Fact or Fiction: Habes
Oct 21, 2012 15:32:31 GMT -5
Post by Broph on Oct 21, 2012 15:32:31 GMT -5
1: You are no longer a top 15 GM.
Habes:
Fact. Oh god, of course. My results have sucked and I've made iffy moves. I deserve to be knocked for that. Depends on the criteria, but GM rankings are obviously subjective, and while I'm pretty good at setting pride aside, I'd laugh at anyone suggesting I'm not one of the fifteen best GMs here. I've had a bad stretch, so either I've "lost something" or I just haven't been as focused and active as in the past...can't expect me to say I've lost something.
Me:
Me: Fact: While you have not been a great GM here by any means, or even average, on the whole your record means you are, if I try to say you arent a top 15 GM, Im stuck saying somebody out of this group is better:
Svedda, Hype, Biggie, Erbes, Jordan, Pig, Ashes, Game, Jiggy, Marty, Jah, Greg, J, Andy. Performance wise in this version, its obvious you’ve been pretty terrible here, but Im not sure based on what you did do in BBS4 that you deserve to be ranked below any of these guys. Jordan is a good GM when he has time but I don’t know what the last move hne made here was, Erbes has been good here but I have memories of what he did to teams in the last BBS and UOSL, he seems to be able to put together one title type team, then completely collapses, and that’s it for him. So yeah, I guess here you’ve been a terrible GM, and that’s enough that I have to allow for Erbes to be ahead of you, but Im definitely not quite comfortable with that designation at all, so its closer than I woulda guessed.
2. Two teams are going to get CY'd?
Habes:
Fiction. Think this question is really asking if I think I'll get CYd. I'm not getting CYd. The Hornets, without question, are done, and the rest are in the clear.
Me:
Fiction: No, this really didn’t necessarily require you being CY’d,. the Clippers are also right on that border, and while the West is weak as hell at the bottom, some of the teams there seemingly should be significantly better, the Spurs are right their with Tmac, an injury to Wade or Bibby could be all she wrote for the Clippers. Then you toss in that it appears one of you or Aar is getting CY’d, or possibly both, but it definitely seems likely that one of you will be. However, with the bottom of the West being weak, and the improvement to both the Hornets and 76ers, yeah, I only see one team getting CY’d as well.
3. The Celtics are the favorites to win the title again.
Habes:
Fact. No one's close. Sheed was such a good addition. Phoenix and Houston are nice, but Boston does almost the same thing Houston does, only better, and Phoenix is a move or two away. I don't think Utah, NJ, or Toronto are serious contenders.
Me:
Fact: WTF IS WITH YOU NOT MENTIONING MY TEAM AT ALL IN ANY OF THE NEXT FEW QUESTIONS? Makes no sense, we’ve been without Ben Wallace, but pretty much we are a better version of last years Pistons. Either way though, I just have a tough time seeing anybody being able to touch that frontcourt, Duncan and Shaq are both beasts, and the top players at their respective postions. Wallace is a nice role player for sure, though their depth is horrible and an injury would derail their team completely, McKie isn’t horrible, though he isn’t anything special, he provides two steals a game, and that’s nothing to scoff at.
4. The Suns are the best team in the West
Habes:
Fiction. I'll stick with Houston. Love that frontcourt. Phoenix's is nice, too, but nowhere near on par with Houston's. Edge to Phoenix at PG, but they're kinda thin elsewhere.
Me:
Fiction: Oh what the fuck, you seriously ignored my team again, douche…should just stop right here. Yes, I think my team when healthy is the best team in the West, The Dirk Marion Roy combo at the 2/3 is gonna be near impossible to stop, Big Ben and Perkins are really solid bigs up front, who can rebound and defend. Lue was a member of the title defending pistons, Turiaf is a great shot blocker off the bench and Rid can step in if necessary at PG. The Suns are lacking something big on offense outside Francis, JR Smith isn’t enough there, and KG likes to shoot too much. The Rockets are a very good team, no doubt, but basically this Nuggets team is the same team as the Pistons a year prior, with Marion instead of Redd (who wasn’t the same last year as this), and more depth.
5. Kobe is the best SG in the league
Habes:
Fiction. I'll take Redd. The slight drop-off in volume & percentages are at least mitigated by the better handling, and Redd's rebounding and steals are on par with Kobe's. Of course Kobe is gonna have much more value, but on performance alone, I prefer Redd.
Me:
Fiction: Pretty much agree with exactly what you said, that’s why this question is here, wanted to know if I was the only one. Redd is amazing this year, he is scoring very well, steals more than he turns it over (which gives him a big edge over Kobe in that regard) and rebounds well. His percentages are great and overall he is just sick. Do I think Kobe is close behind? Yes, his volume is definitely higher, and his percentages are sick as well, but his turnovers are awful, even for his point totals.
6. You are better off with Artest/Parker/Crawford/Illyasova over Redd/Wallace/Dirk or since you just said not offered, Kobe and Dirk
Habes:
Fiction. Obvious answer. But I really like my core and I think I’m going to build something really good out of it.
Me:
Fiction: Pretty obvious on that one, just wanted to make sure. This is what holding onto young guys with the hope you can make the CY without dealing them off results in people…pay attention.
7. CP3 will be the best PG in the league at some point in his career like Spencers notes suggested (though they said 15 years)
Habes:
Fiction. He doesn’t have a three-point shot for some reason (really don’t get that at all), and he just doesn’t feel like a dominant piece to me. I think he’ll be a top 3 PG in his prime, but I much prefer Rondo and Deron long-term.
Me:
Fact: Im gonna go opposite you on this one, but its damn close. I think you missed on the guy who will be in Cenk Ankyol or whatever his name is though, I just cant see Rondo at that level his outside game is atrocious, and he doesn’t take such great care of the ball that I feel comfortable with him. CP3 already has a sick inside game and a sick jumper, he takes pretty good care of the ball, steals well. He should still have potential left, and I could see him becoming a guy that shoots 2 or 3 threes a game in the future, he should get work their asap. An A- B A A C- PG who does sick stats is still not out of the realm. I love Deron, and he definitely is the guy that has the biggest chance at standing in the way, but right now his offense is a pretty big struggle, and while he seems to have a far better shot at developing an outside game, I think CP3 currently has the overall advantage and that they should have similar potential remaining.
8. Spencer answering questions on draft prospects is a good thing.
Habes:
Fact. Obviously you want some element of risk, but ratings tell so little, and it’s not like we can scout these guys. I like the system we have.
Me:
Fiction: I do not mind question asking, but the answering of so many questions makes the draft a bit too unpredictable, he should only answer questions on either guys without notes, or guys with notes, not both, leave it so he can have some unpredictability in the draft. Would be nice to find out that your SG is a great shot blocker randomly, without his draft value getting launched up when somebody asks in the notes if he can block. On the other hand, taking away the ranking was a good move. But answering strengths and weaknesses questions sucks.
To Non Sim questions
9. The Thunder will beat the Lakers and go to the Finals again this year.
Habes:
Fiction. Dwight is gonna eat Perkins on the glass, and if Ibaka guard him, there goes Ibaka's help D. Westbrook will expose the shit out of Nash, but at least LA will have a better offensive response this year. They did a great job of controlling the pace vs. OKC last year IIRC, and with (what I expect will be) a huge rebounding edge, they'll take care of OKC.
Me:
Fiction: but not because I don’t think the Lakers will be in the conference finals, I think the Thunder and Lakers end up 2/3 in some order. The Spurs end up with the one seed once again as Popovich is a genius, and while Duncan is getting older, Kawhi Leonard should improve, and I have no fucking clue right now, its just, every time the Spurs seem old and over, they do this shit, the Lakers will have some issues with chemistry early, the adjustment for Kobe having Nash will take some time, and they fade. The Thunder are gonna have a tougher go of it in an improved Northwest (not the Blazers, but the Nuggets, Wolves once healthy, and the Jazz all should be solid teams). I honestly have no clue.
10. James Harden will still be a member of the Thunder in 2014
Habes:
Fact. I'm not one to say I'd sooner trade Westbrook, but Harden's a star and they don't have a good enough offense to contend without him. I gotta think they recognize that and pay up.
Me:
Fiction: I think they move him sometime in the offseason after agreeing to match any offer he receives. Something like the Nuggets did with Nene, they cant really afford to make the match (from their own words) so they deal him for a cheaper guy on his rookie deal, somebody they like a lot, and assets to use to improve. Paying Durant and Westbrook the full max, and Ibaka the smaller but still large deal they gave with what I would expect to be a max offer sheet is going to be difficult to do, I think they let him test, then just give him whatever offer he gets on their own, so they maintain the ability to trade him.
11. The Miami Heat are the title favorites
Habes:
Fiction. Torn on this but I'm gonna go LA because I think they force Miami to go big and to win on the perimeter. I think it has pretty much nothing to do with Kobe, and if isn't actually willing to defer offensively, he'll get in the way.
Me:
Fact: Sadly until proven otherwise I don’t see it, adding Allen gives them another shooter, LeBron appears to be moving past his awfulness, and while Wades injuries are a worry, they have more and more depth the longer they go. The Big three is something I hate, but its worked.
12. Anthony Davis will win ROTY
Habes:
Fact. I think he's going to be a beast this season. A lot of the other guys I like seem to be in timeshare situations.
Me:
Fiction: Fuck it, homer time, Lillard has looked good in preseason, averaging 16 ppg 5.5 assists 2.5 boards on 46/100/34.7% shooting in 29.5 minutes per game, keeping up his efficient scoring. I do think Anthony Davis is the superior player in the long run, but I figure on him struggling some with fouls, and his stats overall wont be that superb as he is a big and its more difficult for him to score., of course, Im a homer, so please, grain of salt…large grain of salt.
13. The Tigers will win the World Series
Habes:
Fact. They'll throw Velander twice; Sanchez and Scherzer are excellent; and they'll have the two best hitters in the series.
Me:
Fact: I don’t pay attention to baseball much, so I just asked this cause I wanted to know an answer.SO fact because HABES SAID SO
14. The Texans are the best team in the AFC
Habes:
Fiiiiiction. I have the same belief every season that the Pats are the best team in the AFC until they lose in the playoffs. The Texans have had a soft schedule and have played like shit two weeks in a row. And if they want to win on the ground, have two receiving options and treat both like possession guys, good luck playing from behind.
Me:
Fact: For all the talk you gave about the Patriots, I havent seen an amazing team, the AFC East is a four way 3-3 tie, The Texans have struggled, but there is no team in the AFC that hasn’t looked bad in one way or another this season, the Texans though have been the best at looking the best the most. And yes that’s a terrible sentence. I also have the advantage of I could edit this question after todays game against the Ravens, so yeah.
15. Mack Brown should remain the head coach at Texas beyond this year
Habes:
Fiction. Not at his salary. I think Texas gets back on track in a big way next season when Gray becomes a focal point of the offense, but holy shit does the dude get paid. Caveat: I know fucking nothing about college football.
Me:
Fiction: The dude has been slaughtered by Oklahoma back to back, gets pretty much any instate recruit he wants, yet somehow the team gets consistently slaughtered in conference play as of late, he is losing better players, and missing out on guys like Manziel? The program did its best to kill the Big 12, has an ego the size of Alaska, (Texas isn’t big enough), and it cant handle the losing and utter uselessness the team has had the last few years. This is not a great team, Brown is lost seemingly anymore and its time for a change; there is no reason for Texas to accept whats going on when it should easily be one of the best programs in the nation consistently.
www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com
that’s the name of the official Texas Longhorns website, are you fucking kidding me? The guy should go, but wont.
and back to BBS
16. DBW should be disappointed if he only wins one title with the Duncan and Shaq Front court.
Habes:
Fact. He has the two best bigs in BBS, right? And there aren't a lot of guys on their level. It'd shock me if he didn't win this year.[/b]
Me:
Fact: Definitely, that team has had the two best players at positions where finding that is extremely rare. He got Shaq at a steal, Duncan was a dream landing, and the pair are pretty much unstoppable, yet, he has failed to win twice. He tends to blame FBB randomness, but at a certain point you have to man up and admit maybe the team didn’t fit together as well as it should, maybe the wings are not good enough, maybe x or y, blaming FBB randomness any time you lose is a cop out, and not something a GM of his caliber should be doing. He has the favorite again this year, but that doesn’t allow you to be complacent, he should still be looking at where his team is weak and looking to improve on it, even if that means third stringers etc. Blaming FBB randomness is the lazy way out.
17. Rajon Rondo will be the best player out of last years draft
Habes:
Fact. He’ll be the best PG in the league by a long shot if he’s camped properly.
Me:
Fiction: Its gonna be Aldridge, and I don’t think its close. Rondo is solid and all, but do we really think he develops an effective three point shot? Meanwhile Aldridge scores very well already, is blocks and steals pretty well, improved well in TC, has the ability to rebound at a nice rate for what you were left believing, and is supposed to be a good post Defender. Not many bigs in the league have the combo of a great inside game and jump shot, combine that with the positional D, the steal/block numbers low turnovers, and I think its gotta be Aldridge.
18. LeBron James is the most valuable player in the league
Habes:
Fact. Not the best player yet, but easily the most valuable piece.
Me:
Fact: Yeah, I didn’t know the answer to the question when I posed it, gave me a reason to look things over, and it is definitely true, nobody touches the excellent overall game he provides, he is still only 22, and improving.
19. Cenk Akyol should rank as a top 5 PG right now
Habes:
Fact. Of course! 25 PPG and 1.3 TPG. Is anyone else, PG or not, doing that? Percentages are pretty hot too.
Me:
Fact: yeah, this is obvious, just figured Id pose the question anyway to see how much attention you were paying to the league and if you were gonna put any effort into them, Nash, Marbury, Davis, Francis, after that its gotta be him, and you could easily argue for him over Marbury or Francis if you felt on the turnovers.
20. Game is going to get CY'd following the Pierce debacle
Me:
So, why did you ignore this one?
Fiction: Turns out maybe the Pierce debacle wasn’t so bad, Azuibuke is pretty damned good, the first deal was awful, but the four picks make it easier, he should get his firsts back with Azuibuke, if Insane really wanted value, guy is sick.
21. Kobe should be allowed back in a BBS league
Habes:
Fact. Why not? He was active with the Hornets. He sucked, but he’s a mediocre GM, and I’m not a fan of firing guys for poor performance outside of the CY process. Maybe I’ve forgotten something he did, but Svedda’s here and he’s a disgusting idiot who no one can stand, so I don’t see what’s so bad about hiring Kobe. If he starts with ignoring PMs (fire Hype), ship his ass out of here #Kobe.
Me:
Fact: Barely, but yeah I guess, waiting list is strong enough though he should have to wait a bit. He fucked up that Hornets franchise so royally though in BBS4, and his ignoring PM’s is annoying as fuck, though I never talk trade with him anyway. But he can always be fired if necessary.
22. The Bulls have the best youth in the league with Ellis, Millsap and Josh Smith
Habes:
Fiction. Nobody’s on the Magic’s level. Can’t really say their pieces don’t count as youth.
Me:
Fiction: Honestly I really wasn’t intending for the Magic to be included on here, ignored them, but yeah easily true that LeBron, Cenk, Gordon kills any other teams youth. Great job by Play getting them all together, not that Millsap Ellis Josh Smith is shit or anything, Magic are just that much better.
23. LaMarcus Aldridge will be a top 3 big at some point in his career
Habes:
Fact. The offense is going to be incredible. He already has some blocks and steals. His rebounding will get to B+ or so, I’m sure, and everything else looks scary good. Could see A/C+ scoring from him for a long time.
Me:
Fact: Homer, but the guy has all the tools and seemingly the potential, great inside, jump shot, positional D. He needs rebounding, but that’s pretty easily workable, and his steals and blocks are pretty solid seemingly already.
24. Jordan should step down til he has more time.
Habes:
Fact, but who am I to comment on that. I’ve been a shitshow! That RJ block was sorta baffling. Is he going to tank around JO? Just get youth and picks and see if that can get your interest back to where it needs to be.
Me:
Fact: Yeah his team is irrelevant and he just doesn’t seem to have the time to do anything with it. O’Neal is wasting away. Jordan is a great GM when he has time, but he doesn’t right now it would appear, and it would probably be best for him to step aside for a while til he does.
25. Play will win a title with LeBron
Habes:
Fact. Cenk/Ben/LeBron. Not one! Not two! Classic #KINGJAMES stuff.
Me:
Fact: I have a hard time thinking he won’t, unless he gets bored of having LeBron and deals him for multiple studs. Cenk is a sick young PG, Gordon at SG, and Bron at SF makes for a powerful young 1-2-3 punch. All he has left to do is find a big that can block and rebound, especially the whole rebounding thing, and that team is poised to be a juggernaut.
26. Greeme will deal Kobe by the beginning of next season
Habes:
Fact. He’s itching to do it and I think he’ll be get a good youth package to pair with Paul.
Me:
Fiction: If only to dissent, I think he holds way to much value into Kobe being the GOAT SG here, when really his performance is behind Redd to both of us. He’ll find some great offers I’m sure, but Greeme is notoriously stingy and loves to overvalue his players and undervalue other teams. I think he waits til early next season to deal him if he does
(editors note, written before Greeme posted Im dealing him soon)
27. LeAndrinho Barbosa will be worth his contract in 3 years
Habes:
Fiction. He’s actually a really bad offensive player right now, and it’s not like any other part of his game has value. Guy stinks!
Me:
Fiction: He sucks relative to that contract, Greeme massively overvalues what he provides, at a max contract he better be a difference maker, and a top 10 position player at least, and Barbosa is nowhere near that. His turnovers are high for a PG, he doesn’t shoot with enough volume, and he doesn’t score mega efficiently. He is a great three point shooter, and may be capable of nice numbers on a mediocre team, but otherwise whats the point of having a PG at that contract when you can grab players better for winning at a much cheaper price.
28. Greg Oden will be a star here
Habes:
Fiction. I could see him being an excellent defender who sims above his offensive ratings, but I doubt he’s an 18-12-3.5 type.
Me:
Fact: I think being a star doesn’t require offense, and I get the feeling his D is going to be something you can build around in the near future. I don’t think he is ever going to be an all around juggernaut, but if he can provide 12 boards and 3.5 blocks with nice post D, well, that would be sick, not to mention if Spence does decide to give him potential he could find an offensive game, since he has a nice jumper. On the other hand, there is no guarantee at all.
29. Eddy Curry is a top 10 value PF (been moved to C, yes, but in Maniacs article he wasnt)
Habes:
Fiction. I know he’s young, but he’s so limited. I think he’s a really nice backup 4/5 if you have rebounding and stats defense elsewhere. But meh, he’s not a dominant inside scorer and that seems to be his one skill.
Me:
Fiction: No doubt about it, don’t get how he ended up on that list, he puts up points at an ok rate, but his rebounding and D are worthless, dunno how he gets on the list over a Darko.
30: Dwight Howard is a top 5 PF
Habes:
Fiction. He still stinks at the foul line, still turns it over a turn for such low volume, and isn’t a dominant shotblocker or anything. He’ll get there soon.
Me:
Fiction: Im surprised to agree with you that he may get there eventually, but his offense is just meh, his rebounding and shot blocking are very good for this league. He wont be ranked over anybody that has a solid offensive game to go with the D, Duncan TC, O‘Neal, Gasol, then right now you have Garnett who is still arguably better (offense is so bleghj though) and . At Center where he is now though he damn well could be, if only because the Center position is so weak.
Habes:
Fact. Oh god, of course. My results have sucked and I've made iffy moves. I deserve to be knocked for that. Depends on the criteria, but GM rankings are obviously subjective, and while I'm pretty good at setting pride aside, I'd laugh at anyone suggesting I'm not one of the fifteen best GMs here. I've had a bad stretch, so either I've "lost something" or I just haven't been as focused and active as in the past...can't expect me to say I've lost something.
Me:
Me: Fact: While you have not been a great GM here by any means, or even average, on the whole your record means you are, if I try to say you arent a top 15 GM, Im stuck saying somebody out of this group is better:
Svedda, Hype, Biggie, Erbes, Jordan, Pig, Ashes, Game, Jiggy, Marty, Jah, Greg, J, Andy. Performance wise in this version, its obvious you’ve been pretty terrible here, but Im not sure based on what you did do in BBS4 that you deserve to be ranked below any of these guys. Jordan is a good GM when he has time but I don’t know what the last move hne made here was, Erbes has been good here but I have memories of what he did to teams in the last BBS and UOSL, he seems to be able to put together one title type team, then completely collapses, and that’s it for him. So yeah, I guess here you’ve been a terrible GM, and that’s enough that I have to allow for Erbes to be ahead of you, but Im definitely not quite comfortable with that designation at all, so its closer than I woulda guessed.
2. Two teams are going to get CY'd?
Habes:
Fiction. Think this question is really asking if I think I'll get CYd. I'm not getting CYd. The Hornets, without question, are done, and the rest are in the clear.
Me:
Fiction: No, this really didn’t necessarily require you being CY’d,. the Clippers are also right on that border, and while the West is weak as hell at the bottom, some of the teams there seemingly should be significantly better, the Spurs are right their with Tmac, an injury to Wade or Bibby could be all she wrote for the Clippers. Then you toss in that it appears one of you or Aar is getting CY’d, or possibly both, but it definitely seems likely that one of you will be. However, with the bottom of the West being weak, and the improvement to both the Hornets and 76ers, yeah, I only see one team getting CY’d as well.
3. The Celtics are the favorites to win the title again.
Habes:
Fact. No one's close. Sheed was such a good addition. Phoenix and Houston are nice, but Boston does almost the same thing Houston does, only better, and Phoenix is a move or two away. I don't think Utah, NJ, or Toronto are serious contenders.
Me:
Fact: WTF IS WITH YOU NOT MENTIONING MY TEAM AT ALL IN ANY OF THE NEXT FEW QUESTIONS? Makes no sense, we’ve been without Ben Wallace, but pretty much we are a better version of last years Pistons. Either way though, I just have a tough time seeing anybody being able to touch that frontcourt, Duncan and Shaq are both beasts, and the top players at their respective postions. Wallace is a nice role player for sure, though their depth is horrible and an injury would derail their team completely, McKie isn’t horrible, though he isn’t anything special, he provides two steals a game, and that’s nothing to scoff at.
4. The Suns are the best team in the West
Habes:
Fiction. I'll stick with Houston. Love that frontcourt. Phoenix's is nice, too, but nowhere near on par with Houston's. Edge to Phoenix at PG, but they're kinda thin elsewhere.
Me:
Fiction: Oh what the fuck, you seriously ignored my team again, douche…should just stop right here. Yes, I think my team when healthy is the best team in the West, The Dirk Marion Roy combo at the 2/3 is gonna be near impossible to stop, Big Ben and Perkins are really solid bigs up front, who can rebound and defend. Lue was a member of the title defending pistons, Turiaf is a great shot blocker off the bench and Rid can step in if necessary at PG. The Suns are lacking something big on offense outside Francis, JR Smith isn’t enough there, and KG likes to shoot too much. The Rockets are a very good team, no doubt, but basically this Nuggets team is the same team as the Pistons a year prior, with Marion instead of Redd (who wasn’t the same last year as this), and more depth.
5. Kobe is the best SG in the league
Habes:
Fiction. I'll take Redd. The slight drop-off in volume & percentages are at least mitigated by the better handling, and Redd's rebounding and steals are on par with Kobe's. Of course Kobe is gonna have much more value, but on performance alone, I prefer Redd.
Me:
Fiction: Pretty much agree with exactly what you said, that’s why this question is here, wanted to know if I was the only one. Redd is amazing this year, he is scoring very well, steals more than he turns it over (which gives him a big edge over Kobe in that regard) and rebounds well. His percentages are great and overall he is just sick. Do I think Kobe is close behind? Yes, his volume is definitely higher, and his percentages are sick as well, but his turnovers are awful, even for his point totals.
6. You are better off with Artest/Parker/Crawford/Illyasova over Redd/Wallace/Dirk or since you just said not offered, Kobe and Dirk
Habes:
Fiction. Obvious answer. But I really like my core and I think I’m going to build something really good out of it.
Me:
Fiction: Pretty obvious on that one, just wanted to make sure. This is what holding onto young guys with the hope you can make the CY without dealing them off results in people…pay attention.
7. CP3 will be the best PG in the league at some point in his career like Spencers notes suggested (though they said 15 years)
Habes:
Fiction. He doesn’t have a three-point shot for some reason (really don’t get that at all), and he just doesn’t feel like a dominant piece to me. I think he’ll be a top 3 PG in his prime, but I much prefer Rondo and Deron long-term.
Me:
Fact: Im gonna go opposite you on this one, but its damn close. I think you missed on the guy who will be in Cenk Ankyol or whatever his name is though, I just cant see Rondo at that level his outside game is atrocious, and he doesn’t take such great care of the ball that I feel comfortable with him. CP3 already has a sick inside game and a sick jumper, he takes pretty good care of the ball, steals well. He should still have potential left, and I could see him becoming a guy that shoots 2 or 3 threes a game in the future, he should get work their asap. An A- B A A C- PG who does sick stats is still not out of the realm. I love Deron, and he definitely is the guy that has the biggest chance at standing in the way, but right now his offense is a pretty big struggle, and while he seems to have a far better shot at developing an outside game, I think CP3 currently has the overall advantage and that they should have similar potential remaining.
8. Spencer answering questions on draft prospects is a good thing.
Habes:
Fact. Obviously you want some element of risk, but ratings tell so little, and it’s not like we can scout these guys. I like the system we have.
Me:
Fiction: I do not mind question asking, but the answering of so many questions makes the draft a bit too unpredictable, he should only answer questions on either guys without notes, or guys with notes, not both, leave it so he can have some unpredictability in the draft. Would be nice to find out that your SG is a great shot blocker randomly, without his draft value getting launched up when somebody asks in the notes if he can block. On the other hand, taking away the ranking was a good move. But answering strengths and weaknesses questions sucks.
To Non Sim questions
9. The Thunder will beat the Lakers and go to the Finals again this year.
Habes:
Fiction. Dwight is gonna eat Perkins on the glass, and if Ibaka guard him, there goes Ibaka's help D. Westbrook will expose the shit out of Nash, but at least LA will have a better offensive response this year. They did a great job of controlling the pace vs. OKC last year IIRC, and with (what I expect will be) a huge rebounding edge, they'll take care of OKC.
Me:
Fiction: but not because I don’t think the Lakers will be in the conference finals, I think the Thunder and Lakers end up 2/3 in some order. The Spurs end up with the one seed once again as Popovich is a genius, and while Duncan is getting older, Kawhi Leonard should improve, and I have no fucking clue right now, its just, every time the Spurs seem old and over, they do this shit, the Lakers will have some issues with chemistry early, the adjustment for Kobe having Nash will take some time, and they fade. The Thunder are gonna have a tougher go of it in an improved Northwest (not the Blazers, but the Nuggets, Wolves once healthy, and the Jazz all should be solid teams). I honestly have no clue.
10. James Harden will still be a member of the Thunder in 2014
Habes:
Fact. I'm not one to say I'd sooner trade Westbrook, but Harden's a star and they don't have a good enough offense to contend without him. I gotta think they recognize that and pay up.
Me:
Fiction: I think they move him sometime in the offseason after agreeing to match any offer he receives. Something like the Nuggets did with Nene, they cant really afford to make the match (from their own words) so they deal him for a cheaper guy on his rookie deal, somebody they like a lot, and assets to use to improve. Paying Durant and Westbrook the full max, and Ibaka the smaller but still large deal they gave with what I would expect to be a max offer sheet is going to be difficult to do, I think they let him test, then just give him whatever offer he gets on their own, so they maintain the ability to trade him.
11. The Miami Heat are the title favorites
Habes:
Fiction. Torn on this but I'm gonna go LA because I think they force Miami to go big and to win on the perimeter. I think it has pretty much nothing to do with Kobe, and if isn't actually willing to defer offensively, he'll get in the way.
Me:
Fact: Sadly until proven otherwise I don’t see it, adding Allen gives them another shooter, LeBron appears to be moving past his awfulness, and while Wades injuries are a worry, they have more and more depth the longer they go. The Big three is something I hate, but its worked.
12. Anthony Davis will win ROTY
Habes:
Fact. I think he's going to be a beast this season. A lot of the other guys I like seem to be in timeshare situations.
Me:
Fiction: Fuck it, homer time, Lillard has looked good in preseason, averaging 16 ppg 5.5 assists 2.5 boards on 46/100/34.7% shooting in 29.5 minutes per game, keeping up his efficient scoring. I do think Anthony Davis is the superior player in the long run, but I figure on him struggling some with fouls, and his stats overall wont be that superb as he is a big and its more difficult for him to score., of course, Im a homer, so please, grain of salt…large grain of salt.
13. The Tigers will win the World Series
Habes:
Fact. They'll throw Velander twice; Sanchez and Scherzer are excellent; and they'll have the two best hitters in the series.
Me:
Fact: I don’t pay attention to baseball much, so I just asked this cause I wanted to know an answer.SO fact because HABES SAID SO
14. The Texans are the best team in the AFC
Habes:
Fiiiiiction. I have the same belief every season that the Pats are the best team in the AFC until they lose in the playoffs. The Texans have had a soft schedule and have played like shit two weeks in a row. And if they want to win on the ground, have two receiving options and treat both like possession guys, good luck playing from behind.
Me:
Fact: For all the talk you gave about the Patriots, I havent seen an amazing team, the AFC East is a four way 3-3 tie, The Texans have struggled, but there is no team in the AFC that hasn’t looked bad in one way or another this season, the Texans though have been the best at looking the best the most. And yes that’s a terrible sentence. I also have the advantage of I could edit this question after todays game against the Ravens, so yeah.
15. Mack Brown should remain the head coach at Texas beyond this year
Habes:
Fiction. Not at his salary. I think Texas gets back on track in a big way next season when Gray becomes a focal point of the offense, but holy shit does the dude get paid. Caveat: I know fucking nothing about college football.
Me:
Fiction: The dude has been slaughtered by Oklahoma back to back, gets pretty much any instate recruit he wants, yet somehow the team gets consistently slaughtered in conference play as of late, he is losing better players, and missing out on guys like Manziel? The program did its best to kill the Big 12, has an ego the size of Alaska, (Texas isn’t big enough), and it cant handle the losing and utter uselessness the team has had the last few years. This is not a great team, Brown is lost seemingly anymore and its time for a change; there is no reason for Texas to accept whats going on when it should easily be one of the best programs in the nation consistently.
www.mackbrown-texasfootball.com
that’s the name of the official Texas Longhorns website, are you fucking kidding me? The guy should go, but wont.
and back to BBS
16. DBW should be disappointed if he only wins one title with the Duncan and Shaq Front court.
Habes:
Fact. He has the two best bigs in BBS, right? And there aren't a lot of guys on their level. It'd shock me if he didn't win this year.[/b]
Me:
Fact: Definitely, that team has had the two best players at positions where finding that is extremely rare. He got Shaq at a steal, Duncan was a dream landing, and the pair are pretty much unstoppable, yet, he has failed to win twice. He tends to blame FBB randomness, but at a certain point you have to man up and admit maybe the team didn’t fit together as well as it should, maybe the wings are not good enough, maybe x or y, blaming FBB randomness any time you lose is a cop out, and not something a GM of his caliber should be doing. He has the favorite again this year, but that doesn’t allow you to be complacent, he should still be looking at where his team is weak and looking to improve on it, even if that means third stringers etc. Blaming FBB randomness is the lazy way out.
17. Rajon Rondo will be the best player out of last years draft
Habes:
Fact. He’ll be the best PG in the league by a long shot if he’s camped properly.
Me:
Fiction: Its gonna be Aldridge, and I don’t think its close. Rondo is solid and all, but do we really think he develops an effective three point shot? Meanwhile Aldridge scores very well already, is blocks and steals pretty well, improved well in TC, has the ability to rebound at a nice rate for what you were left believing, and is supposed to be a good post Defender. Not many bigs in the league have the combo of a great inside game and jump shot, combine that with the positional D, the steal/block numbers low turnovers, and I think its gotta be Aldridge.
18. LeBron James is the most valuable player in the league
Habes:
Fact. Not the best player yet, but easily the most valuable piece.
Me:
Fact: Yeah, I didn’t know the answer to the question when I posed it, gave me a reason to look things over, and it is definitely true, nobody touches the excellent overall game he provides, he is still only 22, and improving.
19. Cenk Akyol should rank as a top 5 PG right now
Habes:
Fact. Of course! 25 PPG and 1.3 TPG. Is anyone else, PG or not, doing that? Percentages are pretty hot too.
Me:
Fact: yeah, this is obvious, just figured Id pose the question anyway to see how much attention you were paying to the league and if you were gonna put any effort into them, Nash, Marbury, Davis, Francis, after that its gotta be him, and you could easily argue for him over Marbury or Francis if you felt on the turnovers.
20. Game is going to get CY'd following the Pierce debacle
Me:
So, why did you ignore this one?
Fiction: Turns out maybe the Pierce debacle wasn’t so bad, Azuibuke is pretty damned good, the first deal was awful, but the four picks make it easier, he should get his firsts back with Azuibuke, if Insane really wanted value, guy is sick.
21. Kobe should be allowed back in a BBS league
Habes:
Fact. Why not? He was active with the Hornets. He sucked, but he’s a mediocre GM, and I’m not a fan of firing guys for poor performance outside of the CY process. Maybe I’ve forgotten something he did, but Svedda’s here and he’s a disgusting idiot who no one can stand, so I don’t see what’s so bad about hiring Kobe. If he starts with ignoring PMs (fire Hype), ship his ass out of here #Kobe.
Me:
Fact: Barely, but yeah I guess, waiting list is strong enough though he should have to wait a bit. He fucked up that Hornets franchise so royally though in BBS4, and his ignoring PM’s is annoying as fuck, though I never talk trade with him anyway. But he can always be fired if necessary.
22. The Bulls have the best youth in the league with Ellis, Millsap and Josh Smith
Habes:
Fiction. Nobody’s on the Magic’s level. Can’t really say their pieces don’t count as youth.
Me:
Fiction: Honestly I really wasn’t intending for the Magic to be included on here, ignored them, but yeah easily true that LeBron, Cenk, Gordon kills any other teams youth. Great job by Play getting them all together, not that Millsap Ellis Josh Smith is shit or anything, Magic are just that much better.
23. LaMarcus Aldridge will be a top 3 big at some point in his career
Habes:
Fact. The offense is going to be incredible. He already has some blocks and steals. His rebounding will get to B+ or so, I’m sure, and everything else looks scary good. Could see A/C+ scoring from him for a long time.
Me:
Fact: Homer, but the guy has all the tools and seemingly the potential, great inside, jump shot, positional D. He needs rebounding, but that’s pretty easily workable, and his steals and blocks are pretty solid seemingly already.
24. Jordan should step down til he has more time.
Habes:
Fact, but who am I to comment on that. I’ve been a shitshow! That RJ block was sorta baffling. Is he going to tank around JO? Just get youth and picks and see if that can get your interest back to where it needs to be.
Me:
Fact: Yeah his team is irrelevant and he just doesn’t seem to have the time to do anything with it. O’Neal is wasting away. Jordan is a great GM when he has time, but he doesn’t right now it would appear, and it would probably be best for him to step aside for a while til he does.
25. Play will win a title with LeBron
Habes:
Fact. Cenk/Ben/LeBron. Not one! Not two! Classic #KINGJAMES stuff.
Me:
Fact: I have a hard time thinking he won’t, unless he gets bored of having LeBron and deals him for multiple studs. Cenk is a sick young PG, Gordon at SG, and Bron at SF makes for a powerful young 1-2-3 punch. All he has left to do is find a big that can block and rebound, especially the whole rebounding thing, and that team is poised to be a juggernaut.
26. Greeme will deal Kobe by the beginning of next season
Habes:
Fact. He’s itching to do it and I think he’ll be get a good youth package to pair with Paul.
Me:
Fiction: If only to dissent, I think he holds way to much value into Kobe being the GOAT SG here, when really his performance is behind Redd to both of us. He’ll find some great offers I’m sure, but Greeme is notoriously stingy and loves to overvalue his players and undervalue other teams. I think he waits til early next season to deal him if he does
(editors note, written before Greeme posted Im dealing him soon)
27. LeAndrinho Barbosa will be worth his contract in 3 years
Habes:
Fiction. He’s actually a really bad offensive player right now, and it’s not like any other part of his game has value. Guy stinks!
Me:
Fiction: He sucks relative to that contract, Greeme massively overvalues what he provides, at a max contract he better be a difference maker, and a top 10 position player at least, and Barbosa is nowhere near that. His turnovers are high for a PG, he doesn’t shoot with enough volume, and he doesn’t score mega efficiently. He is a great three point shooter, and may be capable of nice numbers on a mediocre team, but otherwise whats the point of having a PG at that contract when you can grab players better for winning at a much cheaper price.
28. Greg Oden will be a star here
Habes:
Fiction. I could see him being an excellent defender who sims above his offensive ratings, but I doubt he’s an 18-12-3.5 type.
Me:
Fact: I think being a star doesn’t require offense, and I get the feeling his D is going to be something you can build around in the near future. I don’t think he is ever going to be an all around juggernaut, but if he can provide 12 boards and 3.5 blocks with nice post D, well, that would be sick, not to mention if Spence does decide to give him potential he could find an offensive game, since he has a nice jumper. On the other hand, there is no guarantee at all.
29. Eddy Curry is a top 10 value PF (been moved to C, yes, but in Maniacs article he wasnt)
Habes:
Fiction. I know he’s young, but he’s so limited. I think he’s a really nice backup 4/5 if you have rebounding and stats defense elsewhere. But meh, he’s not a dominant inside scorer and that seems to be his one skill.
Me:
Fiction: No doubt about it, don’t get how he ended up on that list, he puts up points at an ok rate, but his rebounding and D are worthless, dunno how he gets on the list over a Darko.
30: Dwight Howard is a top 5 PF
Habes:
Fiction. He still stinks at the foul line, still turns it over a turn for such low volume, and isn’t a dominant shotblocker or anything. He’ll get there soon.
Me:
Fiction: Im surprised to agree with you that he may get there eventually, but his offense is just meh, his rebounding and shot blocking are very good for this league. He wont be ranked over anybody that has a solid offensive game to go with the D, Duncan TC, O‘Neal, Gasol, then right now you have Garnett who is still arguably better (offense is so bleghj though) and . At Center where he is now though he damn well could be, if only because the Center position is so weak.
