West Cross-Era Duos R1 - MadNESS vs. Snakebites*

[Fadeaway_J]

Here is a quick list of what you need in your writeup.

1. Specific years for each player on your team
2. Rotations and minutes for each player
3. Reasoning as to why your team will win and/or why people should vote for you.

Do not vote in this thread until both managers have submitted their writeups. Please ensure you give a rationale for your vote; votes with no explanation will not be counted.

If writeups aren't posted within 24 hours, we will vote solely based on the players they have drafted (and any rotations they have posted on their roster page).

**First to 3 votes advances.**

[MadNESS]

PG: James Harden (40) | Derrick White (8)
SG: Derrick White (24) | Thabo Sefolosha (24)
SF: Jimmy Butler (39) | Dennis Rodman (9)
PF: Shawn Kemp (34) | Dennis Rodman (14)
Cc: Kevin Garnett (40) | Dikembe Mutombo (8)



03’-04’ Kevin Garnett - 19.6 FGA
MVP | NBA 1 | NBA D 1 | All Star | DPOY (6)

17’-18’ Jimmy Butler - 15.6 FGA
MVP (10) | NBA D 2 | NBA 3 | All Star | DPOY (12)

16’-17’ James Harden - 18.9 FGA
All NBA 1 | MVP (2) | All Star | APG Champ

04’-05’ Dikembe Mutombo - 3.0 FGA
Enforcer | Shot Blocker

95’-96’ Shawn Kemp - 11.9 FGA
All NBA 2 | MVP (8) | All Star

11’-12’ Thabo Sefolosha - 3.7 FGA
3 & D Wing | 44% 3’s

93’-94’ Dennis Rodman - 3.7 FGA
MVP (11) | NBA D 2 | DPOY (6) | 6MOTY (6) RPG Champion

21-22’ Derrick White - 10.7 FGA
13/5/3/1/1 - 3 & D Guard - Glue Guy

Total: 87.1 | 88.0

Think Iverson’s 6ers team that went to the finals, but on steroids. Harden is Iverson. We then surround him with elite defenders (Butler, KG, Rodman, White, Deke, Thabo, Kemp), who are all good at their own games. KG is MVP KG. His mid range game was untouchable. Kemp and Him will be tough to defend. Butler as a 3rd option is crazy good. White fills the role as the off guard who can defend and shoot. Bench is loaded even though it’s low FGA’s, they all serve a great purpose. We can literally shut teams down. Harden and KG pick and roll and pick and pop (either way) will be elite. Just a tough nosed squad here.

Write Up:

Goodluck Snake. Been a while since we matched up.

Defense -

Butler on Magic, Harden on KCO, White on Drexler, KG on AD, Kemp on Marc. Rodman will see sometime on AD as well.
We think we have a great team defense around Harden, once that is centered on athletic ability and depth. We can switch in a lot of cases and we can defend the paint if Harden gets beat. We will hide Harden on the weakest offensive player at all times.

Offense -

Plan on running a lot of pick and rolls and pick and pops with Harden / KG and Harden / Kemp. Even with Harden, we still see a more free flowing offense that can half court and run when needed. We love the big man duo of Kemp and KG. Butler helps attacking the rim and multiple guys have really good midrange shooting. Harden, White and KG spread the floor.

Overall, I think team Ness matches up good against team Snakebites. We have good answers for his best players.

Vote Ness

[Snakebites]

89-90 Magic Johnson- 14.4 FGA
MVP, All NBA First
22/12/2, 39% 3pt in 3.5 Attempts, 62% TS, 8.9 VORP

20-21 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 7.6 FGA
10/3, 41% 3pt on 3.8 Attempts

19-20 Anthony Davis 17.7 FGA
All NBA First, All Defensive First, 2nd in DPOY Vote
26/9/3/2, 61% TS, 5.4 VORP, .250 WS/48

85-86 Michael Cooper 9.4 FGA
All Defensive 2nd
9/6/1, 39% 3pt on 2 att

18-19 Marc Gasol 11.0 FGA
14/8/4/1, 38% 3pt on 3.5 Att

03-04 James Posey 9.3 FGA
14/5/2, 39% 3pt on 3.5 Att

90-91 Clyde Drexler 16.3 FGA
All NBA Second
22/7/6/2, 6.4 VORP

15-16 Ed Davis 4.2 FGA
7/7, 62% TS

Total: 88/88 FGA

Starting Lineup: (please note this denotes offensive positions, defensive matchups will vary)

PG: Johnson (38)/Cooper (10)
SG: KCP (30)/Cooper (18)
SF: Drexler (37)/Posey (11)
PF: A. Davis (32)/Posey (16)
C: Gasol (34)/Davis (6)/E. Davis (8)

GL Ness

I think Magic is the best offensive engine in this game and that he’s got a really scary collection of weapons around him. My front court has enough size and defensive prowess to match his, and they’re both good shooters (AD in the mid range, Gasol from three) to stretch the defense. AD in particular is the perfect role man for a modern offense- great in the p/r and the p/p. Gasol spreads the floor while also himself serving as a great 2-man option. KCP is my floor spacing point of attack defender, and I’ve got Clyde Drexler as a perfect cutter in a fast paced offense- I always thought he’d fit extremely well into that scheme.

Generally we’ll go KCP on Harden, Drexler on Butler, Magic on young DJ White, AD on Kemp, and Gasol on KG. I generally like the way we match up here. I also think we have a clear offensive identity on offense and a formula that Magic is known to be extremely effective in. In the other side, while KG and Kemp are both effective role men for Harden, I think Harden operates better with more space than he’s really getting here.

Off the bench I think Mutombo and Rodman together is particularly problematic, as is Rodman at the 3 for nearly a 5th of the game.

Overall both teams are extremely talented but I think my fit is a bit crisper.

GL

[Fadeaway_J]

Ness has a lot of talent but it's not really an optimal team for Harden, especially during this phase where he was starting to play a more extreme style relying on spamming spread pick-and-roll. There just isn't enough "spread" to a team with Butler, Kemp, and pre-Boston White (whose jumper was extremely unreliable until the last couple of seasons), not to mention Mutombo and Rodman off the bench. I prefer Snake's build around Magic with AD and Clyde as running mates while KCP, Gasol, Coop, and Posey space the floor.

Vote: Snakebites

[Dr Positivity]

I think Magic/Davis/Drexler with spacing is a little too strong here. Having downgraded White hurts. Vote Snakebites.

[Larry_Russell]

I agree with Fade and Dr P.

Snake has a hell of a team here.

Vote Snakebites

[Fadeaway_J]

Snake advances

[MadNESS]

Good W snake. I drafted badly. You got a squad. Go get em!