12 Teams That Haven't Made The Playoff & Their Chances
Dec 27, 2015 5:57:27 GMT
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Post by New York on Dec 27, 2015 5:57:27 GMT
*I wanted to include this in the title but this is a joint article by myself and Cairo.
With the off-season that many predicted would be impactful enough to change the makeup of our league winding down, we now begin to turn our attention to the upcoming season. We saw a total of 150 (so far) players change teams in free agency alone. With such drastic change, it should be expected that there will be a shakeup in the standings in the coming season. There will be team's that fall from grace and miss out on the playoffs and there will be team's that last season were lotto bound that are now in the hunt for a postseason spot. So Cairo and I have teamed together to look at those teams/GMs that not only missed the playoffs last season but have yet to make the playoffs since joining the league. We'll be attempting to predict which ones have set themselves up for a potential playoff appearance this season and really just discussing what we think of the teams overall. So now with that out of the way, let's get started.
Newcastle Eagles(ben)
Key Additions:Dante Exum, Detlef Schrempf, Antonio McDyess, Glenn Robinson, Juwan Howard
Key Losses: Hakeem Olajuwon, Zoran Slavnc, Alex Hannum
GM's Overall Record So Far: 82-82 (.500)
*Detlef plays over Haslem (the order was an error on my part when making the chart)
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?No. We'll kick things off with an easy one I think because after losing Zoran Slavnic and trading Hakeem Olajuwon for Dante Exum, Antonio McDyess, and Detlef Schrempf I don't believe this team has any intention of pushing for the post season this year. They are going to be playing in probably the lightest division in the league and honestly if they had kept their big two intact they could be in good shape to finally enter the post season but after going from a 47 to 35 win tea last season and lacking any true star power, I think they are going to extend their playoff drought to 3 seasons which sucks because Fubon is currently in control of their first which i'll touch on in the later section.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Similar thoughts to New York on this one. There is enough talent and potential on this roster for the team to be interesting. But intersting is different than being a playoff team and I would guess they battle with the team that owns their pick, Fubon for the bottom of the division. I am going to guess they go 32-50 this year. If their young talent really has a strong showing in TC and things break right the could hang around for a while in the playoff race and maybe finish with 38ish wins. But that is asking a lot and I am not nearly as high on Exum as New York, I think he is more of a Jack of All Trades combo guard than a future stud.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): The GM has a well-established track record of putting together good teams from Legends but I think he made a mistake with the trading of Hakeem Olajuwon. Trading him was fine but I am not a fan of Exum or Schrempf as long term players. Decent starters yes, the type of guys that elevate a team, not in my opinion. McDyess is a solid pickup but the team lost Zoran Slavnic in Free Agency and now has a lot of forwards on the roster making godly amounts of money in McDyess, Schrempf, Juwan Howard, Udonis Haslem and Glenn Robinson. The good news is that I like Doug Christie. He may never be a star but he can be a key starter on a good team down the road. The team is probably deeper than it has been the previous two years but I don't see the Star or the PG to carry a team to the post-season on the roster.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Similar to Cairo I see a GM here that has shown in the past that he can put together respectable teams in our previous league but with the trade of Hakeem I am not in love with their makeup for the future right now. The key thing is that they lack their first and that's never going to help your future when you clearly are a team headed for a rebuild. I do personally like Exum but what I don't like is the fact that he is an expiring player that is still a few seasons (at least) from hitting his potential, there is a good chance he is gone by next season via FA because he's not a guy you max and that will make it trickier to figure out how to bring him back, the same thing can be said about Schrempf in terms of contract. Like Cairo said this is a team that has a few solid pieces or pieces that are eventually going to be solid but lacks a franchise level guy and as of right now they don't have a way to get that guy unless the Tigers completely bomb this year.
Seattle Supersonics (darin)
Key Additions: Bob Kurkland, Vern Mikkelsen, Corey Brewer, Darrell Griffith
Key Losses: Joel Embiid, Emiliano Rodriguez
GM's Overall Record So Far:: 68-96
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Sure, why not? I mean they will need to have a safe training camp but assuming they navigate those waters sucesfuly and can find a solid gameplan in the first few sims there is no reason a starting lineup of: Kurland, Mikkelsen, Brewer, Diamantidis and KC JOnes is pretty solid. They will need to get production out of an unproven bench (Stauskas, Griffith etc) but the team has some depth and can probably find a trade or two. The bigger question is will the team show patience in contending. They had a similar team year one and tore it down a few sims in and now have traded the rebuilding pieces for more win now pieces again. So yes they can make the playoffs and I think they will if they focus on staying the course and finding the right gameplan.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? I'll agree with Cairo here and say this is a playoff team this year. They have respectable depth to go along with a starting lineup that I am definitely a fan of (outside of maybe the SF spot). I don't see a team that will be raising a banner or anything because they don't have a superstar but guys like Kurkland, Mikkelsen, and Diamantidis have been top 10 at their position so far and we all know I have been a KC Jones guy for a while so as long as they find the right game plan which has always one of the key obstacles for this GM going back to Legends, they should be a playoff competitor in that 5-8 range (they aren't beating out divisionmates Vancouver/Minnesota for the division title and home court).
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Well this wouldn't be the first time i've said this and it won't be the last but KC Jones was one of the guys I was a big fan of coming out of last seasons draft so that already makes me look at the Sonics future as favorable. Is he a star player? That remains to be seen but he's a guy i'm sure many GM would like to have on their roster. DD was a guy I probably didn't look at enough in the creation draft but at only 25 he has shown himself to be one of the better 2-way Shooting Guards in the league so far. His numbers are inflated some sure but even in normal MPG 16+ PPG | 5 APG | 4 RPG | 1+ SPG w/ good defense. Griffith looks like he'll be another solid young piece for this group as well and Stauskas even has a bit of potential. These guys + a guy like Kurland who is a vet but isn't old have Seattle in a pretty good place long term barring a TC collapse.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Get ready to hear a broken record that keeps repeating itself in this section but until the GM proves he is gonna stick to a plan long term I will view their longterm future as murky. Yes, KC Jones is a nice young piece. He might end up being a fringe top 8 PG when it is all said in done and they have some other good pieces to build around for the next 5 years or so in Kurland and DD. Again tho this is the third shift in the plan as we enter the third year in the league so at some point they need to stick with a direction. If they do this is a core that can be added to and be a factor in the playoffs moving forward.
New Orleans Jazz (mrvilhauer)
Key Additions:Andre Drummond
Key Losses: Michael Finley, AC Green
GM's Overall Record So Far: 64-100
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? No. Honestly this is one that I am surprised to be putting in the no section because of the GM. A few seasons back they missed the playoffs by four games and then last season they started off at a respectable 15-15 before going 14-38 for the reainder of the season. I figured this off-season we'd see this team pick up a nice lotto talent (which they did) and add to their core of Tony Parker, Jason Richardson, and Michael Finley in free agency or via trade to put themselves in position to become a playoff team and then taking it another step further next season and becoming a title threat since that's usually the type of improvement we see from mrvilhauer led team. However outside of adding their lottery pick this team not only added no one of note but also let their starting SF Michael Finley go in Free Agency. This team owns their first so i'm sure they are fine with another lotto season as they add to their young group but I have to say I definitely am surprised that I am predicting no playoffs for the third season in a row for this GM.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? No and they shouldn't. If the off season had gone differently and they had re-upped Finley and gotten lucky in Free Agency then sure they could have had a chance. Tony Parker gives them a chance, he is that dang good! But they lost more then they gained short term and are facing another year of growth where they probably win enough games due to Parker to stay out of an elite pick but probably still fall in the 8-12 range and add another piece to the puzzle. New York has covered most of this in detail so I will end my thoughts there.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Well when you are starting with a stud PG and legitimately probably the 2nd best overall PG in the league in Tony Parker and you add a studly looking, atheltic big in the draft in Andre Drummond you are moving in the right direction. They did lose Michael Finley for nothing in Free Agency and AC Green and the loss of Finley was especially a surprise to me. However, they do have Jason Richardson at SF which gives them three young, atheltic and talented players to build around long term. They also own all of their own firsts moving forward and have a GM with a proven track record of not only building good teams, but building champsionship level squads. So yes the future is bright in New Orleans and led by a guy who appears posied to become the best PG in the league down the line and you are in a good place long term, although the future is not going to be this year.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): So like I said about and basically what Cairo talked about as well this is a GM that we trust so that immediately gives his future outlook a bump in my eyes because this is a GM we both know understands how to build a winner. But he isn't going off of reputation alone, he has the best young guard in the league right now (2nd best overall) in Tony Parker. If you are a rebuilding team you are desperately looking to find that way to add a star (and hopefully a superstar) but this team already has it with a guy that just last season made All-ABCA First Team. Plus they've got a young guy like Jason richardson who while not a potential star due to defensive limiations, can clearly light it up offensively and is still developing. Then when you add to it the fact that they added the young big man Andre Drummond plus still own all of their picks this is a team to be excited about for the future if they can sure up things at the forward postions.
Istanbul Anadolu Efes (boog23)
Key Additions: Bradley Beal
Key Losses: None
GM's Overall Record So Far: 78-86
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? While I think this team will be more compettive, I don't see this team making the playoffs this year. Manigault is one of the better guards in the game but I don't see enough frm Dsichinger, LaRue Martin and Bob Rule to make them a playoff team this year. However is Bradley Beal explodes in training camp that would change things. I think this is a competitive team, but probably maxes out around 35-38 wins this year.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Once again i'll agree with Cairo because while this is a team that has nice talent in some areas it is still the same team that has failed to make the playoffs these past two seasons. When you think about the fact that the league is getting tougher, their players are exiting their prime, and they are still in need of the same things they needed in creation I can't see this year being any different than the rest. I mean depending on if my prediction of the Eurasian conference getting a bit weaker coming true or not I guess this team could sneak in if they can manage their same 43 wins as last season but like I said this is a team that probably will themselves be weaker since if you look at their top 5 from last season 4 of them will be 28 or older this year. So yeah a solid team but one that I think has another year in the lotto ahead.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Barring some Training Camp fun, I am not super high on this team's future right now. Their two young pieces right now are Bradley Beal (who looks solid) and Terry Dischinger (who looks solid offensively but flawed defensively). Both guys are probably solid starters depending on the team but neither are great or potential stars from what I can see. Outside of that this is a team with vets that themselves are just solid-good starters so this team is really lacking on high end talent. I remember in an article before season one I talked about how this team obviously whiffed in creation by trading down from Barkley I liked them grabbing pieces that could have nice trade value as they look to rebuild. The thing is though, we are heading into season 3 and those trades still haven't happened. I think since this team has all of their picks, the smart move would be to find a team that wants to win now and swing them guys like Cervi, GOAT, and Rule for youth/picks because just staying good enough to be average isn't setting this team up great for the future in my opinion.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): New York hit the nail on the head this is a team currently stuck in what for me is the dreaded no man's land. They are too good to bottom out and not good enough to be more than a fringe playoff team. The type of team that once every few years sneaks in as a 7th or 8th seed and plays 86 or 87 games instead of 82. As New York mentioned they have some vets that could garner some additional pieces (GOAT, Rule, Cervi) but I think that is going to be hard at the moment because so many teams are seemingly rebuilding and only a handful of them will end up with elite picks each year. So while I agree fundamentally with New York I would be tempted if I were the GM to see what a Beal and pick(S) type of package could bring back. Maybe they could dd a big time piece from another team in a similar boat and launch themselve into the mid tier playoff team mix. That would at least give them a true direction. If they cannot do that my advice is to trade GOAT now as his value will never be higher and truly commit to a 2-3 year rebuilding process.
Guangdong Southern Tigers (seer)
Key Additions: Michael Jordan, Jerome Kersey, Neil Johnston, Kwame Brown
Key Losses: Jiri Zidek, Jabari Parker, Doug Wrenn, Charlie Vilaneuva
GM's Overall Record So Far: 69-95
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Yes. Now while I have yet to see what Cairo has to say about this one yet since I am leading this one off, I think we may end up being on different sides of the coin here (maybe not). I will say that for me to really feel comfortable about this prediction, this team more than anything desperatley needs some depth. Outside of Dario Saric who is solid but not great this team is seriously lacking in terms of reserves. I mean Rashad McCants could continue to develop some and help that out but McCants, Price, Yue, Saric, Ezeli is a pretty big drop off from what this team has in the first unit.
However even with all of that said I am betting on Jordan pulling this team to the post season just like he did for Regal last season. Kersey will get to slide into a starting role which will likely see him get closer to his year one numbers than he did last season, Neil Johnston gives this team something that the Regal FC teams seriously lacked and that's a third scorer (outside of Jordan, Barcelona's next best scorer averaged 15.6 PPG and beyond that 13.8 PPG), Arenas isn't an ideal PG anymore after his last training camp and I suspect he'll be upgraded at some point but even last season he was arguably a more capable guard than Meadowlark Lemon who was Regal's lead guard, Brown is probably the weak link in the starting lineup and he'll have some work to do in training camp before I am 100% comfortable with him being the starter but he'll still be able to give this team something like 10 - 7 - 1 i'm guessing in starter minutes. So long story short, this team still has some work to do but Arenas - Jordan - Kersey - Neil is stronger than the playoff Regal team of last season and with Eurasia seemingly having quite a few teams headed towards rebuild this team should have a shot at the post season.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Yes! They don't have much depth as New York touched on above, but they do have an elite player at maybe the thinest position in the game right now in SG (that or SF) and two other excellent players giving them an impressive trio to build around. That alone should propel them into a late seed in the playoffs and if things break right and a move or two is made, perhaps they can find themselves a bit ahead of schedule and fighting for home court in round one. With several teams in Eurasia headed towards at least retooling years, teams like Guangdong and Cairo are poised to be in the playoffs this year. It will be a matter of TC, health and additional moves that determine exactly where they end up at the end of the year.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): I truly have given up about having long term thoughts about Seers teams beyond that whatever he is doing will be interesting and he will either be extremely competittive or extremely young. But look it as long as the team keeps Neil Johnston, Gilbert Arenas and some guy named Michael Jeffrey Jordan together this should be a team challenging to make a deep run in the playoffs on an annual basis. But to ask me to guess how long that core will be kept together and I honestly have no idea. What I do know is that Seer has done a great job of quickley putting together a very talented team that is poised to make some noise!
Thoughts Longterm (NY): While Seer is known for making a large amount of moves I will point out that he has toned down the "trading just to trade" stuff quite a bit from Legends. He's made about 12 trades if I counted correctly and 6 of those were with San Antonio. I mention that because unless things change I believe Seer has gotten to a point where he keeps guys for a respectable stretch of time and I suspect MJ will be one of those guys that stick around for a while and as long as you have Jordan you are in good shape long term. Neil & Kersey are an age where they can stick around for a few seasons or at the very least have trade value for the next few seaons. Then Arenas and Brown aren't my favorite prospects but both are young and have some potential. Like Cairo said this is a talented team and it should remain that way for the forseeable future if their GM wants it to so I like the look of this team in both the short term and long term.
Los Angeles Lakers (pistolpetejr)
Key Additions: Damian Lillard
Key Losses: Michael Adams, Mehmet Okur, Jimmy Jones, Greg Ostertag
GM's Overall Record So Far: 63-101
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Absolutely not, when you are actually filling out your rotation with the leftovers of free agency you have no shot at the playoffs. I have nothing more to say, this is a really bad situation at the moment and I hope the GM can find a way to turn it around.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Cairo put it perfectly, this is a team that is coming off of 33 wins and has lost their 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th best players in the off-season and didn't add anyone in Free Agency to replace them. This team is much more likely to land the top pick in the draft than their first playoff spot this season.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Now i'll say this, this wasn't a good off-season for this team. Giving up a future 1st, Michael Adams, Mehmet Okur, and their pick in the draft that just passed to move up to get Lillard is way too steep of a price especially with some solid guys on the board at 12. But with that said, I do like the pairing of Lillard and Russell long term. That's all they have so TC is going to be nervewrecking this year for sure but if those two hang on those are two pieces that are the start of an impressive core. The key for this team will be hitting a homerun with their 2003 first round pick because with three legit building blocks this team can start moving up the pecking order in the league and it's going to be important for them to do that without their pick next year.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): New York hit the upside of this situation and I am going to play Debbie Downer (shocking!) and hit the reality check on the situation. The GM has promised to be more active two off seasons in a row and yet so far that has been primarily lip service from a far. With Bill Russell only 2 seasons away from Free Agency the time to get organized is now. They need a home run season to secure their future. We are talking about somehow ending up with a top pick, even tho on paper they seem destined for a pick in the locked in 4-6 range, when they really need a pick in the top 3. They also need to take the 60 million or so they have in cap space and sign talent with it next off season. They cannot afford to gamble on the big name free agents only any longer and need to focus their efforts on solid starters who can fit around a Russell/Lillard/Draft Pick core. If they do this they will have a pretty nice future and a chance to retain Russell. If not this is going to be a team looking at having to trade Bill Russell to even have a chance to crawl into contention, beause they cannot afford to lose him for nothing in my opinion.
San Antonio Spurs (officialgp)
Key Additions: Joel Embiid, Marques Haynes
Key Losses: Bob Kurland, Eddie Jones
GM's Overall Record So Far: 59-105
*Jeff Turner is also on this roster as a 5th PF
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?Yes. Going with what some may feel is another shocker here but why even do these if you are going to be scared to make a bold prediction? This team didn't trade for an established star that moves the needle and actually traded their best player in Bob Kurland. However this team has a player that I really like in Damon Stoudemire who I believe is an underrated guard and while Kurland was their best player the still developing Stoudemire wasn't far behind. They also have Zach Randolph and Jalen Rose who both still have some developing to do and should be better this season if TC goes right for them. More importantly though they added Joel Embiid and Marques Haynes who if both maintain what they did last season are better than any non Kurland or Stoudemire player from this team's roster last year. It remains to be seen how good Embiid can be but I do think he has talent that we haven't seen yet and he'll help this team now and in the future if San Antonio is patient with him. This one is far from a guarantee and this team similar to Guangdong needs to add some depth but I do think this team has the ability to fight for one of the last playoff spots in America.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? I am not as high on Mighty Mouse as New York but think he is a solid young starting caliber PG with a bit of upside. That said this is a team that has a lot of pieces that really fit together. They are a little thin at the wing but Jalen Rose is a perfectly capable starting SF, although a bit limited in spots. But this is a long winded way of saying yes they will make the playoffs. With teams in transition or unknown throughout the Americas they have a chance to sneak into the playoffs or if they really gel fight for a 4-6 type of seed as is. The key will be honing in on a gameplan and avoiding the temptation to make a lot of moves. A little patience will go a long ways for the Spurs this year in my opinion.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): This is a GM with a history of being unafraid to make changes quickly. Currently he does not own his picks through 2005 but has a very interesting roster after a busy offseason. Currently the team has a core of big man Joel Embiid (Young,talented, potential franchise cornerstone) an excellent PF who compliments him in Zach Randolph, a solid if unspectacular SF in Jalen Rose and an interesting backcourt with the addition of Marques Haynes from the Knicks to pair with the decidely solid Damon Stoudimore. If the team has a good TC this should be a team that is well positioned for now with a strong starting 5 and a little bit of depth. The lack of their own picks and their tendency to trade early and often leaves me unable to buy into any long term outlook beyond this year. If they can remain patient I think this roster can grow into a playoff caliber team on an annual basis. However, until I see them keep the majority of a roster for more than a season I will not feel confident in what they are doing. I hope they keep this crew together with a good TC they could really be onto something in San Antonio
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Patience is the key for this team as Cairo said. The pieces are there with guys like Stoudamire, Embiid, Randolph and Rose long term. I know some around the eague like to make the San Antonio the GM their target for constant criticism and while not having any of their first isn't great, you do have to admit that their is some potential there if you take an unbiased look at this roster. I think this is a team that can make the post season this season and then look to add to this group in the upcoming off-season. With guys like Embiid and Stoudamire who I a definitely high on this is a team with a promising future in my opinion.
Belgrade KK Partizan (minjagaso)
Key Additions: AC Green, Darwin Cook, Jamaal Tinley
Key Losses: Ramon Sessions
GM's Overall Record So Far: 66-98
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? They could but I just am not a big enough fan of their two big additions in AC Green and Jamaal Tinsley to think they make the leap as currently constructed. They have some good pieces to build around (Gasol, Darwin Cook etc) and some interesting talents that may turn into nice players (Bynum, Joe Johnson, etc) but they really need to find a way to add a high level PG. Without one this team team is most likely on the outside in. With one they could threaten to move into the back of the playoff picture and be a very tough out for a higher seed in round 1.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? This is a team whose playoff hopes will depend soley on Training Camp because they added some solid pieces in Free Agency but nothing that would move the needle to push them into that 40+ range that will be needed to secure a playoff spot. But if Bynum, Gasol, Johnson, and Barry all improve like I think they can in Training Camp I see no reason why this tea can't make the post season. You have to realize that this team went 30-33 with a healthy Brent Barry and 5-14 without him as well. So they would've likely been right in the thick of things for a lower seed spot if fully healthy. I will agree that adding a Point Guard takes this team from a maybe to a confident yes for me. I don't dislike Tinsley but I think he'll be more effective in a backup role if this team can find a legit starting lead guard.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Youth in the post? check. Youth on the perimeter? check. All of their picks? check. This GM right now has avoided the mistakes that he made in Legends and because of that his future looks promising. They lack that top 10-15 guy I guess but I really like what Marc Gasol brings to the table and Andrew Bynum has been a pleasant surprise for me. Add in guys like Iso Joe, Brent Barry and Darwin Cook and you have to like what this team has in place right now. If they can find a way to get a truly impactful PG then you have to likely take that up a notch and love what they'd have in place then.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): As New York mentioned this a GM who has grown a lot from his impulsive days in Legends. He has a clear plan and clearly also checks with a GM or two about any move he is considering. For those GM that currently don't do that I really recommend it as it can keep you from making a quick move that seems good from your naturally more myopic position than from an impartial outsider looking in. I am not 100% sure that all the pieces are great fits right now but as New York touched on they have a good mix of young talent that is productive and solid if not spectacular vets. An upgrade at PG would really let the league see what exactly this team has with all of it's young talent so here is to hoping that they not only stick to their guns in terms of value but also address that need moving forward and see what this machine looks like when well oiled.
Taipei Fubon Braves (jeff)
Key Additions: Draymond Green, Joe Smith, Ed Mikan, Greg Ostertag
Key Losses: Bryant Reeves, Benji Wilson
GM's Overall Record So Far: 59-105
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?No. I'm almost certain this team has said already that they are playing for the lottery this season. This is an improved but flawed team so I will follow their GM on their prediction. They signed guys like Ed Mikan, Greg Ostertag, Joe Smith and drafted Draymond Green who all have talent to help. However can you see the issue with all those names I listed? All of those guys are basically big men (with Green being debatable) and this is a team whose clear and away best player is already a PF in Aaron Gordon who will now likely be forced to the bench for the guys that are signed for more and for longer. Green likely has to play out of position to get his minutes (although he is probably a longterm SF anyway) and this team as mentioned still needs help on the perimeter. I can see this team making a move soon pick up some more young assets especially since Ed Mikan will be 30 and is probably suited more for a team looking to win now. I trust this GM to eventually put together the pieces to be a consistent playoff team but right now I don't think this is the year it'll happen.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? No and that isn't the plan here from what I can tell. This is a team that is well positioned long term and should not be in a rush to accelerate that process this year. Stay the course add two potentially high pick in the upcoming draft and use this year to do different, but equally important things. First, develop their young talent by giving them the minutes to see what they have. Second, still give their vets minutes to showcase them for future trades. As New York mentioned a player like Ed Mikan is bound to not only help a contender for the next year or two but also bring back another rebuilding piece, be it a player or a draft pick. Furthermore, Joe Smith and even Greg Ostertag could add more additional assets, although Smith is young enough they may want to keep him as part of their core moving forward. So the future isn't now and that is completely okay. Fubon has been patient to date and I expect that to remain the case for the time being.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Okay so the Braves don't have their young superstar yet but rookie Draymond Green looks like he might turn out to be the ultimate complimentry player in the next few years. Add in youngsters like Monta Ellis and Aaron Gordon and this is a team with a bright enough future as is. Then add in that they have both their own first and the rebuilding Newcastle Eagles first. They also have some solid veterans in Joe Smith/Ed Mikan/Richard Jefferson who can either be part of the core moving forward or be moved for more rebuilding pieces long term. I think Fuban has quietly positioned themselves well moving forward but they need to find a way to add a young franchise player in the upcoming draft to start making the leap.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): I'm going to agree with everything Cairo said above. While this team lacks a guy that will develop into a superstar, they have two high quality picks in this upcoming draft, a player that had mmmany GMS intrigued, young pieces that could develop into something respectable such as Monta Ellis, Raymond Felton, Aaron Gordon and Zach Lavine, as well as vets that should have some trade value around the league. You can't put them aat the top of the league in term sof future because they lack that concrete pieces of some other teams but I wouldn't be surprised if I was asked this question a season from now and I had a much more favorable response for this group.
Boston Celtics (boston)
Key Additions: Alonzo Mourning, Mike Gminski, Dolph Schayes, Mirza Delibasic, Jimmy Walker, Ubiratan Pereira Maciel
Key Losses: Joe Smith
GM's Overall Record So Far: 43-121
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Yes! Boston was super aggressive and at times overly aggressive this off season (high price paid for an average vet SG in Jimmy Walker) but the net result is a team anchored by a stud young PG in Chris Paul and a stud young big in Alonzo Mourning. Add in a helthy dose of established veteran starters like the a forementioned walker, Ubirtan Pereira Maciel, Dolph Schayes and Mirza Delibasic and you are looking at a team that should be competitive and make the playoffs this year. They may need to make another move or two if they want to accelrate their progress from playoff team to true contender this year but they are well on their way barring a disasterous TC.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Definitely. Unless this team has a pretty bad training camp this is a playoff team. Chris Paul was behind only Tony Parker, John Stockton, and depending on who you ask Jason Kidd when it came to Point Guards last season and he is expected to get even better. Zo should be one of the top rookies this year on both sides of the ball and that's saying something with the impressive top part of this rookie class. Maciel even at 30 is a 20 - 10 - 3 - 1 - 1 guy if used properly. Dolph Schayes while likely taking another step back will still be one of the best reserves in the league, and while neither is a star, Mirza Delibasic and Jimmy Walker are both solid at minimum at their positions. This team has set themselves up for a nice playoff team this year and once some of their vet guys get old they should still be fine because they'll have guys like CP3 and Zo hitting their primes.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Like I said, this team is in a nice position because they have vets to help them win this year and once those guys get too old to help them and expire they'll have their youth (CP3 & Zo) hitting their primes and a bunch of cap space opening up to really move into the realm of contender status. The only mark this team really has against it right now is it lacks it's 2004 first but even still they are armed with 4 picks over the next two seasons. They are without a question in good shape.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Yup I wasn't seeing the blueprint for the Celtics heading into Free Agency this year. I knew they had two elite young players at two important position in CP3 and Zo but the rest of it wasn't really coming together. Then the team added a bunch of vets in the span of a few sims utilizing both free agency and the trade market and reshaped a rsoter from on the rise to ready to win now. How much winning will be dicatated by how both youngsters and vets respond to training camp but this is a team that has balanced a young core with a good cast of veterans who still have gas in the rank. Honestly, one of the better accelerated rebuilds I have seen on paper and it should pay dividends in both the short and long term.
Milan Olimpia (rcc)
Key Additions: Shaquille O'Neal, Tyler Zeller
Key Losses: Tiago Splitter
GM's Overall Record So Far: 57-107
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Yep. Olimpia just drafted a player that I am really excited about in Shaquille O'Neal, the rest of their division seems like they are looking to rebuild, they've already got guys like Riva, Rasheed, and D-Will who I think are winning players in this league. Things are setup right now for this team to breakthrough this season. Now with Spud Webb starting at PG and their bench being Gathers and a handful of meh, this team isn't some title contender or anything but if training camp is just normal for this team they are clearly a team with enough talent to top their division and get a playoff spot.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Nope. Going to disagree with New Yrok on this one. I expect Shaq to be great as advertised and then the rest of the team is role players, albeit some of those role players are pretty talented. But I have no idea who is going to pair with D-Will in the backcourt and they would need a lot of growth in TC for all of their non Shaq guys for this team to get into the playoffs. Part of it is a simple numbers game, not enough teams are dropping out of the playoffs for all the teams that have improved to make it in.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Look it anytime you add Shaq your longterm outlook is pretty good. Add some other interesting pieces 25 and under like Sheed, Deron Wlliams, Gathers and Riva along with their own firsts moving forward and if this team is patient and finds a way to find a guard to pair with DWill this should be a really strong team down the line. If they can remain patient and build for another season then make a move or two next off season they should be positioned to be back in the playoff picture for the forseeable future. Anytime you have Shaq you have a chance!
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Pretty much what Cairo said here, they have Shaq and unless he stinks it up in TC this team has one of the better futures in the league more than likely because of that alone. Then with guys like Sheed, Riva, and D-Will along with all their first I like the position this team is in long term a lot . The key will be to not get ahead of themselves and throw it away for a quick fix this season because we've seen how that has went in the past for this GM with McAdoo & Wilt in Legends.
REAL Madrid (cyrux)
Key Additions: Sergei Belov, Harry Gallatin, Harrison Barnes
Key Losses: Marcus Smart, Fernando Martin, Corey Brewer
GM's Overall Record So Far: 56-108
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Naw. They have had the strangest off season to me. They lost Fernando Martin and Corey Brewer in free agency but then added the aging and expensive Harry Gallatin and then traded for Sergei Belov. So on the perimeter at least short term they are pretty dang tough with Dumars/Below/Gallatin. However, there is not a single post player on this roster that I think is ready to be a starter on a playoff team. Noah Vonleh flashes a lot of potential but he only put up 12 points and 5 boards in 29 mpg last year. So barring a massive Training Camp from him or a big trade that probably involves breaking up their excellent backcourt this is a team that is probably staring at 30 wins
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? I'm going to actually go against Cairo here and predict that this team will make the playoffs. While I did get a chuckle out of this statement "I think Belov propels us to contender status" I do think adding Belov & Gallatin and seeing some development frorm Lucas and Dumars will take them from that 33 win range they were in last season to enough wins to land a playoff spot. Belov isn't the star he was in year one but I think he gives this team a better shot of winningthis year than Smart if only because he is a better fit with Dumars. They do need some help in the front court but Lucas improving should help with that even if Noah remains average at best. Again I don't think this is a team that will be in a position to win win it all but I think there is enough talent here to say that the playoffs are a definite possibility.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): This is a team that is in a weird position long term because while I think the playoffs are in reach this season, I'm not sure what the plan is beyond this season. I mean they've got a 26 year old star in Joe Dumars and a 24 year old that at mimum should be a good offensive starter in Jerry Lucas but Gallatin is soon to be 34 years old and Belov will be 30 soon as well. Noah Vonleh has some potential and Barnes could turn into something down the line so they don't lack for youth so they aren't in a bad situation at all long term but I can't say that this is a long term title contender or something because two of their top 3 players are likely going to be gone in a season or two. This is a group that could be respectable long term but will definitely have some moves to make after the Gallatin - Belov era is over.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): As New York points out this is a team in a strange position. I could insert an obligatory joke about too many PG's here but they actually hve pretty decent positional balance right now. What they don't have is balance in terms of positional development. Their bigs have talent but are probably a couple years away from being reayd to be big contributors on a contending team. They have a good young guard in Joe Dumars and then two excellent but exepensive and aging wings in Gallatin and Below. For me that is the crux of the issue, I don't see the pieces they can move for a win now big, while still maintaining a long term future and I think they are going to need a lot of love in TC among their vets in order to keep the window they created this off season open. I think Gallatin is still the best SF in the game and all he cost was cap space, but I guess I just don;t see this team being where it needs in the post soon enough to help a win now perimeter and by the time they are ready the perimeter is likely going to be only Joe Dumars. So in the words of the magic 8 ball, their futur is unclear, ask me again next off season.
With the off-season that many predicted would be impactful enough to change the makeup of our league winding down, we now begin to turn our attention to the upcoming season. We saw a total of 150 (so far) players change teams in free agency alone. With such drastic change, it should be expected that there will be a shakeup in the standings in the coming season. There will be team's that fall from grace and miss out on the playoffs and there will be team's that last season were lotto bound that are now in the hunt for a postseason spot. So Cairo and I have teamed together to look at those teams/GMs that not only missed the playoffs last season but have yet to make the playoffs since joining the league. We'll be attempting to predict which ones have set themselves up for a potential playoff appearance this season and really just discussing what we think of the teams overall. So now with that out of the way, let's get started.
Newcastle Eagles(ben)
Key Additions:Dante Exum, Detlef Schrempf, Antonio McDyess, Glenn Robinson, Juwan Howard
Key Losses: Hakeem Olajuwon, Zoran Slavnc, Alex Hannum
GM's Overall Record So Far: 82-82 (.500)
*Detlef plays over Haslem (the order was an error on my part when making the chart)
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?No. We'll kick things off with an easy one I think because after losing Zoran Slavnic and trading Hakeem Olajuwon for Dante Exum, Antonio McDyess, and Detlef Schrempf I don't believe this team has any intention of pushing for the post season this year. They are going to be playing in probably the lightest division in the league and honestly if they had kept their big two intact they could be in good shape to finally enter the post season but after going from a 47 to 35 win tea last season and lacking any true star power, I think they are going to extend their playoff drought to 3 seasons which sucks because Fubon is currently in control of their first which i'll touch on in the later section.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Similar thoughts to New York on this one. There is enough talent and potential on this roster for the team to be interesting. But intersting is different than being a playoff team and I would guess they battle with the team that owns their pick, Fubon for the bottom of the division. I am going to guess they go 32-50 this year. If their young talent really has a strong showing in TC and things break right the could hang around for a while in the playoff race and maybe finish with 38ish wins. But that is asking a lot and I am not nearly as high on Exum as New York, I think he is more of a Jack of All Trades combo guard than a future stud.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): The GM has a well-established track record of putting together good teams from Legends but I think he made a mistake with the trading of Hakeem Olajuwon. Trading him was fine but I am not a fan of Exum or Schrempf as long term players. Decent starters yes, the type of guys that elevate a team, not in my opinion. McDyess is a solid pickup but the team lost Zoran Slavnic in Free Agency and now has a lot of forwards on the roster making godly amounts of money in McDyess, Schrempf, Juwan Howard, Udonis Haslem and Glenn Robinson. The good news is that I like Doug Christie. He may never be a star but he can be a key starter on a good team down the road. The team is probably deeper than it has been the previous two years but I don't see the Star or the PG to carry a team to the post-season on the roster.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Similar to Cairo I see a GM here that has shown in the past that he can put together respectable teams in our previous league but with the trade of Hakeem I am not in love with their makeup for the future right now. The key thing is that they lack their first and that's never going to help your future when you clearly are a team headed for a rebuild. I do personally like Exum but what I don't like is the fact that he is an expiring player that is still a few seasons (at least) from hitting his potential, there is a good chance he is gone by next season via FA because he's not a guy you max and that will make it trickier to figure out how to bring him back, the same thing can be said about Schrempf in terms of contract. Like Cairo said this is a team that has a few solid pieces or pieces that are eventually going to be solid but lacks a franchise level guy and as of right now they don't have a way to get that guy unless the Tigers completely bomb this year.
Seattle Supersonics (darin)
Key Additions: Bob Kurkland, Vern Mikkelsen, Corey Brewer, Darrell Griffith
Key Losses: Joel Embiid, Emiliano Rodriguez
GM's Overall Record So Far:: 68-96
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Sure, why not? I mean they will need to have a safe training camp but assuming they navigate those waters sucesfuly and can find a solid gameplan in the first few sims there is no reason a starting lineup of: Kurland, Mikkelsen, Brewer, Diamantidis and KC JOnes is pretty solid. They will need to get production out of an unproven bench (Stauskas, Griffith etc) but the team has some depth and can probably find a trade or two. The bigger question is will the team show patience in contending. They had a similar team year one and tore it down a few sims in and now have traded the rebuilding pieces for more win now pieces again. So yes they can make the playoffs and I think they will if they focus on staying the course and finding the right gameplan.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? I'll agree with Cairo here and say this is a playoff team this year. They have respectable depth to go along with a starting lineup that I am definitely a fan of (outside of maybe the SF spot). I don't see a team that will be raising a banner or anything because they don't have a superstar but guys like Kurkland, Mikkelsen, and Diamantidis have been top 10 at their position so far and we all know I have been a KC Jones guy for a while so as long as they find the right game plan which has always one of the key obstacles for this GM going back to Legends, they should be a playoff competitor in that 5-8 range (they aren't beating out divisionmates Vancouver/Minnesota for the division title and home court).
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Well this wouldn't be the first time i've said this and it won't be the last but KC Jones was one of the guys I was a big fan of coming out of last seasons draft so that already makes me look at the Sonics future as favorable. Is he a star player? That remains to be seen but he's a guy i'm sure many GM would like to have on their roster. DD was a guy I probably didn't look at enough in the creation draft but at only 25 he has shown himself to be one of the better 2-way Shooting Guards in the league so far. His numbers are inflated some sure but even in normal MPG 16+ PPG | 5 APG | 4 RPG | 1+ SPG w/ good defense. Griffith looks like he'll be another solid young piece for this group as well and Stauskas even has a bit of potential. These guys + a guy like Kurland who is a vet but isn't old have Seattle in a pretty good place long term barring a TC collapse.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Get ready to hear a broken record that keeps repeating itself in this section but until the GM proves he is gonna stick to a plan long term I will view their longterm future as murky. Yes, KC Jones is a nice young piece. He might end up being a fringe top 8 PG when it is all said in done and they have some other good pieces to build around for the next 5 years or so in Kurland and DD. Again tho this is the third shift in the plan as we enter the third year in the league so at some point they need to stick with a direction. If they do this is a core that can be added to and be a factor in the playoffs moving forward.
New Orleans Jazz (mrvilhauer)
Key Additions:Andre Drummond
Key Losses: Michael Finley, AC Green
GM's Overall Record So Far: 64-100
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? No. Honestly this is one that I am surprised to be putting in the no section because of the GM. A few seasons back they missed the playoffs by four games and then last season they started off at a respectable 15-15 before going 14-38 for the reainder of the season. I figured this off-season we'd see this team pick up a nice lotto talent (which they did) and add to their core of Tony Parker, Jason Richardson, and Michael Finley in free agency or via trade to put themselves in position to become a playoff team and then taking it another step further next season and becoming a title threat since that's usually the type of improvement we see from mrvilhauer led team. However outside of adding their lottery pick this team not only added no one of note but also let their starting SF Michael Finley go in Free Agency. This team owns their first so i'm sure they are fine with another lotto season as they add to their young group but I have to say I definitely am surprised that I am predicting no playoffs for the third season in a row for this GM.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? No and they shouldn't. If the off season had gone differently and they had re-upped Finley and gotten lucky in Free Agency then sure they could have had a chance. Tony Parker gives them a chance, he is that dang good! But they lost more then they gained short term and are facing another year of growth where they probably win enough games due to Parker to stay out of an elite pick but probably still fall in the 8-12 range and add another piece to the puzzle. New York has covered most of this in detail so I will end my thoughts there.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Well when you are starting with a stud PG and legitimately probably the 2nd best overall PG in the league in Tony Parker and you add a studly looking, atheltic big in the draft in Andre Drummond you are moving in the right direction. They did lose Michael Finley for nothing in Free Agency and AC Green and the loss of Finley was especially a surprise to me. However, they do have Jason Richardson at SF which gives them three young, atheltic and talented players to build around long term. They also own all of their own firsts moving forward and have a GM with a proven track record of not only building good teams, but building champsionship level squads. So yes the future is bright in New Orleans and led by a guy who appears posied to become the best PG in the league down the line and you are in a good place long term, although the future is not going to be this year.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): So like I said about and basically what Cairo talked about as well this is a GM that we trust so that immediately gives his future outlook a bump in my eyes because this is a GM we both know understands how to build a winner. But he isn't going off of reputation alone, he has the best young guard in the league right now (2nd best overall) in Tony Parker. If you are a rebuilding team you are desperately looking to find that way to add a star (and hopefully a superstar) but this team already has it with a guy that just last season made All-ABCA First Team. Plus they've got a young guy like Jason richardson who while not a potential star due to defensive limiations, can clearly light it up offensively and is still developing. Then when you add to it the fact that they added the young big man Andre Drummond plus still own all of their picks this is a team to be excited about for the future if they can sure up things at the forward postions.
Istanbul Anadolu Efes (boog23)
Key Additions: Bradley Beal
Key Losses: None
GM's Overall Record So Far: 78-86
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? While I think this team will be more compettive, I don't see this team making the playoffs this year. Manigault is one of the better guards in the game but I don't see enough frm Dsichinger, LaRue Martin and Bob Rule to make them a playoff team this year. However is Bradley Beal explodes in training camp that would change things. I think this is a competitive team, but probably maxes out around 35-38 wins this year.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Once again i'll agree with Cairo because while this is a team that has nice talent in some areas it is still the same team that has failed to make the playoffs these past two seasons. When you think about the fact that the league is getting tougher, their players are exiting their prime, and they are still in need of the same things they needed in creation I can't see this year being any different than the rest. I mean depending on if my prediction of the Eurasian conference getting a bit weaker coming true or not I guess this team could sneak in if they can manage their same 43 wins as last season but like I said this is a team that probably will themselves be weaker since if you look at their top 5 from last season 4 of them will be 28 or older this year. So yeah a solid team but one that I think has another year in the lotto ahead.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Barring some Training Camp fun, I am not super high on this team's future right now. Their two young pieces right now are Bradley Beal (who looks solid) and Terry Dischinger (who looks solid offensively but flawed defensively). Both guys are probably solid starters depending on the team but neither are great or potential stars from what I can see. Outside of that this is a team with vets that themselves are just solid-good starters so this team is really lacking on high end talent. I remember in an article before season one I talked about how this team obviously whiffed in creation by trading down from Barkley I liked them grabbing pieces that could have nice trade value as they look to rebuild. The thing is though, we are heading into season 3 and those trades still haven't happened. I think since this team has all of their picks, the smart move would be to find a team that wants to win now and swing them guys like Cervi, GOAT, and Rule for youth/picks because just staying good enough to be average isn't setting this team up great for the future in my opinion.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): New York hit the nail on the head this is a team currently stuck in what for me is the dreaded no man's land. They are too good to bottom out and not good enough to be more than a fringe playoff team. The type of team that once every few years sneaks in as a 7th or 8th seed and plays 86 or 87 games instead of 82. As New York mentioned they have some vets that could garner some additional pieces (GOAT, Rule, Cervi) but I think that is going to be hard at the moment because so many teams are seemingly rebuilding and only a handful of them will end up with elite picks each year. So while I agree fundamentally with New York I would be tempted if I were the GM to see what a Beal and pick(S) type of package could bring back. Maybe they could dd a big time piece from another team in a similar boat and launch themselve into the mid tier playoff team mix. That would at least give them a true direction. If they cannot do that my advice is to trade GOAT now as his value will never be higher and truly commit to a 2-3 year rebuilding process.
Guangdong Southern Tigers (seer)
Key Additions: Michael Jordan, Jerome Kersey, Neil Johnston, Kwame Brown
Key Losses: Jiri Zidek, Jabari Parker, Doug Wrenn, Charlie Vilaneuva
GM's Overall Record So Far: 69-95
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Yes. Now while I have yet to see what Cairo has to say about this one yet since I am leading this one off, I think we may end up being on different sides of the coin here (maybe not). I will say that for me to really feel comfortable about this prediction, this team more than anything desperatley needs some depth. Outside of Dario Saric who is solid but not great this team is seriously lacking in terms of reserves. I mean Rashad McCants could continue to develop some and help that out but McCants, Price, Yue, Saric, Ezeli is a pretty big drop off from what this team has in the first unit.
However even with all of that said I am betting on Jordan pulling this team to the post season just like he did for Regal last season. Kersey will get to slide into a starting role which will likely see him get closer to his year one numbers than he did last season, Neil Johnston gives this team something that the Regal FC teams seriously lacked and that's a third scorer (outside of Jordan, Barcelona's next best scorer averaged 15.6 PPG and beyond that 13.8 PPG), Arenas isn't an ideal PG anymore after his last training camp and I suspect he'll be upgraded at some point but even last season he was arguably a more capable guard than Meadowlark Lemon who was Regal's lead guard, Brown is probably the weak link in the starting lineup and he'll have some work to do in training camp before I am 100% comfortable with him being the starter but he'll still be able to give this team something like 10 - 7 - 1 i'm guessing in starter minutes. So long story short, this team still has some work to do but Arenas - Jordan - Kersey - Neil is stronger than the playoff Regal team of last season and with Eurasia seemingly having quite a few teams headed towards rebuild this team should have a shot at the post season.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Yes! They don't have much depth as New York touched on above, but they do have an elite player at maybe the thinest position in the game right now in SG (that or SF) and two other excellent players giving them an impressive trio to build around. That alone should propel them into a late seed in the playoffs and if things break right and a move or two is made, perhaps they can find themselves a bit ahead of schedule and fighting for home court in round one. With several teams in Eurasia headed towards at least retooling years, teams like Guangdong and Cairo are poised to be in the playoffs this year. It will be a matter of TC, health and additional moves that determine exactly where they end up at the end of the year.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): I truly have given up about having long term thoughts about Seers teams beyond that whatever he is doing will be interesting and he will either be extremely competittive or extremely young. But look it as long as the team keeps Neil Johnston, Gilbert Arenas and some guy named Michael Jeffrey Jordan together this should be a team challenging to make a deep run in the playoffs on an annual basis. But to ask me to guess how long that core will be kept together and I honestly have no idea. What I do know is that Seer has done a great job of quickley putting together a very talented team that is poised to make some noise!
Thoughts Longterm (NY): While Seer is known for making a large amount of moves I will point out that he has toned down the "trading just to trade" stuff quite a bit from Legends. He's made about 12 trades if I counted correctly and 6 of those were with San Antonio. I mention that because unless things change I believe Seer has gotten to a point where he keeps guys for a respectable stretch of time and I suspect MJ will be one of those guys that stick around for a while and as long as you have Jordan you are in good shape long term. Neil & Kersey are an age where they can stick around for a few seasons or at the very least have trade value for the next few seaons. Then Arenas and Brown aren't my favorite prospects but both are young and have some potential. Like Cairo said this is a talented team and it should remain that way for the forseeable future if their GM wants it to so I like the look of this team in both the short term and long term.
Los Angeles Lakers (pistolpetejr)
Key Additions: Damian Lillard
Key Losses: Michael Adams, Mehmet Okur, Jimmy Jones, Greg Ostertag
GM's Overall Record So Far: 63-101
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Absolutely not, when you are actually filling out your rotation with the leftovers of free agency you have no shot at the playoffs. I have nothing more to say, this is a really bad situation at the moment and I hope the GM can find a way to turn it around.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Cairo put it perfectly, this is a team that is coming off of 33 wins and has lost their 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th best players in the off-season and didn't add anyone in Free Agency to replace them. This team is much more likely to land the top pick in the draft than their first playoff spot this season.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Now i'll say this, this wasn't a good off-season for this team. Giving up a future 1st, Michael Adams, Mehmet Okur, and their pick in the draft that just passed to move up to get Lillard is way too steep of a price especially with some solid guys on the board at 12. But with that said, I do like the pairing of Lillard and Russell long term. That's all they have so TC is going to be nervewrecking this year for sure but if those two hang on those are two pieces that are the start of an impressive core. The key for this team will be hitting a homerun with their 2003 first round pick because with three legit building blocks this team can start moving up the pecking order in the league and it's going to be important for them to do that without their pick next year.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): New York hit the upside of this situation and I am going to play Debbie Downer (shocking!) and hit the reality check on the situation. The GM has promised to be more active two off seasons in a row and yet so far that has been primarily lip service from a far. With Bill Russell only 2 seasons away from Free Agency the time to get organized is now. They need a home run season to secure their future. We are talking about somehow ending up with a top pick, even tho on paper they seem destined for a pick in the locked in 4-6 range, when they really need a pick in the top 3. They also need to take the 60 million or so they have in cap space and sign talent with it next off season. They cannot afford to gamble on the big name free agents only any longer and need to focus their efforts on solid starters who can fit around a Russell/Lillard/Draft Pick core. If they do this they will have a pretty nice future and a chance to retain Russell. If not this is going to be a team looking at having to trade Bill Russell to even have a chance to crawl into contention, beause they cannot afford to lose him for nothing in my opinion.
San Antonio Spurs (officialgp)
Key Additions: Joel Embiid, Marques Haynes
Key Losses: Bob Kurland, Eddie Jones
GM's Overall Record So Far: 59-105
*Jeff Turner is also on this roster as a 5th PF
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?Yes. Going with what some may feel is another shocker here but why even do these if you are going to be scared to make a bold prediction? This team didn't trade for an established star that moves the needle and actually traded their best player in Bob Kurland. However this team has a player that I really like in Damon Stoudemire who I believe is an underrated guard and while Kurland was their best player the still developing Stoudemire wasn't far behind. They also have Zach Randolph and Jalen Rose who both still have some developing to do and should be better this season if TC goes right for them. More importantly though they added Joel Embiid and Marques Haynes who if both maintain what they did last season are better than any non Kurland or Stoudemire player from this team's roster last year. It remains to be seen how good Embiid can be but I do think he has talent that we haven't seen yet and he'll help this team now and in the future if San Antonio is patient with him. This one is far from a guarantee and this team similar to Guangdong needs to add some depth but I do think this team has the ability to fight for one of the last playoff spots in America.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? I am not as high on Mighty Mouse as New York but think he is a solid young starting caliber PG with a bit of upside. That said this is a team that has a lot of pieces that really fit together. They are a little thin at the wing but Jalen Rose is a perfectly capable starting SF, although a bit limited in spots. But this is a long winded way of saying yes they will make the playoffs. With teams in transition or unknown throughout the Americas they have a chance to sneak into the playoffs or if they really gel fight for a 4-6 type of seed as is. The key will be honing in on a gameplan and avoiding the temptation to make a lot of moves. A little patience will go a long ways for the Spurs this year in my opinion.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): This is a GM with a history of being unafraid to make changes quickly. Currently he does not own his picks through 2005 but has a very interesting roster after a busy offseason. Currently the team has a core of big man Joel Embiid (Young,talented, potential franchise cornerstone) an excellent PF who compliments him in Zach Randolph, a solid if unspectacular SF in Jalen Rose and an interesting backcourt with the addition of Marques Haynes from the Knicks to pair with the decidely solid Damon Stoudimore. If the team has a good TC this should be a team that is well positioned for now with a strong starting 5 and a little bit of depth. The lack of their own picks and their tendency to trade early and often leaves me unable to buy into any long term outlook beyond this year. If they can remain patient I think this roster can grow into a playoff caliber team on an annual basis. However, until I see them keep the majority of a roster for more than a season I will not feel confident in what they are doing. I hope they keep this crew together with a good TC they could really be onto something in San Antonio
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Patience is the key for this team as Cairo said. The pieces are there with guys like Stoudamire, Embiid, Randolph and Rose long term. I know some around the eague like to make the San Antonio the GM their target for constant criticism and while not having any of their first isn't great, you do have to admit that their is some potential there if you take an unbiased look at this roster. I think this is a team that can make the post season this season and then look to add to this group in the upcoming off-season. With guys like Embiid and Stoudamire who I a definitely high on this is a team with a promising future in my opinion.
Belgrade KK Partizan (minjagaso)
Key Additions: AC Green, Darwin Cook, Jamaal Tinley
Key Losses: Ramon Sessions
GM's Overall Record So Far: 66-98
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? They could but I just am not a big enough fan of their two big additions in AC Green and Jamaal Tinsley to think they make the leap as currently constructed. They have some good pieces to build around (Gasol, Darwin Cook etc) and some interesting talents that may turn into nice players (Bynum, Joe Johnson, etc) but they really need to find a way to add a high level PG. Without one this team team is most likely on the outside in. With one they could threaten to move into the back of the playoff picture and be a very tough out for a higher seed in round 1.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? This is a team whose playoff hopes will depend soley on Training Camp because they added some solid pieces in Free Agency but nothing that would move the needle to push them into that 40+ range that will be needed to secure a playoff spot. But if Bynum, Gasol, Johnson, and Barry all improve like I think they can in Training Camp I see no reason why this tea can't make the post season. You have to realize that this team went 30-33 with a healthy Brent Barry and 5-14 without him as well. So they would've likely been right in the thick of things for a lower seed spot if fully healthy. I will agree that adding a Point Guard takes this team from a maybe to a confident yes for me. I don't dislike Tinsley but I think he'll be more effective in a backup role if this team can find a legit starting lead guard.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Youth in the post? check. Youth on the perimeter? check. All of their picks? check. This GM right now has avoided the mistakes that he made in Legends and because of that his future looks promising. They lack that top 10-15 guy I guess but I really like what Marc Gasol brings to the table and Andrew Bynum has been a pleasant surprise for me. Add in guys like Iso Joe, Brent Barry and Darwin Cook and you have to like what this team has in place right now. If they can find a way to get a truly impactful PG then you have to likely take that up a notch and love what they'd have in place then.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): As New York mentioned this a GM who has grown a lot from his impulsive days in Legends. He has a clear plan and clearly also checks with a GM or two about any move he is considering. For those GM that currently don't do that I really recommend it as it can keep you from making a quick move that seems good from your naturally more myopic position than from an impartial outsider looking in. I am not 100% sure that all the pieces are great fits right now but as New York touched on they have a good mix of young talent that is productive and solid if not spectacular vets. An upgrade at PG would really let the league see what exactly this team has with all of it's young talent so here is to hoping that they not only stick to their guns in terms of value but also address that need moving forward and see what this machine looks like when well oiled.
Taipei Fubon Braves (jeff)
Key Additions: Draymond Green, Joe Smith, Ed Mikan, Greg Ostertag
Key Losses: Bryant Reeves, Benji Wilson
GM's Overall Record So Far: 59-105
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)?No. I'm almost certain this team has said already that they are playing for the lottery this season. This is an improved but flawed team so I will follow their GM on their prediction. They signed guys like Ed Mikan, Greg Ostertag, Joe Smith and drafted Draymond Green who all have talent to help. However can you see the issue with all those names I listed? All of those guys are basically big men (with Green being debatable) and this is a team whose clear and away best player is already a PF in Aaron Gordon who will now likely be forced to the bench for the guys that are signed for more and for longer. Green likely has to play out of position to get his minutes (although he is probably a longterm SF anyway) and this team as mentioned still needs help on the perimeter. I can see this team making a move soon pick up some more young assets especially since Ed Mikan will be 30 and is probably suited more for a team looking to win now. I trust this GM to eventually put together the pieces to be a consistent playoff team but right now I don't think this is the year it'll happen.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? No and that isn't the plan here from what I can tell. This is a team that is well positioned long term and should not be in a rush to accelerate that process this year. Stay the course add two potentially high pick in the upcoming draft and use this year to do different, but equally important things. First, develop their young talent by giving them the minutes to see what they have. Second, still give their vets minutes to showcase them for future trades. As New York mentioned a player like Ed Mikan is bound to not only help a contender for the next year or two but also bring back another rebuilding piece, be it a player or a draft pick. Furthermore, Joe Smith and even Greg Ostertag could add more additional assets, although Smith is young enough they may want to keep him as part of their core moving forward. So the future isn't now and that is completely okay. Fubon has been patient to date and I expect that to remain the case for the time being.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Okay so the Braves don't have their young superstar yet but rookie Draymond Green looks like he might turn out to be the ultimate complimentry player in the next few years. Add in youngsters like Monta Ellis and Aaron Gordon and this is a team with a bright enough future as is. Then add in that they have both their own first and the rebuilding Newcastle Eagles first. They also have some solid veterans in Joe Smith/Ed Mikan/Richard Jefferson who can either be part of the core moving forward or be moved for more rebuilding pieces long term. I think Fuban has quietly positioned themselves well moving forward but they need to find a way to add a young franchise player in the upcoming draft to start making the leap.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): I'm going to agree with everything Cairo said above. While this team lacks a guy that will develop into a superstar, they have two high quality picks in this upcoming draft, a player that had mmmany GMS intrigued, young pieces that could develop into something respectable such as Monta Ellis, Raymond Felton, Aaron Gordon and Zach Lavine, as well as vets that should have some trade value around the league. You can't put them aat the top of the league in term sof future because they lack that concrete pieces of some other teams but I wouldn't be surprised if I was asked this question a season from now and I had a much more favorable response for this group.
Boston Celtics (boston)
Key Additions: Alonzo Mourning, Mike Gminski, Dolph Schayes, Mirza Delibasic, Jimmy Walker, Ubiratan Pereira Maciel
Key Losses: Joe Smith
GM's Overall Record So Far: 43-121
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Yes! Boston was super aggressive and at times overly aggressive this off season (high price paid for an average vet SG in Jimmy Walker) but the net result is a team anchored by a stud young PG in Chris Paul and a stud young big in Alonzo Mourning. Add in a helthy dose of established veteran starters like the a forementioned walker, Ubirtan Pereira Maciel, Dolph Schayes and Mirza Delibasic and you are looking at a team that should be competitive and make the playoffs this year. They may need to make another move or two if they want to accelrate their progress from playoff team to true contender this year but they are well on their way barring a disasterous TC.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Definitely. Unless this team has a pretty bad training camp this is a playoff team. Chris Paul was behind only Tony Parker, John Stockton, and depending on who you ask Jason Kidd when it came to Point Guards last season and he is expected to get even better. Zo should be one of the top rookies this year on both sides of the ball and that's saying something with the impressive top part of this rookie class. Maciel even at 30 is a 20 - 10 - 3 - 1 - 1 guy if used properly. Dolph Schayes while likely taking another step back will still be one of the best reserves in the league, and while neither is a star, Mirza Delibasic and Jimmy Walker are both solid at minimum at their positions. This team has set themselves up for a nice playoff team this year and once some of their vet guys get old they should still be fine because they'll have guys like CP3 and Zo hitting their primes.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Like I said, this team is in a nice position because they have vets to help them win this year and once those guys get too old to help them and expire they'll have their youth (CP3 & Zo) hitting their primes and a bunch of cap space opening up to really move into the realm of contender status. The only mark this team really has against it right now is it lacks it's 2004 first but even still they are armed with 4 picks over the next two seasons. They are without a question in good shape.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Yup I wasn't seeing the blueprint for the Celtics heading into Free Agency this year. I knew they had two elite young players at two important position in CP3 and Zo but the rest of it wasn't really coming together. Then the team added a bunch of vets in the span of a few sims utilizing both free agency and the trade market and reshaped a rsoter from on the rise to ready to win now. How much winning will be dicatated by how both youngsters and vets respond to training camp but this is a team that has balanced a young core with a good cast of veterans who still have gas in the rank. Honestly, one of the better accelerated rebuilds I have seen on paper and it should pay dividends in both the short and long term.
Milan Olimpia (rcc)
Key Additions: Shaquille O'Neal, Tyler Zeller
Key Losses: Tiago Splitter
GM's Overall Record So Far: 57-107
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? Yep. Olimpia just drafted a player that I am really excited about in Shaquille O'Neal, the rest of their division seems like they are looking to rebuild, they've already got guys like Riva, Rasheed, and D-Will who I think are winning players in this league. Things are setup right now for this team to breakthrough this season. Now with Spud Webb starting at PG and their bench being Gathers and a handful of meh, this team isn't some title contender or anything but if training camp is just normal for this team they are clearly a team with enough talent to top their division and get a playoff spot.
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Nope. Going to disagree with New Yrok on this one. I expect Shaq to be great as advertised and then the rest of the team is role players, albeit some of those role players are pretty talented. But I have no idea who is going to pair with D-Will in the backcourt and they would need a lot of growth in TC for all of their non Shaq guys for this team to get into the playoffs. Part of it is a simple numbers game, not enough teams are dropping out of the playoffs for all the teams that have improved to make it in.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): Look it anytime you add Shaq your longterm outlook is pretty good. Add some other interesting pieces 25 and under like Sheed, Deron Wlliams, Gathers and Riva along with their own firsts moving forward and if this team is patient and finds a way to find a guard to pair with DWill this should be a really strong team down the line. If they can remain patient and build for another season then make a move or two next off season they should be positioned to be back in the playoff picture for the forseeable future. Anytime you have Shaq you have a chance!
Thoughts Longterm (NY): Pretty much what Cairo said here, they have Shaq and unless he stinks it up in TC this team has one of the better futures in the league more than likely because of that alone. Then with guys like Sheed, Riva, and D-Will along with all their first I like the position this team is in long term a lot . The key will be to not get ahead of themselves and throw it away for a quick fix this season because we've seen how that has went in the past for this GM with McAdoo & Wilt in Legends.
REAL Madrid (cyrux)
Key Additions: Sergei Belov, Harry Gallatin, Harrison Barnes
Key Losses: Marcus Smart, Fernando Martin, Corey Brewer
GM's Overall Record So Far: 56-108
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (Cairo)? Naw. They have had the strangest off season to me. They lost Fernando Martin and Corey Brewer in free agency but then added the aging and expensive Harry Gallatin and then traded for Sergei Belov. So on the perimeter at least short term they are pretty dang tough with Dumars/Below/Gallatin. However, there is not a single post player on this roster that I think is ready to be a starter on a playoff team. Noah Vonleh flashes a lot of potential but he only put up 12 points and 5 boards in 29 mpg last year. So barring a massive Training Camp from him or a big trade that probably involves breaking up their excellent backcourt this is a team that is probably staring at 30 wins
Will They Make The Playoffs This Season (NY)? I'm going to actually go against Cairo here and predict that this team will make the playoffs. While I did get a chuckle out of this statement "I think Belov propels us to contender status" I do think adding Belov & Gallatin and seeing some development frorm Lucas and Dumars will take them from that 33 win range they were in last season to enough wins to land a playoff spot. Belov isn't the star he was in year one but I think he gives this team a better shot of winningthis year than Smart if only because he is a better fit with Dumars. They do need some help in the front court but Lucas improving should help with that even if Noah remains average at best. Again I don't think this is a team that will be in a position to win win it all but I think there is enough talent here to say that the playoffs are a definite possibility.
Thoughts Longterm (NY): This is a team that is in a weird position long term because while I think the playoffs are in reach this season, I'm not sure what the plan is beyond this season. I mean they've got a 26 year old star in Joe Dumars and a 24 year old that at mimum should be a good offensive starter in Jerry Lucas but Gallatin is soon to be 34 years old and Belov will be 30 soon as well. Noah Vonleh has some potential and Barnes could turn into something down the line so they don't lack for youth so they aren't in a bad situation at all long term but I can't say that this is a long term title contender or something because two of their top 3 players are likely going to be gone in a season or two. This is a group that could be respectable long term but will definitely have some moves to make after the Gallatin - Belov era is over.
Thoughts Longterm (Cairo): As New York points out this is a team in a strange position. I could insert an obligatory joke about too many PG's here but they actually hve pretty decent positional balance right now. What they don't have is balance in terms of positional development. Their bigs have talent but are probably a couple years away from being reayd to be big contributors on a contending team. They have a good young guard in Joe Dumars and then two excellent but exepensive and aging wings in Gallatin and Below. For me that is the crux of the issue, I don't see the pieces they can move for a win now big, while still maintaining a long term future and I think they are going to need a lot of love in TC among their vets in order to keep the window they created this off season open. I think Gallatin is still the best SF in the game and all he cost was cap space, but I guess I just don;t see this team being where it needs in the post soon enough to help a win now perimeter and by the time they are ready the perimeter is likely going to be only Joe Dumars. So in the words of the magic 8 ball, their futur is unclear, ask me again next off season.
