Twist draft championship round

[CellarDoor]

Round robin. Need write-ups for each opponent. Feel free to use a general strategy and just address strengths/weaknesses to individual teams. All 3 judges vote, gm with the most votes overall wins.

[poopdamoop]

Just to clarify, its me, SS, and KGB right?

[CellarDoor]

Yep

[dockingsched]

what happened to this? i'm almost back from my trip and its still not over!

[CellarDoor]

That'd be a good question. I wanted to give some people some flexibility with it being summer and there being two write-ups necessary, but I didn't expect It'd take four days plus to get a write-up in.

[Teddy KGB]

sorry guys, been a bit busy due to summer holidays and can't right now since my IB results will be out in a few hours. Will get my writeups in tomorrow.

[poopdamoop]

Yeah same here, I've had some issues with my course selection and had to fly to Ontario to sort things out. I'll have mine done in a day or so as well.

[Sports Arsenal]

I will start mine tonight

[Sports Arsenal]

Man it wont let me scroll in the text box, Im trying to figure out how I am going to post my writeup

[poopdamoop]

Let me preface this by saying that both SS and KGB built great, great teams, and I wouldn't be shocked in the least if either one of them beat me.

POOPDAMOOP VS SHAQSUX

Williams (32)/Duhon (16)
Wade (39)/Parker (9)
Durant (35)/Deng (13)
Wallace (18)/Aldridge (30)
Jefferson (35)/O’Neal (13)

PG: No argument here, Deron definitely has the edge over Mo. However, in the one game they played against each other this season (terrible sample size, I know), Mo held his own and the Cavs won. Deron put up better stats (17/16, but on terrible percentages), but Mo scored more efficiently and filled his role as a complementary player than Deron did as a superstar. I’d imagine the same thing happening here, as Deron is certainly the better player and would have a better statline, but the rest of his teammates are overmatched talentwise, and he’s going up against another all-star PG who will destroy his team if left open. Off the bench, Fisher and Duhon are pretty similar players, both smart and under control, so they won’t have a big effect on the game.

SG: Again, this is pretty straightforward. Ginobili, though great when healthy, is no match for Wade, who is just better in every facet of the game besides long range shooting. Wade has the length and quickness to stay in front of Manu and contest even his sneakiest drives, and has the explosion to blow by Manu, who will get burned if he tries to resort to his gambling defense that worked in San Antonio. You can’t gamble against Dwyane Wade. Off the bench, JR Smith will likely put up lots of points and take too many shots to get them, as Parker can do a good job in 10-12 minutes putting pressure on Smith or Ginobili and make them settle for tough jumpers.

SF: Another big edge to my Cavs here, as Durant is a scoring threat many levels above Prince. While Prince may seem like the perfect defender for KD (long wingspan, smart contester, experienced), Durant has torched Prince the last couple of games (when he was finally playing his natural position), putting up 29 ppg on 23/40 shooting over two games. Again, this is a small sample size, but it shows that Durant can play against great defenders for a full game and still put up big numbers efficiently. On the flip side, Prince is not a good enough offensive player to really abuse Durant, who should be able to use his wingspan to contest shots very well. Luol Deng will again come off the bench for tough defense on Prince and can make him work by running off screens and moving without the ball, much like Durant does. Bruce Bowen isn’t even on an NBA roster right now, which should be an indication of how NBA GM think of him.

PF: This is where it gets interesting. SS’s team doesn’t have a dominant big man like my last two opponents, so Rasheed will lose some minutes to Aldridge, as his defense won’t be as necessary against Camby or Scola. Though Luis is a crafty player, he’s just not good enough to anchor an offense down low, and although he can get good looks off the pick and roll and post up some, he’s always had Yao next to him to help take the load off. With Bynum, Camby, or Nene alongside him instead, I don’t think Scola will be quite as effective, both in terms of spacing and defensive coverage. Aldridge is, imo, very similar to Scola, sacrificing a bit of rebounding for better scoring. Camby will be a hassle defensively because of his length and shotblocking ability, but he’s much less of an offensive threat, whereas Sheed plays more fundamental, straight up defense and can still space the floor. This position should be a tightly contested one throughout the series.

C: I think I have the edge here again, with Jefferson going up against Bynum and Nene. Neither of those two are studs offensively, and although they certainly have the bulk to bang with Al, they’re still fairly young and prone to biting on pump fakes and being fooled by good footwork. Jefferson should be able to score efficiently no matter who is guarding him, and can always kick it out to my perimeter players if he’s doubled. O’Neal will come in off the bench to help anchor my defense and put up some garbage points off rebounds.

Overall, I think I have the edge in every position save point guard, and Deron Williams isn’t quite good enough to defeat an entire team by himself, especially one with advantages at every other position. With Kobe and LeBron eliminated, Wade is the best player in this tournament, and flanked by deadly scorers, will be too much to handle for Shaq’s team.
Cavs in 6

[poopdamoop]

POOPDAMOOP VS TEDDY KGB

Williams (34)/Duhon (14)
Wade (39)/Parker (9)
Durant (34)/Deng (14)
Wallace (16)/Aldridge (28)/O’Neal (4)
Jefferson (35)/O’Neal (13)

PG: Like my last matchup, Mo will be at a disadvantage against Tony Parker, but has all the qualities necessary to still put up big numbers. Parker will definitely put up great stats of his own and likely outplay Mo over the course of the series, but he’s not a good enough defender to shut down Mo, one of the best shooters in the league. Parker is not really a great help defender either, so if he tries to help on penetration from Wade or Durant or double down on Jefferson Mo will be left wide open for the easy trey. Off the bench, Duhon will be able to provide smart play and solid defense against Rafer Alston or Parker, and can hopefully slow them down enough to tilt the point guard battle in my favour. That’s unlikely though, but as long as Mo hits his open shots and stays in front of Parker and forces him into threes and long twos, the difference will somewhat be negated.

SG: I love both Ben Gordon and Stephen Jackson, but Wade has a huge edge on both of them. Gordon is too small and Jackson too slow laterally to stay in front of Wade and contest his shots, whereas both of those guys are prone to taking some pretty terrible shots early in the clock. And for all the talk of Jackson being a great shooter, he only shoots 34% from three, a whole two percent more than Dwyane Wade. Anthony Parker can come off the bench and hit open threes and play solid defense for a few minutes, providing valuable rest for Wade and keeping him fresh to dominate in the fourth. Both Gordon and Jackson are great scorers and will still put up points, but Wade will far outplay them.

SF: This would be a great matchup to see in the playoffs. I’d give Anthony the slight edge over Durant, but they have put up great numbers every time they play each other (including Durant’s first season where he was playing out of position). I don’t see either guy stopping the other, so I’ll try to help occasionally with Wade to throw Melo different looks and hopefully cause some turnovers, since he’s not a great passing threat yet. Durant should do a great job of spacing the floor and scoring in bunches, and if he can equal Carmelo’s production, I’d be very happy with that. Deng should come off the bench and play solid defense, as he’s strong enough to handle Melo in the post. Rudy Fernandez is a shooting guard, so I don’t know why my opponent is playing him at small forward (going by his last writeup), but he doesn’t have the size to match up against either Durant or Deng, so I will look to take advantage of that. Overall, I would consider this position a wash, as well as the most compelling matchup of the series.

PF: Another no brainer. Kevin Garnett will definitely outplay Rasheed and Aldridge, but both of those guys have the length and quickness to force him into contested long jumpers. At this point in his career, Garnett is a 2nd or 3rd option offensively, so I don’t think he’ll have too many opportunities and will mostly be used as a high post passer and spot up shooter, with some occasional postups. Sheed played well against him head to head in the 08 playoffs, though KG clearly played better overall, but all I’m asking Wallace to do is focus his energy defensively, and I think the Garnett of this season is a fairly big drop-off from last year due to his deteriorating health and loss of athleticism, as evidenced by his declining rebound numbers. Both Wallace and Aldridge have enough range to force Garnett out of the paint, and while he’s definitely comfortable guarding jumpshooters, anything that gives Wade and Durant more room to penetrate will be deadly. Paul Millsap is a solid player and will get his points off hustle plays, but Aldridge is the far superior shot creator and can pull Millsap out of his comfort zone and take advantage of him outside. Overall, Garnett is still good enough to win matchup handily, but his defense will be somewhat neglected guarding my jumpshooters and will leave the paint open for my other guys.

C: I have a big advantage here, as Jefferson is simply a better player than either Bogut or Murphy. Neither one of those guys can guard him one on one, especially Murphy, and Jefferson will take advantage of this mismatch as much as possible. It’s possible that my opponent sends Garnett over to play Al, but that would leave Bogut or Murphy guarding much faster players outside. Murphy may cause problems with his long range shooting, but he won’t play enough minutes and when he’s on the floor, two of Wallace, Aldridge, and O’Neal will be on the court at the same time so that both Murphy and Garnett have long, athletic defenders on them. If Murphy plays a lot, I’ll have whoever he is guarding go right at him and abuse his horrible defense. Bogut is a solid passer and a quality center, but his man defense isn’t good enough to stay with Big Al. O’Neal will come in off the bench for defensive purposes and anchor my defense for 10-15 minutes, helping stop penetration. On the whole, I think I have a large advantage here.

This will certainly be a tough matchup, but I think I can pull it out because of my offensive firepower and versatility. I have the best player in the series, two studs offensively to complement him, and two role players that fill those roles better than almost anyone else (perimeter shooting from Mo and defense from Sheed). KGB has a ton of talent on his team as well, but he has no backup small forward, unless he plays S-Jax there, and poor defense from his wing players, which is bad when you’re matching up against two of the top 10 scorers in the game. If Durant can match or at least come close to equalling Carmelo’s production, if Mo can hit open threes and play off Parker to let him shoot, and if Rasheed and LaMarcus can contest Garnett’s shots and pull him out of the paint on defense, my big advantages (Wade and Jefferson) should be able to help me pull out the win.

Cavs in 7

[CellarDoor]

So am I to assume the other participants are forfeiting?

[bringbackhoffa]

come on guys lets finish this off. if poopdamoop wants to go up against some1 i am willing to bring back Nash,Kobe,Pierce,Amare,Biendrins from the dead to take him on..lol.

[Sports Arsenal]

It wont let me scroll in the text box... When I get to the next line after the text box is full it just auto scrolls back up.

[poopdamoop]

It wont let me scroll in the text box... When I get to the next line after the text box is full it just auto scrolls back up.

Try writing it in Word or something, then just copy and paste it

[dockingsched]

congrats poopdamoop!

lol

[poopdamoop]