Some early evals, which I'll finish after the sixth round...
1 iccoachb - Lebron James, Anthony Davis, Tyson Chandler
James is one of the two clearly legit overall first picks in this league. The 12-13 vintage is most popular and probably most advisable because of the mad efficiency, although I still clung to the 07-08 season even after most owners graduated to 09-10 for a while. A terrific foundation who gives you lots of flexibility to build around. Davis’ 13-14 season is the bomb, as long as it’s used correctly. Tyson is another sim stalwart, although you have to choose between better rebounding and better defense in selecting a season. Three picks in, this is a great start for iccoachb. The next two picks will determine whether this team is going to make some noise.
2 maglor1 - Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry Lucas, Andrei Kirilenko
Can’t go wrong with Wilt, as long as maglor is going with one of three or so season. I always prefer 66-67, which gives the most flexibility given the high assists and efficiency. I’ve long thought Lucas should be a third rounder. He’s got that nice efficient season with app. 35 creb%, but without either much better defense or more scoring he seems like a stretch in the second to me. He’ll do fine next to Wilt, but I think snazzier players were available. I’ve become a big AK-47 fan (at least of one particular year) after using him this past season. You have to hide his efg% a bit and he shouldn’t be much of a scorer for a good team, but he can stuff the box score otherwise. He’s a great glue guy. After three picks I don’t yet see where maglor is going. Some long-range shooting is needed, at minimum.
3 thomcat - Moses Malone, Chauncey Billups, Horace Grant
Moses is still a top 6-8 player in this sim, as long as we’re talking about the right season. He’s a little careless with the ball but he creates lots of second chances, gets to the line and is a reasonably efficient paint scorer. Dunno what it is about some sim trends, but Billups isn’t the sure bet to outperform his real-life shooting efficiency anymore. Still, there’s a lot to like about him: assists, defense, few mistakes, and a rare combo of 3s and FTAs from the PG spot. He spreads the floor nicely for Moses. As long as the rest of the starting lineup skews toward shooting well, this is a very good start. Grant is another nice addition – a SF who rebounds just well enough, plays defense just well enough, and scores efficiently in the paint.
4 jkaye24 - Michael Jordan, Marcus Camby, Donyell Marshall
The fact that there are so many great Lebron seasons detracts attention from the fact that a couple of Jordan seasons are still the bomb. Either season works in this sim depending on whether you want a head start on assists or 3s. Camby is pretty good value toward the bottom of the third. A bit lot on minutes, but he’s out of the Big Ben mold, giving you a nice start on boards and interior D with blocks to boot. Marshall is the quintessential supporting small forward in this league, and he doesn’t always last until the third round. The team needs assists and inside scoring, but is rounding into shape nicely.
5 hoopsdude - Dennis Rodman, Kevin Love , Terrell Brandon
Yes, this is the way to use Love! I tend to think the second round is too high for him given his putrid defense, but playing next to Rodman offsets his permeability somewhat. Two forwards with creb %s of 40+ is a fantastic start. Brandon brings good defense and a clean game, although a high-usage, short-minutes PG can be hard to find a backup for. His efficiency is a bit on the low side given the number of his touches.
6 eleibowitz - Karl Malone, Shawn Marion, Clyde Drexler
A bit high for the Mailman in my estimation, but that’s mainly because I tend to be obsessive about the board battle and my favorite season of Malone’s is light on rebounds for what I want from my starting PF. But he’s definitely one of the few cornerstone studs, a player who can take over games and carry his team, and who comes without major flaws. Marion is a second round staple and the kind of rebounding SF you need to pair with Malone. I wish Marion’s nicest season came with more FTAs or a handful more 3s, but he does everything well except pass, and he plays a pretty clean game. Drexler gives the team a nice big three, and way plenty of usage. These first three picks fill enough needs that eleibowitz can concentrate on finding role players with narrow skill sets to round out the starting five.
7 jhsukow - Dwight Howard, Bill Walton, Shawn Kemp
Having just won the title with this tandem of bigs, I can’t argue with the start. There are two great Dwight seasons to choose from, depending on whether you want him as your lead scorer. Between these two guys they can be a little sloppy with the ball, but really, they do it all. Walton is obviously low on minutes and in building around Howard you’re committing yourself to looking for assists to feed the paint and enough perimeter shooting to space out defenses. I do not understand the addition of Kemp at this point. I get that his presence creates a monster rotation of bigs, but he brings the same good stuff and same bad stuff that Dwight does and to me the third round is the time to be diversifying and balancing.
8 uptowngbv - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, DeAndre Jordan, Steve Nash, Brent Barry
I still haven’t used Kareem in this version of the sim but better owners than me swear by him. I’d still take Howard for his superior rebounding, but it’s hard to argue with the mega-minutes of mega-efficient scoring Kareem provides. DeAndre is a very sensible sidekick, defending well enough and concentrating on cleaning the glass. Nash is pretty close to the perfect PG to run with KAJ, and Barry has a beautiful supporting game at SG. It will be a little tricky to find the right SF, but this is a ridiculously efficient and smartly constructed team so far.
9 pennsylvania - Larry Bird, Bobby Jones, Anthony Mason
Penn starts out with a couple of his staples. I’ll be curious to see whether he opts for a highly efficient Bird or a defensive stud Bird. Larry doesn’t come with the number of FTAs most other offensive studs do, but that’s because real-life opponents tried hard to avoid sending him to the line. Bobby Jones is a very nice player…to me he belongs in the third round, but he doesn’t last that long anymore. Mason is a little underwhelming to me as a third round pick. Now by my lights this team has three starting SFs, and none of them are great fits at any other position. Mr. pennsylvania’s teams usually look light on rebounds to me but end up holding their own, so maybe he’ll surprise me again.
10 mikee1 - Shaquille O'Neal, Ben Wallace, Derek Harper
I love the start with Shaq and Big Ben. I’ve taken Wallace in the first round before and then quickly wondered why I did because he gives you absolutely nothing on offense and doesn’t create the advantage that Rodman does with the latter’s ability to play SF. Still Wallace is basically the perfect big to play alongside Kareem, doing nothing but defending well and rebounding well. And Shaq is just a monster – like Howard, but scoring more and rebounding less.
11 scudmissle - David Robinson, Elton Brand, Willis Reed, Walt Frazier
Scud starts off with two players who seem really expensive for how they end up producing. Mainly what I see is a great start on defense, and also a potential candidate to lead the league in blocked shots depending on how the rest of the roster shapes up. Robinson has a very efficient season, and gives you some paint scoring and a lot of FTAs (and makes a high percentage for a big). The start on rebounding is okay but not world-class. The additions of Reed and Frazier bring more rebounding and defense, and the rest of the usage needed. A big infusion of assists is needed, but the second guard doesn’t really need to do anything but pass (and hopefully hit at least a handful of 3s).
12 steelers821 - Chris Paul, Gary Payton, Larry Nance, Spencer Haywood
I’ve come to love Paul in this sim, and prefer the higher FTA season but can see the appeal of a couple others. I don’t see the pairing with Payton yet. If steelers is going the mega-assist route and looking for a bump in shooting efficiency then this seems like a really expensive start and Payton is not an assist king. This will be a great defensive backcourt, to be sure. Nance is a defensive stud at SF and can score efficiently, too. I tend to avoid him in this league because his boardwork is ever so slightly lower than I look for in a SF, but the Paul-Payton combo evens that out with decent rebounding from their positions. Haywood is a little unfairly discounted at this cap level. He gives you 35 creb% and a very clean game for 44-45 mpg, and he’ll score some points and draw some fouls. His efficiency is a shade below mediocre for this league, but he has a lot of assists coming his way.
13 amerk1180 - Kevin Durant, Tracy McGrady , Andre Drummond, Mel Daniels
Objectively speaking, the pairing of Durant and McGrady doesn’t make sense. Both are great SGs in this league, giving you a little or a lot of everything good with no significant weaknesses. But McGrady’s mediocre (at best) efg% combined with his high usg% means he’ll be taking some shots away from Durant who is more efficient. Both these fellows rebound nicely at the SG position, but neither gives you an advantage in that department at SF. Still, amerk can go a little mad scientist in this sim at times, tinkering with new approaches just to see what happens, and I totally respect that. Drummond brings much-needed rebounding, although his 13-14 season is mediocre on D. Daniels is a great addition with his rebounding, inside game and just the right about of usage, but the team is looking a little vulnerable to squads with a lot of high-octane inside scoring. Neither of these starting bigs is much of a defender or shot-blocker
14 slymonium- Alonzo Mourning, Mookie Blaylock, Tom Boerwinkle, Chris Webber, James Harden
Sly becomes the latest owner to try his luck and skill at trading out of the first round. The first four picks fit together nicely. While Boerwinkle is awfully short on minutes, his boards make up for the fact that Mourning doesn’t grab a lot and his assists can allow use of the slightly more efficient Blaylock season. There’s a nice inside-outside scoring balance. Harden fits in a lot of ways, rounding out the team in usage and assists and FTAs. The sixth round is critical given that there will be a lot of quality big man minutes needed behind Boerwinkle and Mourning.
15 jt7king- Charles Barkley, Jason Kidd, Dikembe Mutombo, Amare Stoudemire
A couple of sim staples in the first two rounds. There are definitely better and worse seasons for each (and really just one Kidd season to go with in this league, in my opinion). They both rebound well for their respective positions (assuming Sir Charles will be used at SF), they establish a nice inside-outside balance on offense, they take care of most of the assists between them, and Barkley counts for a good start on FTAs. Mutombo is a great pickup in the third, bringing D and blocks and rebounds without taking the ball away from Barkley. I don’t love the addition of Amare here. The usage and FTAs were needed and his efficiency is fabulous, but his rebounds are low for a starting PF and now another sizable infusion of perimeter shooting is necessary.
16 cjok1051- John Stockton, Stephen Curry, Serge Ibaka, Dirk Nowitzki
I love Stockton in this league. 16 seems mildly high for him, but I think at this point in the first round you go with the player that best gets you started on the strategy you want to follow. He turns the ball over some but he gives you two-thirds of the assists your starting five needs, can hit a few 3s (if you use the right season), plays D and will occasionally go off for 20 points. I don’t see the addition of Curry, since I think cj may end up paying for assists that never materialize. But we’ll see where he goes with the rest of the draft. Will this be a mega-assist squad? Will there be an inside game to go with the wagonload of 3s Curry will fire up? Who will grab the rebounds? Here comes Ibaka to grab his share at SF and be a smothering defender. The Serge addition makes sense except that the team is starting to look skinny on FTAs. And here comes Dirk, and now the team is looking skinny on rebounds.
17 vancem- Artis Gilmore, Manu Ginobili, Deron Williams
I’m among those few who think Gilmore, as a first round investment in this league, is too much money given his usage tier. Still, he gives you good rebounding and some efficient scoring over a lot of minutes. Ginobili is a second round fixture and I love his 07-08 season, although given his short minutes and high usage it can be tricky to find a good backup for him in this league. I really like the pairing of Deron and Manu. Neither is a world class defender but they are solid, and between them they take care of assists, usage and threes. While I griped in the first sentence about Gilmore, this is a very nice trio.
18 longtallbrad- Bill Russell, Hakeem Olajuwon, Ray Allen, Gerald Wallace
Nothing to crow about with my first two picks. Russell gives me great rebounding and decent but (criminally) not stellar defense. I need to build the rest of the roster so that he doesn’t touch the ball much, given his low, low efg%. The Hakeem selection cements the decision to just have fun larking around this season, since he’s near the top of the list of “modern” players whose sim impact don’t match their real-life talents. I have to choose between board lord Hakeem and the version who’s not as dominant a rebounder but is incrementally above blah in terms of scoring efficiency. Neither season gives me the FTAs I’ve come to want from a lead scorer. The fact that Dream can’t keep his hands to himself and will turn the ball over means I’ll have to aim for a scrupulous supporting crew for him. These two might be my two favorite NBA players of all time, so I’ll pay my money and have my fun. Allen gives me most of the 3s I expect to have on this team. I looked hard at several other players but in the end wanted an efficient backcourt scorer without major holes in his game. Wallace is one of those guys who does it all (except pass)…he’s sort of a poor man’s Dr. J and helps to offset Allen’s lower D. I’m one of a number of owners who will be sorting through the remainder bin for a starting PG.
19 dh555- Dwyane Wade, Kevin Garnett, Joakim Noah, Tree Rollins
Wade and Garnett make for an expensive pair, and neither is particularly notable for his efficiency. Wade is definitely one of those scoring monsters who can explode in the box score. I’d be more inclined to surround him with really nice role players than pair him with a gold-plated Swiss Army knife like Garnett, but then again I tried that and didn’t do very well. Looks like Garnett’s at small forward (which some say isn’t his best season, but I’m agnostic on that question) so this is a good start on a rebounding advantage, and his ast% creates some nice flexibility in rounding out the backcourt. Noah and Rollins add to the awesome defensive picture. Noah’s lower on boards than I like for my starting bigs but the team is still looking competitive on the glass given what Garnett brings. Noah’s ast% seems like bringing coals to Newcastle (they’re not really essential), but now dh has a ton of flexibility in adding a backcourt mate for Wade.
20 sixernugget- Tim Duncan, Robert Parish, Terry Porter, Marques Johnson
Duncan gives you a lot now that defense is a much higher priority in this league than it used to be. He’s basically an extremely high-caliber glue guy who doesn’t blow up the box score but does a lot of things well and doesn’t have any significant warts. He defends, boards and gets to the line a reasonable amount, and even gives you a few assists and blocks. More efficiency would be nice given his usage and price tag, but #20 is about right for him in the first round. Parish was a bit of a reach here, but he has some nice seasons from which to choose. Porter is a great pickup anywhere in the third or fourth rounds…Nash-like efficiency, with fewer trips to the line but a cleaner game and much better defense. And Marques has a very solid season that strengthens the team’s rebounding and adds a good amount of FTAs while not making anything worse. Four picks in this seems like a very solid start.
21 98average- Magic Johnson, Penny Hardaway, Bob Lanier, Chris Andersen
Here’s another PG duo I don’t quite get. Two great players who deserved to go where they did, and 98 usually has a plan and he’s got the rings to show for it. But if this is a go-for-broke assists-over-everything-else strategy than I’d say Penny isn’t the right guy for it since he isn’t really a passing beast. And it’s not, then I’d worry about paying for assists that go unused. Still, Magic pretty much does it all and Penny does most of it. Lanier never seems to make ripples in this league, but he has a very good season to trot out on the court. Andersen is a staple and the right kind of SF for this bunch but seems like quite a reach in the fourth round given his paltry minutes.
22 tarheel1441- Scottie Pippen, Julius Erving, Buck Williams, Wes Unseld
And another dynamic duo I haven’t seen before. Killer defense, although the wing spots aren’t where I prefer to pay big bucks for defense and tar may experience a salary crunch elsewhere. Buck Williams bring good rebounding, decent D and some efficient inside scoring. Also more than his share of errors, but not quite Kemp-level. Unseld gives you rebounding and not much else. Finding the right PG to knit this crew together will be interesting late in the fifth round, but tar is crafty.
23 ysw128- Patrick Ewing, Kevin McHale, Rajon Rondo, Clifford Ray
I see great defense and wicked-efficient scoring in the first two picks. But both are notches below what I’d prefer in rebounding from the positions I assume they’ll be playing. Ray helps some in that category, but this team is on track to need to win the possession battle through other means. Rondo is a nice player who adds to the D quotient and feeds the scorers, but he doesn’t bring the outside shooting needed to keep defenses from swarming the paint.
24 banditone - Oscar Robertson, Bob McAdoo, Pau Gasol, Wesley Person
Four picks in I see a little of everything and not too much of anything. I’m not a Pau fan at this cap level since (like Amare and Dirk) he’s light enough on rebounding that he needs a lot of support in that stat category. I’m always rooting for Oscar in this league, but he’s a little hard to build around given that he doesn’t bring the conventional amount of 3s and you pay for FTAs you’re never going to see. I think it should be very possible to find the right SF to complement this bunch.