Garbageman's Day 60 Report
Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2023 1:49 pm
We’re at Day 60, and for all of you new folks out here, this is the most pivotal, important time of the season. With three sims down, you’re not sealed to your fate quite yet, but you should have a good idea of what you need to do before it’s too late to make that big move. Most players are now eligible for trade (except those traded or signed during the season so far), so everyone will be trying to pull off their big move before it’s unavailable.
Trust me. If you wait until trade deadline, it’ll probably be too late. You’ll still have plenty of reasons to make deadline moves, but those should be fine tuning moves. Day 60 is probably your last good chance to commit to a direction.
I said it in the Facebook chat, and I’ll say it here. In any given season with 26 teams, especially at this stage in any of those seasons, not every team should be gunning for a championship, and out of the teams that aren’t, not every one of those teams should be revving up their tanks. So what do you do if you’re not an obvious contender for either a ring or the #1 draft pick? And taking a step back, how do I know which group my team is in?
Well, the answer to those questions lies in this team by team article, a formula that is—for the uninitiated—a surefire nominee for article of the year by anyone who wants a nomination point and a likely extra point for nominating the winning article.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
First things first, the Minnesota Timberwolves are the only team in the league without a GM. But, they’re in a great spot for someone to take over. They’ve got two young purple potential players with hard-to-spell-from memory-names in Xue Hoe and Lenz Durrenberger. They’ve also got the second worst record in the league and nobody at the helm to make moves anyway.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Find a GM
2. Find a GM
3. Find a GM
That’s it, really, and it’s not on RoboGM1…it’s on all of you to do it before Mamba gets any more points to fund his dynasty because he has a ton of cousins.
DENVER NUGGETS
The Nuggets have a new-ish GM in Panda, and his roster is full of players just entering their prime in Charles Jarrett, DeJuan Baker, and Thurman James. Johnny Davis still has some room to grow, but he’s also only 23 and has been one of the league’s top scorers for a while now. I think declining to match Kevon Looney’s contract was a mistake, but despite that, they find themselves with a positive double-digit point differential, which is a surefire sign that they can compete.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Find some better depth at PG/SG without trading Andrew Patrick (points, picks, Hinshaw, anything you can scrape together) — the more roster spots you can free up the better
2. Replace those roster spots with old vet mins
3. Use those vet mins as salary to really cash in on Andrew Patrick.
Look, I know that I said that now is the time for big swings, but the Nuggets can hold strong with Booker Davis at starting C for now (though, man…Looney would provide everything that the team is lacking from a big man), and I think they’ll need a little more cuttable salary than they’ve got right now to explore all their upgrade options.
ORLANDO MAGIC
The Magic are another team with new ownership who took some swings in the offseason to add on Dong Bone and Kyle Kuric. They didn’t give up much to get players of this caliber from the Warriors, but what they did sacrifice was cap space. Greg Hamilton and Chris Jackson aren’t going to provide what Dong and Kuric should, but they’re on really team friendly contracts where Dong and Kuric are expensive. Still, it’s their first year in the tax, so it’s not the end of the world. Unfortunately, the team isn’t much deeper than their core 4. They have Dort, but Dort isn’t Dort anymore. If he was, there’s no doubt the team would be better than 12-11.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List
1. Get rid of non-essential salary to save points (Here’s looking at you, Dort)
2. See if you can figure out a game plan to get back on track and be patient
3. If the team starts winning more, cool…if not, consider getting some value for Dong Bone
Yeah, so without much in terms of assets to improve, which they could try to do, Dong Bone probably isn’t coming back next year because he’s not worth a max, so there’s no guarantee he’ll be back. A slight downgrade there should make the tax bill cheaper and keep the Magic in playoff contention. Schiff and Dirks should be retained at all costs…both of them should net a great rebuild package if it comes to that in the future before the Magic can put a championship team around them.
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS
Dr. K is the first to admit that this Bobcats team is absolute trash. They don’t have a face of the franchise, and their four blue potential players are all way closer to green potential than purple. Moore and Shaw might be decent bench units on a deeper team, but neither of them has any A level attributes. The Throckmortons could be alright, but neither of them can stay in the game for more than a half due to foul trouble. Their best player is Tony Krebs, who’s presence on the Knicks block is the smartest thing they’ve done this season.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Sell anything that isn’t nailed down for as much as you can get
2. Don’t trade your picks. As a failsafe, you should be able to draft a guy you can build around.
3. Stop giving out long contracts to average joes
That’s about it. The Knicks need to get an impact player. They need to start going after a big dawg here and there. Kai Jones could’ve been that guy, but I think the timing was wrong. He’s the kind of guy you want with open books so you can put the right talent around him. He can’t do it alone with role players.
CHICAGO BULLS
Since the Bulls are my team, I don’t want to show my hand at what I’m going to do, but at 20-4, I think I can make a deep run again this season. I’ve got a deep team, and Montoya is playing out of his mind. Sure, I’m in year 3 of the tax, and my bill is pretty high, but I SHOULD be able to pay it. Especially if I keep pumping out solid gold articles like these.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List:
1. Finish this article
I’m working on it, to-do list.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
The Houston Rockets are a very good example of why you NEVER GO RECOMMENDED during free agency. The story hasn’t changed, they still have Hints, Shut, and Suggs on pricey contracts. They’ve just all gotten older and less effective. Hints expires this year, and they’re still in the tax, so it probably would make sense to pay someone to take him…except the Rockets are in tax jail, so they can’t pay with points. They have all of their picks, and rookie Sion James looks like he’ll grow up to be the real deal, but things aren’t good in Houston.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Try to get out of the tax without giving up James or a pick.
2. Find a way to earn some points so you can pay your bill.
3. Get motivation back to play the game
I know 78’s been a GM for a long time, and he’s not really all too active. I hope getting a good rookie in next season’s draft can get him motivated a little more. If totaling a points bank and paying the tax are too much, it might be time to hang it up.
ATLANTA HAWKS
And now in the other direction, our newest GM is taking control of the Hawks, who were under previous ownership of a GM who has been in the tax since the commissioner was in short pants. I really like the enthusiasm out of the gate, and it’s great to see some big swings in the offseason. Third year man Justin Amos looks solid, and the addition of Ibrahim Diallo has this team looking healthier than they have since Wig left. The max contracts to Phil Smith and Kalin Lucas are definitely more for potential than current, and hopefully that’s something CashCab continues to learn about. That being said:
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Talk to other GMs and learn as much as you can
2. Don’t worry about winning this year—the Hawks have been so damaged that it’ll take a few seasons to right the ship, even for a non-rookie GM
3. Try to gain points over the next season or two. Points should be more important than wins.
Plenty of ways to do that, too. Don’t sell picks though. I wouldn’t even consider moving any first round pick you currently own. Seriously, though, great to see some activity coming out of the ATL. Here’s to a successful GM career!
NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
The New Orleans Pelicans are in a little bit of a no man’s land. At 9-12, they’re in the bottom 4 of the Alpha Conference, but they’re also only a couple games away from the final playoff spot. They’ve got a hodgepodge roster of win now guys that won’t be ready when their up and comers are ready to go. Leroy Johnston and Corey Kispert are both expiring players who aren’t guys I’d expect to see back in Pels jerseys unless they’re overpaid or recipients of very tactically smart bids.
They’ve got guys like Trey Murphy III and Ned Lomax who are almost ready but still have room to grow. And then they have guys like Steeve Ho You Fat and Zed Key, who are more suited for a rebuilding team. Lomax is the only guy on this roster who I’d want to keep around if I was gunning for a deep run in a couple seasons. Murphy III’s contract is kind of a hindrance to that, but ain’t no moving him this season.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. I think the Pets are at the bottom of the middle of the pack with the talent they have right now, but they have too much talent to completely bottom out and not enough to really push for anything greater. They should get as much as they can for Disport and Johnston.
2. Also, might be nice to look for a home for Andy Elliott to clear future space to surround Lomax with better talent.
3. Finally, if they got the points to buff up Murphy at ASB training, go do it.
That’s a long, hefty contract, and the guy’s an athletic freak, but he’s not a max player yet. The good news is that he can be built into one. They can either commit to him as PG and raise his PAS, bump his offense even more by raising his jump shot, or give him more of a two way injection by improving his steals. I think this is really the key. Between this training and next offseason’s training, once Murphy catches up to Lomax, they’ll have a nice one-two punch. Get points for the guys I mentioned in list items 1 and 2, and put them directly into III.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS:
The L.A. Lakers are a sick f’n monolith of a team. It’s basically, you take a team that’s fully jacked and stacked, and then you give them a bunch of blue rookie contract guys to boot. Granted, their excess blue pot rookie contract guys are green pot guys that were trained just over the blue line, but they’re still valuable trade pieces that allow Mamba to just continuously upgrade a team that’s already too good. With Safi playing the best ball in the league and still growing, a windfall of points coming from referring his entire extended family, and two potential lotto picks in his kitty, Mamba is poised to win a few championships over the next few seasons.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Update your trade block (probably)
2. Try to simultaneously upgrade whatever you can like, kind of consider a weak spot if you squint while getting a little cheaper.
3. Win a ring
The Lakers don’t have to do too much more to win a ring except get Karlo back from injury and wait for the playoffs, where they’ll be able to use a very deep, versatile team to match up creatively against pretty much any other team. Even though they have a lot of points, “a pointy saved is a pointy earned” (Ben Franklin, the PBSL player, not the founding father)
BROOKLYN NETS
Hopefully, the Nets are beginning to figure things out, but it’s gotta be disappointing to have their roster and still be losing the division to the Kings, and their $100 million man, 50 year old g/g Killian Hayes. With an all blue lineup of Jose Alvarado, Alex Caruso, Moses Moody, James Andrews, and Kel’el Ware, the Nets look like they should be firmly in the race for championship contention. I think a big reason for this is that Ware and Alvarado aren’t quite ready, and Andrews and Moody don’t look nearly as sharp as I’d expect. Right now, Andrews is putting up similar numbers—lots of scoring and boards—but not efficiently. As of this writing he’s barely averaging a point per shot…which is NOT what you want out of one of your go to guys.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Look for someone out there who will move this team up a status level for Ron Harper Jr.
2. Failing that, trade Moody for what you can get plus salary relief
3. Try and trade Andrews and Caruso for another young piece to go with Ware and Alvarado
I think that this is a really controversial opinion, and the Nets are probably a top 6 team without any moves. I think if they don’t make any moves, they’ll eventually catch the Kings and take the division. But looking at how Andrews is playing—and he’s their number 2—and looking at how good Alvarado and Ware will be soon, I’d try and get my tax bill down now so I can build around them. They’re in year 2 of the repeater tax with lots of money still to come for a declining Andrews and Caruso. They’re going to have to max Ware. I think the smart thing to do is to retool so when Ware and Alvarado are at peak efficiency, the Nets can afford their championship window.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
The Spurs are in pretty decent shape for a rebuilding team, and with one of the all time great GMs at the helm, the league better hope that the lotto balls don’t help him get any better. With Brandon Ingram and Pee Wee Kirkland, the Spurs are just laying in wait until they’re ready for some championship runs (which should coincide nicely with the end of the Lakers’ window). The managerial directive is clear and obvious with Eazy knowing exactly what he’s going to do and not straying from it.
Status: Tankings
To-Do List:
1. Get some points for James Hernandez
2. Use that additional 16mm in cap space to get some more points.
3. Think about putting Larry Williams on the block
The first two points are already under way. The third might not be something Los is thinking about yet, but I see that as the next logical step. When the time is right—and that time is soon—L Dub is the type of player who could fetch a nice price on the trade market. Right now, he’s a bit too old—and making a bit too much money—to fit with Kirkland’s window, so Eazy should treat him like Anas as a transition piece whose best value to the Kirkland/Ingram regime will be the return he gets back from another team.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Usually, the Wizards roster has me puzzled, and this season is no different—albeit in a different direction. Typically, I see them fighting for the top spot with a team that looks on paper like it has no business being there. This season, they had a great pickup in free agency with THT, they got back Hodges on a nice contract, and Menendez and Millsap look like they’ve both improved with the latter being their primary scoring option. Unfortunately, they’re a very un-Wizardly 10-11. The team does a number of random things well and a number of random things atrociously. Usually xist can take the roster he ends up with and have them singing by now, but this year is a different story, and if I’m him, I’m more worried about winning next season than this one, when I still have my pick. But xist’s gonna xist.
Status: Middle of the pack
To-do list:
1. Figure out which two or three guys you want to keep to build a team around next season.
2. Trade the other two guys with the intention of having the space to add more talent next offseason.
3. Figure out ways to combine two good players to trade for one better player.
If xist solely does one of these things, #3 could be the one that gets him back in the playoff hunt this season. He’s always done well managing roleplayers around a tighter concentration of stars. I’d say, take your best defensive guy and your best offensive guy and try to gain some ground this season with an eye towards making more moves to improve next season. I’d love to see some creative trade come out of DC.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
The Warriors were never going to win a championship with this roster, but injuries to Haun and then free agency coup Markus Ridenhour put them on a much different path. At 10-11, they’re right there with their division rival Wizards, but with a different GM and roster, their path is a little different. They unloaded Dong Bone and Kyle Kuric, opting to go with cheaper talent like Chris Jackson and Greg Hamilton (as was touched on earlier). But aside from their new PG, the only guy they truly seem to care about is Fabian Hub, a versatile 6’11 player who’s quick enough to play multiple positions (even if his skillset is more traditional big man stuff).
Still, the Warriors struck first on day 60, immediately dealing Ronny Asher to the Heat, so they know what’s up, and it’s pretty easy to see what’s next.
Status: Tanking
To-Do list:
1. Trade Douglas Haun
2. Pump Chris Jackson’s numbers and sell high at trade deadline
3. Run everything through Fabian Hub and get him MIP.
Point 1 is pretty simple, and point 3 requires little elaboration. The key is point 2. Chris Jackson is a blue potential player on an expiring 9 million dollar contract. He can do a lot of things well, but with a different gameplan, greeple could show the league what Jackson is really capable of. And at trade deadline, when there’s not as much financial flexibility, every team looking to win is a viable landing spot for Chris Jackson. Hope that you can goose his stats and then sell him high to the highest bidder.
DETROIT PISTONS
Ye Olde Ooze-Meister didn’t even wait until day 60 to trade his surefire rookie of the year, Paolo Banchero and a Suns 1st to the goliath that is the Lakers for Mac McClung. Personally, I think the Suns 1st was a reverse slime move to make it look like he wasn’t as shrewd in trades as McClung was riding pine for the Lake Show, and Banchero is playing like a seasoned vet and joining a team that’s reaching for the ring. Other than that, they have more young prospects than any rebuilding team, and they have Mason Dixon, who is still on their team despite every effort to move him.
Status: Tanking
To-Do list
1. Lower the asking price on Mason Dixon and send him packing
2. Show up at 78’s door and forcefully take his salary and a pick or whatever it is you do to half-checked-out GMs
3. Check the Jazz’s page and realize that they actually DO have a guy worth sneaking away in James Northrup
It can’t be that hard. Elliot Thorpe and Northrup for Mason Dixon. THE REBOUNDZ, GARY! THINK OF ALL THE REBOUNDZ! IMAGINE MASON DIXON AND LES KIM ON THE SAME TEAM! NOBODY WILL EVER SCORE A POINT ON YOU AGAIN!
SACRAMENTO KINGS
In the time since I mentioned him, Killian Hayes turned 50 years old and he used his fortune to buy a mansion shaped like every meme about the Cavs, 76ers, and Celtics ever posted. They’re leading their division with one blue current player in Matisse Thybulle. At 55 years old, Killian Hayes is leading the team in scoring. There’s a guy named Curtis Rakes. Their starting center is yellow current. I don’t know what’s going on. It must’ve had something to do with the presser? This can’t be sustainable, can it?
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Keep putting points into Gary Rockwell
2. Don’t offer Killian Hayes a big contract after this season
3. Keep the memes coming
No point in entertaining any Rockwell trades, he’s the best thing the Kings have going. There’s nobody else they can trade to upgrade their team, and with Hayes on the downswing, that window is closed, and it’s time for a rebuild around Rockwell.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS
The Bucks, in the nick of time, escaped tax jail, but they didn’t fill up their remaining cap space or successfully retain Carmelo Williams—who they could have had for much less the 45 million that the Suns paid him had they bid enough on him in round 1. And without their pick, being 10-13 with the best player in the league (Saddiq Bey) is a disappointing place to be. They have 7’3 Victor Wembanyama performing nicely, and Kory Manley’s still there, but that purple current is a mirage—a reminder of what he once was rather than what he brings to the table now. Without their pick, there’s no benefit to tanking, so if they’re going to move their win now players, they better make sure the return is worth it. But they’re also resetting the tax, so they’re in position to rebuild around Wembenyama before they have to hand him max money. They have a lot of ways they can go, but not a lot of ways to go those ways.
Status: Middle of the Pack
1. Use the spare cap space to try to get more depth than just 3 players
2. Mess around with your game plan. Your FG% is abysmal, and you’re taking way too many inefficient jump shots.
3. See if Saddiq Bey plays better somewhere else
Saddiq Bey is, like I said, the best player in the league, and he handled PG duties well in the past, but with his athleticism slipping away, he might not be quick enough anymore where the tradeoff is worth it. Moving him somewhere else might give him more reign to rebound and play a more balanced defensive game. Kory Manley is 13 points quicker, and his passing is about the same. He could use a change, too.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS:
The Blazers haven’t had a solid GM since kucoach, so newer GM GroveStreet inherited a mess, but he’s managed to gain and protect an impressive crop of young players. However, that’s a lot of mouths to insure in TC, and this isn’t a game that always rewards patience. The Blazers are bad again this season, but with 7 blue potential players in the insurable range and two of them expiring, they should continue being bad this season, but look to make a ton of moves next offseason.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List
1. Re-flip Dieng (unless you want to pay him big next UFA)
2. If you have an out for that Warley contract without giving anything up, do it.
3. Get ready to cash in next offseason
You’ll want Hackney back, and you’ll want cap space to turn your young guys into the best win-now available guys on the market next offseason. The Blazers have an opportunity for a complete 180, and I think the fans in Portland deserve some success.
PHOENIX SUNS
The Suns sacrificed a pick in a likely lotto year to trade up 2 spots and grab Luke Hancock. The Pistons still got a blue potential big man in Walker Kessler at #9. For my money, they’re about the same. Maybe, just maybe, Superman will learn his lesson about trading with Doug. Maybe the Suns were betting on themselves to score bigger in free agency, but their only real signing of note was scooping up sloppy seconds on UFA day 2 by paying Carmelo Williams 45 large for 10 points and 5 rebounds a game (albeit off the bench). Obviously that’s not the production they were looking for. But it could be worse. Jaden Atkins is a bright spot, and the team is .500. And with 74 million in cap space, the Suns could easily get Atkins some help.
Problem is, with their current roster, that 11-11 record isn’t going to hold without help. And there’s no reason to get worse and help Doug out, especially with options to get better without having to give up Gates, Hancock, or Kozak (though I wouldn’t rule that out if the deal makes enough sense—Kozak won’t be playable until he’s payable, and with Lidell and Hancock, where does he even fit? I’ve talked myself into it. He’s going on the list.).
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Start Carmelo Williams.
2. Get some more talent with that cap space
3. Trade Gregory Kozak
Even if you’re still looking to trade Carmelo, you’ll want to pad his numbers to show what he can do. He’s got skills as a facilitator and still has the quickness at his size to play big man PG. With Kozak and cap space, the Suns should be able to add two or three win now players to secure a playoff spot and possibly get a longer term win now player to roll with E.J. Liddell and Jaden Akins. Just a matter of finding the guy that’s worth giving up Kozak to be that longer term win now player.
MIAMI HEAT
The Miami Heat were on the receiving end of the first day 60 trade, adding Ronny Asher in order to keep the team looking good. At 13-10, they’re second in their division, and with Kai Jones, Emoni Bates, and Gerald Dixson, they’ve got a core of three good players that should keep them firmly in a playoff spot. All three of them are playing very well, so it’s theoretically pretty simple…just improve their support. Practically, however, the Heat can’t make any huge moves since they spent all their worthwhile assets on acquiring Gerald Dixson. They might dangle Jordan Poole, but I’m not sure what Poole alone would get them that would be worth it.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do:
1. Keep riding your big 3
2. BUT surround them with defensive specialists
3. ESPECIALLY PRD
The best perimeter the Heat have isn’t even in B range. They’re giving up a lot of points, and Ronny Asher isn’t going to be defending on the perimeter, so that improvement doesn’t solve a huge problem that’s stopping the Heat. They might not be far from their ceiling, especially in a season where there are a lot of teams ahead of them in the championship conversation, but that shouldn’t stop them from trying to rack up as many wins as they can.
BOSTON CELTICS
Fresh off a tremendous championship season, the Celts decided to cash in their win now players before they lost value, and it was a savvy veteran move. There are a lot of new faces in Boston: Angelo Romero, Chief Kickingstallionsims, Quincy Johnson…it’s a younger core to potentially play alongside Antonio Blakeney in his second championship window. Unfortunately, the team hasn’t jelled together this season with a 13-12 record, but as Blakeney’s shown before, a team with him at the helm can never really be counted out. Still, with a 13-12 record, the Celtics might want to think about resetting the tax (in fact, I know they ARE thinking about it, so that takes care of one of my priorities), and as they’ve also shown before, more touches for Blakeney means more wins for the Celtics, and too much talent on the team means less touches for Blakeney.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Try to tax reset. Not sure how, but rumor has it Romero might be on the chopping block.
2. Put Sandoval on the block (don’t trade him right away though!)
3. Put Blakeney back at PG
Seriously…I think Quincy Johnson at PG over Blakeney is costing them wins. He’s slower, he doesn’t play great defense, his playmaking skills are both in D range, and about the only thing he’s ready to do now is score. As for Sandoval, if this team doesn’t start sliding into championship contention (which, if AB’s patient, it might!), a lot of teams would give a lot of points…and potentially more, for a cheap b/b big/boy.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
The tax-burdened Grizzlies came into this season unable to pay their bill, and with no option to make waves outside the trade market, they cashed in Chief Kickingstallionsims for multiple time Playoff MVP Gerry Folse. They should be a lock to win their division, although with some of their talent getting older, Folse might be seen as more of a balancing act than an improvement. However, the Grizz managed to bring in Luigi Leathers and Silvio Pardo on vet mins, making a deep run very possible. In any case, the Grizzlies are an expensive team and will add a lot of weight to K-100’s tax bill. He stuck it out before and paid his tax…hopefully this isn’t a last hurrah from one of the GMs most willing to push this game to the limits.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List:
1. Bring back Pick Em
2. Cut players
3. Just do what your spendy ass gonna do
I don’t think Memphis is running a strategy I’d ever choose, but hey, I’m not K-100.
INDIANA PACERS
This might be the most expensive Pacers team I’ve ever seen, and the starting lineup is one of the strongest in the league. In an RFA sign and trade, the Bulls sent them the better Jericho Sims for the cheaper, younger Svi Mykhailiuk. They’ve figured out their lineup for the second best record in Alpha. After an uncharacteristically unstellar first sim, that could be a sign that the team is the real deal. He Hor, Herbert Jones, Jericho Sims, Tony Parris, and Patrick Williams are all really balancing the scoring. He’s still got it, but even so, he’s making really good players look better, but he’s not making only semi-decent roleplayers look like they have much to contribute.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Give P-Will more minutes
2. Improve depth…somehow
3. Try Sims at Center
The Pacers are in the top third in nearly every category except for defending the three and cleaning the glass. Those are both seemingly important categories, but I think the Pacers are in good shape, and I think all three points could help with both. Williams is incredibly efficient off the bench, but he’s playing less than 20 minutes a game. You can get more for him…not only in scoring, but he’s got a rebound rate of 14.2. I’d also swap Sims and Parris. Sims always performed better for me at Center than PF. He might be a couple inches shorter, but he rebounds on both ends of the glass. Other than that, there’s not much else to do in Indy.
DALLAS MAVERICKS
Of all the new GMs, I love what the Mavs are doing most. They’re really getting into it, and that’ll spell success faster. They’re also in one of the most interesting situations in the league. They don’t have their pick, and after starting on fire the first two sims, they’re now under .500 after the third. They’ll get TLW back soon, and while he contributes more firepower offensively, he doesn’t do much for their league worst defense. Their three point attack is keeping them afloat, but unless they get some help in other areas, they could be surprised out of a playoff spot. They have Jonathan Kuminga and Scoot Henderson, but how much of their future is worth leveraging?
To-Do List
1. Get frontcourt help for Raiquan Gray
2. Adjust minutes based on productivity
3. Cut salary with whoever you don’t use for upgrades
For the first point, I’d say do not trade Scoot. Kuminga is on the block, and you’ll want a ready-now, multi-year player for him that’s going to post defense your team’s way south of .500 opponent shooting percentage. The Mavs are 24th in steals and blocks, so getting a player (or players) who can force turnovers is key.
As for the minutes, Scoot should not be playing as many minutes as Raiquan Gray. I’d like to see Gray play over 30, and I’m sure TLW’s return will scoot Scoot’s minutes down a scoche.
Finally, if you don’t need to move your salary pieces for upgrades, there are a lot of teams with plenty of cap space out there that you can pay a couple points to stash a 17mm expiring contract at the trade deadline and end up profiting in points with the tax savings.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the basement this season, and at least it seems like they know it. In seasons past it seems like they’ve been more confident they’d make the playoffs with teams that look similar. If they’re just here to jab their friends, that’s fine, I guess? But it’d be cool to see them make progress. Admitting you have a problem with your team is the first step, and it’d be cool to see them lean hard into tanking. They’re the league’s worst team right now, and they only have a single blue potential rookie contract guy on their team. Luckily, the path ahead is clear.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List
1. Trade Canfield
2. Trade Rafael Gordon
3. Trade anyone else you can
Canfield’s a no brainer to trade, and even though Gordon’s kind of younger, he’s no good to the Cavaliers. I don’t want to see the Cavs max him. I’m not even tied to Baba Miller. He doesn’t look like a game changer, (and neither does Ernesto Cruz), but I don’t see any benefit to trading either of them. Fire sale everyone else. Get what you can. Someone will want Geronimo. Someone might want Henry. Hell, I think the Cavs buddies in Memphis just want to have the most expensive team possible, so the Cavs don’t even need to go out of their comfort zone to find trade partners. Of course he can’t send you points or picks (without the Cavs sending a better pick), so maybe scratch that.
TORONTO RAPTORS
Losing Ridenhour in UFA was a tough shot. It’s always tough when a star player turns down a supermax, and since the Raptors GM is newer, it’s not really his fault. Evan Mobley is having an MVP caliber season, Beaton and Honeycutt are solid, and Looney is close to averaging a double-double, doing exactly what they hired him to do. The team kind of drops off after that, and they find themselves at 10-12, muddled with a horde of teams hovering near .500 at Day 60. They’re closer to tanking than winning a championship, but it all depends on what they want to do with Mobley. He was on the block in the offseason—maybe out of frustration of losing Ridenhour—but he’s still on the Raptors now. He could be enough to get the Raptors into the playoffs with some minor adjustments, but it’d take something major to get them further than that.
Status: Middle of the pack
To-Do List
1. Decide on Mobley
2. If you move him, make sure the return is a king’s feast
3. If you keep him, make incremental improvements to your second unit
If the package for Mobley isn’t out there—and it’s one that should include a stud to build around, hold onto him, and see what you can do. Jere Bailey’s contract is a nice salary piece for an upgrade, and even Okay Djamgouz doesn’t look untouchable. With money left to hit the apron, the Raptors do have the tools to go after a win now player who will be around long enough to roll a few seasons with Honeycutt, Beaton, Mobley, and Looney. Without Mobley, this team gets a lot worse, but tanking is a risk when you’ve got enough teams who are already as bad as your team would be without its star player.
UTAH JAZZ
And finally, the Wildcard Team, the Utah Jazz. The Jazz have a pretty solid roster put together, but they’re deep in the tax, mostly thanks to Gary’s reluctance to figure out how many points he actually has and how to manage them. The Jazz are 14-12, and they’re a surefire playoff team if nobody gets injured and nobody gets traded. It looks like one of their main problems is coughing the ball up too much..
Status: Middle of the pack
To-Do List
1. Hire an accountant
2. Don’t trade with Doug
3. Reconfigure your lineup
4. Trade Ervin Armitage
The first two are self explanatory. I’ll elaborate on the third and fourth. It looks like the Jazz have been playing Cade Cunningham at SF. I’d give him some run at PG. With Kim, Cade, Quickley, and Northrup, the Jazz have a solid defensive foundation. Armitage is one of those fake blues based on athleticism and size more than skill. He’s hitting RFA, and he could be used for an improvement to the bench or even the starting lineup—especially with Thorpe’s salary in the mix. But who knows. It’s a long season, and Gary could surprise us all.
Trust me. If you wait until trade deadline, it’ll probably be too late. You’ll still have plenty of reasons to make deadline moves, but those should be fine tuning moves. Day 60 is probably your last good chance to commit to a direction.
I said it in the Facebook chat, and I’ll say it here. In any given season with 26 teams, especially at this stage in any of those seasons, not every team should be gunning for a championship, and out of the teams that aren’t, not every one of those teams should be revving up their tanks. So what do you do if you’re not an obvious contender for either a ring or the #1 draft pick? And taking a step back, how do I know which group my team is in?
Well, the answer to those questions lies in this team by team article, a formula that is—for the uninitiated—a surefire nominee for article of the year by anyone who wants a nomination point and a likely extra point for nominating the winning article.
MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES
First things first, the Minnesota Timberwolves are the only team in the league without a GM. But, they’re in a great spot for someone to take over. They’ve got two young purple potential players with hard-to-spell-from memory-names in Xue Hoe and Lenz Durrenberger. They’ve also got the second worst record in the league and nobody at the helm to make moves anyway.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Find a GM
2. Find a GM
3. Find a GM
That’s it, really, and it’s not on RoboGM1…it’s on all of you to do it before Mamba gets any more points to fund his dynasty because he has a ton of cousins.
DENVER NUGGETS
The Nuggets have a new-ish GM in Panda, and his roster is full of players just entering their prime in Charles Jarrett, DeJuan Baker, and Thurman James. Johnny Davis still has some room to grow, but he’s also only 23 and has been one of the league’s top scorers for a while now. I think declining to match Kevon Looney’s contract was a mistake, but despite that, they find themselves with a positive double-digit point differential, which is a surefire sign that they can compete.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Find some better depth at PG/SG without trading Andrew Patrick (points, picks, Hinshaw, anything you can scrape together) — the more roster spots you can free up the better
2. Replace those roster spots with old vet mins
3. Use those vet mins as salary to really cash in on Andrew Patrick.
Look, I know that I said that now is the time for big swings, but the Nuggets can hold strong with Booker Davis at starting C for now (though, man…Looney would provide everything that the team is lacking from a big man), and I think they’ll need a little more cuttable salary than they’ve got right now to explore all their upgrade options.
ORLANDO MAGIC
The Magic are another team with new ownership who took some swings in the offseason to add on Dong Bone and Kyle Kuric. They didn’t give up much to get players of this caliber from the Warriors, but what they did sacrifice was cap space. Greg Hamilton and Chris Jackson aren’t going to provide what Dong and Kuric should, but they’re on really team friendly contracts where Dong and Kuric are expensive. Still, it’s their first year in the tax, so it’s not the end of the world. Unfortunately, the team isn’t much deeper than their core 4. They have Dort, but Dort isn’t Dort anymore. If he was, there’s no doubt the team would be better than 12-11.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List
1. Get rid of non-essential salary to save points (Here’s looking at you, Dort)
2. See if you can figure out a game plan to get back on track and be patient
3. If the team starts winning more, cool…if not, consider getting some value for Dong Bone
Yeah, so without much in terms of assets to improve, which they could try to do, Dong Bone probably isn’t coming back next year because he’s not worth a max, so there’s no guarantee he’ll be back. A slight downgrade there should make the tax bill cheaper and keep the Magic in playoff contention. Schiff and Dirks should be retained at all costs…both of them should net a great rebuild package if it comes to that in the future before the Magic can put a championship team around them.
CHARLOTTE BOBCATS
Dr. K is the first to admit that this Bobcats team is absolute trash. They don’t have a face of the franchise, and their four blue potential players are all way closer to green potential than purple. Moore and Shaw might be decent bench units on a deeper team, but neither of them has any A level attributes. The Throckmortons could be alright, but neither of them can stay in the game for more than a half due to foul trouble. Their best player is Tony Krebs, who’s presence on the Knicks block is the smartest thing they’ve done this season.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Sell anything that isn’t nailed down for as much as you can get
2. Don’t trade your picks. As a failsafe, you should be able to draft a guy you can build around.
3. Stop giving out long contracts to average joes
That’s about it. The Knicks need to get an impact player. They need to start going after a big dawg here and there. Kai Jones could’ve been that guy, but I think the timing was wrong. He’s the kind of guy you want with open books so you can put the right talent around him. He can’t do it alone with role players.
CHICAGO BULLS
Since the Bulls are my team, I don’t want to show my hand at what I’m going to do, but at 20-4, I think I can make a deep run again this season. I’ve got a deep team, and Montoya is playing out of his mind. Sure, I’m in year 3 of the tax, and my bill is pretty high, but I SHOULD be able to pay it. Especially if I keep pumping out solid gold articles like these.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List:
1. Finish this article
I’m working on it, to-do list.
HOUSTON ROCKETS
The Houston Rockets are a very good example of why you NEVER GO RECOMMENDED during free agency. The story hasn’t changed, they still have Hints, Shut, and Suggs on pricey contracts. They’ve just all gotten older and less effective. Hints expires this year, and they’re still in the tax, so it probably would make sense to pay someone to take him…except the Rockets are in tax jail, so they can’t pay with points. They have all of their picks, and rookie Sion James looks like he’ll grow up to be the real deal, but things aren’t good in Houston.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Try to get out of the tax without giving up James or a pick.
2. Find a way to earn some points so you can pay your bill.
3. Get motivation back to play the game
I know 78’s been a GM for a long time, and he’s not really all too active. I hope getting a good rookie in next season’s draft can get him motivated a little more. If totaling a points bank and paying the tax are too much, it might be time to hang it up.
ATLANTA HAWKS
And now in the other direction, our newest GM is taking control of the Hawks, who were under previous ownership of a GM who has been in the tax since the commissioner was in short pants. I really like the enthusiasm out of the gate, and it’s great to see some big swings in the offseason. Third year man Justin Amos looks solid, and the addition of Ibrahim Diallo has this team looking healthier than they have since Wig left. The max contracts to Phil Smith and Kalin Lucas are definitely more for potential than current, and hopefully that’s something CashCab continues to learn about. That being said:
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. Talk to other GMs and learn as much as you can
2. Don’t worry about winning this year—the Hawks have been so damaged that it’ll take a few seasons to right the ship, even for a non-rookie GM
3. Try to gain points over the next season or two. Points should be more important than wins.
Plenty of ways to do that, too. Don’t sell picks though. I wouldn’t even consider moving any first round pick you currently own. Seriously, though, great to see some activity coming out of the ATL. Here’s to a successful GM career!
NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
The New Orleans Pelicans are in a little bit of a no man’s land. At 9-12, they’re in the bottom 4 of the Alpha Conference, but they’re also only a couple games away from the final playoff spot. They’ve got a hodgepodge roster of win now guys that won’t be ready when their up and comers are ready to go. Leroy Johnston and Corey Kispert are both expiring players who aren’t guys I’d expect to see back in Pels jerseys unless they’re overpaid or recipients of very tactically smart bids.
They’ve got guys like Trey Murphy III and Ned Lomax who are almost ready but still have room to grow. And then they have guys like Steeve Ho You Fat and Zed Key, who are more suited for a rebuilding team. Lomax is the only guy on this roster who I’d want to keep around if I was gunning for a deep run in a couple seasons. Murphy III’s contract is kind of a hindrance to that, but ain’t no moving him this season.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List:
1. I think the Pets are at the bottom of the middle of the pack with the talent they have right now, but they have too much talent to completely bottom out and not enough to really push for anything greater. They should get as much as they can for Disport and Johnston.
2. Also, might be nice to look for a home for Andy Elliott to clear future space to surround Lomax with better talent.
3. Finally, if they got the points to buff up Murphy at ASB training, go do it.
That’s a long, hefty contract, and the guy’s an athletic freak, but he’s not a max player yet. The good news is that he can be built into one. They can either commit to him as PG and raise his PAS, bump his offense even more by raising his jump shot, or give him more of a two way injection by improving his steals. I think this is really the key. Between this training and next offseason’s training, once Murphy catches up to Lomax, they’ll have a nice one-two punch. Get points for the guys I mentioned in list items 1 and 2, and put them directly into III.
LOS ANGELES LAKERS:
The L.A. Lakers are a sick f’n monolith of a team. It’s basically, you take a team that’s fully jacked and stacked, and then you give them a bunch of blue rookie contract guys to boot. Granted, their excess blue pot rookie contract guys are green pot guys that were trained just over the blue line, but they’re still valuable trade pieces that allow Mamba to just continuously upgrade a team that’s already too good. With Safi playing the best ball in the league and still growing, a windfall of points coming from referring his entire extended family, and two potential lotto picks in his kitty, Mamba is poised to win a few championships over the next few seasons.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Update your trade block (probably)
2. Try to simultaneously upgrade whatever you can like, kind of consider a weak spot if you squint while getting a little cheaper.
3. Win a ring
The Lakers don’t have to do too much more to win a ring except get Karlo back from injury and wait for the playoffs, where they’ll be able to use a very deep, versatile team to match up creatively against pretty much any other team. Even though they have a lot of points, “a pointy saved is a pointy earned” (Ben Franklin, the PBSL player, not the founding father)
BROOKLYN NETS
Hopefully, the Nets are beginning to figure things out, but it’s gotta be disappointing to have their roster and still be losing the division to the Kings, and their $100 million man, 50 year old g/g Killian Hayes. With an all blue lineup of Jose Alvarado, Alex Caruso, Moses Moody, James Andrews, and Kel’el Ware, the Nets look like they should be firmly in the race for championship contention. I think a big reason for this is that Ware and Alvarado aren’t quite ready, and Andrews and Moody don’t look nearly as sharp as I’d expect. Right now, Andrews is putting up similar numbers—lots of scoring and boards—but not efficiently. As of this writing he’s barely averaging a point per shot…which is NOT what you want out of one of your go to guys.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Look for someone out there who will move this team up a status level for Ron Harper Jr.
2. Failing that, trade Moody for what you can get plus salary relief
3. Try and trade Andrews and Caruso for another young piece to go with Ware and Alvarado
I think that this is a really controversial opinion, and the Nets are probably a top 6 team without any moves. I think if they don’t make any moves, they’ll eventually catch the Kings and take the division. But looking at how Andrews is playing—and he’s their number 2—and looking at how good Alvarado and Ware will be soon, I’d try and get my tax bill down now so I can build around them. They’re in year 2 of the repeater tax with lots of money still to come for a declining Andrews and Caruso. They’re going to have to max Ware. I think the smart thing to do is to retool so when Ware and Alvarado are at peak efficiency, the Nets can afford their championship window.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS
The Spurs are in pretty decent shape for a rebuilding team, and with one of the all time great GMs at the helm, the league better hope that the lotto balls don’t help him get any better. With Brandon Ingram and Pee Wee Kirkland, the Spurs are just laying in wait until they’re ready for some championship runs (which should coincide nicely with the end of the Lakers’ window). The managerial directive is clear and obvious with Eazy knowing exactly what he’s going to do and not straying from it.
Status: Tankings
To-Do List:
1. Get some points for James Hernandez
2. Use that additional 16mm in cap space to get some more points.
3. Think about putting Larry Williams on the block
The first two points are already under way. The third might not be something Los is thinking about yet, but I see that as the next logical step. When the time is right—and that time is soon—L Dub is the type of player who could fetch a nice price on the trade market. Right now, he’s a bit too old—and making a bit too much money—to fit with Kirkland’s window, so Eazy should treat him like Anas as a transition piece whose best value to the Kirkland/Ingram regime will be the return he gets back from another team.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Usually, the Wizards roster has me puzzled, and this season is no different—albeit in a different direction. Typically, I see them fighting for the top spot with a team that looks on paper like it has no business being there. This season, they had a great pickup in free agency with THT, they got back Hodges on a nice contract, and Menendez and Millsap look like they’ve both improved with the latter being their primary scoring option. Unfortunately, they’re a very un-Wizardly 10-11. The team does a number of random things well and a number of random things atrociously. Usually xist can take the roster he ends up with and have them singing by now, but this year is a different story, and if I’m him, I’m more worried about winning next season than this one, when I still have my pick. But xist’s gonna xist.
Status: Middle of the pack
To-do list:
1. Figure out which two or three guys you want to keep to build a team around next season.
2. Trade the other two guys with the intention of having the space to add more talent next offseason.
3. Figure out ways to combine two good players to trade for one better player.
If xist solely does one of these things, #3 could be the one that gets him back in the playoff hunt this season. He’s always done well managing roleplayers around a tighter concentration of stars. I’d say, take your best defensive guy and your best offensive guy and try to gain some ground this season with an eye towards making more moves to improve next season. I’d love to see some creative trade come out of DC.
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS
The Warriors were never going to win a championship with this roster, but injuries to Haun and then free agency coup Markus Ridenhour put them on a much different path. At 10-11, they’re right there with their division rival Wizards, but with a different GM and roster, their path is a little different. They unloaded Dong Bone and Kyle Kuric, opting to go with cheaper talent like Chris Jackson and Greg Hamilton (as was touched on earlier). But aside from their new PG, the only guy they truly seem to care about is Fabian Hub, a versatile 6’11 player who’s quick enough to play multiple positions (even if his skillset is more traditional big man stuff).
Still, the Warriors struck first on day 60, immediately dealing Ronny Asher to the Heat, so they know what’s up, and it’s pretty easy to see what’s next.
Status: Tanking
To-Do list:
1. Trade Douglas Haun
2. Pump Chris Jackson’s numbers and sell high at trade deadline
3. Run everything through Fabian Hub and get him MIP.
Point 1 is pretty simple, and point 3 requires little elaboration. The key is point 2. Chris Jackson is a blue potential player on an expiring 9 million dollar contract. He can do a lot of things well, but with a different gameplan, greeple could show the league what Jackson is really capable of. And at trade deadline, when there’s not as much financial flexibility, every team looking to win is a viable landing spot for Chris Jackson. Hope that you can goose his stats and then sell him high to the highest bidder.
DETROIT PISTONS
Ye Olde Ooze-Meister didn’t even wait until day 60 to trade his surefire rookie of the year, Paolo Banchero and a Suns 1st to the goliath that is the Lakers for Mac McClung. Personally, I think the Suns 1st was a reverse slime move to make it look like he wasn’t as shrewd in trades as McClung was riding pine for the Lake Show, and Banchero is playing like a seasoned vet and joining a team that’s reaching for the ring. Other than that, they have more young prospects than any rebuilding team, and they have Mason Dixon, who is still on their team despite every effort to move him.
Status: Tanking
To-Do list
1. Lower the asking price on Mason Dixon and send him packing
2. Show up at 78’s door and forcefully take his salary and a pick or whatever it is you do to half-checked-out GMs
3. Check the Jazz’s page and realize that they actually DO have a guy worth sneaking away in James Northrup
It can’t be that hard. Elliot Thorpe and Northrup for Mason Dixon. THE REBOUNDZ, GARY! THINK OF ALL THE REBOUNDZ! IMAGINE MASON DIXON AND LES KIM ON THE SAME TEAM! NOBODY WILL EVER SCORE A POINT ON YOU AGAIN!
SACRAMENTO KINGS
In the time since I mentioned him, Killian Hayes turned 50 years old and he used his fortune to buy a mansion shaped like every meme about the Cavs, 76ers, and Celtics ever posted. They’re leading their division with one blue current player in Matisse Thybulle. At 55 years old, Killian Hayes is leading the team in scoring. There’s a guy named Curtis Rakes. Their starting center is yellow current. I don’t know what’s going on. It must’ve had something to do with the presser? This can’t be sustainable, can it?
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Keep putting points into Gary Rockwell
2. Don’t offer Killian Hayes a big contract after this season
3. Keep the memes coming
No point in entertaining any Rockwell trades, he’s the best thing the Kings have going. There’s nobody else they can trade to upgrade their team, and with Hayes on the downswing, that window is closed, and it’s time for a rebuild around Rockwell.
MILWAUKEE BUCKS
The Bucks, in the nick of time, escaped tax jail, but they didn’t fill up their remaining cap space or successfully retain Carmelo Williams—who they could have had for much less the 45 million that the Suns paid him had they bid enough on him in round 1. And without their pick, being 10-13 with the best player in the league (Saddiq Bey) is a disappointing place to be. They have 7’3 Victor Wembanyama performing nicely, and Kory Manley’s still there, but that purple current is a mirage—a reminder of what he once was rather than what he brings to the table now. Without their pick, there’s no benefit to tanking, so if they’re going to move their win now players, they better make sure the return is worth it. But they’re also resetting the tax, so they’re in position to rebuild around Wembenyama before they have to hand him max money. They have a lot of ways they can go, but not a lot of ways to go those ways.
Status: Middle of the Pack
1. Use the spare cap space to try to get more depth than just 3 players
2. Mess around with your game plan. Your FG% is abysmal, and you’re taking way too many inefficient jump shots.
3. See if Saddiq Bey plays better somewhere else
Saddiq Bey is, like I said, the best player in the league, and he handled PG duties well in the past, but with his athleticism slipping away, he might not be quick enough anymore where the tradeoff is worth it. Moving him somewhere else might give him more reign to rebound and play a more balanced defensive game. Kory Manley is 13 points quicker, and his passing is about the same. He could use a change, too.
PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS:
The Blazers haven’t had a solid GM since kucoach, so newer GM GroveStreet inherited a mess, but he’s managed to gain and protect an impressive crop of young players. However, that’s a lot of mouths to insure in TC, and this isn’t a game that always rewards patience. The Blazers are bad again this season, but with 7 blue potential players in the insurable range and two of them expiring, they should continue being bad this season, but look to make a ton of moves next offseason.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List
1. Re-flip Dieng (unless you want to pay him big next UFA)
2. If you have an out for that Warley contract without giving anything up, do it.
3. Get ready to cash in next offseason
You’ll want Hackney back, and you’ll want cap space to turn your young guys into the best win-now available guys on the market next offseason. The Blazers have an opportunity for a complete 180, and I think the fans in Portland deserve some success.
PHOENIX SUNS
The Suns sacrificed a pick in a likely lotto year to trade up 2 spots and grab Luke Hancock. The Pistons still got a blue potential big man in Walker Kessler at #9. For my money, they’re about the same. Maybe, just maybe, Superman will learn his lesson about trading with Doug. Maybe the Suns were betting on themselves to score bigger in free agency, but their only real signing of note was scooping up sloppy seconds on UFA day 2 by paying Carmelo Williams 45 large for 10 points and 5 rebounds a game (albeit off the bench). Obviously that’s not the production they were looking for. But it could be worse. Jaden Atkins is a bright spot, and the team is .500. And with 74 million in cap space, the Suns could easily get Atkins some help.
Problem is, with their current roster, that 11-11 record isn’t going to hold without help. And there’s no reason to get worse and help Doug out, especially with options to get better without having to give up Gates, Hancock, or Kozak (though I wouldn’t rule that out if the deal makes enough sense—Kozak won’t be playable until he’s payable, and with Lidell and Hancock, where does he even fit? I’ve talked myself into it. He’s going on the list.).
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Start Carmelo Williams.
2. Get some more talent with that cap space
3. Trade Gregory Kozak
Even if you’re still looking to trade Carmelo, you’ll want to pad his numbers to show what he can do. He’s got skills as a facilitator and still has the quickness at his size to play big man PG. With Kozak and cap space, the Suns should be able to add two or three win now players to secure a playoff spot and possibly get a longer term win now player to roll with E.J. Liddell and Jaden Akins. Just a matter of finding the guy that’s worth giving up Kozak to be that longer term win now player.
MIAMI HEAT
The Miami Heat were on the receiving end of the first day 60 trade, adding Ronny Asher in order to keep the team looking good. At 13-10, they’re second in their division, and with Kai Jones, Emoni Bates, and Gerald Dixson, they’ve got a core of three good players that should keep them firmly in a playoff spot. All three of them are playing very well, so it’s theoretically pretty simple…just improve their support. Practically, however, the Heat can’t make any huge moves since they spent all their worthwhile assets on acquiring Gerald Dixson. They might dangle Jordan Poole, but I’m not sure what Poole alone would get them that would be worth it.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do:
1. Keep riding your big 3
2. BUT surround them with defensive specialists
3. ESPECIALLY PRD
The best perimeter the Heat have isn’t even in B range. They’re giving up a lot of points, and Ronny Asher isn’t going to be defending on the perimeter, so that improvement doesn’t solve a huge problem that’s stopping the Heat. They might not be far from their ceiling, especially in a season where there are a lot of teams ahead of them in the championship conversation, but that shouldn’t stop them from trying to rack up as many wins as they can.
BOSTON CELTICS
Fresh off a tremendous championship season, the Celts decided to cash in their win now players before they lost value, and it was a savvy veteran move. There are a lot of new faces in Boston: Angelo Romero, Chief Kickingstallionsims, Quincy Johnson…it’s a younger core to potentially play alongside Antonio Blakeney in his second championship window. Unfortunately, the team hasn’t jelled together this season with a 13-12 record, but as Blakeney’s shown before, a team with him at the helm can never really be counted out. Still, with a 13-12 record, the Celtics might want to think about resetting the tax (in fact, I know they ARE thinking about it, so that takes care of one of my priorities), and as they’ve also shown before, more touches for Blakeney means more wins for the Celtics, and too much talent on the team means less touches for Blakeney.
Status: Middle of the Pack
To-Do List:
1. Try to tax reset. Not sure how, but rumor has it Romero might be on the chopping block.
2. Put Sandoval on the block (don’t trade him right away though!)
3. Put Blakeney back at PG
Seriously…I think Quincy Johnson at PG over Blakeney is costing them wins. He’s slower, he doesn’t play great defense, his playmaking skills are both in D range, and about the only thing he’s ready to do now is score. As for Sandoval, if this team doesn’t start sliding into championship contention (which, if AB’s patient, it might!), a lot of teams would give a lot of points…and potentially more, for a cheap b/b big/boy.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES
The tax-burdened Grizzlies came into this season unable to pay their bill, and with no option to make waves outside the trade market, they cashed in Chief Kickingstallionsims for multiple time Playoff MVP Gerry Folse. They should be a lock to win their division, although with some of their talent getting older, Folse might be seen as more of a balancing act than an improvement. However, the Grizz managed to bring in Luigi Leathers and Silvio Pardo on vet mins, making a deep run very possible. In any case, the Grizzlies are an expensive team and will add a lot of weight to K-100’s tax bill. He stuck it out before and paid his tax…hopefully this isn’t a last hurrah from one of the GMs most willing to push this game to the limits.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List:
1. Bring back Pick Em
2. Cut players
3. Just do what your spendy ass gonna do
I don’t think Memphis is running a strategy I’d ever choose, but hey, I’m not K-100.
INDIANA PACERS
This might be the most expensive Pacers team I’ve ever seen, and the starting lineup is one of the strongest in the league. In an RFA sign and trade, the Bulls sent them the better Jericho Sims for the cheaper, younger Svi Mykhailiuk. They’ve figured out their lineup for the second best record in Alpha. After an uncharacteristically unstellar first sim, that could be a sign that the team is the real deal. He Hor, Herbert Jones, Jericho Sims, Tony Parris, and Patrick Williams are all really balancing the scoring. He’s still got it, but even so, he’s making really good players look better, but he’s not making only semi-decent roleplayers look like they have much to contribute.
Status: Championship Contender
To-Do List
1. Give P-Will more minutes
2. Improve depth…somehow
3. Try Sims at Center
The Pacers are in the top third in nearly every category except for defending the three and cleaning the glass. Those are both seemingly important categories, but I think the Pacers are in good shape, and I think all three points could help with both. Williams is incredibly efficient off the bench, but he’s playing less than 20 minutes a game. You can get more for him…not only in scoring, but he’s got a rebound rate of 14.2. I’d also swap Sims and Parris. Sims always performed better for me at Center than PF. He might be a couple inches shorter, but he rebounds on both ends of the glass. Other than that, there’s not much else to do in Indy.
DALLAS MAVERICKS
Of all the new GMs, I love what the Mavs are doing most. They’re really getting into it, and that’ll spell success faster. They’re also in one of the most interesting situations in the league. They don’t have their pick, and after starting on fire the first two sims, they’re now under .500 after the third. They’ll get TLW back soon, and while he contributes more firepower offensively, he doesn’t do much for their league worst defense. Their three point attack is keeping them afloat, but unless they get some help in other areas, they could be surprised out of a playoff spot. They have Jonathan Kuminga and Scoot Henderson, but how much of their future is worth leveraging?
To-Do List
1. Get frontcourt help for Raiquan Gray
2. Adjust minutes based on productivity
3. Cut salary with whoever you don’t use for upgrades
For the first point, I’d say do not trade Scoot. Kuminga is on the block, and you’ll want a ready-now, multi-year player for him that’s going to post defense your team’s way south of .500 opponent shooting percentage. The Mavs are 24th in steals and blocks, so getting a player (or players) who can force turnovers is key.
As for the minutes, Scoot should not be playing as many minutes as Raiquan Gray. I’d like to see Gray play over 30, and I’m sure TLW’s return will scoot Scoot’s minutes down a scoche.
Finally, if you don’t need to move your salary pieces for upgrades, there are a lot of teams with plenty of cap space out there that you can pay a couple points to stash a 17mm expiring contract at the trade deadline and end up profiting in points with the tax savings.
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
The Cleveland Cavaliers are in the basement this season, and at least it seems like they know it. In seasons past it seems like they’ve been more confident they’d make the playoffs with teams that look similar. If they’re just here to jab their friends, that’s fine, I guess? But it’d be cool to see them make progress. Admitting you have a problem with your team is the first step, and it’d be cool to see them lean hard into tanking. They’re the league’s worst team right now, and they only have a single blue potential rookie contract guy on their team. Luckily, the path ahead is clear.
Status: Tanking
To-Do List
1. Trade Canfield
2. Trade Rafael Gordon
3. Trade anyone else you can
Canfield’s a no brainer to trade, and even though Gordon’s kind of younger, he’s no good to the Cavaliers. I don’t want to see the Cavs max him. I’m not even tied to Baba Miller. He doesn’t look like a game changer, (and neither does Ernesto Cruz), but I don’t see any benefit to trading either of them. Fire sale everyone else. Get what you can. Someone will want Geronimo. Someone might want Henry. Hell, I think the Cavs buddies in Memphis just want to have the most expensive team possible, so the Cavs don’t even need to go out of their comfort zone to find trade partners. Of course he can’t send you points or picks (without the Cavs sending a better pick), so maybe scratch that.
TORONTO RAPTORS
Losing Ridenhour in UFA was a tough shot. It’s always tough when a star player turns down a supermax, and since the Raptors GM is newer, it’s not really his fault. Evan Mobley is having an MVP caliber season, Beaton and Honeycutt are solid, and Looney is close to averaging a double-double, doing exactly what they hired him to do. The team kind of drops off after that, and they find themselves at 10-12, muddled with a horde of teams hovering near .500 at Day 60. They’re closer to tanking than winning a championship, but it all depends on what they want to do with Mobley. He was on the block in the offseason—maybe out of frustration of losing Ridenhour—but he’s still on the Raptors now. He could be enough to get the Raptors into the playoffs with some minor adjustments, but it’d take something major to get them further than that.
Status: Middle of the pack
To-Do List
1. Decide on Mobley
2. If you move him, make sure the return is a king’s feast
3. If you keep him, make incremental improvements to your second unit
If the package for Mobley isn’t out there—and it’s one that should include a stud to build around, hold onto him, and see what you can do. Jere Bailey’s contract is a nice salary piece for an upgrade, and even Okay Djamgouz doesn’t look untouchable. With money left to hit the apron, the Raptors do have the tools to go after a win now player who will be around long enough to roll a few seasons with Honeycutt, Beaton, Mobley, and Looney. Without Mobley, this team gets a lot worse, but tanking is a risk when you’ve got enough teams who are already as bad as your team would be without its star player.
UTAH JAZZ
And finally, the Wildcard Team, the Utah Jazz. The Jazz have a pretty solid roster put together, but they’re deep in the tax, mostly thanks to Gary’s reluctance to figure out how many points he actually has and how to manage them. The Jazz are 14-12, and they’re a surefire playoff team if nobody gets injured and nobody gets traded. It looks like one of their main problems is coughing the ball up too much..
Status: Middle of the pack
To-Do List
1. Hire an accountant
2. Don’t trade with Doug
3. Reconfigure your lineup
4. Trade Ervin Armitage
The first two are self explanatory. I’ll elaborate on the third and fourth. It looks like the Jazz have been playing Cade Cunningham at SF. I’d give him some run at PG. With Kim, Cade, Quickley, and Northrup, the Jazz have a solid defensive foundation. Armitage is one of those fake blues based on athleticism and size more than skill. He’s hitting RFA, and he could be used for an improvement to the bench or even the starting lineup—especially with Thorpe’s salary in the mix. But who knows. It’s a long season, and Gary could surprise us all.