Not Loyal No Journeyman Draft - R1 - Larry_Russell vs JimmyPlopper*

[durantbird]

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. Once the writeups are posted, I will add a poll, and the team with the most votes after 24 hours will advance. EACH MANAGER SHOULD ALSO VOTE FOR THEIR OWN TEAM IN THE POLL - IF YOU FAIL TO DO THIS, YOU ARE SIMPLY GIVING AWAY A VOTE. If the votes are tied, we will decide the matchup via AI vote.

You are not required to state or explain your vote, but you are free to comment in the thread if you want to.

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).

[Larry_Russell]

PG: Steve Nash (2004-05) 11.4
15.5ppg, 3.3rpg, 11.5apg, 1spg, 43% on 3-3pta
MVP, NBA-1, AS

SG: Latrell Sprewell (1993-94) 17.3
21ppg, 5rpg, 4.7apg, 2.2spg, 1bpg, 36% on 4.8-3pta
MVP-11, NBA-1, DEF-2, AS

SF: Mikal Bridges (2021-22) 10.5
14.2ppg, 4.2rpg, 2.3apg, 1.2spg, 0.5bpg, 37% on 3.8-3pta
DPOY-2, DEF-1

PF: Larry Johnson (1994-95) 15.
19ppg, 7.2rpg, 4.6apg, 1spg, 38.5% on 2.6-3pta
AS

C: Alonzo Mourning (1998-99) 13.8
20ppg, 11rpg, 1.6apg, 0.7spg, 3.9bpg
MVP-2, DPOY, NBA-1, DEF-1

PG/SG: Marcus Smart (2018-19) 7.1
9ppg, 3rpg, 4apg, 1.8spg, 0.5bpg, 36.5% on 4.3-3pta
DPOY-8, DEF-1

PF: Aaron Gordon (2015-16) 7.4
9.2ppg, 6.5rpg, 1.6apg, 0.8spg, 0.7bpg

C: Daniel Gafford (2022-23) 5.1
9ppg, 5.6rpg, 1.1apg, 0.5spgm, 1.5bpg


PG: Nash (38) / Smart (10)
SG: Sprewell (38) / Smart (10)
SF: Bridges (38) / Gordon (10)
PF: Johnson (38) / Gordon (10)
C: Mourning (38) / Gafford (10)


Matchups defensively.
Sprewell will defend SGA
Nash will Defend Hornacek
Bridges and Larry will take turns defending the only 6fga per game much older Dan Majerle
BRidges and Larry will take turns defending Davis
Mourning takes on Brook.

I have pretty nice defense anchored by a monster defender in Mourning and 2 ELITE multipositional defenders in Bridges and Sprewell on the wings. Team will be able to pressure heavily. Having Majerle out there is beneficial for me as this version wasnt really a good player and is being overplayed. This lets me swap out Bridges and Grandmama onto Davis to give him different looks. One to bully him, one to pressure him.

Dan requires little attention so doubles are on the table.

Offensively I will hum with Nash as one of the greatest floor raiser of all time will be dictating everything.
Off of him I have a super high energy, athletic monster in Peak Sprewell, and bridges on the wings as an upgraded version of Joe Johnson and QAuentin Richardson from the suns
Larry Johnson and Mourning in the front court is again a severly upgraded version of those Nash led suns teams over Amare and Marion

I will run this team into the ground while still playing very good defense.

[JimmyPlopper]

Draft
Round 1, Pick 10: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2024) - 19.8 FGA/G
Round 2, Pick 13: Anthony Davis (2020) - 17.7 FGA/G
Round 3, Pick 24: Brook Lopez (2021) - 9.1 FGA/G
Round 4, Pick 43: Jeff Hornacek (1996) - 10.7 FGA/G
Round 5, Pick 46: Dan Majerle (1998) - 6.1 FGA/G
Round 6, Pick 65: Jarrett Allen (2020) - 6.6 FGA/G
Round 7, Pick 68: Michael Redd (2003) - 11.8 FGA/G
Round 8, Pick 87: Cedric Maxwell (1987) - 5.9 FGA/G

87.7/88

Rotation
PG: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (36) / Jeff Hornacek (12)
SG: Jeff Hornacek (24) / Michael Redd (24)
SF: Dan Majerle (36) / Michael Redd (12)
PF: Anthony Davis (36) / Cedric Maxwell (12)
C: Brook Lopez (32) / Jarrett Allen (16)

Larry, you’ve built a strong, well-balanced team with great defense and tempo, but I see a key advantage in attacking Nash directly with SGA. Given SGA’s size, scoring versatility, and ability to generate offense efficiently, I’ll be putting him on Nash full-time to exploit that mismatch. This forces your defense to adjust, potentially pulling Mourning out of the paint or requiring more minutes from Smart, which could affect your offensive flow. It should be a great battle, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it plays out. Best of luck!

Keys to victory:

Exploiting Nash defensively – SGA’s size and scoring ability will create a consistent advantage, forcing defensive adjustments.
Interior dominance – With AD, Brook, and Jarrett Allen, I have the rim protection and rebounding edge to limit second-chance points and control the paint.
Spacing and efficiency – Hornacek, Majerle, and Redd provide reliable shooting, ensuring the floor stays open for SGA and AD to operate effectively.

[durantbird]

Matchup is open. Larry and Jimmy, please vote for yourselves

[Larry_Russell]

Fyi.

Nash is NOT defemding sga.

[ReggiesKnicks]

Fyi.

Nash is NOT defemding sga.

He is when SGA calls for a pick.

[Larry_Russell]

Fyi.

Nash is NOT defemding sga.

He is when SGA calls for a pick.

Only if I switch on the picks.

Spree doesnt need to switch at all.
And you would need to run a Jeff/SGA pick to try and get Nash into an action, and that doesnt make sense.

[ReggiesKnicks]

Fyi.

Nash is NOT defemding sga.

He is when SGA calls for a pick.

Only if I switch on the picks.

Spree doesnt need to switch at all.
And you would need to run a Jeff/SGA pick to try and get Nash into an action, and that doesnt make sense.

OKC runs P&R with anyone. In fact, most modern offenses run P&R with anyone as the screener to get a switch. Your Celtics run it all the time to get Tatum/Brown on a smaller player.

[Snakebites]

Big fan of JP's construction in this one.

[durantbird]

JimmyPlopper advances

[Larry_Russell]

I really thought I had one of the better teams and should have easily made the finals in this one.

[JimmyPlopper]

Gg Larry

[ReggiesKnicks]

I really thought I had one of the better teams and should have easily made the finals in this one.

I voted for you