination of creativity, odd team management and luck may get them to where they need to be.
LeBron James is quite possibly the greatest prospect in BBS history. At age 17, he has the size/strength/athleticism to make an impact and a very advanced basketball IQ for his age. He has taken St. Mary's-St. Vincent's High School in Ohio to great heights they have never achieved and is expected to enter the draft next season as an 18 year old. He is the type of player that will make a franchise competitive for many years to come and it will be a dogfight for the race to the bottom.
Here are the main players:
#1) New Orleans Hornets
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Nenad Krstic, PF: SCRUB, SF: Caron Butler, SG: Bonzi Wells/John Salmons, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: The wheels started in motion during last season and this is now Pig's chance to go hard at the tank. They have a bunch of wings like Caron Butler, Bonzi Wells, John Salmons though I would not be shocked to see Bonzi offloaded. Their roster looks very barebones and they could end up being a major threat in this game.#2) Minnesota Timberwolves
Expected Starting Lineup: C: SCRUB, PF: SCRUB, SF: Quentin Richardson, SG: Jerry Stackhouse, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: They are trying to offload Stackhouse and if they can, they may be the favorite in this game. Similar to the Hornets, they are a team which began the process during last season. And now, we can see whether or not the fruits of their labor may pay off. To catch up to the other teams in this race, they may need to offload Stackhouse ASAP. What they end up doing will be interesting to see.#3) Atlanta Hawks
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Sam Dalembert, PF: SCRUB, SF: Stephen Jackson, SG: Mike Dunleavy, PG: Steve Francis
Analysis: While Francis' turnovers are high and none of their other players are good, it is not known how bad their team can be. With guys like Dalembert/Jackson/Dunleavy, they have some marginal youth which they may need to offload but time will really tell how bad they can be.#4) Utah Jazz
Expected Starting Lineup: C: SCRUB, PF: Shareef Abdur-Rahim, SF: TayShaun Prince, SG: Richard Hamilton, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: From Season 1 to Champs to Season 3 Lotto? It sure is the direction which Utah is heading in as they are about to go all in on the tank. The first shot was fired after unloading David Robinson for (essentially) free as well as moving sharpshooter Allan Houston to Portland. The writing was probably on the wall after Bobby Jackson tested free-agency and now it looks like this is the direction they are heading. I fully expect them to offload Marc Jackson, George Lynch and Steve Smith leaving them with only 3 players they intend to keep beyond this season. They should fill the rest of their roster with scrubs. Whether or not these scrubs can be bad enough to bring down the overall talent level of their team is a question mark.#5) Houston Rockets
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Kwame Brown, PF: Shawn Marion, SF: SCRUB, SG: Dimitris Diamantidis, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: Hard to count the Rockets out given that they only had 14 wins last season. But perhaps the addition of Dimitris Diamantidis can hurt them in this race. I wouldn't be shocked if the Rockets were to offload Kwame Brown and really work hard to sign the worst scrubs possible to balance out the talent on their roster. If they are lucky, they could get another major Shawn Marion injury but lightning might not be able to strike twice here.#6) Orlando Magic
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Eddie Griffin, PF: SCRUB, SF: SCRUB, SG: Kobe Bryant, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: The question is, how many wins can Kobe alone win? Seems like they might already be trying to offload Eddie Griffin and their collection of assets to add talent around Kobe and try to win BUT it might be best of them to try to sign the worst scrubs possible and try hard as they can to add a superstar like LeBron James. A LeBron-Kobe combo could be downright DEADLY for the league and if they can somehow pull it off, build a dynasty for many years to come.#7) Milwaukee Bucks
Expected Starting Lineup: C: SCRUB, PF: Carlos Boozer, SF: Vladimir Radmanovic, SG: Arvydas Macijauskas, PG: SCRUB
Analysis: They don't have any stars on their lineup making their path seem doable. The question is, will they have enough scrubs to balance out the youth which have some basketball talent on their roster. They will be lotto but question is, will they be bad enough?#8) Toronto Raptors
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Nene, PF: SCRUB, SF: SCRUB, SG: Jason Richardson, PG: Tony Parker
Analysis: Obviously I am assuming that they will offload Scottie Pippen and Adonal Foyle ASAP. Feel like not having a high turnover PG might hurt them in this race as Tony Parker may be too good. But the rest of their roster seems pretty garbage giving them a very solid shot at the main prize. Diego will probably be actively tanking and constantly finding ways to make his team worse throughout the season.#9) Philadelphia 76ers
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Yao Ming, PF: SCRUB, SF: Antwan Jamison, SG: SCRUB, PG: Stephon Marbury
Analysis: The reigning lottery champions might try to repeat though not sure whether or not be able to. They may start out the season trying but later add talent and make a postseason run in a soft Eastern Conference. Marbury's high turnovers are nice but Yao and Jamison might end up being too good for them to have a legitimate shot. #10) Phoenix Suns
Expected Starting Lineup: C: Tyson Chandler, PF: Pau Gasol, SF: SCRUB, SG: Andre Miller, PG: Baron Davis
Analysis: They do have some really nice young pieces on their roster but at the same time, their overall team isn't very good. If they can offload some pieces, they have a legitimate shot at this. But I'm not sure if they will go that route or make a postseason run. They are very weak at the wings but Baron and their two bigs are quite nice. If they can somehow add LeBron to this core, they would be a force to be reckoned with for many seasons to come.
