Izulde
03-16-2009, 08:19 PM
The 7 Jestorian Principles Of Basketball GM'ing
1. Always have a pass-first PG running the offense.
2. Whenever possible, have two pass-first PGs.
3. No matter what, always have at least one 1st round pick in a draft.
4. Finesse centers are the worst thing to have on a basketball court.
5. A title can not be won without at least one scoring superstar.
6. Size matters in the backcourt. A 6'7 or 6'8 SG is a gamechanger.
7. Never be afraid to make a trade.
So there you have it, the 7 Principles the famed GM Jestor lives by.
Hi. I'm Izulde, a disciple of Jestor's. I'm here with the Washington Wizards.
It's 2007 and I plan to mold the Wizards into an extreme version of Jestor's philosophy. To do this, I need to translate these principles into rules.
OOC House Rules
1. The starting PG must have 70 passing/70 handling minimum. If he ever drops below that, he has to be moved to backup and a new starter found.
1a. The backup PG must have 65 passing/65 handling minimum.
2. At least one starter must have 75 scoring. If there isn't one, a trade, drafting or FA signing must be done to get one, unless it violates Rule #3.
3. The team must always have at least one first round pick in a draft.
4. The starting C must have Post as his strongest shot tendency by a large margin.
5. 6'7 is the minimum height for the starting SG.
6. There must be at least one trade made per season.
Hi, there. It's me, Izulde. The thing with Washington was just a practice session. The real job I've landed is here in the Big Easy, hoping to build the Hornets into a championship team.
But it won't be easy. Chris Paul, the young superstar of this team, -just- misses the 70/70 requirement (79/69) by our scouts, so he has to go. Similiarly, Peja Stojakovic falls just short of the scoring minimum for our top star, so we've major changes ahead of us. Worse yet, Tyson Chandler likes to take too many jumpers to fit.
As if that wasn't bad enough, Gerald Shipp, the owner, wants us in the playoffs in the brutal West conference and to be no more than $15 million over the cap while we do it. And even that's pushing it.
We also discussed Jestor's book Big Guards and Bangin' Centers: Crafting a Basketball Championship, which I pulled the principles from. He said he agreed with Jestor's theories as a whole, but added the following stipulations for me to follow:
Other OOC House Rules
1. An exception to the 75 scoring minimum rule can be made if an otherwise qualifying player has been with the team at least 5 years as a starter and made at least 2 All-Star games or an All-NBA Team in those 5 years (the Mateen Yeaton Exception)
2. Any player signed during free agency can NOT be traded until 60 days have passed in the NBA season to ensure that players will continue wanting to play for the team and to maintain stability and continuity on court
I'm grateful for the exception, but that second rule really puts a cramp in my style. Still, I've got to go with it.
New Orleans Hornets receive
SG Mike Miller
Memphis Grizzlies receive/b]
PF David West
New Orleans Hornets 2008 2nd round pick
[b]What this means for the Hornets
Miller's a sensational scorer and an underrated defender. 27 years old and 6'8, he'll pair with Peja Stojakovic to give New Orleans a deadly 1-2 punch at swingman over the next few seasons. The shift also paves the way for raw second year man Cedric Simmons to slide in as starting PF.
What this means for the Grizzlies
West has good all-around skills in scoring, rebounding and defending, but he's neither disciplined nor all that smart and although his contract goes from $10 million on down to $7.5 million in the fifth season, that's still a lot of money to tie up into a player who probably won't bring nearly that much value to the team.
Winner: New Orleans
Izulde makes a nice move in his first trade in New Orleans and the Hornets will be significantly improved by it.
Oh, but we aren't done yet. The problem is, we may be stuck with Tyson Chandler. He's got no skills to speak of other than rebounding and is on a long, irritating contract that no one will take.
New Orleans Hornets receive
C Andrew Bynum
PG Sasha Vujacic
Los Angeles Lakers 2008 2nd round pick
Los Angeles Lakers 2009 2nd round pick
Los Angeles Lakers receive
PG Chris Paul
What this means for the Hornets
Bynum's extremely raw, but he could develop into a solid all-around center someday. He'll fight it out with Tyson Chandler for the starting C spot this season. Vujacic might eventually develop into an excellent pass-first PG, but he's not there yet.
What this means for the Lakers
Paul's an electrifying package. He can pass, score and steal and he's even better thanks to terrific discipline and intelligence. He'll form the NBA's deadliest backcourt for years to come with Kobe Bryant and all the Lakers had to do was give up a couple second rounders and some raw prospects, none of whom are A-list.
Winner: Lakers
The Purple and Gold just took the Hornets to the woodshed here as New Orleans gives up their most valuable asset for a pair of maybes.
We have trouble in that it appears our fun-loving head coach doesn't want to start Andrew Bynum. It makes sense, since Byron Scott can't develop players worth anything.
I immediately fire him and name myself head coach, which all the papers call "the typical brassy move one expects of a Jestor protege." Yeah right. As much as I admire Jestor, he never would have had the stones to make himself head coach.
I quickly institute a new starting lineup more to my liking. PG has yet to be determined, but right now we're looking at SG Miller/SF Peja/PF Hilton Armstrong/C Bynum. Not sure if I see it changing from that, but we also don't have a 75 scorer. Hopefully that'll change once training camp rolls around.
We're taking 12th in the draft and the mocks have us going for Yi Jianlian from China. I do like my 7 footers, that's for sure, but PG is what we need.
2007 NBA Draft 1st Round
1. C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors
2. SF Kevin Durant - New York Knicks
3. SG Brad Newley - Charlotte Bobcats
4. C Spencer Hawes - Portland Trailblazers
5. PG Acie Law - Atlanta Hawks
Damn. Law is not a top 5 pick by any stretch of the imagination. I'm worried now that our guy goes off the board, but I don't have the pieces to move up.
6. SF Corey Brewer - Minnesota Timberwolves
7. PF Yi Jianlian - Boston Celtics
Hah! We couldn't have taken the big Chinaman anyway.
8. PF Al Horford - Houston Rockets
9. PF Brandan Wright - Golden State Warriors
Now I'm within movement range, so I send our #12 pick and the Lakers 2008 2nd round pick to Seattle to move up and get the player I've been dreaming of all draft long.
10. PG Mike Conley - New Orleans Hornets
The analysts love the pick and are surprised he's still around. I am too after Law went #5.
11. SF Jeff Green - Orlando Magic
12. PF Jason Smith - Seattle Supersonics
13. PF Joakim Noah - Philadelphia 76ers
14. C Sean Williams - Utah Jazz
15. PG Gabe Pruitt - Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee really overreached here. The Bucks did sorely need a PG and they were crushed when Law and Conley went off the board, as they thought sure they could land one or the other. But why Pruitt of all players?
16. PG Javaris Crittenton - Chicago Bulls
This is the guy the Bucks should've taken and who'd we have grabbed if Conley was gone.
17. SG Nick Young - Indiana Pacers
18. SG Rodney Stuckey - Washington Wizards
19. SF Al Thornton - Sacramento Kings
20. PG DaShaun Wood - Denver Nuggets
21. C Stanko Barac - Los Angeles Lakers
22. SF Julian Wright - Los Angeles Clippers
23. C Kyrylo Fesenko - Memphis Grizzlies
24. PF Josh McRoberts - New Jersey Nets
25. SF Thaddeus Young - Cleveland Cavaliers
26. SG Morris Almond - Miami Heat
27. SF Giorgos Printezis - Phoenix Suns
28. PF Tiago Splitter - Dallas Mavericks
29. SF Glen Davis - San Antonio Spurs
An out and out steal by the Spurs to get Davis this late. I applaud their efforts.
30. SG D.J. Strawberry - Detroit Pistons
By the time we pick at 42, most of the guys I was looking are gone, but I can't resist basketball pedigree and I know even though he's a finesse center, Jestor would take him because he's from Spain, so Marc Gasol comes aboard.
Mike Conley fits the requirements for starting PG, so he's immediately handed the starting spot. Even better, after clearing out all our contracts, we've got $4.8 million in cap space with 13 players signed. Looks like the cap won't be a worry after all.
Summer League
PG Mike Conley
SF Marcus Vinicius
PF Cedric Simmons
C Hilton Armstrong
C Andrew Bynum
13 points and 10 assists from rookie Mike Conley and 12 bench points from Andrew Bynum and we've got ourselves a summer-opening win, 86-75 over the 76ers.
Although we lose 96-81 to Indiana a couple nights after, Andrew Bynum comes off the bench for 19 points and 12 rebounds and Jarrius Jackson chips in 12 bench points. You people still want to say I made a mistake in getting Bynum?
Here comes the offense! Led by Gerry McNamara's 20 points, Mike Conley's 15 points and 11 assists and Bracey Wright's 11 bench points, we pound Phoenix 93-71.
95-86's the win over Seattle thanks to the bench: Bracey Wright (13 points) and Andrew Bynum and Jarrius Jackson with 10 points a piece.
Our worst outing of the summer saved for last, a 105-86 humiliation at the hands of the Magic, marring Mike Conley's 19 points and Bracey Wright and Torin Francis's 10 and 11 bench points respectively.
Bracey impressed me so much, I may give him a contract in free agency.
1. Always have a pass-first PG running the offense.
2. Whenever possible, have two pass-first PGs.
3. No matter what, always have at least one 1st round pick in a draft.
4. Finesse centers are the worst thing to have on a basketball court.
5. A title can not be won without at least one scoring superstar.
6. Size matters in the backcourt. A 6'7 or 6'8 SG is a gamechanger.
7. Never be afraid to make a trade.
So there you have it, the 7 Principles the famed GM Jestor lives by.
Hi. I'm Izulde, a disciple of Jestor's. I'm here with the Washington Wizards.
It's 2007 and I plan to mold the Wizards into an extreme version of Jestor's philosophy. To do this, I need to translate these principles into rules.
OOC House Rules
1. The starting PG must have 70 passing/70 handling minimum. If he ever drops below that, he has to be moved to backup and a new starter found.
1a. The backup PG must have 65 passing/65 handling minimum.
2. At least one starter must have 75 scoring. If there isn't one, a trade, drafting or FA signing must be done to get one, unless it violates Rule #3.
3. The team must always have at least one first round pick in a draft.
4. The starting C must have Post as his strongest shot tendency by a large margin.
5. 6'7 is the minimum height for the starting SG.
6. There must be at least one trade made per season.
Hi, there. It's me, Izulde. The thing with Washington was just a practice session. The real job I've landed is here in the Big Easy, hoping to build the Hornets into a championship team.
But it won't be easy. Chris Paul, the young superstar of this team, -just- misses the 70/70 requirement (79/69) by our scouts, so he has to go. Similiarly, Peja Stojakovic falls just short of the scoring minimum for our top star, so we've major changes ahead of us. Worse yet, Tyson Chandler likes to take too many jumpers to fit.
As if that wasn't bad enough, Gerald Shipp, the owner, wants us in the playoffs in the brutal West conference and to be no more than $15 million over the cap while we do it. And even that's pushing it.
We also discussed Jestor's book Big Guards and Bangin' Centers: Crafting a Basketball Championship, which I pulled the principles from. He said he agreed with Jestor's theories as a whole, but added the following stipulations for me to follow:
Other OOC House Rules
1. An exception to the 75 scoring minimum rule can be made if an otherwise qualifying player has been with the team at least 5 years as a starter and made at least 2 All-Star games or an All-NBA Team in those 5 years (the Mateen Yeaton Exception)
2. Any player signed during free agency can NOT be traded until 60 days have passed in the NBA season to ensure that players will continue wanting to play for the team and to maintain stability and continuity on court
I'm grateful for the exception, but that second rule really puts a cramp in my style. Still, I've got to go with it.
New Orleans Hornets receive
SG Mike Miller
Memphis Grizzlies receive/b]
PF David West
New Orleans Hornets 2008 2nd round pick
[b]What this means for the Hornets
Miller's a sensational scorer and an underrated defender. 27 years old and 6'8, he'll pair with Peja Stojakovic to give New Orleans a deadly 1-2 punch at swingman over the next few seasons. The shift also paves the way for raw second year man Cedric Simmons to slide in as starting PF.
What this means for the Grizzlies
West has good all-around skills in scoring, rebounding and defending, but he's neither disciplined nor all that smart and although his contract goes from $10 million on down to $7.5 million in the fifth season, that's still a lot of money to tie up into a player who probably won't bring nearly that much value to the team.
Winner: New Orleans
Izulde makes a nice move in his first trade in New Orleans and the Hornets will be significantly improved by it.
Oh, but we aren't done yet. The problem is, we may be stuck with Tyson Chandler. He's got no skills to speak of other than rebounding and is on a long, irritating contract that no one will take.
New Orleans Hornets receive
C Andrew Bynum
PG Sasha Vujacic
Los Angeles Lakers 2008 2nd round pick
Los Angeles Lakers 2009 2nd round pick
Los Angeles Lakers receive
PG Chris Paul
What this means for the Hornets
Bynum's extremely raw, but he could develop into a solid all-around center someday. He'll fight it out with Tyson Chandler for the starting C spot this season. Vujacic might eventually develop into an excellent pass-first PG, but he's not there yet.
What this means for the Lakers
Paul's an electrifying package. He can pass, score and steal and he's even better thanks to terrific discipline and intelligence. He'll form the NBA's deadliest backcourt for years to come with Kobe Bryant and all the Lakers had to do was give up a couple second rounders and some raw prospects, none of whom are A-list.
Winner: Lakers
The Purple and Gold just took the Hornets to the woodshed here as New Orleans gives up their most valuable asset for a pair of maybes.
We have trouble in that it appears our fun-loving head coach doesn't want to start Andrew Bynum. It makes sense, since Byron Scott can't develop players worth anything.
I immediately fire him and name myself head coach, which all the papers call "the typical brassy move one expects of a Jestor protege." Yeah right. As much as I admire Jestor, he never would have had the stones to make himself head coach.
I quickly institute a new starting lineup more to my liking. PG has yet to be determined, but right now we're looking at SG Miller/SF Peja/PF Hilton Armstrong/C Bynum. Not sure if I see it changing from that, but we also don't have a 75 scorer. Hopefully that'll change once training camp rolls around.
We're taking 12th in the draft and the mocks have us going for Yi Jianlian from China. I do like my 7 footers, that's for sure, but PG is what we need.
2007 NBA Draft 1st Round
1. C Greg Oden - Toronto Raptors
2. SF Kevin Durant - New York Knicks
3. SG Brad Newley - Charlotte Bobcats
4. C Spencer Hawes - Portland Trailblazers
5. PG Acie Law - Atlanta Hawks
Damn. Law is not a top 5 pick by any stretch of the imagination. I'm worried now that our guy goes off the board, but I don't have the pieces to move up.
6. SF Corey Brewer - Minnesota Timberwolves
7. PF Yi Jianlian - Boston Celtics
Hah! We couldn't have taken the big Chinaman anyway.
8. PF Al Horford - Houston Rockets
9. PF Brandan Wright - Golden State Warriors
Now I'm within movement range, so I send our #12 pick and the Lakers 2008 2nd round pick to Seattle to move up and get the player I've been dreaming of all draft long.
10. PG Mike Conley - New Orleans Hornets
The analysts love the pick and are surprised he's still around. I am too after Law went #5.
11. SF Jeff Green - Orlando Magic
12. PF Jason Smith - Seattle Supersonics
13. PF Joakim Noah - Philadelphia 76ers
14. C Sean Williams - Utah Jazz
15. PG Gabe Pruitt - Milwaukee Bucks
Milwaukee really overreached here. The Bucks did sorely need a PG and they were crushed when Law and Conley went off the board, as they thought sure they could land one or the other. But why Pruitt of all players?
16. PG Javaris Crittenton - Chicago Bulls
This is the guy the Bucks should've taken and who'd we have grabbed if Conley was gone.
17. SG Nick Young - Indiana Pacers
18. SG Rodney Stuckey - Washington Wizards
19. SF Al Thornton - Sacramento Kings
20. PG DaShaun Wood - Denver Nuggets
21. C Stanko Barac - Los Angeles Lakers
22. SF Julian Wright - Los Angeles Clippers
23. C Kyrylo Fesenko - Memphis Grizzlies
24. PF Josh McRoberts - New Jersey Nets
25. SF Thaddeus Young - Cleveland Cavaliers
26. SG Morris Almond - Miami Heat
27. SF Giorgos Printezis - Phoenix Suns
28. PF Tiago Splitter - Dallas Mavericks
29. SF Glen Davis - San Antonio Spurs
An out and out steal by the Spurs to get Davis this late. I applaud their efforts.
30. SG D.J. Strawberry - Detroit Pistons
By the time we pick at 42, most of the guys I was looking are gone, but I can't resist basketball pedigree and I know even though he's a finesse center, Jestor would take him because he's from Spain, so Marc Gasol comes aboard.
Mike Conley fits the requirements for starting PG, so he's immediately handed the starting spot. Even better, after clearing out all our contracts, we've got $4.8 million in cap space with 13 players signed. Looks like the cap won't be a worry after all.
Summer League
PG Mike Conley
SF Marcus Vinicius
PF Cedric Simmons
C Hilton Armstrong
C Andrew Bynum
13 points and 10 assists from rookie Mike Conley and 12 bench points from Andrew Bynum and we've got ourselves a summer-opening win, 86-75 over the 76ers.
Although we lose 96-81 to Indiana a couple nights after, Andrew Bynum comes off the bench for 19 points and 12 rebounds and Jarrius Jackson chips in 12 bench points. You people still want to say I made a mistake in getting Bynum?
Here comes the offense! Led by Gerry McNamara's 20 points, Mike Conley's 15 points and 11 assists and Bracey Wright's 11 bench points, we pound Phoenix 93-71.
95-86's the win over Seattle thanks to the bench: Bracey Wright (13 points) and Andrew Bynum and Jarrius Jackson with 10 points a piece.
Our worst outing of the summer saved for last, a 105-86 humiliation at the hands of the Magic, marring Mike Conley's 19 points and Bracey Wright and Torin Francis's 10 and 11 bench points respectively.
Bracey impressed me so much, I may give him a contract in free agency.