RealGM

Post your writeups here.

Please post...

-Starting roster
-Current roster
-Salaries for at least 3 years
-All draft picks and cash amount
-Why you think you did the best job

Due Feb 7th

Salaries:

Blue - Team Option
Green - Player Option
Red - Qualifying Offer
Asterisk - Not On Roster
Grey - Unguaranteed
Mauve - Early Termination

Old Roster:

Parker/Ford/Joseph
Manu/Anderson/Neal/Green
Jefferson/Leonard
Blair/Splitter
Duncan/Bonner

New Roster:





PG: Brandon Jennings (34) / Beno Udrih (10) / Scott Machado (2) / Jordan Taylor (2)
SG: Tony Allen (30) / Stephen Jackson (18) / Wayne Ellington (0)
SF: Kevin Martin (32) / Marcus Morris (8) / [Stephen Jackson] (8) / Josh Childress (0)
PF: Zach Randolph (36) / Anthony Tolliver (6) / [Patrick Young] (6)
Cc: Joakim Noah (34) / Nazr Mohammad (0) / Patrick Young (14)

Picks:

2013 SAS 1st
2013 HOU 2nd
2013 SAC 2nd
2014 HOU 1st
2014 SAS 1st
2014 MEM 2nd
2014 WAS 2nd
2015 SAS 1st
2015 SAS 2nd

Cash:

+$7,000,000

TPE's:

$4,434,347



----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Writeup:

Before

The old Spurs had a core of Parker (29), Manu (34), Jefferson (31) and Duncan (35). They also had a few young guys that they worked in the rotation with Blair, Neal, Leonard, Splitter and Green. Then they had a few role players like Bonner and Ford, and that was the team.

The Spurs didn't have a ton wrong with their team, I mean, TP is playing well (18/8/3), Leonard is showing promise (7/5/1/1 in 24 MPG) and they are 3rd in the West. However, Duncan is 35 and ready to retire, whether that is after 2012, 2013 or 2014, no one knows, but it is coming soon. Manu has also said he will retire after 12/13 season, and he also has injury concerns. Parker can't carry this team forever.

As I mentioned, they did have young players, but nothing to build around. Blair is a hustle big, and while talented, not really much more than a 2nd/3rd best big on a good team. Leonard is looking good this year, but will play a Gerald Wallace role in the future, a rebounder/defender type with a bit of offense here and there. Neal and Anderson both are decent playing off-ball, but neither one will ever be a go-to-guy.

Overall, this team was playing well (mostly due to TP, and Pop's coaching) and had a decent balance of youth to experience. However, of their 4 player core, 2 are to retire in coming years (Manu and Duncan), one is on a nasty, long-term contract (Jefferson, maybe a future victim of amnesty) and the last was the one highly productive core player in his prime (Parker). By the time any of the prospect develop, most of the core will be gone or too old to be highly effective, and the old Spurs just didn't have anyone to carry the team in a few years.

Now

We have a core that can turn young or experienced, with the experienced players playing more minutes, and the young guys learning.

We really feel we can compete for the title this year. Jennings is having a break out year (20/5/3 on 44 FG%, playing with crap around him) to hold down the PG spot. On the wings, we have tremendous balance. KMart is 20/3/3 on good shooting, to help score the ball and space the floor. Tony Allen, statistically, is one of the best defenders in the league, and he can almost anchor a defense from the SG spot. Stephen Jackson is a wild card that we think can produce for us. He is in a bad spot in MIL, and we feel that with defenses focusing on Zbo, Jennings and Martin, he will have a good shot to be effective. Morris will also get a few minutes to help the 2nd unit with scoring. Our bigs include a top 7 C in Noah (11.5/11.0/3.4/1.4 in last 8 games), a legit 1st option in Zbo (20/12 last year, 22/11 last year playoffs), a high potential, young big in Young and a few vets in Nazr and Tolliver. We feel that our offense, with Jennings, Zbo, Martin leading the way (and Jackson, Morris, Udrih, Noah contributing as well), we will be able to make a strong playoff run and put pressure on opposing defenses. On defense, we have a very good anchor in Noah who will set the tone for us. Allen is a top perimeter defender, and Jackson can be when motivated (which he should be as we should see success). Also can't forget that we have a top coach in Popavich that will lead us and keep us competitive.

What makes my team unique is that we will be major contenders one year, and can have a huge youth movement the next. We have over 30M in EXP, so our payroll will go down to 45M in 2013. We will re-up Jennings, maybe Allen too, otherwise let the rest go. We can then trade Zbo and/or Noah around draft time for top picks, prospects and cap room. After a good playoff run, they should have good trade value. Then, just one year after having a sound, win now core, we have a core of Jennings/Young/Morris/stuff from Zbo and Noah/Allen/one of our 2nd round pick PGs.

Misc.

-Increased cash from 0M to 7M
-7 picks in 2013 and 2014 (3 1sts)
-Payroll of 75M this year, 45M next

Overall

Overall we feel we did the best job because we made this team better now and in the future. I feel this team has an equal or better chance to win the 2013 Title then the old team. I also think it has a lot more flexibility in terms of salary and age groupings. Plus, down the line the old team had a core of Blair/Neal/Leonard, I have Young/Morris/Jennings, better trade pieces and more picks.

NOH

Starting Roster

Jarret Jack
Eric Gordon/DaJuan Summers/Marco Belinelli
Trevor Ariza/A. Aminu
Carl Landry.Jason Smith
Emeka Okafor/Gustavo Ayon

New Roster


Depth Chart

Point Guard Mike Conley/Mike Bibby
Shooting Guard Landry Fields/Shannon Brown/Lazar Hayward/Larry Hughes
Small Forward Wilson Chandler/Carlos Delfino
Power Forward Lamarcus Aldridge/Juwan Howard
Center Andrew Bogut/Aaron Gray/Nenad Kristic




Salaries
LaMarcus Aldridge $12,872,000
Wilson Chandler $13,500,000
Andrew Bogut $13,000,000
Landry Fields $5,000,000
Jason Kidd $3,000,000
Shannon Brown $854,000
Juwan Howard $854,000
Aaron Gray $854,000
Mike Bibby $854,000
Lazar Hayward $1,174,080
Carlos Deflino $854,000
Larry Hughes $854,000

total: $59,363,180


- 4.5 million (Cash)

Gameplan

We will run the team similar to how MEM runs theirs. Two elite bigs that can score in iso, postup and P^R, P^P situations. LMA is our primary offensive weapon and we will feed him the ball at every chance. Our wings are primarily spot up shooters that provide spacing for our bigs and we will win games based on elite spacing, defense and post play.

Defensively we have top tier defenders at every position. Conley is averaging 2.5 stls the last time I checked and is a solid man defender. Fields is a great defender as is Chandler. LMA is the best star defender at his position, he is long as hell and is a smart rotational defender. Bogut is a top 3 defensive anchor.

Why we should win

We started out with very little, basically Gordon (who is oft injuried and not playing up to potential in NOH) and our 1st along with the MIN 1st. We turned that into a viable playoff team that is quite young at all starting positions and we will build the bench up going forward.

Sac Kings (WORK IN PROGRESS)

STARTING ROSTER
PG: Tyreke Evans | Jimmer Fredette | Isaiah Thomas
SG: Marcus Thornton | Francisco Garcia
SF: John Salmons | Travis Outlaw | Donte Green | Tyler Honeycutt
PF: Jason Thompson | Chuck Hayes | J.J. Hickson
C: DeMarcus Cousins | Hassan Whiteside

CURRENT ROSTER
PG: Brandon Knight | Daniel Gibson | Isaiah Thomas
SG: DeMar Derozan | Marcus Thornton| Jordan Crawford
SF: Michael Beasley | Alonzo Gee | Terrence Ross
PF: David Lee | Jared Sullinger | Samardo Samuels
C: Andre Drummond | Jordan HIll | Semih Erden

DRAFT RIGHTS:
SG Evan Fournier (Signed extension with Poiters through 2013)

CASH:
$5,000,000

DRAFT PICKS
2013 1st RND* | 2013 1st RND (GSW) | 2013 1st RND (CHI)
2014 1st RND | 1st RND (CHA) | 1st RND (NOH) | 2014 1st (PHI) | 2nd RND (GSW)
2015 1st RND | 1st RND (NOH)
2016 1st RND
2017 1st RND
*NOTE: 1st through 13 is protected, otherwise pick goes to Cleveland Cavaliers


WHY I SHOULD WIN
We had some young talent on this team at the beginning (Cousins, Evans) but not much after that. We went from a perpetual lottery team to a team with all the potential in the world. We ended up with the #2 and #4 overall picks in the 2012 draft in Andre Drummond and Jared Sullinger, a front-court that will dominate for years to come. An athletic PG in Brandon Knight and talented wings in DeRozan and Beasley. We also developed a nice bench with a mix of young vets and prospects. Looking to the future we are in a prime position to keep a high level of talent with six 1st round picks in the next two years and roster full of tradable assets.

MIAMI HEAT

Final Roster
Teague (28) / Sessions (20) / Cole
Harden (32) / Korver (16) / J. Hamilton
LBJ (36) / Battier (12) / D. Cook
Love (34) / Collison (14) / Ilyasova
Gortat (32) / Valanciunas (16) / Ezeli

In practice bench minutes would vary quite a bit by matchups and game situation; there are thirteen rotation quality guys here and Cole, Cook, and Ilyasova would all get minutes in appropriate circumstances.

Starting Roster
Chalmers / Cole
Wade / M. Miller / J. Jones
LBJ / Battier / T. Harris
Bosh / Haslem / Howard
Anthony / Curry / Pittman / Gladness

Comments

The quality of that roster should speak for itself, so let me just make a few points.

(1) Starting lineup: Here’s the current PER rank of each starter at his position, original lineup vs. where I ended up:



The huge upgrade at center is of course the main story, but Love for Bosh is also a significant improvement, and PG is stronger as well. And, while no one wants to lose Dwayne Wade, James Harden is a good a replacement as you could ask - and, as noted below, seven years younger.

(2) The bench is significantly deeper and better, particularly among the big men, where the current' Heat's glaring weakness has been replaced by an outstanding prospect in Valanciunas, one of the league's classic glue guys (and +/- star) in Collison, and a fine shooter and rebounder in Ilyasova.

PF/C: Valanciunas, Collison and Ilyasova vs. Haslem, Curry, & Howard
SG/SF: Battier, Korver & Cook vs. Battier, Miller, James Jones
PG: Sessions & Cole vs. Cole

(3) And the big one: age. The team is younger as well as better. Five years from now, the real Heat will be a team in decline, and the team I’ve constructed should be at its peak - so we've got a legitimate shot at not just a championship or two, but a real dynasty.

(4) And one more - brought the Heat ($78M in committed salaries for 2012-13, with less than a full roster) under the luxury tax line.



Salaries:


Draft picks:
2013 - None
2014 - Miami 1st, 2nd
2015 - Miami 2nd (1st to Cleveland, top 10 protected)

Portland

Starting roster:
PG: Raymond Felton / Nolan Smith / Armon Johnson
SG: Wesley Matthews / Jamal Crawford / Elliot Williams
SF: Gerald Wallace / Nicolas Batum / Luke Babbitt
PF: LaMarcus Aldridge / Craig Smith / Chris Johnson
Ce: Marcus Camby / Kurt Thomas / Greg Oden

Current roster:
PG: Kemba Walker / Delonte West / Damian Lillard
SG: Nick Young / Francisco Garcia / Elliot Williams
SF: Kawhi Leonard / C.J. Miles / Omri Casspi
PF: Tyrus Thomas / Brandon Bass / Jason Smith
Ce: Enes Kanter / Chris Johnson / Kosta Koufos

Salaries:


Draft Picks:
2013 Milwaukee Bucks 1st
2013 New York Knicks 1st
2013 Washington Wizards 2nd
2013 Houston Rockets 2nd
2013 New Jersey Nets 2nd
--------------------------------------------
2014 New Jersey Nets 2nd
2014 Los Angeles Clippers 2nd
--------------------------------------------
2015 Sacramento Kings 2nd
2015 Portland TrailBlazers 2nd

Cash:
-$5 Million

Comments:
Really don't think I did the BEST job, but did a decent one going from one potential All-Star in LaMarcus Aldridge to a solid young core in Kemba Walker, Nick Young, Kawhi Leonard, and Enes Kanter with loads of cap-space to move forward with.

Position Changes:
PG: Raymond Felton/Nolan Smith/Armon Johnson -> Kemba Walker/Delonte West/Damian Lillard
Not much of a huge change, but there's a chance Kemba could surpass Felton (especially with how he's been playing). Delonte West is a sure thing, whether at PG or SG. Nolan Smith is unproven. Damian Lillard has a chance to be a PURE PG that everyone wants to have, whereas Armon is D-League level.

SG: Wesley Matthews/Jamal Crawford/Elliot Williams -> Nick Young/Francisco Garcia/Elliot Williams
No doubt this is a bit of a downgrade. Matthews and Crawford combo is pretty good, but Nick Young is becoming a legit scoring threat. And Garcia's shooting isn't something you should slouch on.

SF: Gerald Wallace/Nicolas Batum/Luke Babbitt -> Kawhi Leonard/C.J. Miles/Omri Casspi
It was not known whether would stay with Portland or not anyway, and the same with Batum. Since we decided to rebuild, we got a younger version of Crash in Kawhi Leonard. Miles and Casspi are both young serviceable players, Miles with his high energy and Casspi with his shooting.

PF: LaMarcus Aldridge/Craig Smith -> Tyrus Thomas/Brandon Bass/Jason Smith
The biggest downgrade here. LMA was our best player, but had no consistent depth. Thomas is a very athletic defender, and Bass is a solid player whether starting or coming off the bench. Smith has shown a lot of production as well as a scorer and rebounder. Also, Thomas' contract comes off the books right before any big time player of mine will need an extension. So it helps me cap-wise.

C: Marcus Camby/Greg Oden/Kurt Thomas/Chris Johnson -> Enes Kanter/Chris Johnson/Kosta Koufos
Even though Camby can still defend and rebound at a high level, we brought in a young player who has shown A LOT of promise in Kanter. It's unknown whether Oden will play or not so why take the chance? Although it was the D-League; Chris Johnson was still the most impressive defensive player. He will be given enough minutes to show what he's really capable of. Koufos is also a nice backup to have at C.

Starting Depth Chart:
C- Mozgov, Anderson, Koufos
PF - Nene, Harrington, Faried
SF - Gallinari, Brewer, Carroll
SG - Afflalo, Fernandez, Hamilton
PG - Lawson, Miller

Final Depth Chart:
D. Harris/ I. Smith/ A. Law/ T. Taylor*
J. Johnson/ J. Richardson
R. Jefferson/ J. Howard/ K. Joseph*
Nene/ A. Harrington
A. Beidrins/ M. Okur/ C. Wilcox/ B. Miller


Salaries:
J. Johnson - $19,742,645 / $21,446,718 / $23,180,790 / $24,894,863
Nene - $13,000,000 / $13,000,000 / $13,000,000 / $13,000,000
A. Beidrins - $9,000,000 / $9,000,000
D. Harris - $8,500,000
A. Harrington - $6,687,400 / $7,148,600 / $7,609,800
R. Jefferson - $10,164,000 / $11,046,000
J. Richardson - $6,204,250 / $6,601,125
M. Okur - $5,000,000 / $5,000,000 / $5,250,000 / $5,250,000
A. Law - $854,389
J. Howard - $854,389
C. Wilcox - $854,389
B. Miller - $854,389
I. Smith - $854,389
*K. Joseph - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)
*T. Taylor - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)

Totals - $83,112,823 / $67,854,568* / $50,391,715 * / $37,894,863*
* totals do not include rookies


Future Draft Picks:
2013 - DEN 2nd (top 40)*, GS 2nd, POR 2nd (top 40)
2014 - DEN 2nd*
2015 - DEN 1st, LAC 2nd (top 55)
2016 - DEN1st, DEN 2nd

Cash: $737,805

Why I think I should win:
- i don't. for as much as i had hoped to do with this team, i think the better result would've been to keep the team as it was and do minor tweaking. not really a good thing in this game, but the RL Nuggets are a good team. with that said, i still think my team could at least make it past the first round in the playoffs, assuming they aren't in 7th or 8th. not a great job, but not horrible.

Houston Rockets:

Original Roster:
PG: Kyle Lowry / Goran Dragic / Jonny Flynn
SG: Kevin Martin / Courtney Lee / Terrence Williams
SF: Chandler Parsons / Chase Budinger
PF: Luis Scola / Patrick Patterson / Marcus Morris
C: Samuel Dalembert / Jordan Hill / Hasheem Thabeet / Jeff Adrien

Salary - $57,266,790 - $58,503,617 - $22,453,744

New Roster:
PG: John Wall / Kirk Hinrich / Earl Watson
SG: Gerald Henderson / Courtney Lee / Malcolm Lee
SF: Danilo Gallinari / Jan Vesely
PF: Tristan Thompson / Dante Cunningham / Trey Thompkins
C: Brook Lopez / Nikola Pekovic / Greg Stiemsma

Salary - $59,512,535 - $62,878,857 - $43,803,320

Salaries:
Brook Lopez(15,000,000), (15,675,000), (16,350,000), (17,025,000)
Danilo Gallinari($10,000,000), ($10,750,000), ($11,556,250), ($12,422,968), ($13,354,690)
John Wall($5,915,880), ($7,459,925), ($9,697,902)
Courtney Lee($5,000,000), ($5,375,000), ($5,778,125), ($6,211,484)
Kirk Hinrich($5,000,000), ($5,000,000), ($5,150,000), ($5,350,000)
Gerald Henderson($3,101,327), ($4,267,426)
Tristan Thompson($3,794,240), ($4,062,000), ($5,138,430), ($6,777,589)
Jan Vesely($3,202,920), ($3,340,920), ($4,236,287), ($5,651,206)
Nikola Pekovic($3,000,000), ($3,000,000)
Dante Cunningham($2,090,000), ($2,180,000)
Greg Stiemsma($1,029,389)
Earl Watson($854,289)
Malcolm Lee($762,195), ($884,293), ($1,123,163)
Trey Thompkins($762,195), ($884,293), ($1,123,163)

*Red - QO
**Blue - Team option
****Green - ETO/player option

Cash: -$4.9m

Draftpicks and Draft rights held:
2012 - #44(Nemanja Nedovic)
2013 - Houston 1st(if conveyed in 2012, or in top 14)
2014 -
2015 - Houston 1st(if conveyed in 12,13, or 14, or in top 14), Houston 2nd, LAC 2nd



Why I think I did a good job(I don't want to say why I think I should win, it sounds arrogant, lol).
Houston was a mediocre team, stuck in no-mans land, high paid guys who aren't stars in Martin and Scola, a PG who was playing at an all-star level early this year(has dropped down again now), and no real youth on the team. I decided to give Houston a legit rebuild. I had to tank right away in order to receive my pick(was traded with lottery protections) and then ended up moving the pick for talent later on.

With Wall - Gallinari - Lopez we have a very nice big 3. Wall is in the mold of Rose / Westbrook with his size and he might be the fastest player end to end in the league. In Washington he is struggling with his shot, but we feel with more options around him, he will flourish without as much pressure.

Positional Breakdowns:
PG: Lowry / Dragic / Flynn <<< Wall / Hinrich / Earl Watson
Lowry started the year well, but has fallen off lately, Dragic is a very nice backup, but he was a UFA and Jonny Flynn is among the worst players in the league.

John Wall has top 10 player potential with amazing athleticism, size, and he's a true point guard who will still light you up for big points. Hinrich is a solid veteran for our young team, battle tested, good on defense, limits mistakes and is a solid shooter. Earl Watson is also a nice veteran who is playing very well for Utah this season(5/5 in small minutes on career high 47% shooting)

SG: Kevin Martin / Courtney Lee / Terrence Williams < Gerald Henderson / Courtney Lee / Malcolm Lee
Kevin Martin has been known as a good scorer over his career, but he has no handles, is weak, and relies on constant pump fakes to try to get to the free throw line, rockets fans hate him, and then add on that he's overpaid and might be the worst defender in the league...and we feel very confident we upgraded here.

Gerald Henderson is an emerging talent. He's got solid handles to create and a great mid-range shot, his 3 point shot is not very good yet, but he's shown signs of improvement. The thing we like most is that Henderson plays fantastic defense, and has superb athleticism as well. Courtney Lee is now re-signed to a very nice contract, and Malcolm Lee has received high praise from Adelman even though he tore his knee up early on. He shows that he has great athleticism and defense, and comes from a pedigree of great guards at UCLA the last few seasons.

SF: Chandler Parsons / Chase Budinger <<<<<<<<<< Danilo Gallinari / Jan Vesely
Parsons is a person everyone likes. Plays defense, rebounds, hustles and is smart, but he is a terrible FT shooter, and doesn't have much potential. Budinger is a decent option to score off the bench but he was a top 5 WORST defender in the league last season in man to man defense.

Gallinari has blossomed into a possible all-star this season. His PER ranks 5th amongst SF's, and this is with his 3 point shot not falling this season,he's still remained very efficient(top 15 in TS%, and 7th in ORTG) he's also showing off his passing skills this season(nearly doubled his ast%), and he's proving that he is a very good defender(leads Denver in DWS, 9.2PER against per48 at SF). Vesely is a top 10 pick, who has struggled early, but he's on a team with Wall where it is just a bad environment. They have a lot of young players with low BBIQ(Nick Young, Crawford, McGee, Blatche) who think they can score at any time, with almost no veteran presence on the team. Vesely is very athletic and big for the SF spot, we think he will really excel in transition off the bench for us and can be mentored along by our stable veterans.

PF: Luis Scola / Patrick Patterson / Marcus Morris < Tristan Thompson / Dante Cunningham / Trey Thompkins
While we lost good players right now, we also shave off salary and get a top 5 pick with great athleticism. Scola is a solid PF, but he isn't very efficient, plays weak defense(especially against stretch 4's), is getting older, and he's ugly as hell. Patrick Patterson has solid potential, but he's not going to be a big time player in this league, he plays good defense at times and has an okay jumper but he tries to score more then he should. Marcus Morris(as much as it hurts me to say as a KU fan), is a very limited player for the NBA, he's a tweener(3/4), and not in the good sense. He isn't very athletic for the 3, and too small to be a consistent 4. He has solid passing skills and is smart, but he's been pretty bad this year.

Tristan Thompson is someone who most people think isn't a good player, just because all these "Draft experts" said he was drafted too high. But in his draft workouts he played Derrick Williams to a draw in every phase and showed that he has a very high motor to go with his great length and athleticism. He's shown with his rebounding and defense he will be a great fit with Brook Lopez. Dante Cunningham is a good rotational player. He works hard, hustles, rebounds, plays defense, and on offense he knows his limitations, and really only shoots that mid-range jumper that he's so good at(right around 45% from 16-23feet for his career).

C: Samuel Dalembert / Jordan Hill / Hasheem Thabeet / Jeff Adrien <<<<<Brook Lopez / Nikola Pekovic / Greg Stiemsma

Dalembert is a journeyman center, who was always considered, overpaid, and with a very low BBIQ, no post game and overrated on defense while still being a good shotblocker and rebounder. Hill is a bust who had his team option declined, THabeet a bigger bust, and Adrien is a scrub.

Lopez is a great young center who has a very diverse offensive game. He can beat you in the post or spot up with the mid-range jumper and he is a decent passer as well. People right away say he's a terrible rebounder, but that was just last season(when he was struggling with a shoulder injury according to many nets fans), both years before that he average 8 and 9 rebounds and his rebound % has been comparable to Amare Stoudemire most of his career, who is a capable rebounder. On defense he's still coming along, but he's showing signs of playing defense now that Avery Johnson is there, and he has always shown that he's a good shotblocker. Pekovic, is a monster in the paint. 6'11 / 290pounds of muscle and he's just a goon. 10/5 on 60% for the year(15/10 his last 5) he's an insane offensive rebounder(leading the league at 21%, next highest is 16%), he posses soft hands, good feet, and a nice touch around the basket.

I believe I should be ranked highly because I think I've improved every position on the Rockets, either right now or in the long-term. We have a team that has a good defensive player at every spot, and contributes on offense as well. We added a ton of athleticism to a team that had very little as well. This team got a true rebuild that it sorely needed and will be a lot more exciting to watch.

work in progress.....



LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
jjbail10@yahoo.com
AIM: The SamBone

REAL LIFE STARTING POINT
PG: CP3 / M.Williams / Bledsoe
SG: Billups / Foye
SF: C.Butler / Gomes / Leslie
PF: Blake Griffin / Evens / Thompkins
C: D.Jordan / Cook


CURRENT ROTATION:
PG: CP3 / A.Miller / R.Jackson
SG: K.Thompson / R.Williams / Lamb
SF: Crash / Pietrus / W.Barton
PF: Blake Griffin / Blair / L.Allen / K.Jones
C : D.Jordan / (Blair)

SALARY:


CASH:
+ $2 mil

DRAFT PICKS:
2013 NJ 1st (most likely #1)
2013 PHX 1st (top 5 pick)
2013 LAC 1st
2014 LAC 1st
2015 NO 2nd
2016 LAC 1st

WHY I SHOULD WIN
I continued the RL teams plan to build around the 2 superstars. Unlike others who trade off, I kept my core together. I made them a more conventional team by actually adding SGs and upgrading the SF spot, bench and defense.

I am trying to make that next step now, but am still set up for the future, and also not that I have 2 picks that could both end up being in the top 3 in the upcoming draft.

Gerald Wallace is the perfect fit for my core of CP, Blake and DeAndre. He is a lock down defender, and a great rebounder and plays unselfish. His skills are ideal for my team.

Replacing the out of position Billups / Foye duo with sharp shooters Klay Thomson (shooting 45% from 3) and Reggie Williams (a top shooter in NBA, who just returned from knee surgery and dropped 21 in his 1st start back) is also a HUGE improvement

The weakness of the real life Clippers is the lack of a bench, mo is really the only player they have and we all know his issues. Besides my extra SG, my bench has DeJuan Blair as our 3rd big. He is a top notch defender and rebounder and is a HUGE upgrade over what I started with. Andre Miller is the best backup PG in the game, and his vet leadership is a perfect fit. Pietrus will be a key role player in our rotation bringing great defense and shooting.

Kids: I also have upgraded the prospects that this team has, Reggie Jackson is having a solid rookie season and is playing key minutes in OKC and LaVoy Allen is playing out of his mind as a key reserve in Philly. Both these guys are in the rotation on upper ranked teams in the NBA as rookies and can not crack my rotation. The guys I drafted are flying up the mock draft sites. Deron Lamb is playing out of his mind at Kentucky and is now being talked about as a pick in the late teens in this deep draft, Will Barton may be the best scorer in this draft and is now being talked about as a late lotto selection in the most updated mocks, and Kevin Jones is slotted to go at the end of the 1st round also

Starting Roster

D.J Augustin/ Kemba Walker
Gerald Henderson/ Matt Carroll
Corey Maggette/ Boris Diaw
DJ White/ Tyrus Thomas/
Desagana Diop / BJ Mullens / Bismack Biyombo


Final Roster

Deron Williams/ Jason Kidd/ Sebastian Telfair
Dahntay Jones / Jr Smith
Carmelo Anthony/Jared Jeffries, Travis Outlaw
Antawn Jamison/ Ekpe Udoh
Chris Kaman/Joel Pryzbilla/ Johan Petro



Deron Williams - 18,000,000 - 18,916,000 - 20,100,123
Jason Kidd - 3,000,00 - 3,000,000 - 3,000,000
Sebastian Telfair - 854,389
Dahntay Jones - 854,389
J.R Smith - 8,500,000 - 8,500,000 - 9,000,000
Carmelo Anthony - 19,400,000 - 20,400,000 - 21,860,000
Jared Jeffries - 854,389
Antawn Jamison - 3,000,000 - 3,000,000 - 3,000,000
Ekpe Udoh - 3,524,880 - 4,469,548 - 5,962,377
Chris Kaman - 11,000,000 -
Joel Pryzbilla - 854,389
Johan Petro - 854,389
Total:
69,842,320 -

2014 2nd Round Pick, 2015 2nd Round Pick, 2016 1st

Deron Williams, Jason Kidd, Telfair > D.J Augustin, Kemba Walker
J.R Smith, Dahntay Jones > Gerald Henderson, Matt Caroll
Carmelo Anthony, Travis Outlaw > Corey Maggette
Antawn Jamison, Ekpe Udoh = Diaw, Biyombo
Chris Kaman, Joel Pryzbilla > Diop, BJ Mullens





Why we should win:

When we took over the Bobcats we had a roster full of unknowns. A borderline starting PG in Augustin who was due an extension. A rookie combo guard with upside in Kemba Walker. A SG in Henderson who finally started showing signs of life and a raw bigman in Biyombo who scouts compared to KG defensively but looked more like a rookie Tyrus Thomas. We had an overpaid swingman in Corey Maggette & 2 extremely overpaid bigs in Tyrus Thomas and Desagana Diop.

We turned the abysmal Charlotte Bobcats and turned them into a legit contender using a limited amount of resources. We used Kemba Walkers,Bismack Biyombo and our 1st round pick and brought in 2 Superstars in Deron Williams and Carmelo Anthony. To compliment them, we brought in solid vets who can help create a great locker room presence (Jason Kidd, Antawn Jamison, Jared Jeffries, Dahntay Jones) and young role players with nice upside (J.R Smith, Ekpe Udoh).

Why WAS should win:

Washington's probably a top 2 worst team in the league right now. We started with very little (Wall's a bust, Vesely has very little value, McGee's a dumbass/turnoff) and bad contracts (Blatche, Shard), but managed to put up a great team.

I think we have the two best prospects in the game in Kyrie and DMC.

I didn't even tank. We got only the 8th pick.

We didn't use up all of our picks either. We have 5 picks in the next three drafts.

Kyrie/Afflalo/Batum is a very young, defensive, and solid 1~3 IMO. Humphries/DMC is the best rebounding frontcourt and a good fit. Our depth is pretty young too, and we have solid sixth men.

Our cap is also looking good with good management. We won't cross the luxury tax, even with DMC and Kyrie extensions coming (big expirings those years).

Roster stuff:

EMAIL: allweneedisloveandbeer@gmail.com
AIM: JKPfrom93@gmail.com

OLD ROTATION

JaVale McGee / Ronny Turiaf / Kevin Seraphin
Andray Blatche / Trevor Booker
Rashard Lewis / Chris Singleton / Jan Vesely
Nick Young / Jordan Crawford / Maurice Evans
John Wall / Shelvin Mack

NEW ROTATION

DeMarcus Cousins / Chris Andersen / Byron Mullens / Tyler Zeller
Kris Humphries / Kenneth Faried / Marcus Morris
Nicolas Batum / Marvin Williams / Corey Brewer
Arron Afflalo / Matt Barnes
Kyrie Irving / George Hill / Patty Mills

SALARIES




PICKS

2013:
ATL 1st

2014:
CHI 1st
POR 1st
WAS 2nd

2015:
WAS 1st
CHA 1st

CASH

-$2m

Starting Roster:

Jameer Nelson/ Chris Duhon/ Larry Hughes
Jason Richardson/ JJ Redick/ Von Wafer/ DeAndre Liggins
Hedu Turkoglu/ Quentin Richardson/ Earl Clark
Ryan Anderson/ Glen Davis
Dwight Howard/ Daniel Orton/ Justin Harper

Ending Roster:

Ty Lawson/ Jimmer Fredette/ Josh Selby
Brandon Rush/ Jodie Meeks
Rudy Gay/ Jeff Taylor(R)/ Derrick Brown
Al Horford/ Kenyon Martin
Omer Asik/ Joel Anthony/ Josh Harrellson

A-Team:


B-Team:


Writeup:

Going into this the Magic had the 2nd highest payroll in the entire league, and with little assets to improve, were in a bad situation with Dwight Howard being an UFA.

The goal was to rebuild on the fly, by lowering salary while bringing in younger talent, and still having a competitive product to put out on the floor. I firmly believe I accomplished that goal, without mortgaging the future (salary or picks wise). I not only lowered salary below the tax level, but managed to stay below the cap with it looking to stay that way for the next 4-5 years and more.



Future Picks:

2013: NOH 1st & ORL 2nd
2014: ORL 1st
2015: ORL 1st (if in top 10) & 2nd

Position Breakdown:

PG: Ty Lawson is a very quick pg who specializes in breaking down the defense to create for others whether it's in the half court or the break. He is the ideal type of pg for this team imo. Jimmer Fredette obviously has only played 20 games this season, but was a top prospect this past summer. His scoring and efficient shooting is already there, but his ability to run the offense will only improve. He's a great fit for this team off the bench.

SG: Brandon Rush is a very good defensive player with his 7+ foot wingspan, who is shooting an amzing 57% from 3pt. Alongside Rudy, Horford and Lawson, he'd get plenty of open looks. Jodie Meeks is also a top notch 3pt shooter @ 45%. He's a solid defender who has played well enough the past 2 years to start for Doug Collins..over Evan Turner.

SF: Rudy Gay does it all...scoring, passing, rebounding, blocks, and steals. He's the go-to-guy for the team. Jeff Taylor although a rookie, is ready to contribute right away after 4 years at Vanderbilt. As All SEC Team, and SEC Defensive Team player he reminds me of a young Richard Jefferson with an older RJ's much improved 3pt shot. Explosive finisher who plays above the rim who shoots 47% from 3pt.

PF: Al Horford is a top pf in this league who brings athleticism, defense, passing and post scoring to the team. Having him play his natural position would do wonders for him especially with his offense. Not having 7 footers defend him on a nightly basis would be a huge help. Kenyon Martin brings energy and toughness along with vet experience.

C: Omer Asik is an above average defender at the 5 spot. A legit 7 feet with good hands and can finish in the paint. Imo with starters minutes he'd produce better #'s to justify the payday. Gortat is the perfect example of what a backup getting the full time starting position can do. Joel Anthony is the starting Center for the best team in the league. Post defense is his specialty and exactly what this team needs at that position for the 2nd unit.

Boston Celtics
GM: Karmaloop
E-Mail: karmaloop1234@yahoo.com (Use only e-mail for right now, no access to AIM)

PG: Eric Maynor / Marcus Banks / Myck Kabongo
SG: Dwayne Wade / James Anderson / Mo Evans
SF: Rashard Lewis / Chris Singleton / Jason Kapono
PF: Kevin Garnett / Josh Powell / Joey Dorsey
C: Tim Duncan / Marcus Camby / Tony Battie
Cash: $3,000,000


Minutes
PG: Eric Maynor [24] / Marcus Banks [10] / Dwyane Wade [14]
SG: Dwayne Wade [22] / James Anderson [12] / Mo Evans [14]
SF: Rashard Lewis [32] / Chris Singleton [16]
PF: Kevin Garnett [30] / Tim Duncan [12] / Josh Powell [6]
C: Tim Duncan [18] / Marcus Camby [30]


Salaries
Anderson, James: $1,526,499 / $2,353,861
Banks, Marcus: $854,389
Battie, Tony: $854,389
Camby, Marcus: $8,000,000 / $8,600,000 (TO)
Dorsey, Joey: $854,389
Duncan, Tim: $9,000,000 / $9,000,000
Evans, Mo: $854,389
Garnett, Kevin: $10,000,000 / $10,000,000 / $10,000,000 (TO)
Kabongo, Myck: $1,731,960 / $1,809,840 / $1,887,840 / $2,894,059
Kapono, Jason: $854,389
Lewis, Rashard: $6,500,000 / $6,500,000
Maynor, Eric: $2,338,721
Powell, Marcus: $854,389
Singleton, Chris: $1,596,360 / $1,707,720 / $2,626,473
Wade, Dwayne: $17,182,000 / $18,673,000 / $20,164,000 / $21,655,000
Total Salaries: $57,275,540


Draft Rights
PG Sergio Llull
SG William Buford
SF C.J. Leslie
PF Donatas Motiejunas
PF Alex Oriakhi
PF Andrew Nicholson

Picks
2012
#15 (from Denver) - Myck Kabongo [PG; Texas]
#36 (from Memphis) - C.J. Leslie [SF/PF; North Carolina State]
#37 (from Milwaukee) - Alex Oriakhi [PF/C; UConn]
#41 (from Memphis) - William Buford [SG; Ohio State]
#46 (from Minnesota) - Andrew Nicholson [PF/C; St. Bonaventure]

2013
1st Round Pick
1st Round Pick (from Los Angeles)
1st Round Pick (from Memphis)
1st Round Pick (from Portland)
1st Round Pick (from Washington, Unprotected)
2nd Round Pick
2nd Round Pick (from Minnesota)
2nd Round Pick (from Memphis)

2014
1st Round Pick
1st Round Pick (from New York)
2nd Round Pick

2015
1st Round Pick
2nd Round Pick


Trades
1.) PG Rajon Rondo, SF Sasha Pavlovic, and C Greg Sitemsma to New Orleans for PG/SG Louis Williams, SG Eric Gordon, and C Timofey Mozgov (Trade #9).
2.) SG Eric Gordon and 2012 2nd Round Pick to New Jersey for C Brook Lopez (Trade #13).
3.) PG Avery Bradley and Cash (500k) to San Antonio for SG James Anderson (Trade #18).
4.) SF Paul Pierce and PF Brandon Bass for SG Monta Ellis and C Kwame Brown (Trade #19).
5.) SG Ray Allen, PF Jermaine O'Neal, 2012 1st Round Pick (from Clippers), and cash (1.5 million) to Phoenix for PG Steve Nash and PF Channing Frye (Trade #31).
6.) PG/SG Louis Williams and SG E'Twaun Moore to Houston for SG/SF Thabo Sefolosha, PF Luke Harangody, 2014 1st Round Pick (via New Orleans), and cash considerations (2 million) (Trade #55).
7.) PG/SG Monta Ellis and PF/C Channing Frye to Atlanta for PG Tony Parker, SG Jordan Crawford, and 2013 1st Round Pick (Top 10 Protected) (Trade #63).
8.) SG/SF Thabo Sefolosha, SG Jordan Crawford, PF Kevin Garnett, PF JaJuan Johnson, C Brook Lopez, 2012 1st Round Pick (Unprotected), 2014 1st Round Pick (from New Orleans), and cash considerations (1 million) to Sacramento for SG/SF John Salmons, SF Tyler Honeycutt, PF Chuck Hayes, and C Dwight Howard (Trade #65).
9.) PG Steve Nash, PF Chris Wilcox, 2014 2nd Round Pick, and cash considerations (3 million) to Los Angeles for PG D.J. Augustin, PG Kirk Hinrich, PF Josh McRoberts, and 2013 1st Round Pick (Trade #70).
10.) PG Keyon Dooling to Indiana for SG Dahntay Jones and 2012 2nd Round Pick (Trade #80).
11.) SG/SF John Salmons, PF Josh McRoberts, and C Dwight Howard to Los Angeles for SG Dwayne Wade, C Chris Kaman, and cash considerations (3 million) (Trade #123).
12.) SG/SF Dahntay Jones and PF Chuck Hayes to Porland for C Greg Oden (Trade #141).
13.) C Timofey Mozgov to Memphis for PF Ersan Ilyasova, 2012 1st Round Pick (via Los Angeles), and cash considerations (1 million) (Trade #146).
14.) PG Tony Parker to Golden State for PG Raymond Felton, PF Kenneth Faried, 2012 1st Round Pick (via Denver), 2014 1st Round Pick (via New York) and cash considerations (3 million) (Trade #148).
15.) SF Tyler Honeycutt to Houston for 2012 2nd Round Pick (via Cleveland) (Trade #150).
16.) PG Kirk Hinrich to Phoenix for C Cole Aldrich and from Trailblazers SG/SF Carlos Delfino (Trade #155).
17.) PG Charlie Bell and C Cole Aldrich to Cleveland for SF DaJuan Summers, C Tony Battie, and 2014 1st Round Pick (from Portland) (Trade #167).
18.) PG D.J. Augustin to Memphis for PG Keyon Dooling, SG/SF Jason Kapono, 2012 1st Round Pick (from Sacramento/Boston/Chicago, whichever is worse), 2012 2nd Round Pick, 2013 1st Round Pick (Trade #172).
19.) C Greg Oden to Houston for draft rights to PG Sergio Llull and Portland 2013 1st Round Pick (Trade #216).
20.) SF Jeff Green, PF Luke Harangody, and 2012 2nd Round Pick (from Indiana) to San Antonio for PF/C Marcus Camby (Trade #226).
21.) 2012 1st Round Pick (#17) and 2012 2nd Round Pick (#51) to Washington for 2012 2nd Round Pick (#37), 2012 2nd Round Pick (#46), and 2013 1st Round Pick (from Washington, unprotected) (Trade #264).
22.) 2012 1st Round Pick (#29) to Memphis for 2012 2nd Round Pick (#36) and 2013 2nd Round Pick (Trade #271).
23.) 2013 1st Round Pick (from Atlanta), 2014 1st Round Pick (from Portland), and 2015 2nd Round Pick (from Sacramento) to Sacramento for rights to PF Donatas Motiejunas (Trade #276).
24.) Sign PF/C Tim Duncan to a two year, 18 million deal.
25.) PF Kennth Faried for PG Eric Maynor and SF Chris Singleton (Trade #295).


Position Breakdown

Point Guard
Rajon Rondo/Keyon Dooling/Avery Bradley >>> Eric Maynor/Marcus Banks/Myck Kabongo

I will absolutely concede that I downgraded pretty significantly, but with the way the Celtics were currently constructed I would have set Rajon Rondo up to fail with the lack of talent around him. Rondo is a penetrating guard whose lack of ability to create, or even make his own shot would hurt him once Garnett and Allen's deals expired. Maynor is a nice young guard whose got a career AST/TO ratio of over 3 which is quite impressive. But he hasn't gotten the minutes needed since he's been behind Russell Westbrook. Myck Kabongo is a guy I'm intrigued by and think he could be the next Chris Paul

Shooting Guard
Ray Allen/Mickael Pietrus/Marquis Daniels/E'Twaun Moore <<< Dwayne Wade/James Anderson/Mo Evans

While I downgraded at the point, I got a massive upgrade at SG. I got a top 3 player in his prime to be the guy in Boston and gives us a franchise player to build around. We're also very high on Anderson ourselves as we think he's got the chance to turn into a Brandon Roy talent pre-knee injuries. Evans is a nice depth player as well.

Small Forward
Paul Pierce/Sasha Pavlovic/Jeff Green > Rashard Lewis/Chris Singleton/Jason Kapono

While on paper this would appear a massive downgrade, but the fit is so much better. Pierce is clearly no longer in his prime, and given that Wade is a slashing guard it makes sense to put shooters around him. Lewis is a career 38.8% shooter from beyond the arc. We also add more youth and athleticism to the roster with the addition of Chris Singleton.

Power Forward
Kevin Garnett/Brandon Bass/JaJuan Johnson >> Kevin Garnett/Josh Powell/Joey Dorsey

Pretty similar but Garnett is a year older, so you've got to give the nod to the '11 Garnett. Still, defense is the most important part of this position and adding more rugged big men like Joey Dorsey is never a bad idea.

Center
Jermaine O'Neal/Chris Wilcox/Greg Stiemsma <<< Tim Duncan/Marcus Camby/Tony Battie

Another massive upgrade here. We get to pair two of the best big men of our generation and put them on the same court together. We're thrilled even if they're past their primes, because they're such smart players and coexist well together. And then throw in one of the best defensive centers in the NBA.


Why I Should Win
The Celtics are a huge threat to win the championship this year and next year, and then after those two years are up the Celtics are sitting with massive cap room and Dwyane Wade on the roster to entice big name free agents to sign with Boston. It's all about winning championships, and that's what we're about.

ORIGINAL DEPTH CHART AND SALARIES
Knight / Bynum / Russell
Gordon / Stuckey / Wilkins
Prince / Daye
Jerebko / Maxiell / Villanueva
Monroe / Wallace / Macklin

Ben Gordon - $11,600,000 / $12,400,000 / $13,200,000 (PO)
Rodney Stuckey - $8,500,000 / $8,500,000 / $8,500,000 (UnG)
Charlie Villanueva - $7,540,000 / $8,060,000 / $8,580,000 (PO)
Tayshaun Prince - $6,292,135 / $6,764,045 / $7,235,955 / $7,707,865
Jason Maxiell - $5,000,000 / $5,000,000 (PO)
Jonas Jerebko - $4,500,000 / $4,500,000 / $4,500,000 / $4,500,000 (PO)
Will Bynum - $3,250,000 / $3,250,000
Greg Monroe - $3,007,920 / $3,217,680 / $4,086,454 (TO) / $5,479,934 (QuO)
Brandon Knight - $2,563,320 / $2,678,640 / $2,793,960 (TO) / $3,553,917 (TO) / $4,790,680 (QuO)
Ben Wallace - $2,246,400
Austin Daye - $1,929,600 / $2,958,077 / $4,135,391 (QuO)
Damien Wilkins - $854,389 (UnG)
Vernon Macklin - $473,604 (UnG) / $937,195 (QuO)

Paid, but not on roster
Richard Hamilton - $8,430,293 / $6,069,767

Total Salaries: $66,187,601
Available Cap Space: -$6,187,601



CURRENT DEPTH CHART AND SALARIES
R. Felton / K. Marshall
M. Brooks / C. Stanback / O. Johnson
Q. Miller / D. James / O. Czyz / A. Daye
T. Hansbrough / M. Moser / J. Green
T. Mozgov / F. Melo / D. Pittman


Raymond Felton - $7,500,000 / $7,500,000 / $7,500,000 / $7,500,000
Timofey Mozgov - $3,140,429 / $3,925,536 (QuO)
Tyler Hansbrough - $3,055,259 / $4,225,423 (QuO)
Austin Daye - $2,958,077 / $4,135,391 (QuO)
Quincy Miller - $2,356,320 / $2,532,960 / $2,709,920 (TO) / $3,452,183 (TO) / $4,677,708 (QuO)
Kendall Marshall - $1,485,000 / $1,596,360 / $1,707,720 (TO) / $2,626,473 (TO) / $3,726,965 (QuO)
Damion James - $1,329,720 / $2,325,680 (TO) / $3,400,145 (QuO)
Mike Moser - $1,306,920 / $1,404,960 / $1,503,000 (TO) / $2,394,279 (TO) / $3,450,156 (QuO)
MarShon Brooks - $1,160,040 / $1,210,080 (TO) / $2,179,354 (TO) / $3,201,471 (QuO)
Dexter Pittman - $854,389 (UnG) / $1,091,099 (QuO)
Fab Melo - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)
Orlando Johnson - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)
Chase Stanback - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)
JaMychal Green - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)
Olek Czyz - $473,604 / $762,195 (UnG) / $884,293 (UnG) / $1,123,163 (QuO)

Paid, but not on roster
Richard Hamilton - $6,069,767
Jason Maxiell - $5,000,000
Shaun Livingston - $1,000,000

Total Salaries: $40,521,136
Available Cap Space: $19,478,864


CURRENTLY OWNED DRAFT PICKS
2013: DET 1st, CLE 1st, DET 2nd, LAC 2nd*
2014: DET 1st, DET 2nd
2015: DET 1st, CHI 1st, DET 2nd, CHI 2nd
*Top 55 protected

Cash: $162,800

As evidenced by the early results of the NBA season, the roster I started with is one of the worst in the NBA. Not only that, but they were arguably in one of the worst cap situations in the entire league. We knew going into it that it would be extremely difficult to be a contender, so we decided to blow things up.

This team is built around MarShon Brooks, who is a top-3 rookie in the NBA this season. We've seen around the league the importance of a go-to shooting guard, so we knew we couldn't pass up the opportunity to acquire Brooks and build this franchise around him.

We are in a great cap situation, with our most expensive player making just $7.5 million over the next four seasons. In a game like GM a Team where overpaying players is common, this was something I'm very proud of in my tenure as GM. That player is Raymond Felton, who I feel is paid market value, so I wasn't too worried about paying him.

Not only is he paid appropriately, but I acquired Felton because of his great fit alongside Brooks. Backing up Felton is Kendall Marshall, who I believe has a Ricky Rubio-like flare to his game that will help attract the fans of Detroit to the Palace at Auburn Hills. Alongside Felton and Brooks in the starting lineup on the perimeter is Baylor's Quincy Miller, who has drawn comparisons to Kevin Durant.

In the post are two gritty players in Tyler Hansbrough and Timofey Mozgov. Neither will be considered scoring machines throughout their respective careers, but they have a toughness that will endear them to coach Lawrence Frank and the city of Detroit. Backing up Hansbrough at PF is Mike Moser, a player who is built in the mold of a Paul Millsap.

This team has increased its talent pool, while shedding roughly $25 million in salaries off the books at the same time. We don't expect to win an NBA Championship in the near future, but this roster has a much better chance of doing so in the future than the original roster did.

Starting Roster
Tony Allen
Mike Conley
Dante Cunningham
Josh Davis
Marc Gasol
Rudy Gay
O.J. Mayo
Jeremy Pargo
Quincy Pondexter
Zach Randolph
Josh Selby
Brian Skinner
Xavier Henry
Sam Young

Current Roster
Greg Monroe - $3,217,680 / $4,086,454 (TO) / $5,479,934 (QuO)
Greg Oden $5,250,000/ 5,750,000 / 6,250,000/ 6,750,000
JJ Reddick $5,250,000/ 5,750,000/ 6,250,000/ 6,750,000
Rudy Fernandez $4,000,000/ 4,120,000/ 4,240,000/ 4,360,000
Paul George $2,574,120 / 3,282,003
DJ Augustin $8,000,000/ 8,000,000/ 8,000,000/ 8,000,000
Gustavo Ayon $1,500,000/ $1,500,000 / $1,875,000
Andrei Kirilenko $6,500,000 / 6,800,000 / 7,100,000 / 7,400,000
Iman Shumpert $1,633,440/ $1,703,760 /$2,616,975
Spencer Hawes $10,000,000/ $10,000,000/ $10,000,000/ $10,000,000/ $10,000,000
Lou Willams $5,351,500
Udonis Haslem $4,060,000/ 4,340,000/ 4,620,000
Arnett Moultrie $1,003,800 /1,079,100/ 1,154,400 / 1,697,000
LeBryan Nash $963,600 /1,035,900/ 1,108,100 /1,459,000
Furkan Aldemir $857,000/ 921,300/ 985,500/ 1,305,000

Total Salary:$59,612,382

Rotation:
C:Hawes/Ayon/Furkan/Oden
PF:Monroe/Haslem/Moultrie
SF:George/Kirilenko/Nash
SG:Shumpert/Redick/Rudy
PG:Augustin/Williams

TEAM NOTES

STARTING FIVE
We believe we have a great complementing starting five, young and good potential, all under 25. Monroe and George are the guys we believe will be our star duo. Monroe is a great offensive big that's hard to find these days, he is lock to be a offensive monster with his face-up game, post up skills and passing skills. Paul George on the other hand is a T-mac with less offense but a better defense potential, showing some glimpse of it this season with recently 30-9-5-5 game. Shumpert also is a lockdown defender with some offensive skill can play both guard position and a 16-5-5 potential with amazing defense. Hawes also started to show his potential this season finally giving up his love for long jumpshots and operating in paint shooting 59 percent from the field. And DJ Augustin is a great pass first PG that will keep everyone happy.

BENCH
We have arguably the best bench in NBA with Haslem-Ayon-Kirilenko-Redick-Rudy-Lou.
The most important thing about my bench is experience they bring to my young team. Haslem is two time finalist with one title, Kirilenko is Kirilenko superb talent on both ends, euro titles etc. Redick is a DUKE material, one time NBA finalist, Rudy is also another European talent with exp in Spain NT.

Lou Williams is the scoring punch coming off the bench with Rudy-Redick duo at wings. Kirilenko is a great lockdown defender with offensive skills, Haslem is the perfect role player can shoot the mid-range and does the dirty work, Gustavo Ayon is a little bit unknown I guess but he was a top big in the 2nd best league in the world Spain, 14-9-2-2-2 PER 36 and is a great defender like Haslem. Also we have Greg Oden who we hope will start playing an at least be a good defensive backup C, he is a low risk high reward with his contract, and injury recovery stuff, if he turns out 10-8 with 2 blocks a game we will gladly accept him in our team.

Also we have some young guys with potential in our bench, Furkan-Moultrie-Nash
Furkan is the next Asik actually has a better potential than Asik, he is a rebounding machine with good defense, a good passer and good at pick and rolls. He is a less blocking more rebounding version of Omer Asik
Moultrie is 6'11 with great motor and rebounding skills, great size, great athleticism, he will be a great rebounding machine and has some post moves, he will be a fan favorite a Memphis native.
LeBryan Nash, I dont know what to tell you, his name is GOAT lol, he is the next Ron Artest, with lockdown defender potential, has great strength, athleticism and good scorer.

OFFENSE
Offensively we have many options, we have two great passing bigs in Hawes and Monroe, so we can run our offense through the post and they can pass it to shooters or cutters in George-Shumpert. Also we can run our offense conventional style when DJ Augustin in on the floor, and let him create it in pick and pops with Monroe. The best offensive 5 would be Williams-Redick-George-Monroe-Hawes so this is the 5 we will run our game through Monroe or Hawes and find the open shooter if double teams come or just watch Monroe or Hawes score in post when 1 on 1.


DEFENSE
This team has great wing defenders that would kill other teams star perimeter players, we can even go with Shumpert-George-Kirilenko and wont lose anything in offensive side. Also Spencer Hawes is a good shot blocker and has the size to protect the paint. Our most discouraging 5 defensively would be Shumpert-George-Kirilenko-Haslem-Hawes. Hawes is the second best C in the league when you look at the DRTG, we all know Shumpert and George athletic freaks with great defensive awareness and willing defenders. Kirilenko is another lockdown defender and Nash is the upcoming lockdown defender on the wings for the future of this team.

NOW MODE
This team is young but still good enough to make playoffs as a 5-8 seed, with 11 good rotation players this team wont get effected by unfortunate injuries if happens or back to back games and 3 games in 4 nights situations, and even scare the favorite teams as the underdogs in playoffs with depth.

FUTURE MODE
Hawes-Monroe-George-Shumpert-Augustin all are under 25 so this team is more of a future team, also Furkan-Moultrie-Nash-Williams are young too with three of them being rookies and the oldest one being 25, This team would be a legit contender depending on when Monroe-George duo breaks out. George-Nash-Shumpert is a frightening wing combo on the defensive end with all of them being great defenders, Monroe-Hawes great offensive bigs with great rebounding. Augustin-Williams will be our PG duo till they retire great combo off pass 1st and score 1st. Moultrie and Furkan are good potential guys that would give us great defensive energy off the bench.

OVERALL
We turned this team into a great potential team but also got some great veterans to educate our young guys, great mix of talent and experience will lead us to many playoffs and finally in 3-4 years this team will be a major contender with Monroe and George as the leaders. We have a great bench that will help us get the wins in RS so we can at least make the playoffs in developing process, and become a good experienced team in 3-4 years. We think we have one of the best young cores in the league and will be a contender in short time.

Started with: Mo Williams, Kevin Martin, Terrence Williams, Luol Deng, David Lee, Brandon Bass & Anderson Varejao

New Roster & Salaries:

PG - Jerryd Bayless - $4,250,000 / $4,250,000 / $4,250,000 / $4,250,000
PG - Mo Williams - $8,500,000
SG - Manu Ginobili - $14,107,492
SG - Bill Walker - $854,389
SG - Chris Douglas-Roberts - $993,116 / $1,032,841 / $1,074,155
SF - Luol Deng - $13,365,000 / $14,275,000
SF - Chase Budinger - $885,120
PF - Carlos Boozer - $15,000,000 / $15,300,000 / $16,800,000
PF - Chuck Hayes - $5,486,250 / $5,722,500 / $5,958,750
PF - Charlie Villaneuva - $854,389
C - Roy Hibbert - $14,500,000 / $14,500,000 / $14,500,000 / $14,500,000
C - Jeff Foster - $854,389

Total Salary $79,650,145 / $55,080,341 / $42,582,905

Cash: No idea - didn't trade or receive any
Picks: 2014 2nd, 2015 1st, 2015 2nd

Player Stats

PG - Jerryd Bayless - 10.2 points (41.6% / 40%), 2.7 assists in 20.2 mpg
SG - Manu Ginobili - 17.4 points, 4.9 assists, 1.5 steals in 30.4 mpg
SF - Luol Deng - 16.2 points (43.4% / 35.2%), 7.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists in 38 mpg
PF - Carlos Boozer - 14.9 points (51.6%), 8.6 rebounds, 1.1 steals in 30.6 mpg
C - Roy Hibbert - 14.0 points (52.5%), 9.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks in 29.5 mpg

PG - Mo Williams - 14.8 points (50.2% / 44.8%), 3.8 assists in 27.8 mpg
SG - Bill Walker - 6.3 points (43.7% / 36.1%), 2.5 rebounds in 19.6 mpg
SF - Chase Budinger - 8.4 points (45.6% / 37.7%), 3.3 rebounds in 20.5 mpg
PF - Chuck Hayes - 4.7 points (38%), 7.1 rebounds in 23.6 mpg
C - Jeff Foster - 3.0 points (54.5%), 4.6 rebounds in 14.6 mpg

Assessment

Losing Williams was a huge blow, and I inherited a 7-man team with Kevin Martin, Luol Deng, David Lee and Anderson Varejao as key pieces; and the 2013 1st rounder already traded. Whilst by no means awful, the team was stuck in a position of borderline playoffs, without the assets to trade for good young assets to start a rebuild.

I've gone about addressing the key issues, upgrading at PF and SG to Boozer and Ginobili, two guys capable of 20ppg on any given night and with plenty of playoff experience. Roy Hibbert is having a breakout season, rebounding and defending exceptionally well, and scoring 14ppg very efficiently. He's becoming a legitimate offensive threat in the paint for Indiana. Mo Williams continues to perform well off the bench, and is one of the best shooters at his position - Bayless is a nice compliment to Ginobili in the backcourt, and he performs much better as a starter.

The squad is much deeper too, the likes of Chase Budinger, Chuck Hayes, Jeff Foster all good hard working guys with a variety of skillsets. On the boards, a front court of Hibbert/Boozer/Deng plus Hayes and Foster will be among the best in the league. Deeper playoff runs are almost guaranteed and the team will be one of the best defensive units in the league.

A good NBA comparison is perhaps a rich mans Pacers, or a new look Bulls, which is certainly no bad thing.

In short: I only had a week and few assets to start with. I think the team is in pretty good shape for one that lost a top 10 player.

GM: Karmaloop
Email: karmaloop1234@yahoo.com (PLEASE PUT WHICH TEAM YOUR ASKING FOR IN TITLE!!!)


Roster
PG: Jarrett Jack / Eric Bledsoe / Avery Bradley
SG: Vince Carter / Evan Turner / Dominique Jones
SF: James Posey / Derrick Williams / Xavier Henry
PF: Darrell Arthur / Ed Davis / Bismack Biyombo
C: Brendan Haywood / Jermaine O'Neal / Meyers Leonard

Salary
Biyombo, Bismack: 3,007,920 / 3,217,680 (TO) / 4,086,454 (TO)
Bledsoe, Eric: 1,707,720 / 2,626,473
Bradley, Avery: 1,630,800 / 2,511,432
Carter, Vince: 3,135,000 / 3,270,000
Fernandez, Rudy: $4,000,000
Jack, Jarrett: 5,400,000
Haywood, Brendan: 8,349,000 / 9,073,500 / 9,798,000 / 10,522,500
Henry, Xavier: 2,323,200 / 3,201,370 (TO)
Hickson, J.J.: $3,357,569 (QO)
Jones, Dominique: 1,276,560 / 2,299,085
Webster, Martell: 600,000 (NO LONGER ON ROSTER)
Turner, Evan: 5,293,080 / 6,679,867 (TO)
Williams, Derrick: 4,947,840 / 5,293,080 / 6,679,867
Total Salary:

Bird Rights
PF J.J. Hickson


Draft Picks
2013
1st Round Pick (Top 20 Protected Until 2017, Unprotected in 2018)
2nd Round Pick

2014
1st Round Pick (see 2013)
1st Round Pick (from Cleveland)
2nd Round Pick

2015
1st Round Pick (see 2013)
2nd Round Pick


Transactions (No Prior Record)
1.) SF Carmelo Anthony to New Orleans for PG Toney Douglas, PG Eric Bledsoe, PF Josh Smith, and draft rights to SF Harrison Barnes (Trade #287).
2.) PF Josh Smith to Cleveland for PG Avery Bradley, SG Evan Turner, PF Ed Davis, 2014 1st Round Pick (from Cleveland), and rights to PF Leon Radosevic (Trade #291).
3.) PG Toney Douglas, SF Harrison Barnes, and PF Tiago Splitter for SG Xavier Henry, SF Derrick Williams, and PF Bismack Biyombo (Trade #306).
4.) SG Rudy Fernandez and rights to C Tyler Zeller to Washington for PF Darrell Arthur and rights to C Meyers Leonard (Trade #337).


Position Breakdown

Point Guard
Jason Kidd / Jarrett Jack < Jarrett Jack/Eric Bledsoe/Avery Bradley

This position just got a whole lot younger by letting Jason Kidd walk in free agency, and with Jarrett Jack being elevated to the starting spot. As a starter this year, he's putting up 16/4/7 on a terrible Hornets team. We believe that that Eric Bledsoe has a very good shot to be a really good starting point guard in this league for a long time.

Shooting Guard
J.J. Redick/Jason Terry/Vince Carter/Domonique Jones < Vince Carter/Evan Turner/Domonique Jones

This ultimately comes down to what is more valuable, J.J. Redick and Jason Terry's expiring contracts or the upside of Evan Turner. With the direction of the Mavericks, Turner was a much better fit and we believe he can be a star for the Mavericks.

Small Forward
Carmelo Anthony/Martell Webster >>> James Posey/Derrick Williams/Xavier Henry

Even with all of 'Melo's faults, he still an extremely talented player but he didn't fit with what we wanted to do. Derrick Williams fits in our young core, and we've got a veteran defender in James Posey to teach him. Xavier Henry adds more athleticism to our roster.

Power Forward
J.J. Hickson/Tiago Splitter <<< Darrell Arthur/Ed Davis/Bismack Biyombo/(J.J. Hickson)

I added a bunch of new, young talent to our roster to replace what we had there. We had a couple of complimentary pieces here, but no real pieces. We got the combination of Ed Davis and Bismack Biyombo and between the two of them we should find a really good starting PF. Arthur is a really good player in the mean time though.

Center
Brendan Haywood < Brendan Haywood/Jermaine O'Neal/Meyers Leonard

Pretty much the same center position, but we are deeper now. We got a potential top ten pick in Meyers Leonard to be our center of the future, with both Haywood and Jermaine O'Neal as veterans to teach him the ropes.


Why I Should Win
Just look at the roster I had when I took over. I had one major trade chip, and a couple of quality role players and some expiring contracts. Not much. The Mavericks in real life are a couple of trades from being at two max contracts, but the original GM of the Mavericks sunk his entire trading chips (Dirk Nowitzki included) into Carmelo Anthony and some trash. I in turn ended up sending out Carmelo to get the core of Bledsoe/Turner/Williams/Davis/Biyombo/Leoanrd whom I believe has the potential to be really good down the road.

Old Roster
C - Andrew Bynum
PF - Pau Gasol / Josh McRoberts / Troy Murphy / Derrick Caracter
SF - Matt Barnes / Metta World Peace / Jason Kapono / Luke Walton
SG - Kobe Bryant / Andrew Goudelock
PG - Derek Fisher / Steve Blake / Darius Morris

Current Roster


Rights
Ater Majok
Chinemelu Elonu
Sergei Lishouk
Robbie Hummel

Trade Exceptions
$4.9M

Draft Picks
2013: LAL 2nd, DEN 2nd (Top 40 Prtd), MEM 2nd (Top 55 Prtd)
2014: LAL 2nd, BOS 2nd
2015: LAL 1st, LAL 2nd
*UTA Lotto Protected 1st through 2015, or UTA 2015+2016 2nds

Cash
-2M

Depth Chart
C - Dwight Howard / Hamed Haddadi
PF - Elton Brand / Trevor Booker
SF - Tayshaun Prince / James Jones / Devin Ebanks / Tyler Honeycutt
SG - Kobe Bryant / Sasha Vujacic / John Salmons
PG - Steve Nash / Mario Chalmers

Rotation
C - Dwight Howard (36) / Hamed Haddadi (12)
PF - Elton Brand (28) / Trevor Booker (20)
SF - Tayshaun Prince (32) / James Jones (16)
SG - Kobe Bryant (30) / Mario Chalmers (10) / Sasha Vujacic (8)
PG - Steve Nash (30) / Mario Chalmers (18)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before
I took over a team that is currently 14-10, 7th seed in the West. This team greatly struggles to score, and Kobe really has to do a majority of the scoring and facilitating. There are big holes at PG and SF, Fisher and Barnes are not starting NBA players. Bad contracts: World Peace, Walton, Blake. Not to mention the payroll was at around 90M. This team needed a lot of improvement.

Now
I think it's obvious I made this team a lot better. First and foremost: Dwight Howard. I did what the real life Lakers weren't willing to do, give up Gasol and Bynum. The fact of the matter is, Bynum is NOT a franchise player. He's a very good 2nd option, but in the future you won't be able to win with him as your best player. Plus he has been injury prone his whole career. As for Gasol, he is getting up there in age and could decline at any moment. Howard is a 25 year old superstar and we can build a team around him for the next 7-8 years.

Kobe and Nash make the best backcourt in the league. Teams will not be able to stop them offensively. With Nash, Kobe will not have to play facilitator, which will make him that more effective. Overall, a Kobe, Nash, Dwight trio is arguably the best trio in the league.

I have surrounded these guys with good role players as well. Prince and Brand are still solid starters in this league, and both are good fits in my starting 5. Then I have Chalmers off the bench, who is a starting caliber PG. Vujacic and Jones as my shooters. Booker and Haddadi gives me added toughness up front.

As for payroll goes, I managed to greatly improve the team while cutting salary. I was able to let go of Blake, World Peace, and Walton, who were greatly hurting this team salary wise. Salmons is my bad contract now, but he essentially only has 2 years left on his deal.

In Conclusion
Not only did I greatly improve this team for next season, I made them better for the next 7 or so years, simply because of Dwight Howard. Howard is such an impact player that any team you put around him is most likely a playoff team still. That's the kind of player we want on our team going forward. The real life Lakers might have to consider rebuilding after this season, this Laker team can contend for a title for a long, long time.

Dan Verze wrote:GM - DV

INDIANA



Contact:

dan-verze@dan-verze.de
DanielSchroeder7@aim.com

Salaries:

Player 12/13 13/14 14/15 15/16

Amare Stoudemire $19,948,799 $21,679,893 $23,410,988
Andre Iguodala $14,718,250 $15,904,750
Danny Granger $13,058,606 $14,021,788
David West $10,000,000
Chauncey Billups $3,000,000 $3,000,000
Marquis Teague $1,073,280 $1,121,520 $1,169,880 (TO) $2,109,294 (TO) $3,113,317 (QO)
Mike Miller $854,389
Shawne Williams $854,389
DJ White $854,389
Anthony Parker $854,389
Shelden Williams $854,389
Tony Battie $854,389
Derrick Caracter $854,389


Total: 61,798,935

Rotation:

Billups/Teague
Iguodala/Miller
Granger/Williams
West/White/Williams
Stoudemire/Battie/Caracter

Draftpicks:

2012 IND 1st (#26)
2013 IND 1st
2013 IND 2nd
2014 IND 1st
2014 IND 2nd
2015 IND 1st
2015 IND 2nd
...

Transactions:

- Drafted Marquis Teague (#26)
- Signed Mike Miller (vet min)
- Signed DJ White (min)
- Signed Shawne Williams (vet min)
- Signed Anthony Parker (vet min)
- Signed Shelden Williams (vet min)
- Signed Tony Battie (vet min)
- Signed Derrick Caracter (min)

Trades:

- Jones+2nd (IND 2012) for Dooling
- George+Hansbrough+Hill+Dooling for Gay+1st (MEM 2012)
- Gay+Stephenson+Pendergraph for Iguodala
- Amundson+1st (MEM 2012) for Allen+Hill
- Hibbert+Collison+Hill+Jeffers+Jackson+Songaila for Amare Stoudemire

Good Job, because...

Indy has now an amazing starting five + no cap issues + still all future draft picks

Milwaukee Bucks

Started with:
PG - Brandon Jennings / Beno Udrih / Darington Hobson
SG - Stephen Jackson / Shaun Livingston
SF - Carlos Delfino / Mike Dunleavy Jr. / Tobias Harris
PF - Drew Gooden / Luc Richard Mbah a Moute / Jon Leuer / Jon Brockman
C - Andrew Bogut / Ersan Ilyasova / Larry Sanders

Ended with:

PG - Russell Westbrook
SG - Alec Burks
SF - Thaddeus Young
PF - Perry Jones III
C - JaVale McGee

PG - Toney Douglas
SG - Tony Wroten Jr.
SF - Tobias Harris
PF - Anthony Randolph
C - Tiago Splitter

PG - Darius Johnson-Odom
SG - Quincy Pondexter
SF - Jon Leuer
PF - Ricardo Ratliffe
C - Kyrylo Fesenko

Contracts/Salaries:
Russell Westbrook - $15,000,000 , $15,675,000 , $16,350,000 , $17,025,000
JaVale McGee - $11,000,000 , $11,500,000 , $11,750,000 , $12,000,000 , $12,250,000
Thaddeus Young - $8,300,000 , $8,600,000 , $8,900,000 , $9,200,000
Tiago Splitter - $3,944,000 , $4,930,000
Kyrylo Fesenko - $3,500,000
Perry Jones III - $3,065,040 , $3,202,920 , $3,340,920 , $4,236,287
Anthony Randolph - $3,000,000 , $3,500,000 , $3,500,000 , $4,000,000
Alec Burks - $2,171,640 , $2,323,200 , $3,201,370
Toney Douglas - $2,067,880 , $3,101,820
Tobias Harris - $1,572,120 , $1,681,800 , $2,589,972
Quincy Pondexter - $1,234,320 , $2,225,479
Tony Wroten Jr. - $890,200 , $957,000 , $1,023,800
Jon Leuer - $762,195 , $884,293 , $1,123,163
Ricardo Ratliffe - $473,604 , $762,195 , $884,293 , $1,123,163
Darius Johnson-Odom - $473,604 , $762,195 , $884,293 , $1,123,163
TOTAL: $54,454,603

Future draft picks:
MIL 2013 1st (Top-10 protected)
MIN 2013 1st
All MIL picks thru 2015



Why we did the best job:
Let me paint you a picture of the team I inherited as GM. As assets we had a young, relatively promising PG in Brandon Jennings and an oft injured big man in his prime in Andrew Bogut. Aside from those guys we had role players such as Ilyasova, Delfino, Livingston, Udrih, Harris, Leuer, etc. All nice role players, but nothing special. Then we had the two knuckleheads Stephen Jackson and Drew Gooden, two acquisitions that were meant to put the Bucks "over the top". Instead, this team was doomed for mediocrity and an 8th seed in the playoffs at best.

The direction? Acquire assets and form a young team with a future of contention.

PG: We went from Brandon Jennings/Beno Udrih to Russell Westbrook/Toney Douglas. As good as Jennings has been this year, his flaws will keep him from ever reaching super-stardom... Westbrook is already there and is only months older than Brandon with better size. Toney Douglas, although playing poorly for D'Antoni, is an upgrade over Udrih both in terms of talent and youth. We feel like we really improved here.

SG: We went from a 33 year old headcase who spends his nights on the road hitting up clubs after the game and prefers sleeping in to attending shoot-arounds to a promising young SG in Alec Burks. Burks has displayed the ability to be a good scorer, good defender and most importantly, the ability to handle and distribute the basketball. This will allow Westbrook to work off the ball at times leaving the PG duties to Burks. It's a great fit. There is a theme to good defensive/offensive balance going on. Tony Wroten and DJO bring some upside and unique skill-sets as well.

SF: As much as I love Carlos Delfino, he was too old for what we were trying to do in Milwaukee and is merely a solid role player. We decided to hold onto Tobias Harris, who has shown real promise as well as added Thaddeus Young. We love how Young can alternate playing SF and PF with Perry Jones. He brings solid offense and really nice defense. Unselfish player who is still very young and can still improve a lot in time. This was a huge upgrade for us.

PF: This position was a mess. We had a great defender here in LRMAM, an overpaid dude with down's syndrome in Gooden, a solid defender/rebounder in Ilyasova and a guy good at sitting on the bench in Brockman. The one guy we liked and kept was Jon Leuer, who has been lighting it up this year. The Milwaukee Bucks haven't had a good PF since one Vin Baker. It was time to change that, so we brought in a guy with a ridiculous skill-set and unlimited potential in Perry Jones III. We liken his game to LaMarcus Aldridge's and we feel like he can really flourish with our young team. After Davis, we thought Jones was the best PF prospect in the draft.

C: I absolutely love Andrew Bogut, but the writing was on the wall. We failed to put a team around our #1 pick and now he is too old to be a part of our rebuilding process. We shopped him for the best package and then used those assets to build our team. We managed to acquire JaVale McGee and sign him to an extension. We feel like JaVale, under the right coaching, can be a top 3-5 center in the NBA. We also have a great complementary backup to McGee in Tiago Splitter. Despite losing Bogut, we feel like McGee/Splitter leaves us in a better position than we were when we had Bogut.

All in all, we just totally revamped our roster from an aging lineup lacking elite talent to a young, exciting roster loaded with talent and potential. We also took a team with no superstars and added a superstar in Russell Westbrook, and surrounded him with talent. We should win for this transformation. We have Westbrook/Burks/Young/Jones/McGee all locked up to play together for the next 4 years and we are still under the cap. Plus we still have our draft picks for the next several years, leaving the opportunity to draft more talent next year to this core. I like what some other teams did, but I ask if they have the same durability and potential for greatness across the board like I do?