#SLOE: People's Basketball Sim League

Outside the Hawks' practice facility, a certain cat has been enjoying a nice, warm, sunbeam to top off another title run and a summer of hard partying. A couple of interns (the ones who drew the short straws) are sent out to rouse him for the annual preseason press conference. When they finally succeed in prodding him awake, he is... a bit... disoriented.
Finally, Wig makes his way into the press room. He takes his usual spot at the head of the room and blinks his eyes before giving a big yawn and stretch.
Well, hello all. I suppose you're expecting some long wordy adaptation of How the Grinch Stole Christmas or maybe an adaption of Zero Wing. Gragh... are the lights too bright in here, or is it just me? Intern, whatever your name is, go turn the lights down. They hurt my eyes. Also, bring me a pillow. No you don't get a bonus for this.

Anyway, yes, it has been to long, but last season, the Hawks won another title. It was about time. Eight seasons of watching other franchises hang banners was really getting to me. So I made sure last season to make the moves that were sure to bring home the precious.
It's ours again. So shiny. So bright. Even if we did have to part with obscene amounts of cash for it. I'm sure you all saw the picture of when the league came to collect its tax from us.
But the past is in the past, and we wants to move on to the new season. We are very happy that our training staff - the fourth one in as many years - managed to keep our players more or less healthy last season. It was a very nice change from a couple of seasons ago when all we saw was injury upon injury.
We also would like to congratulate our playoff foes, the Cavaliers, the Raptors, the Bucks, and the Warriors, on outstanding seasons. They were worthy opponents and we feel fortunate to have defeated them. We wish them all the best luck in the upcoming year.
No... actually we doesn't. We enjoyed crushing the souls of our opponents last season, didn't we? We got our jollies when the simpering Bucks blew up their team and traded the Diesel back West, didn't we? We laughed when the Celtics sent away the evil Zo to the West. We even started the #SendThemWest hashtag, did we not, precious?
But Quail is our friend!
You don't have any friends! Nobody likes you! Not after you traded away McInnis to reduce your projected luxury tax payment by 30 points. Not after you signed your roster up to 20 players before Training Camp.
Not listening! We released the players for Darth to sign! We tried shopping around Latrell Sprewell but nobody wanted to give us anything for him, and we didn't feel it was fair to give up an all-star for nothings, so we had to trade McInnis!
See, I told you nobody would help you. I told you they want the Hawks to suffer. The poor cat is all alone. We must punish them more and keep the ring away from them.
But I likes trading. And if we gets the right deal, maybe we can...
No! We crushes them! If they won't tradeses with us we crushes them all again! We uses the Big Ben and the McDyess and the Hill and the Sprewell and the Penny and we TAKES the ring again. We hurts them worse than we hurtsded them last season!
So... if we crushes them all and we pays the taxes... the ring will be ours again?
Yes.
Yes... So no big moves for the Hawkses... we has our championship core intact and we wants another ring, precious, even if Jon Barry chased moneys. We has a great squad and even the nasty Training Campses didn't hurt too badly yet.

So, who wants to ask us a question? Or perhaps we plays a game of riddles with it, precious...

Majorly Freaked-Out Reporter: Erm, I have a question...I think...um, anyway, with Grant Hill and Penny Hardaway both due for new - and hefty - contracts after this season...how long are you planning to keep this up? Are you willing to pay the tax and keep a potential dynasty alive, or...was this all nothing more than a brief two-year diversion to satiate your championship hunger?

Xist2Inspire wrote:Majorly Freaked-Out Reporter: Erm, I have a question...I think...um, anyway, with Grant Hill and Penny Hardaway both due for new - and hefty - contracts after this season...how long are you planning to keep this up? Are you willing to pay the tax and keep a potential dynasty alive, or...was this all nothing more than a brief two-year diversion to satiate your championship hunger?

There are a lot of moving pieces. Of course the first information about whether we will be able to keep Hill and Hardaway will be whether or not they are willing to work out extensions with us (and if so, for how much).

Was this a brief two-year diversion? I hope not. The hunger is never satiated. I'll have to find a way to make it work. The trade market is something I've never been afraid of.

Dr. Rocker from the Cleveland Rocker: Are you riding the wave where it takes you, or, if you find yourself juuuust a bit outside, are you willing to add salary to get back in? Blow it up?

42PhD wrote:Dr. Rocker from the Cleveland Rocker: Are you riding the wave where it takes you, or, if you find yourself juuuust a bit outside, are you willing to add salary to get back in? Blow it up?

I'm not sure about all this talk about waves. As a cat, I hate water.

But I think you are asking if we find ourselves just outside of contender status. When that time comes, we'll look at what it would cost to take a shot at the title... if we can possibly afford to make the requisite moves, we'll always take a title shot when we're close. The ring's the thing, precious.

Nick Melon; Charlotte Observer: Many expect the Hawks to repeat as champions. What will it take to get back to the top of the proverbial mountain again? Have you promised each player a cat that they could call their own if they manage to repeat?

Nathan Sliver, sevenfortyseven.com: In the Eastern Conference all you will have to eat is nasty orcses. Are you afraid that your team won't be prepared to go up against the Western Conference champion and the monstrous big they have (Garnett, Duncan, Shaq, Kemp, Zo, etc.)? Let's face it, your post D is your Achilles's heel.

kucoach7 wrote:Nathan Sliver, sevenfortyseven.com: In the Eastern Conference all you will have to eat is nasty orcses. Are you afraid that your team won't be prepared to go up against the Western Conference champion and the monstrous big they have (Garnett, Duncan, Shaq, Kemp, Zo, etc.)? Let's face it, your post D is your Achilles's heel.

I think you must have wandered into the wrong press conference. Ben Wallace is one of the elite post defenders in the league and when he matched up with a consensus all league player (Shaq) this preseason he held Shaq to 14 points and 9 boards while hanging 17 points and 19 boards on Shaq. Jeff Foster is one of the best backup post defenders and rebounder in the league.

In short, our post defense is doing just fine, thanks.

NickMalone77 wrote:Nick Melon; Charlotte Observer: Many expect the Hawks to repeat as champions. What will it take to get back to the top of the proverbial mountain again? Have you promised each player a cat that they could call their own if they manage to repeat?

Well, I didn't expect the Spanish Inquisition.

It will take one thing - staying healthy. Staying healthy and playing to our potential. Two, two things. Staying healthy, playing to our potential, and getting homecourt advantage. Three! Three things... staying healthy, playing to our potential, getting homecourt advantage and bench play...
(Sigh)
Among such things as we will need to compete include such diverse elements as: Staying healthy, playing to our potential, getting homecourt advantage, bench play, and an almost fanatical devotion to the pope...

May I start over?

You stated after winning your championship that you were more relieved than excited, because you felt the pressure was put on you as the heavy favorites to win it all since the Penny-Spreewell trade. Do you feel the same way going into the new season? Your main core is still intact.

NOLa. wrote:You stated after winning your championship that you were more relieved than excited, because you felt the pressure was put on you as the heavy favorites to win it all since the Penny-Spreewell trade. Do you feel the same way going into the new season? Your main core is still intact.

Committing to a huge cap number and luxury tax payment meant a leap of faith that we had the right core to win a title. Last year they were unproven. This season, they are a proven commodity so I feel less pressure. But I didn't really feel the pressure ratcheting up until we had reeled off 70 wins and entered the playoffs as a huge favorite, so I think I won't know for sure until we get to the playoffs this year.

With the Eastern Conference so weak who do you see as your biggest challenge, if any to get back to the Finals again this season?

Christian Great, 50 Shades of Great; I just wanted to saw looking at your roster from top to bottom :

RPF wrote:With the Eastern Conference so weak who do you see as your biggest challenge, if any to get back to the Finals again this season?

The Raptors had a great season last year, and all three of their core players are on the upswing of their careers. I would guess now that the Bucks are rebuilding, the Raptors will be our biggest rivals. Sorry, Nick.

If any, what do you see as this team's biggest weakness?

How concerned are you with the overall depth of this team, especially with the loss of Jon Barry?

How do you compare this past title run with the two previous ones? Easier/harder, more or less pressure?

coltsguy510 wrote:If any, what do you see as this team's biggest weakness?

Complacency.

Sports Guy Bill Simmons here, lost in the shuffle of Spree, Penny, Hill, etc... is Antonio McDyess he was the cornerstone of the Hawks rebuild and has sacrificed numbers for the team. He averaged at least 20 ppg for 3 straight seasons until last year. How has he handled going from THE man in Atlanta to just A man in Atlanta? I know winning cures all, but it has to be hard getting lost in the mix.

78# wrote:How concerned are you with the overall depth of this team, especially with the loss of Jon Barry?

How do you compare this past title run with the two previous ones? Easier/harder, more or less pressure?

We lost Barry, that's true, but I think we bolstered our frontcourt with the additions of Brad Daugherty and Marcus Liberty. Adding Charles Smith and Dion Glover help boost our backcourt and those two along with Eddie House had excellent training camps, so while we don't have an individual player with Barry's single skill set, I think our bench is deeper. And of course we still have sim league champion Erick Barkley as well.

The first title run we had was something of a pleasant surprise that the team clicked as well as we did. The second title run was just milking that group for one more. Last year was more stressful due to expectations, but probably easier due to avoiding major injury so our lineup could stay more or less the same all year.

Did you get any offers that made you consider trading Penny during the offseason?

Soundwave wrote:Did you get any offers that made you consider trading Penny during the offseason?

No... come to think of it, I don't even recall getting offers on Penny, period, and if that memory is correct, then there was nothing to make me consider it even for an instant in the first place.

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