All-Time Fantasy League (2014) - Playoffs: THUNDERDAN9 WINS

[batmana]

Since the other matchups got locked for the time being, do I have to post my team's overall mindset and strategy here or is it OK to wait for the matchup to become active and post there? I see that my opponent already posted his general ideas and I will read his resume when I have enough time.

[MisterHibachi]

Since the other matchups got locked for the time being, do I have to post my team's overall mindset and strategy here or is it OK to wait for the matchup to become active and post there? I see that my opponent already posted his general ideas and I will read his resume when I have enough time.

The match up strategy go in the match up thread when it opens again. Your drafting strategy/process/mindset go in this thread. Why you drafted the players you did, was there a particularly tough choice, what kind of team were you aiming for, stuff like that. Your precise strategy of defeating an opponent goes in the match up thread itself.

[batmana]

OK, I am going to explain my draft choices and give a rough idea about what my team should look like.

In order of drafting them:

Shaquille O'Neal - he was an easy choice, the player I had 2nd overall behind Jordan on my personal list. He will be the centerpiece of this team. Absolutely dominant offensively, a factor defensively despite not considered a defensive specialist. An excellent passer who allowed me to build around him in a number of ways.

Grant Hill - a perimeter superstar who can be relied on defensively unlike many 1-way players who were elite scorers. In real life injuries prevented us from possibly another Scottie Pippen, and I believe he would be great in such a role where he is clearly not the 1st option. Chose him over Clyde Drexler mainly because of his superior defensive ability.

Paul George - I may have reached by drafting him in the 3rd round but ultimately I am happy with this pick. An excellent 2-way perimeter player who has the size to guard 3s without a problem and who is really good (not great because I have to average out 3 seasons) offensively and can hit the 3 ball at an excellent rate.

Russell Westbrook - my version of the elite athletic perimeter player to put next to Shaq. Russell can create his own shot as good as anyone else, yet he can distribute the ball well. Defensively, he is not known as a stopper but he can play any PG 1-on-1. Offensively he will have to split the defense when there are no other options and make sure my team does not experience any scoring droughts. It is interesting that I imagined many PGs on my team that gave it different looks but ultimately settled on my PG being also a volume scorer.

Brandon Roy - another elite player at the 2/3 positions, albeit elite goes only for his offense. He was truly special and could score 1-on-1 without a problem. He could hit the 3 ball but had an excellent mid-range game which is truly important when playing against excellent defensive players/teams which I will no doubt face. Known for his clutchness.

Anthony Mason - a little bit of a jack-of-all-trades player but mainly a hard-nosed rugged defender and rebounder who would not let his size prevent him from banging with the big dudes. Deceptively skilled with the ball, could create offense for himself and others off the dribble when he had to. Could easily come off the bench without pouting. Despite the "bad boy" image not a locker-room problem.

Toni Kukoc - a skilled sixth man who could initiate offense from the wing and could score with almost unlimited range. A natural mismatch for most wings with his 6-11 frame. Active defensively and excellent in the open court. Also a clutch player.

Charles Oakley - if there is anyone more rugged and tougher than Mason, it must be this guy. An absolute enforcer, a rebounding savant, and a defensive force. Will set the entire team's mindset with his defensive leadership. Could hit a mid-range jumper if left wide open which could happen a lot on a team with Shaq and perimeter stars. Chose him over several PFs who were much better offensively but decided that my team doesn't need another offensive force who would demand touches. Neither of those other players was such a great rebounder though. I decided that for a real team it would be much better to have a player who has elite skills outside scoring, and with a post presence as Shaq, I found it unnecessary to focus on a scoring PF. Oakley (and Mason) are the perfect additions to a team that doesn't need another scorer. They provide skills that are essential to winning basketball games such as rebounding, defense and overall leadership.

Mike Conley - an underrated PG who is a great scorer while not being shoot-first. He would hit the 3 if given any space, and can play off-ball to maximize that. Defensively a truly elite PG, being capable of applying pressure on the opposing ball-handler and not afraid of getting physical despite his size. Could play the passing lanes well. As an added bonus, he is excellent in the clutch and could be used in those moments despite not being a starter.

Gheorghe Muresan - I guess I surprised everyone with this selection. I decided that since I had Shaq, there wouldn't be more than 12-15 minutes for his backup (sometimes possibly less). It made little sense to draft Daugherty or Rik Smits as they were better players and deserving of more playing time (which was unavailable); on the other hand neither would be good at the 4 position next to Shaq (having Ralph Sampson drop to me for this pick seemed, and was indeed impossible). Muresan is the perfect player to maximize his impact on both ends of the floor in limited minutes. He would be impossible to match up with and even superstar centers would be impacted by his presence.

My team would mostly employ a half-court offense (not an ultra-slow tempo though) but would look to run on forced turnovers. My wing players are deadly in the open court. In the half-court offense will be initiated by getting the ball to Shaq on the post. He could score on anyone, he had the passing ability and IQ to pass out of double-teams to find the open men. The wing players themselves possess combinations of skills that make them great 2nd and 3rd options. Aside from being capable to excellent 3-point shooters, my wing players are excellent mid-range shooters which is absolutely essential as sometimes those are the shots that are available.

My team will play tough man-to-man defense and I would really like to think of it as a defensive-minded team. Shaq is the rim and paint protector but Oakley and Mason are the defensive leaders - both leading by example and vocal players who would keep others responsible on the defensive end. The wing players I have are also good defensively, I can rely on Hill and George to match up with most perimeter stars I will meet. All of my wing players can be part of a good team defense and that is what I expect from them.

Ultimately my team will be capable of matching against any other on both ends of the floor. On offense Shaq will be the first option, Westbrook - the 2nd. From that point Brandon Roy and Grant Hill can take what the defense gives them, and Paul George and Toni Kukoc are not worse either. Oakley and Mason are what they should be - at most times the 5th option on offense, meaning they would focus on offensive rebounding (Oakley was great at it), setting screens, making the odd jumpshot and in Mason's case - sometimes using his unique skillset to create something out of nothing.

I think it's quite a sizable post by that point so I will keep any detailed strategy for the particular matchups. My first-round matchup will be amazing in case you didn't notice, against a team that has Ewing, Durant and Penny... I hope I convince more judges than my opponent!

[MacGill]

Re: Judges and Judging

Just hoping that with the judging panel we will see as unbiased decision making as possible here. While some may have more despise for other players than others, I hope we won't see that coming into the actual full team rosters created. Well too much anyway

Really looking forward to reviewing the breakdowns here

[john248]

So far, I'm enjoying what I'm reading. Then again its not my team that's being picked apart.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 3

[Laimbeer]

I'm enjoying it as well.

I wonder if anyone would object to me (or anyone really) running the tournament a second time, with teams and seedings exactly as they are, except by popular vote of the forum. It would be quite easy to do - there would just be one thread and a poll for each match up, and possibly one for general discussion and results. The GM's wouldn't have to participate. In fact, to be even handed, I'd probably ask the GM's to not post in threads concerning their teams since some wouldn't be inclined to go through it again.

Of course, I would let some time lapse between the end of the current tournament and the popular vote tournament to avoid any confusion. It would be interesting to see how different the results might be, if at all.

[Texas Chuck]

Re: Judges and Judging

Just hoping that with the judging panel we will see as unbiased decision making as possible here. While some may have more despise for other players than others, I hope we won't see that coming into the actual full team rosters created. Well too much anyway

Really looking forward to reviewing the breakdowns here

I would hope nobody would mark someone down because they personally dont like a player. That said obviously we all evaluate players differently. For example I see Kidd as being a better player than the RealGM consensus and probably more than just about any other individual here does. So I will give the team with Kidd a boost that most judges won't. On the other hand Im not as high on Patrick Ewing as most here, so I might not view his team quite as highly. This imo is perfect acceptable judging.

Now Im not a fan of Karl Malone or Kobe even tho I view both players to be all-time greats. If I were to knock their teams based on my personal view rather than the idea that I feel Kobe to be a top 10-12 all-time guy and Malone just behind the big 3 PFs then that would be different and completely inappropriate and I should be removed as a judge.

This has already shown up a little in one match-up where I think David Robinson would be the biggest factor in the series. Pretty much everyone else thinks old Gilmore could and would shut him down, but I think a more likely scenario would be that Gilmore would have to be pulled for Laimbeer (since that GM isnt using Bogut). I dont see a problem with me judging based on my evaluation even if its an unpopular one.

[MacGill]

Just to be clear, I wasn't calling anyone out. I have been here for awhile, longer than my actual join date and am very familiar with the arguments of the judges, players they champion and don't etc. My intent was only to hope that while some on the panel have particular 'strong views' regarding certain players, it doesn't come out to be like some of the debates we have in other threads. Ideally, since peak/prime seasons are picked here, it should for the most part eliminate much of that noise so yawl can really drill down to how the team gel and fitment etc.

Already good stuff here, so hoping you didn't take that as a personal slight TC.

[HeartBreakKid]

I don't see how bias toward a player is relevant or a problem. There should be bias' toward players, I totally welcome that. If people think people on my team sucks, then that is their right. I have no issues with that.

If I can't convince them other wise, then that's on me. If someone is walking around and has the reputation as the Kobe Bryant hater or something (I'm talking about hating on his game, not calling him a rapist or something non-basketball related), and he goes and votes against a team that has Kobe Bryant, then that is perfectly legitimate. It's up to the GM to convince that person to change his stance.

[MisterHibachi]

So far, I'm enjoying what I'm reading. Then again its not my team that's being picked apart.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 3

Yeah, I'm enjoying it a lot right now, but I'm just wondering how I'll feel if my team ends up getting swept out the first round lol

Loving all the breakdowns by the GMs and the great responses by the judges.

I notice tho that TMACFORMVP hasn't chimed in yet. Should I PM him? I'm not even sure he knows judging has started..

[john248]

I'm enjoying it as well.

I wonder if anyone would object to me (or anyone really) running the tournament a second time, with teams and seedings exactly as they are, except by popular vote of the forum. It would be quite easy to do - there would just be one thread and a poll for each match up, and possibly one for general discussion and results. The GM's wouldn't have to participate. In fact, to be even handed, I'd probably ask the GM's to not post in threads concerning their teams since some wouldn't be inclined to go through it again.

Of course, I would let some time lapse between the end of the current tournament and the popular vote tournament to avoid any confusion. It would be interesting to see how different the results might be, if at all.

I think it was said before that this isn't going to be a regular thing on the PC board where an exception was made due to the different type of posters who frequent this section vs the Fantasy board. I'd imagine if one were done in the near future, it would be moved to the Fantasy board.

[john248]

So far, I'm enjoying what I'm reading. Then again its not my team that's being picked apart.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 3

Yeah, I'm enjoying it a lot right now, but I'm just wondering how I'll feel if my team ends up getting swept out the first round lol

Loving all the breakdowns by the GMs and the great responses by the judges.

I notice tho that TMACFORMVP hasn't chimed in yet. Should I PM him? I'm not even sure he knows judging has started..

As someone who has TMac on his team, feel free to PM him.

If I were to be knocked out of the 1st round, I wouldn't mind. These are all stacked teams. I do like the idea of a losers bracket.

[HeartBreakKid]

Is there any type of free agency in this league? Can I waive one of my players and pick someone up who was undrafted?

[MisterHibachi]

Is there any type of free agency in this league? Can I waive one of my players and pick someone up who was undrafted?

Nope. Roll with the guys you drafted.

[HeartBreakKid]

So we getting new match ups soon?

[MisterHibachi]

So we getting new match ups soon?

When RSCD3_ vs Bruh Man is decided, we can open the 2-7 match ups in each conference.

[ardee]

So we getting new match ups soon?

When RSCD3_ vs Bruh Man is decided, we can open the 2-7 match ups in each conference.

That is almost a whitewash as well. Just make the threads anyway, it'll only be a few more hours?

[MisterHibachi]

So we getting new match ups soon?

When RSCD3_ vs Bruh Man is decided, we can open the 2-7 match ups in each conference.

That is almost a whitewash as well. Just make the threads anyway, it'll only be a few more hours?

They're already made. Locked tho until these match ups conclude. Links are in the OP.

[john248]

So we getting new match ups soon?

When RSCD3_ vs Bruh Man is decided, we can open the 2-7 match ups in each conference.

That is almost a whitewash as well. Just make the threads anyway, it'll only be a few more hours?

You got a tough match up ahead of you. Will Raja Bell be able to carry your team?

[john248]

So we getting new match ups soon?

I will see you in the next round! Assuming things go well against ThunderDan