#SLOE: People's Basketball Sim League

Balls O'Hard:
Good afternoon and welcome to the Detroit Pistons preseason presser. I know last year was a lot of more of the same from our team in making the playoffs and losing subsequently in round 1, but it's part of our process we've outlined. I think making the playoffs was a tremendous win for our team. A lot of people say, there's only winning and there's not. That's true, but when you put in perspective that we traded away the best Center in the game, Mitchell Robinson. We decided to give Kai the reigns at the Center position and Cade Cunningham the primary responsibility on the offensive end and were rewarded with 3 more wins and a higher seed. That doesn't mean the larger goal has paled for us. It means it's time to let the guys we drafted fulfill their roles instead of waiting around for them.

Balls O'Hard:Obviously that brings to mind two guys we have on our roster who really haven't played for us yet: Darius Garland and Emoni Bates. These are the last 2 #1 overall picks in the draft and are pulsing with talent, but are just really raw. We are continuing to train them and there's a good chance we may see them this year, depending on how we fill out our roster. But make no mistake, they're huge parts of our future plans.

Balls O'Hard:For this year, we signed a great vet in Ronnie Reynolds who should be able to take over our 2 spot, along with retaining Zach Keller who far outplays his contract, even with the updated figure and is severely underrated in our league. We've spoken with many GMs in this league and it seems like not many people understand the value of a 17/7/4 guy who shoots 49%/ 43.5 from the 3. It's amazing to us, but we are very appreciative to keep him around.

Balls O'Hard:Our goals for this year are a lot like last year's except we want to take a step forward. We want to compete for the conference if possible in the regular season and in the playoffs as well. We think we are one of the top 5-10 teams in this league and plan on showcasing that. When we look at out offensive and defensive efficacy shifts from 2 years ago to last year there's some major markers. 2 Years ago we were 20th in offensive efficacy and 6th in defensive efficacy with a net of .7 ppg more than our opponents. That equaled to roughly 6 games over .500. Last year we were 14th and 12th with a net of +2.8 over opponent and 12 games over .500. So we would have to get to 38 games over .500 to even make a reasonable claim on the conference which would mean gigantic jumps in both our offensive and defensive efficacy. I really think there's a lot of meat on the bone on the offensive end; while there may be a little less on the defensive end. We will see.

Balls O'Hard:Overall, We think out starting lineup will look like below:

[c] Kai Jones
[pf] Gerry Folse
[sf] Zach Keller
[sg] Ronnie Reynolds
[pg] Cade Cunningham


Balls O'Hard:Any questions?

In a division lacking any real punch outside of you, but with young players that MIGHT still be a season or 2 from their peak, do you think you'd start feeling some urgency if you start hot to go out and make a deal or 2 to fully capitalize and win?

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MexicanMamba wrote: Fri Nov 12, 2021 12:14 pm In a division lacking any real punch outside of you, but with young players that MIGHT still be a season or 2 from their peak, do you think you'd start feeling some urgency if you start hot to go out and make a deal or 2 to fully capitalize and win?

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Good question. You know, when i looked at the 76ers team last year, i knew we really didnt have any shot at taking them for really the last 4-5 years. They were stacked. We just played the long game on them and i think have a shot to make a nice long run at the top, but we're going to have to be prudent. I don't think urgency really will start to set unless we see a shot of winning the whole thing. There's a lot of teams who just have a little more juice than we do right now like the Bulls, Nuggets, Thunder, Magic, Suns, and maybe the Kings. I think we roll into a unquestioned top 3, that's when an arms race comes into play. I'm not really even certain we win the division because our overall lack of depth, but it's the goal for the year.

Sham Smith, Bulls.com: You bring up the 76ers, who went more than all in to ensure GM K100's first championship. As one of the more veteran and accomplished GMs in the league, you surely remember The Bobcats attempt and failure at this strategy had a lot more people weary about the tax. Now that the same approach of purposely going to tax jail to win a ring has paid off, do you see more teams doing it and is that a good or bad thing for the leaue as a whole?

garbageman wrote: Fri Nov 12, 2021 1:20 pm Sham Smith, Bulls.com: You bring up the 76ers, who went more than all in to ensure GM K100's first championship. As one of the more veteran and accomplished GMs in the league, you surely remember The Bobcats attempt and failure at this strategy had a lot more people weary about the tax. Now that the same approach of purposely going to tax jail to win a ring has paid off, do you see more teams doing it and is that a good or bad thing for the leaue as a whole?

I not only have seen the Bobcats do it, but I was in tax jail for awhile. I think there's a big distinction though. There are some who do this with the intent to pay the tax and do it as a real means of strategy with risk and reward; and there's the strategy of just trying to win and essentially quitting if you don't win (and maybe also if you still do). The latter is very bad for the league and really, i don't respect it. However, I think anytime a new meta is successful it's good for the league for the folks willing to absorb the risk with the reward i.e. the current 76ers GM. Whatever the GM wants to do to find joy and accomplishment is really the purpose here.

You mentioned before that you think the Pistons are set-up now to make a long run at the top. I definitely agree with that take, but as you know there is an arms race brewing among several of the veteran GMs, particularly in the Alpha Conference. Do you think future championship builds are going to require at least 3, maybe 4 purple potential players to even get to a title match? And if so, who among your current Pistons B/B talent do you see making the jump next?

K-100 wrote:You mentioned before that you think the Pistons are set-up now to make a long run at the top. I definitely agree with that take, but as you know there is an arms race brewing among several of the veteran GMs, particularly in the Alpha Conference. Do you think future championship builds are going to require at least 3, maybe 4 purple potential players to even get to a title match? And if so, who among your current Pistons B/B talent do you see making the jump next?

Yeah it's a fair point. The Spurs and 76ers really have raised the bar. Those could be blips or it could be the new normal. One thing you really can't do is play the comparison game. The bulls got THT for free, magic got My boy Henry for free , and the Nuggets got He Gor for free. Really all guys with purple potential 25 and under without any asset look send off. They're now the top 3 title contenders. We just have to be patient which is what got is here.

In terms of the next guy to go purple ? I would imagine Cade is pretty close at this point. He plays like a purple for sure!

Jones and Folse are primed to become one of the most devastating front courts in the league. Cade is in step with them to peak at the same time, too. Emoni Bates, Charles Jarrett and Darius Garland are all great prospects, but perhaps a few seasons behind this core 3. Do you hold on to all of them in the interest of a prolonged run at the top, or would you consider sending one or two off so none of your prospects take a plunge in TC that you can't insure?

greepleairport wrote:Jones and Folse are primed to become one of the most devastating front courts in the league. Cade is in step with them to peak at the same time, too. Emoni Bates, Charles Jarrett and Darius Garland are all great prospects, but perhaps a few seasons behind this core 3. Do you hold on to all of them in the interest of a prolonged run at the top, or would you consider sending one or two off so none of your prospects take a plunge in TC that you can't insure?

Thank you for the question. I'm not really sure sending one off for a fear of a plunge in TC would be a strategy we'd ever take. I think we would consider sending one off if we could find a better fit. In the future, the Pistons are probably starting Garland, Cunningham, Bates , Folse and Jones. Keller and Reynolds know they're here until bates /Jarrett are ready.

Darius Garland although y/b seems primed to have a breakout season do you see him at some point this starting at PG and Cade moving to SG or will he be a 6th man type of guy?

Eazy P wrote:Darius Garland although y/b seems primed to have a breakout season do you see him at some point this starting at PG and Cade moving to SG or will he be a 6th man type of guy?

Great question and thanks for bringing up long term strategy. Ultimately I think having garland / Cunningham / bates/ Folse /Jones is the goal. We need garland and bates to grow up probably this next TC year to make that a reality. But we're well positioned for now and the future which is something I'm very excited about.


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Talk about the sense of accomplishment it has been to watch these young players grow and flourish under your watch. You have notoriously been aggressive in pursuing championships and winning teams, but this slow burn is finally starting to pay dividends. How have you enjoyed the ride?

IamQuailman wrote:Talk about the sense of accomplishment it has been to watch these young players grow and flourish under your watch. You have notoriously been aggressive in pursuing championships and winning teams, but this slow burn is finally starting to pay dividends. How have you enjoyed the ride?

Hey great question!

I think with life changes and accomplishing everything I need to accomplish in sim league already, this is a new way to win that I haven't done yet. It's an organic build with a few moves to fit a scheme I want to play. It's great to finally be here and also great to have a lot to morph into over time. Seeing Kai and Cade really just take over and flourish has been great. Cade was the 6th pick and honestly have been told he's not attractive in trade discussions. Kai I've heard the same thing about even as the 4 pick. I'm really hoping they get a chance to say, "How you like me now?" And prove people wrong!