Realgm NBA Futures Draft Round 2 Voting (Quarterfinals)

[PaKii94]

Sigh, I looked at the rosters again and I still can't decide. Thus, I am putting in a vote for Domejandro to keep his hopes alive. I think you might need to bring in 1-2 people to vote for your matchup CSF21

[Domejandro]

Sigh, I looked at the rosters again and I still can't decide. Thus, I am putting in a vote for Domejandro to keep his hopes alive. I think you might need to bring in 1-2 people to vote for your matchup CSF21

Much obliged, haha. I will absolutely take the opportunity.

Spoiler:

ChicagoSportsFan21 vs. Domejandro

CSF

i see Shabazz, Payton, as role player and not comparable compared to CSF's starter, despite Dome has 2 superstar potential like Ben and Town, but as for Town, it's still question mark for me, especially about his foul per minutes/game.

the bench also comparable, despite slight nod to domejandro because of Mudiay, but i think the sCSF's team still better

Justwar
CSF21
DoubleHappiness

Again these were all tough. If I did this again in an hour, I'd probably pick the other teams.

DroppinDimes
PaKii94
aruan135
CSF21

Chicago Sports Fan
Even if a lot of the old dudes drop off, AD needs just one runningmate.

Here is my rebuttal to you guys who voted for CSF21.

As it stands, this is the match-up.

PG: Eric Bledsoe (30-35)
SG: Klay Thompson (30-35)
SF: Jimmy Butler (30-35)
PF: Draymond Green (30-35)
C: Anthony Davis (27-32)

Bench:
SF: Otto Porter Jr. (27-32)
PF: Terrence Jones (28-33)
C: Enes Kanter (28-33)
SG: Archie Goodwin (25-30)
PG: Demetrius Jackson (25-30) *College
SG: Caris LeVert (25-30) *College
C: John Henson (29-34)

vs.

PG: Elfrid Payton (26-31)
SG: Zach LaVine (25-30)
SF: Shabazz Muhammad (27-32)
PF: Ben Simmons (23-28) *College
C: Karl-Anthony Towns (24-29)

Bench:
PG: Emmanuel Mudiay (24-29)
SF: Trey Lyles (24-29)
C: Steven Adams (26-31)
PF: Domantas Sabonis (24-29) *College
SG: Nik Stauskas (26-31)
PG: Jerian Grant (27-32)
SF: Kelly Oubre Jr. (24-29)


For the five year race, Chicago most certainly has a wonderful roster; that said, ChicagoSportsFan's entire starting line-up is going to be thirty-five years old in ten seasons! His only big-men on the roster after Anthony Davis will be 33 years of age or older!

In addition, his future guard play is in great peril. As I stated...

In addition one of CSF21’s backup Point-Guards, Caris LeVert is coming off of a complete fracture of his foot and is going into his senior season. In addition, though he has a reputation as an unselfish guard, his assist to turnover ratio is abysmal at 1.48. To compound off of this inability to create for others, he is a poor shooter off of the bounce, shooting 25% (27/186) from the field. He also has a slight build. Though he is 6’7, he is under 185 pounds, causing him to be both a poor defensive player and a poor scorer around the basket (as he only converted 50% of his lay-ups during his Junior season).

With Eric Bledsoe's lack of health, Demetrius Jackson will have to shoulder the entire load at the guard position, something that is rather questionable. He is a talented player, but that said, he was was a major benefactor of playing with Notre Dame's star Point-Guard Jerian Grant (who amusingly enough is on my team). I personally believe that he will continue to improve, but there is a very high possibility that his efficiency could potentially plummet as the main offensive player. Can he become more than a combo guard off of the bench in the NBA? He is going into his Junior season next year, and still has a lot to prove as a player.

LeBron James' first stint in Cleveland should show that great players cannot win on their own, they need great teams around them. He averaged a whopping 30 PPG, 7.9 RPG, and 7.2 APG in 2008 season and his team got bumped in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals! The next year he averaged 35.3 PPG, 9.1 RPG, and 7.4 APG in the playoffs whilst boasting a high efficiency of 51% from the field and once again was beaten in the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. Great players need good teams around them, or they simply will not win. Unfortunately, the Kevin Garnett led Minnesota Timberwolves of the 2000's should illustrate this greatly.

For people who do not know who Domatas Sabonis is, here is a couple paragraphs I stole about him...

Sabonis made his international debut with the Lithuania national team at the 2012 FIBA U-16 European Championship, averaging 14.1 points, 14.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. He grabbed a tournament-high 27 rebounds against Poland on July 27. In 2013, at 17 years of age, Domantas played for Lithuania U-18 team in 2013 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship. He averaged 14 points, 11.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game and was tournament leader in rebounds per game. His best game was against Serbia when he scored 22 points, grabbed 22 rebounds and dished out 3 assists. Lithuania won the game 74-70 in OT. In 2014, coach Jonas Kazlauskas included Sabonis into preliminary 24 players list for main Lithuania men's national basketball team.[13] In 2014, D.Sabonis played in the FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship for the second time. This time he averaged 15.9 points, 12.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.[14] He was once again one of the best tournament rebounders, this time outperformed only by Yankuba Sima, who had 12.1 rebounds per game.

[...]

On July 15, 2015 by participating in 2015 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship, Sabonis achieved the youth tournaments rebounds record by grabbing 28 of them, by doing so he also led Lithuanians to victory versus Ukraine 70–57. Not surprisingly, he was the best tournament rebounder as in almost all previous youth competitions, with 13.2 per game this time.

He is a rebounding machine, and will be able to eat rebounds up with the opposing small line-up. He also has a beautiful post game that will be unguardable for SFC's back-up big men, especially once they age.

Below is the full rebuttal if any of you missed it...

Spoiler:

With the creation of my roster, I focused on two things… youth and versatility.

To start it off let’s focus on the guard positions.

At Point Guard, my team has a significant advantage over the opposing team. Though Eric Bledsoe is certainly a talented player, his sporadic style of play paired with his injury history is a huge concern going forward. Turning over thirty years old in five seasons, Eric Bledsoe is due for a major dropoff in the ten year window of the game.

Because of his age, my team has an advantage with the three headed monster at the Point-Guard position of Elfrid Payton, Marcus Smart, and Jerian Grant, all capable of elite defense and excellent play-making abilities. Jerian Grant totaled a 3.04 assist to turnover ratio, Elfrid Payton had a 2.63 assist to turnover ratio (best among rookies that qualified), and Marcus Smart totalled an assist to turnover ratio of 2.31 (albeit not spectacular, still second best among rookies). In contrast, Eric Bledsoe posted a 1.8 assist to turnover ratio, good for sixty-first in the NBA.

In addition, youth is most certainly a huge factor here. The eldest of the bunch, Jerian Grant, is currently twenty-two years of age, while both Elfrid Payton and Marcus Smart are both twenty-one.

Though all players are defensive standouts, each one brings a unique aspect to the game. Elfid Payton along with being the best defensive player, has proven to be both the best passer and rebounder out of the bunch, having nine games with nine or more rebounds, twenty-three withat least six! To compound off of this, he had thirteen games with double digit assist, another six if the cutoff is nine. He also recorded twenty games with at least three steals. As a rookie, he recorded two triple doubles and recorded a 5x4 game, the only player to do either in his class.

Marcus Smart on the other hand flashed his ability to play off of the ball last season on the Boston Celtics. Though not a phenomenal percentage overall in shooting, Marcus Smart flashed great abilities in catch and shoot situations, able to shoot 40% on corner threes. In addition, his large size at 6’4” 225 lbs allows for him to be a strong defender on either position, easily able to power through screens. Because of this, he will be able to nullify Klay Thompson who albeit is taller at 6’7”, only weighs 205 lbs.

Jerian Grant is the most dynamic scorer out of the three players, able to one of the most efficient pick and roll offenses in college, leading his team to 1.1 points per possession in the pick and roll, which is better than all NBA teams. In addition, he is a dynamic scorer in the open court , averaging 1.214 points in transition last season. Along with these attributes, Jerian Grant is both a phenomenal catch and shoot player and a phenomenal isolation scorer, averaging 1.188 PPP and 1.011 PPP respectively.

In addition one of CSF21’s backup Point-Guards, Caris LeVert is coming off of a complete fracture of his foot and is going into his senior season. In addition, though he has a reputation as an unselfish guard, his assist to turnover ratio is abysmal at 1.48. To compound off of this inability to create for others, he is a poor shooter off of the bounce, shooting 25% (27/186) from the field. He also has a slight build. Though he is 6’7, he is under 185 pounds, causing him to be both a poor defensive player and a poor scorer around the basket (as he only converted 50% of his lay-ups during his Junior season).

The Point Guard position is most certainly in this team's favour.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

At the shooting guard position, this truly hinges on whether you value the present or the future. Given the format of this draft, this should fall perfectly in my favour. Klay Thompson is an awesome shooter, there is absolutely no denying that, and his defense has improved considerably. That said, he will be well over thirty years old in five seasons, making him another thirty-five year old on the roster in the long run.

LaVine in contrast, will be the ages 25 and 30, meaning he will be completely in his prime. I am far from being done with the explanation on why (time constraint), but here is the picture of how dynamic he can become as a player.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHP1S_0Hcug[/youtube]

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fFgSPc88IA[/youtube]

He is a twenty year old with a 46" vertical and a wonderful shooting stroke. He has all the tools to be great.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

I will type up more in the morning, but in the mean time, here is a post on Shabazz, and why he is likely being horribly under-appreciated.

Shabazz Muhammad

Shabazz Muhammad's December

15 GP
28.7 MPG
6.9-13.9 FGM-FGA
.495 FG%
0.8-1.7 3PM-3PA
.480 3P%
3.6-4.7 FTM-FTA
.761 FT%
5.3RPG
1.5 APG
0.9 TOV
18.1 PPG

He was one of the 10 best post up players in the league in terms of PPP, OR% and TOV%. That's sustainable.

He had the lowest turnover percentage in the league among players that qualified, even at the tender age of twenty-two. In addition to playing this well, Shabazz actually endured daily acupuncture for almost two months during his best stretch of play.

An MRI taken Monday afternoon came back negative. Trainers have told Muhammad he can't injure himself any worse by playing.

Seriously, his foot was to the point of not being able to become worse, and he still posted those January statistics. He is an insane player.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qc2HaRgKPYs[/youtube]


Last season, he completely remolded his body, working with a man named Frank Matrisciano (this is an article that I wrote a year ago that I doctored up to explain this season)...

Why Shabazz?

(Minnesota Shooting Guard Shabazz Muhammed poses his results of two weeks of Chameleon Training.)

As you may or may not know, the Miami HEAT's newest young player Shabazz Muhammad has once again begun working with the famed "Hell's Trainer" Frank Matrisciano. As seen clearly above, the workouts, named "Chameleon Training" by the trainer himself, have been doing wonders for Muhammad's body.

Last season, Shabazz worked with Frank Matrisciano for three weeks alongside Power-Forward Anthony Bennett and veteran Ronnie Turiaf, putting the effort in to shed his "bust" label.

Who is the man that is helping mold these young players' bodies? Here are two fantastic articles on Frank Matrisciano and his roots. Business Insider describes Frank on a more personal level, while Men's Health covers what his workouts entail.

His intensity and workload is on a level that causes seven out of ten people to not return for a second session. Once working for the Memphis Tigers (UoM) Frank Matrisciano was fired by his own brother in law for refusing to lower the harshness of his workload. More on this story can be found at CBS Sports.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Rhg10_Ptkc[/youtube]
(Blake Griffin experiences the Trials of Hell 2011)

From helping Zach Randolph become an All-Star to taking Blake Griffin's athleticm to another level, Frank has quickly become an urban legend among players and coaches around the country. Mostly known for his secretive antics, such as wearing sun glasses and a bandanna to cover his face, Frank has helped many players in the NBA help achieve their goals. This is why HEAT fans should feel confident that Shabazz may one day reach the potential that was touted when he was in High-School. With his documented work ethic and Frank's never faulting energy, Shabazz will return this season as a whole new man.

Shabazz was the best offensive rebounding Small Forward in the league when he was healthy, absolutely destroying teams on the offensive glass.


Still not convinced? Read this wonderful article from Minnesota's own, Britt Robson.

I needed a truly dynamic scorer who was efficient off the ball, and as you see, Shabazz is absolutely remarkable in terms of efficiency and offensive rebounding. Over the course of the season, he shot 67.6 percent from within three feet of the basket and led the NBA in Points Per Possession. He got .541 points every time he touched the ball (930 times!)

Don't undersell Shabazz. No matter who you put Klay Thompson on, there is a major mismatch to be had when he becomes an older player.


______________________________________________________________________________________________________

By the way, here are some Enes Kanter statistics that are rather... shocking for a lack of a better phrase.


"Worst Defensive BPM by players 6'11" or taller (min. 5K minutes) since '73-74 "

Modern advanced stats, though, help quantify the defensive inadequacies of players such as Kanter with far greater precision than was previously possible. Without Real Plus-Minus (RPM), for instance, you wouldn’t know that Kanter had the worst on-court defensive influence of any center last season. And without SportVU player tracking data, you wouldn’t know Kanter allowed the highest field goal percentage at the rim of any qualified1 big man a year ago. The recent advent of deeper NBA data has made it tougher for poor defenders to hide their shortcomings.

Surprisingly (at least to me), Kanter’s offense also suffers on the sabermetric front: He doesn’t appear to help his teams score as efficiently as would be expected from his basic statistics. Only a few players have scored as much, and with as much efficiency,2 as Kanter has over the past three seasons, but it doesn’t seem to matter. During Kanter’s career, his teams have scored 1.5 fewer points per 100 possessions with him on the floor than without, and — perhaps not coincidentally — he had the second-worst offensive Box Plus/Minus (BPM) of any player in the aforementioned group, and the fifth-worst offensive RPM.

In his last season, his total real plus/minus he was -2.72 which was 340th in the entire league!

The year before with Utah, the Jazz were outscored 10.8 per 100 possessions with Enes Kanter on the floor, and 2.8 when he was off of it.

He is a good rebounder and has great footwork in his post, but he is quite possibly the worst defensive Centre of all-time.

Anthony Davis is truly an all-time great player, but the age of the players around him is a major, major concern that simply cannot be overlooked.

[ChicagoSportsFan21]

FYI: Nerlens No Ls (member on the waiting list) will replace Justwar for voting with him dropping out.

I don't have much time to rebuttal Domejandro points at this time, but if it's still going on later, I will. In the end, I think my team is better since I have PROVEN players who I know will be able to produce on the court while he has players who have POTENTIAL, but that doesn't mean they will PAN OUT. I have the BEST PLAYER on the floor (or in the game) in Anthony Davis who doesn't need much help. He single handed took his team to the playoffs this past season. Anthony Davis is going to be one of the best to ever play in the game! I think Butler, Thompson, Bledsoe, and Green will age well as the time goes by. There have been plenty of players who have been effective up to their mid 30s. Jackson is pretty underrated who can do it all. I think he will shine in Notre Dame with him being the man now there. Also, I have other options on my bench who will be able to take their place if needed (Terrence Jones, Otto Porter Jr) who will be in their prime. In conclusion, I know my team is better than Domejandro especially knowing that I have a mega superstar, one of a kind, and freak of nature in Anthony Davis who can do it all!

[ChicagoSportsFan21]

via PM:

Damecurry vs DroppinDimes 

Vote: Damecurry

Justwar vs PaKii94

Vote: PaKii94

ChicagoSportsFan21 vs Domejandro

Vote: ChicagoSportsFan21

Aruan135 vs DoubleHappiness

Vote: Aruan135

OFFICIAL VOTES (need 6 votes):
damecurry (7) vs. DroppinDimes (3)
Justwar (2) vs. PaKii94 (8)
ChicagoSportsFan21 (6) vs. Domejandro (4)
aruan135 (6) vs. DoubleHappiness (4)

And with that last vote for aruan135 and myself by Nerlens No Ls, Round 2 is over and we will be moving on to the next round finally (looking for a replacement for SimonFIsh currently with him not voting on any match-ups so far). Phew...you scared me there Domejandro, but Anthony Davis and the gang came threw in the end. Good effort from KAT/Simmons and the rest of the crew!

Round 3 participants-feel free to send in your write-up via PM if you like. I will make a new thread and post it sometime tomorrow (Tuesday).

Realgm NBA Futures Draft Round 3 (Semifinals) Match-Ups

damecurry vs. PaKii94
ChicagoSportsFan21 vs. aruan135

GOOD LUCK!

[damecurry]

Pretty shocked doublehappines lost this, I mean prime Giannis/Beal/Gobert is the best big 3 in this game, that group not only pairs incredibly well but could literally all be all-stars for a good portion of this game. He had some holes elsewhere but thought there were solid backup/rotation guys that had a skill which would fill in well for whomever they replaced. With that big 3, just surprised he's not in the semis.

[PaKii94]

Damn now it gets even harder.

[Domejandro]

Damn, I almost got it done, I should have not procrastinated, haha. Congrats man, best of luck winning it all! I will make sure to vote on the next match ups in the morning.