The Ultimate NBA Fantasy Draft Part II
If you didn't catch part one click here.
I'm a big believer in chemistry over talent. Which is why in rounding out the starting lineups for teams, I didn't always pick the next logical choice based off of talent. I like the teams that compliment one another, and win because of it. I mean why get LeBron when you already got DWade? I mean they cancel each other out. Oh, I guess that did happen. Well, how about this one: why draft Steph Curry when you already got Monta Ellis... hmm I guess not a good one either. Why draft Ricky Rubio and Johnny Flynn with back to back picks? Crap that's the worst one yet. Well the NBA isn't perfect I guess, and I'm sure neither is this list, but let's check it out. (Note: I didn't write out the order of the rest of the picks, just the starting lineup for each team, and my grade on how well the lineup will work out.)
Bobcats-
PG Kirk Hinrich SG Tony Allen SF LeBron James PF Dejuan Blair C Tyson Chandler
Grade: A
Pistons-
PG Derrick Rose SG Ben Gordon SF Grant Hill PF Greg Monroe C Joakim Noah
Grade: A-
Hornets-
PG Tony Parker SG Kobe Bryant SF Tayshan Prince PF Tyler Hansbrough C Marcin Gortat
Grade: B
Wizards-
PG Aaron Brooks SG Ray Allen SF Kevin Durant PF David Lee C Roy Hibbert
Grade: B+
Kings-
PG Mike Conley SG Dwyane Wade SF Thaddeus Young PF Glen Davis C Nene
Grade: B+
Raptors-
PG Devin Harris SG Rodney Stuckey SF Danny Granger PF Dirk Nowitzki C Samuel Dalembert
Grade: B-
Nets-
PG Mo Williams SG Joe Johnson SF Shawn Marion PF Taj Gibson C Dwight Howard
Grade: A
Suns-
PG Chris Paul SG Marcus Thornton SF Danilo Gallinari PF Michael Beasley C Andrew Bogut
Grade: A-
Warriors-
PG Deron Williams SG OJ Mayo SF Andre Iguadala PF Chuck Hayes C Emeka Okafor
Grade: A-
Knicks-
PG Jrue Holiday SG Eric Gordon SF Dorrell Wright PF Blake Griffin C DeMarcus Cousins
Grade: A
Cavs-
PG Russell Westbrook SG Jason Richardson SF Shane Battier PF Lamar Odom C Darrell Arthur
Grade: B-
Bucks-
PG Jason Kidd SG Rip Hamilton SF Carmelo Anthony PF Carlos Boozer C Omer Asik
Grade: C+
Wolves-
PG Kyrie Irving SG Monta Ellis SF Caron Butler PF Kevin Love C Chris Andersen
Grade: B-
Celtics-
PG Rajon Rondo SG Arron Afflalo SF Wes Matthews PF David West C Marcus Camby
Grade: B+
Grizzlies-
PG Jason Terry SG Stephen Jackson SF Jared Dudley PF Derrick Favors C Pau Gasol
Grade: C+
Blazers-
PG Darren Collison SG Kevin Martin SF Metta World Peace PF Brandon Bass C Amare Stoudemire
Grade: C
Rockets-
PG Steve Nash SG DeMarr Derozan SF Josh Smith PF Channing Frye C Kendrick Perkins
Grade: B
Magic-
PG Brandon Jennings SG Landry Fields SF Rashard Lewis PF Chris Bosh C Anderson Varejao
Grade: B-
Spurs-
PG Jeff Teague SG Andre Miller SF Omri Casspi PF Paul Millsap C Tim Duncan
Grade: B
Lakers-
PG Ty Lawson SG George Hill SF Ronnie Brewer PF Al Horford C Deandre Jordan
Grade: B-
Jazz-
PG Jameer Nelson SG JJ Redick SF Luol Deng PF Carl Landry C LaMarcus Aldridge
Grade: B
Mavericks-
PG Raymond Felton SG Nick Young SF Trevor Ariza PF Kevin Garnett C Al Jefferson
Grade: C+
Clippers-
PG Kemba Walker SG Manu Ginobli SF Gerald Wallace PF Kris Humphries C Elton Brand
Grade: B-
Nuggets-
PG Jose Calderon SG JJ Barea SF Paul Pierce PF Antawn Jamison C Brook Lopez
Grade: B
Pacers-
PG Chauncey Billups SG Jamal Crawford SF Mike Dunleavy PF Zach Randolph C Chris Kaman
Grade: B
76ers-
PG John Wall SG Rudy Fernandez SF Nicolas Batum PF Luis Scola C JJ Hickson
Grade: B+
Hawks-
PG Ricky Rubio SG Tyreke Evans SF Hedo Turkoglu PF Udonis Haslem C Marc Gasol
Grade: B+
Heat-
PG Steph Curry SG James Harden SF Luc Mbah a Moute PF Tyrus Thomas C JaVale McGee
Grade: B
Thunder-
PG Kyle Lowry SG Thabo Sefolosha SF Carlos Delfino PF Andrea Bargnani C Andrew Bynum
Grade: B+
Bulls-
PG DJ Augustin SG Gary Neal SF Rudy Gay PF Kenyon Martin C Serge Ibaka
Grade: C+
So in a nutshell, most teams downgraded overall. But there are some very entertaining lineups in there. Look at Phoenix, Miami, Philly, and Houston again. That's like a Knicks vs. Warriors game every night! Milwaukee and Portland look to be train wrecks, and the Grizzlies and Mavericks not far behind. At first glance the Bulls team looks pretty bad, but if everyone is healthy it could work.
So thank you for hopefully reading this whole monster of a 2 part blog. It was an interesting trip down the hypothetical highway.
I'm a big believer in chemistry over talent. Which is why in rounding out the starting lineups for teams, I didn't always pick the next logical choice based off of talent. I like the teams that compliment one another, and win because of it. I mean why get LeBron when you already got DWade? I mean they cancel each other out. Oh, I guess that did happen. Well, how about this one: why draft Steph Curry when you already got Monta Ellis... hmm I guess not a good one either. Why draft Ricky Rubio and Johnny Flynn with back to back picks? Crap that's the worst one yet. Well the NBA isn't perfect I guess, and I'm sure neither is this list, but let's check it out. (Note: I didn't write out the order of the rest of the picks, just the starting lineup for each team, and my grade on how well the lineup will work out.)
Bobcats-
PG Kirk Hinrich SG Tony Allen SF LeBron James PF Dejuan Blair C Tyson Chandler
Grade: A
Pistons-
PG Derrick Rose SG Ben Gordon SF Grant Hill PF Greg Monroe C Joakim Noah
Grade: A-
Hornets-
PG Tony Parker SG Kobe Bryant SF Tayshan Prince PF Tyler Hansbrough C Marcin Gortat
Grade: B
Wizards-
PG Aaron Brooks SG Ray Allen SF Kevin Durant PF David Lee C Roy Hibbert
Grade: B+
Kings-
PG Mike Conley SG Dwyane Wade SF Thaddeus Young PF Glen Davis C Nene
Grade: B+
Raptors-
PG Devin Harris SG Rodney Stuckey SF Danny Granger PF Dirk Nowitzki C Samuel Dalembert
Grade: B-
Nets-
PG Mo Williams SG Joe Johnson SF Shawn Marion PF Taj Gibson C Dwight Howard
Grade: A
Suns-
PG Chris Paul SG Marcus Thornton SF Danilo Gallinari PF Michael Beasley C Andrew Bogut
Grade: A-
Warriors-
PG Deron Williams SG OJ Mayo SF Andre Iguadala PF Chuck Hayes C Emeka Okafor
Grade: A-
Knicks-
PG Jrue Holiday SG Eric Gordon SF Dorrell Wright PF Blake Griffin C DeMarcus Cousins
Grade: A
Cavs-
PG Russell Westbrook SG Jason Richardson SF Shane Battier PF Lamar Odom C Darrell Arthur
Grade: B-
Bucks-
PG Jason Kidd SG Rip Hamilton SF Carmelo Anthony PF Carlos Boozer C Omer Asik
Grade: C+
Wolves-
PG Kyrie Irving SG Monta Ellis SF Caron Butler PF Kevin Love C Chris Andersen
Grade: B-
Celtics-
PG Rajon Rondo SG Arron Afflalo SF Wes Matthews PF David West C Marcus Camby
Grade: B+
Grizzlies-
PG Jason Terry SG Stephen Jackson SF Jared Dudley PF Derrick Favors C Pau Gasol
Grade: C+
Blazers-
PG Darren Collison SG Kevin Martin SF Metta World Peace PF Brandon Bass C Amare Stoudemire
Grade: C
Rockets-
PG Steve Nash SG DeMarr Derozan SF Josh Smith PF Channing Frye C Kendrick Perkins
Grade: B
Magic-
PG Brandon Jennings SG Landry Fields SF Rashard Lewis PF Chris Bosh C Anderson Varejao
Grade: B-
Spurs-
PG Jeff Teague SG Andre Miller SF Omri Casspi PF Paul Millsap C Tim Duncan
Grade: B
Lakers-
PG Ty Lawson SG George Hill SF Ronnie Brewer PF Al Horford C Deandre Jordan
Grade: B-
Jazz-
PG Jameer Nelson SG JJ Redick SF Luol Deng PF Carl Landry C LaMarcus Aldridge
Grade: B
Mavericks-
PG Raymond Felton SG Nick Young SF Trevor Ariza PF Kevin Garnett C Al Jefferson
Grade: C+
Clippers-
PG Kemba Walker SG Manu Ginobli SF Gerald Wallace PF Kris Humphries C Elton Brand
Grade: B-
Nuggets-
PG Jose Calderon SG JJ Barea SF Paul Pierce PF Antawn Jamison C Brook Lopez
Grade: B
Pacers-
PG Chauncey Billups SG Jamal Crawford SF Mike Dunleavy PF Zach Randolph C Chris Kaman
Grade: B
76ers-
PG John Wall SG Rudy Fernandez SF Nicolas Batum PF Luis Scola C JJ Hickson
Grade: B+
Hawks-
PG Ricky Rubio SG Tyreke Evans SF Hedo Turkoglu PF Udonis Haslem C Marc Gasol
Grade: B+
Heat-
PG Steph Curry SG James Harden SF Luc Mbah a Moute PF Tyrus Thomas C JaVale McGee
Grade: B
Thunder-
PG Kyle Lowry SG Thabo Sefolosha SF Carlos Delfino PF Andrea Bargnani C Andrew Bynum
Grade: B+
Bulls-
PG DJ Augustin SG Gary Neal SF Rudy Gay PF Kenyon Martin C Serge Ibaka
Grade: C+
So in a nutshell, most teams downgraded overall. But there are some very entertaining lineups in there. Look at Phoenix, Miami, Philly, and Houston again. That's like a Knicks vs. Warriors game every night! Milwaukee and Portland look to be train wrecks, and the Grizzlies and Mavericks not far behind. At first glance the Bulls team looks pretty bad, but if everyone is healthy it could work.
So thank you for hopefully reading this whole monster of a 2 part blog. It was an interesting trip down the hypothetical highway.
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