Post#808 » by Dr Spaceman » Fri May 13, 2016 1:06 pm
Some quick principles about guys I targeted/how I attacked the draft process and envisioned my team:
1. Quickness of mind
One of my main guiding principles was that I didn't want the ball to stick anywhere. Basically I was trying to maximize positive outcome per time of possession. In a league like this, everyone on the team is so dynamic and so skilled that the opportunity cost of not having instantaneous decision-makers was too high for me. The guy that embodies this best was my second pick, Anthony Davis, who legitimately is the best off-ball mover I've ever seen among big men, and is clearly smart enough to either catch & go or keep the ball moving, given that's the way he actually plays in the real NBA. I was shying away from volume scorers who needed lots of on_ball time to do their thing, and Davis was essentially perfect in that he can grab his buckets playing off my guards and his scoring won't interfere with Magic's playmaking (as a matter of fact, I believe it enhances it given how terrifying Davis is near the rim).
The other big scorer on my team is Klay Thompson, and obviously he works by all the same principles. Loves his screens away from the ball and if he doesn't have a route to immediately finish the play he's more than fine with making a smart pass and keeping that thing moving.
All 4 of the guys around Magic are top flight off-ball players for their positions, plus shooters and smart movers who are good at some very specific things and are cool with being part of a hierarchy.
2. Length & athleticism
As this team started to come together, I realized how much of an edge I had in terms of positional size. While Magic is technically playing small forward on my team, he's a perimeter player who,s quick enough to force other teams to put a small guard on him, who he can abuse in the post. All the rest of the guys have elite size, length, or both for their position, in addition to being extremely active and high-motor. This is especially useful on the defensive end, where I've picked guys who are going to throw their limbs around, be disruptive, force turnovers and apply pressure. I've seen Anthony Davis strip point guards on the perimeter, and he's a terror against big men who try to dribble in his space or post him up, able to concede room and still get a hand on the shot without fouling because he's got tree branch arms. I have a team full of elite ball thieves who are also mo-nester athletes on the break, and the constant motion on both ends of the floor is going to tire the crap out of opposing teams. With the ball moving at wicked speeds in the half court, the constant transition attacks, the defensive applied pressure, and just the stress of guarding these freakish athletes, my team is going to be just EXHAUSTING to play against.
My team is young, they are freakish, they are long, they are athletic, and they are relentless. They will come after you and come after you until you break.
3. No place to hide
Although I kind of ran into trouble with this philosophy as I started drafting my bench, I don't regret this decision at all. When people started picking very limited and one-dimensional players, I took advantage of a market inefficiency for guys who had more tools at the expense of higher FGA. I called Klay Thompson a luxury when I picked him, but he was a very high target of mine as the draft went along because I wanted guys who couldn't be taken advantage of. He's the best defending shooting specialist I know of, and you're not going to take him out of his game no matter what you do. He can post up smaller guys if need be, he can attack off the dribble, and there's no perimeter player he can't guard.
I made sure everyone in my starting lineup was a true positive on both ends of the floor, even if that meant playing them out of position (Magic). I knew I could absorb the FGA troubles if I scouted really well in the last 3 round (and I think I did). There's no one on my team where you can hide a poor defender, no one who can't punish opposing teams in isolation or in the post, no non-offensive threats, and no one to attack defensively without totally giving upl your offensive scheme. When I look at other teams, there are a lot of specialists, and while that's not a bad thing it is a vulnerability and I tried my damndest to make sure that wasn't an option against my team.
“I’m not the fastest guy on the court, but I can dictate when the race begins.”
