RealGM

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.**

Starters
C - Tim Duncan (2002-03)

PF - Lamar Odom (2009-10)

SF - Josh Howard (2006-07)

SG - Eddie Jones (1997-98)

PG - Tony Parker (2012-13)

Bench
F - Boris Diaw (2012-13)

F/G - Anthony Parker (2009-10)

G - Patty Mills (2013-14)

Rotations
C - Duncan (38), Diaw (10)
PF - Odom (34), Diaw (10), Howard (4)
SF - Howard (32), A. Parker (16)
SG - Jones (36), A. Parker (6), Mills (6)
PG - T. Parker (36), Mills (12)

FGA Per Player


Our first plan of attack is to run off makes and misses. Parker is a monster in transition, and he's flanked by two athletic wings in Jones and Howard, as well as Odom who can function as both a creator and finisher on the break. Even Duncan is athletic enough to beat his man down the floor, although the Spurs didn't use that approach much in his prime. In the halfcourt, we have a good mix of the early-2000s inside-out approach and the Beautiful Game Spurs of the mid-2010s. We can play through peak Duncan in the post, where he can score himself or kick out to guys like Jones, Howard, Mills, and Parker. We also have plenty of intelligent passers (Duncan, Parker, Odom, Diaw), active off-ball players (Jones, Howard, Odom), and the penetration of Parker and Mills to start the ball-movement churn.

Defensively, Duncan is a GOAT-level anchor, Odom and Diaw provide versatility and smarts at the 4, Jones is a shark on the perimeter, and Howard/Parker are solid secondary wing stoppers.

Matchup
- We start out with Jones on Russ and Parker on KCP, and the other assignments straight up. Jones is a great athlete with the quickness, size, and length to hang with Russ. He goes under the screen on pick-and-rolls, and Duncan stays in a deep drop. Odom also shades off Gordon to much things up against Jokic. The priority is to protect the paint against Jokic in the post and Russ off the dribble.
- Both teams are led by a C-PG combo, but we have a couple of advantages. Even though Russ is better than Parker in a vacuum, his chaotic, transition-heavy style is completely antithetical to that of Jokic (whose Nuggets teams are generally very slow-paced and prioritise precise halfcourt execution). He's also not much of a threat off-ball which isn't ideal when you want to run things through Jokic in the post. Parker and Duncan are a proven fit across a variety of different roster builds. I believe we also have a stronger offensive core with Jones, Howard, and Odom rounding out the starting five and Mills as sixth man.
- Defensively, we have a pretty clear advantage at the 5 and on the wings. In particular, Smith will be hard pressed to hang with Howard from an athleticism standpoint.

Good luck Larry.

PG: Russell Westbrook (2015-16) 18.1
23.5ppg, 7.8rpg, 10.4apg, 2spg, 30% on 4.3-3pta
MVP-4, NBA-1st, AS, MIP-15

SG: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (2022-23) 8.3
10.8ppg, 2.7rpg, 2.5apg, 1.5spg, 0.5bpg, 42.5% on 4.2-3pta
received All Defense votes

SF: Steve Smith (2001-02) 8.9
11.5ppg, 2.5rpg, 2apg, 0.7spg, 47.2% on 3.2-3pta
Led League in 3pt%

PF: Aaron Gordon (2022-23) 11.2
16.3ppg, 6.6rpg, 3apg, 0.8spg, 0.8bpg, 35% on 2.5-3pta
MIP-11, received All Defense votes

C: Nikola Jokic (2022-23) 14.8
24.5ppg, 11.8rpg, 9.8apg, 1.3spg, 0.7bpg, 38.5% on 2.2-3pta
MVP-2, NBA-2, AS

PG/SG: Nick Van Exel (1997-98) 11.6
13.8ppg, 3rpg, 7apg, 1spg, 39% on 4.9-3pta
AS

SF/PF: Jerami Grant (2019-20) 8.9
12ppg, 3.5rpg, 1.2apg, 0.7spg, 0.8bpg, 39% on 3.5-3pta

C Tyson Chandler (2011-12) 5.7
11.5ppg, 10rpg, 1apg, 1spg, 1.5bpg
DPOY, NBA-3, Def-2

PG: Westbrook (36) /Van Exel(12)
SG: Pope (34) / Van Exel (14)
SF: Grant (30) / Smith (18)
PF: Gordon (34) / Grant (6) / Chander (8)
C: Nikola Jokic (38) / Chandler (10)

87.5/88

Power and speed at the point of attack.
Jokic and westbrook initiating a 2 man primary offense from outside of the 3pt line that forces Duncan outside his comfort zone and lets Westbrook get a big head of steam that lets him obliterate jones.

Too much atleticism at the point here.

I have awesome athleticism and elite shooting surrounding my top duo here.

Defense is wb on Parker
Pope on Jones
Barnes on howard
Gordon on Odom
Jokic on duncan

My weakest defender is a very solid post defender and duncan lives in the post. This will not exploit jokic.

Everyone else are great man to man and helps8de defenders.

Having NVE off the bench here is awesome. Big scoring in bunches. Smith gives ELITE shoot8ng and great team defense and Chandler guves a lob threat shotblocker.

My starting lineup is supercharged Denver offense with a better bench and the defense is much improved.

I can't help but compare LR's team to the real life Nuggets, where Jokic is paired with second and third options who are both volume three point shooters who pair extremely well with Jokic. He makes up for that a bit with KCP/Smith at the wings, but it doesn't do enough to bridge the gap for me. Jokic will still get his because he's Jokic, but the pieces to take full advantage of his passing ability and gravity aren't quite there in my opinion.

LR has the defensive complements that make the Nuggets defense work, but offensively in addition to the relative lack of volume shooting I don't really find Westbrook (a guy I really perceive as needing the ball in his hands to be effective) as a very good complement either.

Fade's team doesn't have a pair of MVP players, but it looks and feels like a much more synergistic group, with Parker and Jones feeling like an idea backcourt to pair with Duncan.

Vote Fade

Vote: Fade

I just don't particularly like the fit with Jokic and Russ. I find 2016 Russ to be underrated in these games, but Jokic isn't the guy to pair him with to maximize both their potential.

Meanwhile Fade's group is pretty smoothly constructed, a lot like the mid 2000s Spurs. Odom is an X-factor who I think will be excellent in that frontcourt.

I like switching Jerami Grant into the starting lineup but it was probably too difficult to find the right pieces for a tricky build like Russ Jokic in this draft. Gordon is okay generally talent wise as third guy in this pool, but he operates too much as a driver like Westbrook, and a better spacer was needed here.

Maybe trying something around Jokic with Allen, Nash or Murray would have been easier to build around.

The cleaner fit for Fade wins the day here IMO.

Vote Fade

Well I guess everyone hates prime westbrook as an option with Jokic.