Fun web-based sports GM time waster

[rjolley]

Found a sports sim that I wanted to share with you guys. It's a a fun basketball GM game based on the NBA. Check it out here. There are files available to recreate the current NBA.

There has also been a college game released today. Here's a bit about it:

General Features:
Player recruiting takes into account distance and team prestige.
Conference (CT) and National (NT) tournaments.
Huge number of teams

Game Specific Variations:
College Basketball Coach: 320 teams, 20 Conferences, 20 CTs, 64 team NT
Big Five: 80 teams, 5 Conferences, 5 CTs, 32 team NT, 4x faster
Seasons: same as College Basketball Coach, but maybe 2x faster due to no player stats

There are also football and baseball versions out there, available at zengm.com.

[MizzouRah]

Been playing the basketball one, pretty neat. Already through a few seasons.

[rjolley]

I tried the college basketball game. It doesn't have the "one more turn" feel as the NBA one for me.

Loving the NBA one, though. Easy to build a team in the off season, then play a month at a time, making adjustments if needed. One thing I don't like is the Trading Block feature becomes useless after a number of seasons due to the amount of data it has to work though. One nice feature, especially for a bunch of text simmers like ourselves, is that you can play a multiplayer league.

The developer of the NBA game is on reddit and is actively working on features. He is open to suggestions, if you have any.

[MizzouRah]

Yeah I'm in cap hell right now.. but got the 6th pick in the draft and finally have someone to build around. I love simming month to month!

[panerd]

College ones are all blocked at my work but the NBA one seems to work. Looks fun!

Mizzou: Did you start with St. Louis? I like to go local but didn't know if starting with one of the worst teams at first would just be frustrating.

[Logan]

Been playing the NBA one for a couple hours today. Started with the NYC franchise on random. Year 1 my team wasn't very good but I somehow snuck into the playoffs and then made my way to the conference finals. Year 2 I was doing poorly and traded away a talented kid who was somewhat repetitive on my team for a 1st rounder that ended up being #1 overall. Got a stud who went on to win RoY scoring 25 a game.

I finished #1 in my conference in 2018 but got bounced in the second round. 2019 I finished 2nd overall and made it to the Finals. Game 1, my former #1 overall had a triple double in a win. Lost Games 2 and 3 and came back with a G4 win thanks to 39 pts from said stud. Lost a close Game 5 and then did live play by play for Game 6. Went into double overtime and I lost on a 3 at the buzzer. God damn it.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by panerd

College ones are all blocked at my work but the NBA one seems to work. Looks fun!

Mizzou: Did you start with St. Louis? I like to go local but didn't know if starting with one of the worst teams at first would just be frustrating.

YES and got a crappy team.. lol. Working my way into a playoff contender. The emails the owner sends me each year are hilarious!

It's surprisingly fast interface and I really love the layout/ease of the game.

[CU Tiger]

Originally Posted by rjolley

Found a sports sim that I wanted to share with you guys. It's a a fun basketball GM game based on the NBA. Check it out here. There are files available to recreate the current NBA.

There has also been a college game released today. Here's a bit about it:

General Features:
Player recruiting takes into account distance and team prestige.
Conference (CT) and National (NT) tournaments.
Huge number of teams

Game Specific Variations:
College Basketball Coach: 320 teams, 20 Conferences, 20 CTs, 64 team NT
Big Five: 80 teams, 5 Conferences, 5 CTs, 32 team NT, 4x faster
Seasons: same as College Basketball Coach, but maybe 2x faster due to no player stats

There are also football and baseball versions out there, available at zengm.com.

any hint on finding real NBA files?

[rjolley]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

any hint on finding real NBA files?

I've seen posts about them on the reddit page, located here.

Did a quick search and found these posts: http://www.reddit.com/r/BasketballGM...restrict_sr=on

[CU Tiger]

Downloaded it last night and Ive sunk quite a few hours into this game....GRRR.

[rjolley]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

Downloaded it last night and Ive sunk quite a few hours into this game....GRRR.

You're welcome. I've sunk quite a bit of time into it myself. Fun to play.

[CU Tiger]

I'm in 2026 and the league has devolved into all SG and PF.
Are you seeing the same?

In the last 3 drafts there have been a TOTAL of 5 C and 3 FC total regardless of talent. There have been only 3 SF.

Wondering if I triggered this somehow or if its a league progression issue.

[rjolley]

I see that as well at times, but the skills of the players tend to allow you to have enough good ball handlers, passers, rebounders, and interior players that you can still field a solid lineup. I rarely have a SF on my team, and may not have more than 1 C/FC. I usually have GF, F, or SG for the SF role and PF or F for the C/FC role.

I try to have a good ball handler/passer, 2 wings that can score, a post that can score, and a post that can rebound. Then, off the bench, I try to have 2-3 players that can step into those same roles.

[Groundhog]

I'm enjoying the football one more than the basketball. All of them are pretty good though, just a little 'lite' compared with FBCB/FOF etc.

[muns]

I actually like the college game. Its great for work

[Fidatelo]

I've sunk a bunch of time into this over the weekend. Love it!

I'm in 2024 with a random generated league. After my first year I signed a really good free agent point guard and along with my original core group plus my first round pick from that year I rode that core to consistent 4 or 5 seed playoff appearances and a championship. Then in 2019 with the core starting to age, a payroll way above the luxury tax, and nothing coming from my low picks for years, I made a bold move: I traded my next 4 first round picks for the 2019 1st round pick of a terrible team. I got the 4th overall pick and snagged a guy with 87 potential that the first 3 teams passed on. His potential has dropped over the years but he's up to a 71 now and in that time he managed to add depth to my core and we've won a second championship and continued our success.

Now my team is even older though and it's becoming a bit of a house of cards. At some point most of the guys are going to fall off or retire all quite close together and with almost no youth injection and no way to sign free agents it will likely be a Lakers-like collapse.

I love it!! In fact I think this is the most fun I've had in a text-sim since the old days of FOF2002 and the freeware EHM.

[Fidatelo]

Dola

This is the roster, I'm pretty proud of how many guys have been with the team 9 or 10 years.

[Fidatelo]

Just played through 2024, we had our best regular season ever, going 63-19, best in the league. I also had my first ever player win a major award, with Michael Smith getting the MVP! Unfortunately we lost to the eventual champs in the conference finals.

So much fun!

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by CU Tiger

I'm in 2026 and the league has devolved into all SG and PF.
Are you seeing the same?

In the last 3 drafts there have been a TOTAL of 5 C and 3 FC total regardless of talent. There have been only 3 SF.

Wondering if I triggered this somehow or if its a league progression issue.

Im seeing the same in my game, for what it's worth.

[Fidatelo]

I think this is a quadro-dola...

This is my favorite email yet from my owner:

From: The Owner, 2027

Sorry we haven't chatted much this year, but I've been busy making sure my "girlfriends" aren't posting pictures with black people on Instagram (how many times do I have to tell them??).

I'm pleased with our regular season performance. We need to make some real noise in the playoffs. Soon.

I just bought a nuclear submarine from the Russians. You believe that? That's all thanks to you. Keep pinching those pennies!

Anyway, overall I'm happy with the progress you've made, but I need to get back to fighting that ridiculous sexual harassment lawsuit (it's not that bad, my lawyer is a total babe).

[CU Tiger]

This is my current roster in 2026.

Basketball roster 2026.jpg

[CU Tiger]

Wow at this message. Direct quotes:

From: The Owner, 2028

Sorry we haven't chatted much this year, but I've been busy having sex with half the freshman girls at the local university (it's hard work, believe me).

I'm pleased with our regular season performance. Hey. I'm a champion. I don't know about you, but that's what my teams do. They win championships. Yeah, making the playoffs is okay I guess, but I'm not satisfied.

Money is an issue. I'm going broke. This is ridiculous. I'm supposed to be rich, but I can barely afford my monacle polish these days.

I'm watching you. Seriously, one of your assistant coaches is a spy. Don't fuck up.

[CU Tiger]

Crap.
Next Season.
66 wins. League Championship and THIS:

From: The Owner, 2029

You've won some games, but you're just not making me enough profit. It's not all about wins and losses, dollars matter too. You're fired.

I hear a few other teams are looking for a new GM. Take a look. Please, go run one of those teams into the ground.

Return To Inbox

[MizzouRah]

oh wow.. lol

[Logan]

Originally Posted by Logan

Been playing the NBA one for a couple hours today. Started with the NYC franchise on random. Year 1 my team wasn't very good but I somehow snuck into the playoffs and then made my way to the conference finals. Year 2 I was doing poorly and traded away a talented kid who was somewhat repetitive on my team for a 1st rounder that ended up being #1 overall. Got a stud who went on to win RoY scoring 25 a game.

I finished #1 in my conference in 2018 but got bounced in the second round. 2019 I finished 2nd overall and made it to the Finals. Game 1, my former #1 overall had a triple double in a win. Lost Games 2 and 3 and came back with a G4 win thanks to 39 pts from said stud. Lost a close Game 5 and then did live play by play for Game 6. Went into double overtime and I lost on a 3 at the buzzer. God damn it.

I've now gotten through 2025 with this team. In 11 seasons, 10 playoff appearances and a 575-327 record (average of 52 wins per year on a .640 WP), 2 Finals trips, 6 Conference Finals trips...and 0 championships. I just can't get over the hump.

Think I have one or two more years left before I either blow it up or start fresh somewhere else.

[Logan]

Oh look...another thread that includes the words "web based time waster"...

So to update the above and in the correct thread: I got until 2029...still with tons of success, still with no championship to show for it...but quit when I accidentally traded 3 first round picks for nothing.

[Logan]

Started a new league. In Year 1, went 73-9 (ahem - tied for the best record in the conference) and won a championship.

[MizzouRah]

Originally Posted by Logan

Started a new league. In Year 1, went 73-9 (ahem - tied for the best record in the conference) and won a championship.

Atta boy!

[Fidatelo]

I just finished year 2037 with my 6th championship (and third in 6 years). My original core group started retiring one every year or two from 2025-29, except Luis Nichols who ended up playing 20 seasons and finally retiring in 2034. His longevity allowed him to get 2-3 more rings than the others as he helped bring up what is now the new core.

Interestingly, the guy that was supposed to bridge that gap, the dude that I traded 4 first round picks to select, ended up refusing to re-sign with me after the 2028 season for some reason. He went on to have a half-dozen more successful seasons before retiring to the HoF, but he didn't get any more championships while my guys ended up getting 3 in that span (2029, 2033, 2034).

My new core is led by perhaps my favorite player yet, Patrick Hartley. A 27th overall pick in 2029, he had a 45/45 rating in the draft and I mostly just took him as a potentially competant backup as I rebuilt. Instead, in year 3 his ratings jumped to 53/53 which was enough to let him start at SF. He put up a solid year, then his ratings jumped again and suddenly he was off to the races. He is now sitting at 73/73, has been First-Team All League 5 straight years, and just came off a season where he was the MVP, Finals MVP, won the championship, and even made Third-Team All Defense to boot.

So much fun!

[chinaski]

Does the ordering on the starting roster screen go:

C
PF
F
SG
PG

?

[britrock88]

Originally Posted by chinaski

Does the ordering on the starting roster screen go:

C
PF
F
SG
PG

?

I've done the reverse. Perhaps it doesn't matter at all...

[Fidatelo]

I think the order is just by best-to-worst but within the starters and then the backups (so you can have a guy in the 6 or 7 slot thats better than the 5 guy but just not at the right position).

[britrock88]

I lost my dynasty to a Chrome crash, but here's recollection...

Took over Portland for a "very hard" situation. Then I was pleased to discover I had a franchise PG in 25yo Michael Padilla (low 80s) and a great complement in SG Joseph Henriques (low 70s). Their max contracts had us in luxury tax territory, so our owner was doubly upset even after a 60-win season due to a conference SF exit and a loss of ~$10m on the year.

In the offseason, Henriques decides he doesn't want to play second fiddle anymore, and refuses to negotiate. So we make do, and recast ourselves as a salary cap-level team. Our wins level out to average 45 in years 2 and 3, but we make the conference SF and finals while also earning ~$20m/year. Owner begins to come around on the money, but still wants a ring.

Entering year 4, I notice a C, Carlos Chavez, with a tantalizing 69/93 spread. He's asking for a max deal. I've scrimped enough to be able to make this kind of offer, and so I jump for it. Amazingly, a 33yo high-60s PG apparently wants a good team, and is willing to come to Portland for a minsal deal. With that, I have a championship-caliber team.

Unsurprisingly, we do great. I get to edge up our expenses to make sure our players stay healthier and progress more favorably. We win 60+ games and take home the title in year 4. In year 5, we again win 60+ games and make a Finals appearance.

Year 6 sees the slow decline of Padilla, the more serious decline of the veteran PG (still a valuable 5th starter), and the full maturity of Chavez as a high-70s player. We romp to a 70-12 regular season. After 8 straight playoff wins get us to the conference finals, it crashes.

Alas. Fun run!

[Fidatelo]

Originally Posted by britrock88

I lost my dynasty to a Chrome crash, but here's recollection...

Took over Portland for a "very hard" situation. Then I was pleased to discover I had a franchise PG in 25yo Michael Padilla (low 80s) and a great complement in SG Joseph Henriques (low 70s). Their max contracts had us in luxury tax territory, so our owner was doubly upset even after a 60-win season due to a conference SF exit and a loss of ~$10m on the year.

In the offseason, Henriques decides he doesn't want to play second fiddle anymore, and refuses to negotiate. So we make do, and recast ourselves as a salary cap-level team. Our wins level out to average 45 in years 2 and 3, but we make the conference SF and finals while also earning ~$20m/year. Owner begins to come around on the money, but still wants a ring.

Entering year 4, I notice a C, Carlos Chavez, with a tantalizing 69/93 spread. He's asking for a max deal. I've scrimped enough to be able to make this kind of offer, and so I jump for it. Amazingly, a 33yo high-60s PG apparently wants a good team, and is willing to come to Portland for a minsal deal. With that, I have a championship-caliber team.

Unsurprisingly, we do great. I get to edge up our expenses to make sure our players stay healthier and progress more favorably. We win 60+ games and take home the title in year 4. In year 5, we again win 60+ games and make a Finals appearance.

Year 6 sees the slow decline of Padilla, the more serious decline of the veteran PG (still a valuable 5th starter), and the full maturity of Chavez as a high-70s player. We romp to a 70-12 regular season. After 8 straight playoff wins get us to the conference finals, it crashes.

Alas. Fun run!

That sounds super fun! I may have to try with a harder team to see how different it is (I chose Toronto because Canada but they are listed as Easy for whatever reason).

I wonder why the game crashes so much for you? The worst that's ever happened for me was a couple times my roster only showed one player (it's happened when I've accidentally re-signed too many of my own players and gone over the roster limit). I was able to just close Chrome and re-open and everything was normal.

[britrock88]

Heh. My crash was related to me simulating games while also streaming video from the floor sessions of the North Dakota House and Senate while having 15+ other tabs open. In short, don't blame the site.

[Groundhog]

Other thing to keep in mind is that the way these games work is pretty 'revolutionary' as far as the text sim world goes. Basically, despite being 'online', all the game-processing and saves are stored and processed on your PC, which is why it's free and you can have as many saves as you like.

[QuikSand]

I have fiddled with the NFL version a bit. It's definitely pretty rough around the edges, but I'm so in love with this concept that I'm giving them a lot of slack.

[rjolley]

The code for the games is available, at least for the NBA version, so if you have some coding skills, you can jump in and help out.

[Fidatelo]

In 2055 I won the championship with an aging core. I had to re-sign my 32-year-old finals MVP PG to a 5-year $20M contract. I hesitated for a second but figured I owed it to him (he helped push my team over the top immediately after arriving in 2050, after 12 years without a championship).

In 2056 we missed the playoffs for the first time ever. We are $15M over the cap with no relief for another full season. In one year our hype decreased from 1.0 down to 0.59.

On the positive side we have $962M in cash so I'm hopeful my owner will forgive a couple of losing seasons

[Fidatelo]

In 2069, after 12 championships, 53 playoff appearances, and a record of 3010-1500, I was unceremoniously turfed.

I had spent the previous decade winning 3 championships and almost always being in serious contention for the others, riding on the back of a 7-foot FC that i drafted in 2057 and who topped out as a 78 overall. 10-time first team all-league, 9-time defensive player of the year, 2-time finals MVP and one-time league MVP he is on track to be the greatest Toronto Beaver of all time.

What did me in was financials. Because of all the success the payrolls skyrocketed, for a couple years even hitting 120M. I figured the huge surplus of cash and the winning ways, plus 50 years of great management, would get me through but i guess not.

Now i have to decide if i want to choose a new team or start a whole new league.

[Young Drachma]

Forgot about this game, but re-stumbled into it again and been messing with it tonight.