Thanksgiving Leftovers Draft Semis - parsnips33 vs MadNess*

[durantbird]

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).

We'll be using a AI vote when a matchup seems stuck. AI vote counts for a single vote.

**First to 3 votes advances**

[MadNESS]

PG: James Harden (37) | Jimmy Butler (11)
SG: Jimmy Butler (29) | Matisse Thybulle (19)
SF: Kawhi Leonard (39) | PJ Tucker (9)
PF: Andrei Kirilenko (32) | Kevin Love (16)
Cc: Rudy Gobert (32) | Kevin Love (16)



18’-19’ Kawhi Leonard - 18.8 FGA
17’-18’ Jimmy Butler - 15.6 FGA
04’-05’ Andrei Kirilenko - 10.2 FGA
16’-17’ Rudy Gobert - 7.7 FGA
10’-11’ Kevin Love - 14.1 FGA
22’-23’ PJ Tucker - 3.0 FGA
20’-21’ Matisse Thybulle - 3.7 FGA
22’-23’ James Harden - 14.5 FGA

Total: 87.6 | 88.0

GL Parsnips

Offense: We have good balance throughout the line up. We have guys who can create their own shot in Harden, Butler, Kawhi, and Love. We have guys who can shoot and space in Harden, Kawhi and Love. We have a good lob catcher in Gobert. Overall we have guys that can exploit mismatches. He doesn't really have a big wing to defend Kawhi. Christie is more of a guard. We will exploit that match up as best we can. This should be Kawhi's series.

Defense: We have literally elite defenders to guard his best offensive players. Gobert is great for Embiid, with AK on the weakside help. We have Butler for Drexler. I couldn't think of a better Drexler defender. Overall our defense might be the best in the draft. Great team defense overall, and guys with the ability to switch, guys with the ability to shut their man down, and guys who are good in the passing lanes creating havoc.

Vote Ness

[parsnips33]

Will post writeup in the morning, sorry to hold things up

[durantbird]

20-21 Joel Embiid - 17.6 FGA
90-91 Clyde Drexler - 16.3 FGA
05-06 Rasheed Wallace - 13.3 FGA
02-03 Doug Christie - 7.0 FGA
09-10 Kyle Korver - 5.4 FGA
09-10 Deron Williams - 13.9 FGA
95-96 Toni Kukoc - 9.7 FGA
23-24 Keon Ellis - 4.1 FGA

Total: 87.3/88.0

Deron Williams (38) / Doug Christie (10)
Clyde Drexler (38) / Keon Ellis (10)
Doug Christie (26) / Kyle Korver (22)
Rasheed Wallace (20) / Toni Kukoc (28)
Joel Embiid (36) / Rasheed Wallace (12)

[parsnips33]

20-21 Joel Embiid - 17.6 FGA
90-91 Clyde Drexler - 16.3 FGA
05-06 Rasheed Wallace - 13.3 FGA
02-03 Doug Christie - 7.0 FGA
09-10 Kyle Korver - 5.4 FGA
09-10 Deron Williams - 13.9 FGA
95-96 Toni Kukoc - 9.7 FGA
23-24 Keon Ellis - 4.1 FGA

Total: 87.3/88.0

Deron Williams (38) / Doug Christie (10)
Clyde Drexler (38) / Keon Ellis (10)
Doug Christie (26) / Kyle Korver (22)
Rasheed Wallace (22) / Toni Kukoc (26)
Joel Embiid (38) / Rasheed Wallace (10)

Writeup:

Good luck DC, should be a good matchup!

We start out with an extremely well balanced and well-fitting starting 5. Sheed proved himself as an elite secondary rim protector on the championship Pistons, and here he's next to a behemoth in Embiid who is an elite rim protector in his own right. Christie (all D 1st team in the selected season) and Clyde give us a duo of lengthy athletic wings who can play extra aggressive knowing they've got twin towers behind them. Offensively, Deron Williams runs the show as an elite PNR maestro with really strong secondary playmaking (Christie around 5apg, Drexler around 6) and possibly the most versatile 7-foot scorer in league history as his running mate. You saw what he could do with Carlos Boozer, now imagine him with Embiid. Sheed is an elite screensetter in his own right and can space the floor (>5 3 pt attempts per game in the chosen season) to allow our main duo to go to work. In fact, my entire front court can credibly spread the floor for 48 minutes a game - which is a huge deal when our second option is prime Clyde Drexler. He can cut, post-up, attack off the dribble - all in wide open space and without needing to dominate the ball. Kukoc and Korver are elite role players off the bench and fit in perfectly with an Embiid centered team. Keon Ellis is a dog on defense and is shooting over 42% from 3 for his career, over 45% after being named a starter in the selected season. You might not be familiar with him, but I unfortunately had to watch him give Steph hell in the play-in game last year, and I haven't forgotten.

Offense will be the DWill Embiid 2 man game primarily. Attack Harden, force Gobert to come up and defend PNR/PNP. Obviously Butler/Kawhi/AK is formidable, so it's nice that my best offensive actions can target a weakspot in Harden, as well as pulling Rudy out of his comfort zone. When KLove is in, all the better. Defensively, we'll guard straight up.

[durantbird]

I'll go ahead and vote even though I'm on the other semis to try and get things going. Both teams have their advantages and disadvantages. MadNess has great defense although he's not very well suited to guard Deron. But I think the matchup for parsnips is less ideal on the side - I'm not in love with options against Butler Kawhi. He probably has slightly better spacing even though Christie and Embiid can be unstable from 3. Still I think MadNess overall is stronger and matches up better.

Vote MadNess

[DCasey91]

Vote Madness

While I do think there's overlap between the top, the top 3 is mighty strong. Solid frontcourt with a spacer/rebounder in Love. I just think the firepower is too much to overcome.

[Dr Positivity]

I prefer the balance of perimeter and frontcourt stars here compared to Harden, Butler and Kawhi sharing and there's enough talent that Embiid doesn't have to carry them. Vote parsnips.

[wackbone]

Even with some less than ideal years for some of Ness's guys, it's still a lot of firepower on the perimeter, and parsnips just doesn't have enough great perimeter defenders to cover each of them. Fairly simple explanation, but I think it gets to the point.

Vote: MadNESS

[parsnips33]

Good drafting Ness, happy to even get one vote tbh

[durantbird]

MadNess advances