FFL 2025 - 2026 - Live Draft on Yahoo - 19th of Oct Sunday 3 pm EST

[Curtis Lemansky]

It should be in your email right now.

[writersblock]

It should be in your email right now.

Nice. 4th. I'll take it.

[Curtis Lemansky]

Draft order is set:
The following draft order was randomly generated for your league:
1 - sly
2 - Ham N. Cheese
3 - Misfit Ballers
4 - The Chair
5 - Werder Kinte
6 - Sons of Disaster
7 - Over_Before_It_Began
8 - Kanata 3.0
9 - Bustle in your Hedge Row
10 - Vanilla Skai
11 - Frostbite
12 - Al's Bottomfeeders
13 - Time Lord
14 - Hay-den
15 - Istanbul Run N Gun
16 - The CumSonics
17 - insfo
18 - Medo u muvanje
19 - Best Team
20 - 3Si

[UcanUwill]

14th... damn, not a great position.

[theman]

And down goes one of the originals. Sad to see you go.
I can't blame you though. I remember the good ol' days when Sly started this league to be an active and conversational league. Now, no one says anything and no one responds to trade offers. Even the horrible ones I send just to get a response. This is a sad day indeed.

A lot of the conversation was during the month + long slow draft. Commenting on people's picks and such. Live drafts cut that out. Auction drafts are fun. I don't think we ever tried one with league.

yeah true, never thought of it that way. However even before the live draft, things were getting quieter on the boards, I believe it had something to do with Fran leaving, such a troll and instigator lol.

then the live draft thing completely finished all the talk and trades. I'm also hugely in favor of Auction drafts in the last 10 years or so. Snake is such an unfair and unfun way to draft. Especially in a 20 team league, you getting a top 4 pick means you have an insane advantage against the other 16 teams immediately (Wemby, Jokic, SGA, Doncic). Reversing the order on even rounds is not nearly enough. Another thing with snake is that, let's say I'm high on Donovan Mitchell or Brunson this year, if I'm picking in the top 5-6, there's no way I can pick them because it would be stupid to do so in the first round. And for the second round I'm picking 35th, which means there's no way they fall to me as well. Snake is like going to a restaurant, you tell the waiter if you like red meat, chicken or fish and he choses a dish for you from that category... I don't find it fun at all.

If you do not snake, anyone picking out side of the top 5 might as well not even play.
1 + 40... vs 20 + 21...

is a lot more fair than
1 + 21... vs 20 + 40...

[sabonis]

A lot of the conversation was during the month + long slow draft. Commenting on people's picks and such. Live drafts cut that out. Auction drafts are fun. I don't think we ever tried one with league.

yeah true, never thought of it that way. However even before the live draft, things were getting quieter on the boards, I believe it had something to do with Fran leaving, such a troll and instigator lol.

then the live draft thing completely finished all the talk and trades. I'm also hugely in favor of Auction drafts in the last 10 years or so. Snake is such an unfair and unfun way to draft. Especially in a 20 team league, you getting a top 4 pick means you have an insane advantage against the other 16 teams immediately (Wemby, Jokic, SGA, Doncic). Reversing the order on even rounds is not nearly enough. Another thing with snake is that, let's say I'm high on Donovan Mitchell or Brunson this year, if I'm picking in the top 5-6, there's no way I can pick them because it would be stupid to do so in the first round. And for the second round I'm picking 35th, which means there's no way they fall to me as well. Snake is like going to a restaurant, you tell the waiter if you like red meat, chicken or fish and he choses a dish for you from that category... I don't find it fun at all.

If you do not snake, anyone picking out side of the top 5 might as well not even play.
1 + 40... vs 20 + 21...

is a lot more fair than
1 + 21... vs 20 + 40...

No, what you do is you reverse every single round starting from round 2. So the guy who picks Wemby always picks last on each and every single remaining round...

[UcanUwill]

Ok, set alarm clock for the draft, over here, it will be 10 PM already by the time it starts, hopefully I will be on time, I always walk my dog around 9 PM. Just got a dog last month, was encouraged to get him for a long time, I have a very very strong depression and yeah, dog definitely helps. Fantasy also helps, I do not really have anything to live for, and buzzerbeater manager and things like fantasy keeps me going, makes look forward to something etc.

I wonder how many managers wll be active during the draft, last year most were, but few missed it and were disappointed. It is Sunday, so I hope most of you have a day off and can join.

[floppymoose]

Keep fighting! I am not medically knowledgable so this is not pro advice (also i dont have depression so i cant give direct experience): i feel better when i make something. In my job i make software; in my hobby i make music. Creating is a boost for me.

[writersblock]

Keep fighting! I am not medically knowledgable so this is not pro advice (also i dont have depression so i cant give direct experience): i feel better when i make something. In my job i make software; in my hobby i make music. Creating is a boost for me.

Hey Floppy...what software do you use to make music?

[theman]

Will this league be doing the thing where every player is on waivers or will they eventually become free agents.

[writersblock]

Will this league be doing the thing where every player is on waivers or will they eventually become free agents.

Everyone is on waivers all season. We have the $100 bidding amount as well.

[UcanUwill]

I was drafting players, but fallen asleep and missed last 4 rounds, NAW, Reath, Barnes and Burks guys I am very openly willing to move, if anyone interested?

My team looks like this , Hay-den

[UcanUwill]

I have sent trade proposals to Istanbul Run N Gun and 3Si, maybe we can work something out?

[floppymoose]

Keep fighting! I am not medically knowledgable so this is not pro advice (also i dont have depression so i cant give direct experience): i feel better when i make something. In my job i make software; in my hobby i make music. Creating is a boost for me.

Hey Floppy...what software do you use to make music?

I play on a keyboard and use the yamaha rec-n-share app to take to sound output from keyboard and combine with video of me playing from the ipad ( the app is on ipad, keyboard usb to ipad, the ipad is capturing the video and sound together so they are in sync). Thats it. If i also have lyrics i take that instrument vid and listen to it on headphones while singing into garageband on ipad. (The vid is just of keyboard and hands, not my face). Then i take that audio track plus the vid, airdrop them to my mac, and use imovie to combine them. Its all extremely unsophisticated. All the software i mentioned is free: its the keyboard, ipad, and mac that cost.


Also, i cant really play piano and i definitely cant sing, so the performance quality is very low. But i love to make music so i do it anyway. I share it with fam and a few others.

[theman]

We used to be able to select "Traditional" for moving players from position to position instead of drag and drop that I find bothersome. Is that still available? I don't see it.

[writersblock]

Keep fighting! I am not medically knowledgable so this is not pro advice (also i dont have depression so i cant give direct experience): i feel better when i make something. In my job i make software; in my hobby i make music. Creating is a boost for me.

Hey Floppy...what software do you use to make music?

I play on a keyboard and use the yamaha rec-n-share app to take to sound output from keyboard and combine with video of me playing from the ipad ( the app is on ipad, keyboard usb to ipad, the ipad is capturing the video and sound together so they are in sync). Thats it. If i also have lyrics i take that instrument vid and listen to it on headphones while singing into garageband on ipad. (The vid is just of keyboard and hands, not my face). Then i take that audio track plus the vid, airdrop them to my mac, and use imovie to combine them. Its all extremely unsophisticated. All the software i mentioned is free: its the keyboard, ipad, and mac that cost.


Also, i cant really play piano and i definitely cant sing, so the performance quality is very low. But i love to make music so i do it anyway. I share it with fam and a few others.

Super helpful. Thanks Floppy.

[Curtis Lemansky]

Good luck everyone.

Reminder: 45 max moves are only for the regular season. In playoffs, the number is reset.

[writersblock]

We used to have a tradition of someone writing up a ranking of the teams in the league. Sabonis used to be more than willing, but now that he is gone, I thought it might be fun to provide some analysis. I'm happy to provide my 2 cents on the draft. May put in a team ranking, but may not have time. Anyone want to trash these or write your own? Go for it:

Rounds 1-5

Best Picks
20. Steph Curry, 3si Curry still has it in him to be top 10. For him to drop to 20 is insane. This might be more "what was everybody else thinking??" and 3si just got lucky, but the pick could put 3si in the top 3 teams of the league all year. In fact, someone should do an analysis of how many teams with Curry win it all. I'd bet it's pretty high.

31. Tyrese Maxey, Skai I think everyone has Maxey as their "bust out" candidate this year, and I don't even care about the thumb scare in the preseason. This guy is going to be counted on all season to do everything. With Embiid, PG 13 and undoubtedly 3 other guys going on the shelf during the season in Philly, they may even have him call fouls and mop up the floor when someone falls. His ADP is 26 but I bet he ends up top 20 this year. Getting him at 31 is a steal.

93. Zach Edey, Above the Rim. I've watched him play at Purdue. I watched him play Summer League. This guy is a beast. Maybe not top 60 this year, but he's going to outplay this draft spot.

Honorable Mentions
73. Cam Thomas, Kanata

Worst Picks
3. Giannis Atetoullkmlkmlpopo, Misfit Ballers Yes, I goaded him to take Giannis, but no way a guy who has any categorical faults should go top 3. Frostbite's Embiid at 11 was a close second. No way he plays more than 55 games this year.

28. Zion Williamson, Above the Rim From what I've seen, most barely rate him top 50 and the ADP is 46. Sure, he finally played 70 games last year, but his production dropped across the board, meaning he's not playing as hard during the season to save himself for the playoffs. I think that trend continues.

Gutsiest Picks: Risk/Reward Potential
9. Chet Holmgren, Bustle in your Hustle (or whatever...man team names these days). Hats off to getting your guy. Most have Chet outside the top 20. Going 9th may seem insane, but I kind of like it. Of guys making a big jump in their sophomore year, I'd put Chet at the top, just under Wemby.

22. Cade Cunningham, Best Team. I'm actually high on Cade this year, and maybe that means I'm just high, but I like this pick if he stays healthy. I think this is the year he proves himself as a legit team leader. This time next year, I think Cade may be going top 10.

52. Kawhi Leonard, Al's Bottomfeeders Will he even play more than half the season this year? Who knows. If he does, he'll outplay this draft spot. If he doesn't, he's not worth a near top 50 pick. I almost put this in the "worst picks" category, but I was grateful someone else took him so I wouldn't have to consider taking him with my pick in the next round.

Rounds 6-10

Best Picks
170. Jordan Clarkson, Skai. At this point in the draft, it's almost a dart throw, but to see someone like Clarkson, who continues to produce at a respectable rate on a disrespect-able team, last all the way to 170 is crazy. Shrewd move by Skai.

117. Cam Johnson, Ivey League . Look, I'm writing the list, so I get to be one of the top picks, ok? Cam Thomas is getting all the noise, but the other Cam is in line for a major uptick in workload. Could he reach top 100, I hope so. That's why I picked him there.

Worst Picks
103. Klay Thompson, Medo u muvanje I'm really not a believer in a bounce-back year for Klay. I think his best days are behind him, and he's a 3 and D guy without the D. I think you can count on him for a couple 3s a game, which isn't bad, but with the increase in 3s being launched in the NBA, you can count on everyone else for a couple 3s as well. Yahoo has him rated at 127. I think even that may be too high.

105. Khris Middleton, CumSonics. See my comments about Leonard, Kawhi. I just don't think this guy is going to play much this year. Sure 105 isn't much of a risk, but I'd rather have almost every other person drafted that round, except Draymond. And when you have guys like Tyus Jones, Devincenzo, and Cam Johnson on the board, you don't go injury-risk Middleton.

178. Dario Saric, Medo This is late in the draft, but not late enough to take a flyer on a guy that has had more time on the waiver wire the last few seasons in an 18-20 team league than on a team. I don't care where he's playing.

Gutsiest Picks
109. Porzingis, Al's Bottomfeeders. Sure, he's out for a while, and he tends to be out when you need him most. If he's not, he could return top 50 value.

161. Jonathan Isaac, Sly. Kind of peeved Sly took him here. I was hoping to grab him 10 picks later. Super risk reward type play. Maybe more risk than reward though...the guy has had chances, and injuries have plagued him. Does Orlando even fit for his skills anymore? No idea, but this could be a major coup for Sly if it works out.

Honorable mentions:
164. Reed Sheppard, The Man
175. Grady Dick, Istanbul Run n Gun

Rounds 11-14

Best Picks
277. Miles McBride, Werder Kinte. One pick before mine. Seriously. One pick before mine. Why??! Why??! Sorry, I just can't right now. Well-played Werder. I also hate you.

246. Sam Hauser, Sons of Disaster I rode this guy all year long last year, especially at the end of the season when Porzingis was out. He nearly got me the championship. I see no reason he shouldn't get the minutes and numbers he got last year. He may have a couple of off games but his high games are totally worth the wait.

Worst Picks

239. Reggie Jackson, Ham. Holy crap, RJ is still in the league? I had no idea. Also, made this pick based on Ham's admission he did 0 research for this year's draft. Here's to you Ham!


Gutsiest Pick
Look, we're in the 200s, nothing gutsy about taking guys at this point. They're almost all shots in the dark.

Drafting from the Yahoo! Deep League Sleeper article Award
Round 10 picks 3-8 (Dalton Knecht, Simone Fontecchio, Cason Wallace, Kel'el Ware, Matas Buzelis)
Seriously though. Right in order.

[theman]

Nice write up. Want to do the same thing for FFDL?

[insfo]

Spoiler:

We used to have a tradition of someone writing up a ranking of the teams in the league. Sabonis used to be more than willing, but now that he is gone, I thought it might be fun to provide some analysis. I'm happy to provide my 2 cents on the draft. May put in a team ranking, but may not have time. Anyone want to trash these or write your own? Go for it:

Rounds 1-5

Best Picks
20. Steph Curry, 3si Curry still has it in him to be top 10. For him to drop to 20 is insane. This might be more "what was everybody else thinking??" and 3si just got lucky, but the pick could put 3si in the top 3 teams of the league all year. In fact, someone should do an analysis of how many teams with Curry win it all. I'd bet it's pretty high.

31. Tyrese Maxey, Skai I think everyone has Maxey as their "bust out" candidate this year, and I don't even care about the thumb scare in the preseason. This guy is going to be counted on all season to do everything. With Embiid, PG 13 and undoubtedly 3 other guys going on the shelf during the season in Philly, they may even have him call fouls and mop up the floor when someone falls. His ADP is 26 but I bet he ends up top 20 this year. Getting him at 31 is a steal.

93. Zach Edey, Above the Rim. I've watched him play at Purdue. I watched him play Summer League. This guy is a beast. Maybe not top 60 this year, but he's going to outplay this draft spot.

Honorable Mentions
73. Cam Thomas, Kanata

Worst Picks
3. Giannis Atetoullkmlkmlpopo, Misfit Ballers Yes, I goaded him to take Giannis, but no way a guy who has any categorical faults should go top 3. Frostbite's Embiid at 11 was a close second. No way he plays more than 55 games this year.

28. Zion Williamson, Above the Rim From what I've seen, most barely rate him top 50 and the ADP is 46. Sure, he finally played 70 games last year, but his production dropped across the board, meaning he's not playing as hard during the season to save himself for the playoffs. I think that trend continues.

Gutsiest Picks: Risk/Reward Potential
9. Chet Holmgren, Bustle in your Hustle (or whatever...man team names these days). Hats off to getting your guy. Most have Chet outside the top 20. Going 9th may seem insane, but I kind of like it. Of guys making a big jump in their sophomore year, I'd put Chet at the top, just under Wemby.

22. Cade Cunningham, Best Team. I'm actually high on Cade this year, and maybe that means I'm just high, but I like this pick if he stays healthy. I think this is the year he proves himself as a legit team leader. This time next year, I think Cade may be going top 10.

52. Kawhi Leonard, Al's Bottomfeeders Will he even play more than half the season this year? Who knows. If he does, he'll outplay this draft spot. If he doesn't, he's not worth a near top 50 pick. I almost put this in the "worst picks" category, but I was grateful someone else took him so I wouldn't have to consider taking him with my pick in the next round.

Rounds 6-10

Best Picks
170. Jordan Clarkson, Skai. At this point in the draft, it's almost a dart throw, but to see someone like Clarkson, who continues to produce at a respectable rate on a disrespect-able team, last all the way to 170 is crazy. Shrewd move by Skai.

117. Cam Johnson, Ivey League . Look, I'm writing the list, so I get to be one of the top picks, ok? Cam Thomas is getting all the noise, but the other Cam is in line for a major uptick in workload. Could he reach top 100, I hope so. That's why I picked him there.

Worst Picks
103. Klay Thompson, Medo u muvanje I'm really not a believer in a bounce-back year for Klay. I think his best days are behind him, and he's a 3 and D guy without the D. I think you can count on him for a couple 3s a game, which isn't bad, but with the increase in 3s being launched in the NBA, you can count on everyone else for a couple 3s as well. Yahoo has him rated at 127. I think even that may be too high.

105. Khris Middleton, CumSonics. See my comments about Leonard, Kawhi. I just don't think this guy is going to play much this year. Sure 105 isn't much of a risk, but I'd rather have almost every other person drafted that round, except Draymond. And when you have guys like Tyus Jones, Devincenzo, and Cam Johnson on the board, you don't go injury-risk Middleton.

178. Dario Saric, Medo This is late in the draft, but not late enough to take a flyer on a guy that has had more time on the waiver wire the last few seasons in an 18-20 team league than on a team. I don't care where he's playing.

Gutsiest Picks
109. Porzingis, Al's Bottomfeeders. Sure, he's out for a while, and he tends to be out when you need him most. If he's not, he could return top 50 value.

161. Jonathan Isaac, Sly. Kind of peeved Sly took him here. I was hoping to grab him 10 picks later. Super risk reward type play. Maybe more risk than reward though...the guy has had chances, and injuries have plagued him. Does Orlando even fit for his skills anymore? No idea, but this could be a major coup for Sly if it works out.

Honorable mentions:
164. Reed Sheppard, The Man
175. Grady Dick, Istanbul Run n Gun

Rounds 11-14

Best Picks
277. Miles McBride, Werder Kinte. One pick before mine. Seriously. One pick before mine. Why??! Why??! Sorry, I just can't right now. Well-played Werder. I also hate you.

246. Sam Hauser, Sons of Disaster I rode this guy all year long last year, especially at the end of the season when Porzingis was out. He nearly got me the championship. I see no reason he shouldn't get the minutes and numbers he got last year. He may have a couple of off games but his high games are totally worth the wait.

Worst Picks

239. Reggie Jackson, Ham. Holy crap, RJ is still in the league? I had no idea. Also, made this pick based on Ham's admission he did 0 research for this year's draft. Here's to you Ham!


Gutsiest Pick
Look, we're in the 200s, nothing gutsy about taking guys at this point. They're almost all shots in the dark.

Drafting from the Yahoo! Deep League Sleeper article Award
Round 10 picks 3-8 (Dalton Knecht, Simone Fontecchio, Cason Wallace, Kel'el Ware, Matas Buzelis)
Seriously though. Right in order.

Great writeup WB! Thanks for taking the time and doing this