Gregg Popovich Draft - Semi - Snakebites* vs durantbird

[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).

[durantbird]

PG: James Harden 21' - 16.7 - Nets
SG: Ray Allen 99' - 13.5 - 99' Lockout
SF: Jimmy Butler 23' - 13.9 - Heat
PF: Draymond Green 19' - 6.4 - One Franchise
C: David Robinson 98' - 14.6 - Spurs

G: Aaron McKie 97' - 4.4 - Pistons
F: Lauri Markannen 22' - 11.5 - Cavs
C: Tyson Chandler 12' - 5.7 - Knicks

86.7/88

PG: James Harden 38 / Aaron McKie 10
SG: Ray Allen 38 / Aaron McKie 6 / Jimmy Butler 4
SF: Jimmy Butler 34 / Lauri Markannen 14
PF: Draymond Green 34 / Lauri Markannen 10 / David Robinson 4
C: David Robinson 33 / Tyson Chandler 15

vs

Brunson (37)/White (11)
White (22)/Bridges (26)
Bridges (11)/Battier (26)/Wade (11)
Malone (37)/Wade (11)
Jokic (37)/Stewart (11)

Matchup:
- Defensive assignments: Butler vs Brunson, Harden vs Spurs Derrick White, Allen vs Bridges, Draymond vs Malone, Robinson vs Jokic.
- We counter their core perfectly—Butler disrupts Brunson’s rhythm, Draymond is one of the few defenders who can credibly battle Malone’s physicality and mid-post game, and Robinson has the mobility and strength to contest Jokic inside without fouling. On the other end, nowhere to really hide Brunson.
- Against an interior focused offense with Jokic Malone and Brunson who also posts up a lot, the combination of Draymond-Robinson-Chandler is going to be deadly.
- Ray Allen in ‘99 was already an elite scorer—hyper-athletic, great off-ball mover, and knocked down 47% from three in the playoffs. He wasn’t named an All-Star only because the game wasn’t held due to the lockout, but he received All-NBA votes and was clearly on that trajectory.
- Harden Allen Butler form a superb backcourt trio which can apply tremendous pressure in all kinds of ways, with Robinson at the middle. Butler and Draymond already showed they work together well, and Draymond has many shooters who can thrive off his passes. Markannen is a superb sixth man, with DPOY Chandler as backup big.
- Being forced to rely on Spurs-era Derrick White is a notable downgrade—he hadn’t yet developed the offensive polish or confidence he later showed in Boston, and even there, it didn’t fully click until he started playing under Mazzulla. At this stage, he was a solid defender but still inconsistent and hesitant offensively, especially in big moments.
- I think McKie-Markannen-Chandler form an extremely reliable bench, and comfortably better than 22 minutes of Dean Wade.
- Overall, we match up exceptionally well—our starters are balanced on both ends, our defensive trio (Butler, Draymond, Robinson) clamps down their core, and our backcourt of Harden and Allen offers elite shot creation and spacing. Add in a versatile bench with McKie, Markkanen, and Chandler, and we’re simply deeper, better defensively, and harder to game-plan against than a roster leaning heavily on Brunson-Malone-Jokic without enough elite shot creation or spacing behind them.

[Snakebites]

Alrighty, lets do this.

Only one team:
22-23 Nikola Jokic- 14.8 FGA
Lockout Season:
98-99 Karl Malone- 16.3 FGA
Spurs:
19-20 Derrick White 8.1 FGA
Knicks:
24-25 Jalen Brunson 18.8 FGA
Nets:
23-24 Mikal Bridges 15.8 FGA
Pistons:
24-25 Isaiah Stewart 4.4 FGA
Cavaliers:
23-24 Dean Wade 4.3 FGA
Heat:
12-13 Shane Battier 5.0 FGA

Brunson (37)/White (11)
White (22)/Bridges (26)
Bridges (11)/Battier (26)/Wade (11)
Malone (37)/Wade (11)
Jokic (37)/Stewart (11)

Seasons of choice taken into account (Harden and Robinson past their primes, Ray Ray before it), this is a series where, comfortably, the two best players are both on the same team. And they also fit extremely well together- even with a strong defensive front court I think a two man game between two bigmen where one of them is essentially the point guard is extremely hard to defend against. And that pair is hardly the only tool in my aresenal, as I've got Jalen Brunson can effectively score in isolation and also run more traditional offensive sets with Malone and Jokic as partners. My wings defend and spread the floor- I'd argue the roles on my team are more clearly defined than the converse where, with Harden and Butler, I'd argue that Draymond's role in the offense is ill-defined. I'd further argue that Robinson, 2019 Draymond, and Butler is a weak shooting front court for a Harden team.

Defensively Jokic does not have to defend in space against this lineup, which has always been the most effective way to defeat Jokic. Malone getting to guard a non-scorer is also beneficial, and I've got strong wing defenders in White, Battier, and especially Bridges to throw at the various perimeter threats that DB can levee against me.

If everyone was in their prime, I think it's pretty clear that DB would win. But when years and fit are factored in, along with the fact that I've got the two best players in the series, I'd argue that my team should come out on top.

[durantbird]

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Voting is open, snakebites please vote for yourself

[durantbird]

Snakebites advances

Meh I liked this team. I think off seasons thing was a bit blown up of proportions. Though I cannot be sure that this is the reason I lost because we don't have rationals anymore

[Fadeaway_J]

Snakebites advances

Meh I liked this team. I think off seasons thing was a bit blown up of proportions. Though I cannot be sure that this is the reason I lost because we don't have rationals anymore

I'm normally not a stickler for "off" seasons, but they do matter when your players are a level or two below the versions that are typically used.

However, my main issues were: the low-spacing frontcourt; the wonky fit between Harden, Butler, and Draymond; the lack of backcourt defense forcing 33-year-old Butler to take on that role against a player like Brunson; and the fact that Snake has three of the four best offensive players in the series (including by far the best in Jokic).

[Snakebites]

Snakebites advances

Meh I liked this team. I think off seasons thing was a bit blown up of proportions. Though I cannot be sure that this is the reason I lost because we don't have rationals anymore

I'm normally not a stickler for "off" seasons, but they do matter when your players are a level or two below the versions that are typically used.

However, my main issues were: the low-spacing frontcourt; the wonky fit between Harden, Butler, and Draymond; the lack of backcourt defense forcing 33-year-old Butler to take on that role against a player like Brunson; and the fact that Snake has three of the four best offensive players in the series (including by far the best in Jokic).

I'd like clarification on what DB means by "blowing it out of proportion".

This isn't like choosing 2001 Shaq instead of 2000. You can't expect Nets Harden to be treated like 2017 Houston Harden. Post injury David Robinson was a great but different player. Ray Allen hadn't developed into a top 5 shooter of all time yet in 1999.

[durantbird]

Snakebites advances

Meh I liked this team. I think off seasons thing was a bit blown up of proportions. Though I cannot be sure that this is the reason I lost because we don't have rationals anymore

I'm normally not a stickler for "off" seasons, but they do matter when your players are a level or two below the versions that are typically used.

However, my main issues were: the low-spacing frontcourt; the wonky fit between Harden, Butler, and Draymond; the lack of backcourt defense forcing 33-year-old Butler to take on that role against a player like Brunson; and the fact that Snake has three of the four best offensive players in the series (including by far the best in Jokic).

I'd like clarification on what DB means by "blowing it out of proportion".

This isn't like choosing 2001 Shaq instead of 2000. You can't expect Nets Harden to be treated like 2017 Houston Harden. Post injury David Robinson was a great but different player. Ray Allen hadn't developed into a top 5 shooter of all time yet in 1999.

Yeah of course. But that doesn't mean those players aren't extremely good as well. I still feel this team has very high ceiling and cannot be disregarded specifically for the years used

[Snakebites]

I'm normally not a stickler for "off" seasons, but they do matter when your players are a level or two below the versions that are typically used.

However, my main issues were: the low-spacing frontcourt; the wonky fit between Harden, Butler, and Draymond; the lack of backcourt defense forcing 33-year-old Butler to take on that role against a player like Brunson; and the fact that Snake has three of the four best offensive players in the series (including by far the best in Jokic).

I'd like clarification on what DB means by "blowing it out of proportion".

This isn't like choosing 2001 Shaq instead of 2000. You can't expect Nets Harden to be treated like 2017 Houston Harden. Post injury David Robinson was a great but different player. Ray Allen hadn't developed into a top 5 shooter of all time yet in 1999.

Yeah of course. But that doesn't mean those players aren't extremely good as well. I still feel this team has very high ceiling and cannot be disregarded specifically for the years used

It wasn't disregarded. It just didn't quite win. That's not the same thing.