Making Things Right: a 2012 Charlotte Hornets Story (NBA 2k12)

[waytofailself]

Making Things Right
A Charlotte Hornets Association Story



Do You Believe We Can Change the Future?

Sometimes it is possible to point to one moment that changed everything. One decision that would send waves over the rest of time. Maybe there is no fate, or maybe fate wins in the end. But sometimes one little nudge in a new direction can make things right in the long run.

But that doesn't mean it will be easy.

The Basics (to be illuminated in future posts):

• The Hornets never leave Charlotte, but do change ownership to Michael Jordan eventually. They will use the Bobcats roster and be user controlled.
• The Sonics never leave Seattle after the city works out an agreement to update Key Arena. They have the current Thunder roster.
• Clay Bennett is awarded an expansion franchise for Oklahoma City, and names the team the Thunder. For simplicity's sake, OKC will use the New Orleans Hornets roster.
• This association will only use game generated draft classes.
• The Hornets are somehow linked to an event that could wipe out humanity.

How did the world come to this? All shall be revealed in time.

[waytofailself]

INTRODUCTION

George Shinn was once a hero to the people of Charlotte...

He used to be a paragon of virtue, a man who embodied the ideals of Billy Graham's back yard in the mid to late 1980's: faith and family values above all else. It would only make sense that he would build Charlotte Coliseum, "The Hive," on Billy Graham Parkway. The team saw great success and would set league attendance records for years in the largest arena in the NBA (over 24,000 seating). Everything was good, but it would not last:

Scandal and circumstance would envelop the owner and erode the community's faith in the franchise. And a city that was so excited to reach the "big time" learned the consequences of what happens when national attention begets national scandal. George Shinn's rape trial would consume the national headlines and expose a number of affairs and infidelities. The NBA Lockout further sucked interest in the Hornets, as fans became cynical despite the team succeeding on a shoestring budget. Add in an ugly fight for an arena filled with luxury suites and the result is the Hornets packing for New Orleans.

The rest is history. Shinn continues to have financial troubles, and eventually leaves the league in shame after his team is bought out by the NBA with the possible specter of league contraction looming over the league. Charlotte gets another franchise, the Bobcats, but are hamstrung by an owner, Bob Johnson, who is more interested in developing another TV network (C-SET) and stopping losses than putting together a winning team or interacting with the city. Johnson set back the Bobcats significantly before cutting his losses and selling to Michael Jordan.

But it did not have to be this way...

November 1, 1995

It's time for the Hornets to take the "next step." Having just won a team record 50 regular season games, many experts believed the Hornets had what it took challenge the Bulls for the Eastern Conference due to their significant size advantage up front. There was no love lost between LJ and Zo, but that hasn't stopped teams from reaching the top of the NBA in the past. Coach Allen Bristow had great success with the team, but something was creeping in the background and reared its head to blow up the optimism shortly before the season was to begin:

Alonzo Mourning demanded a 7 year $91 million contract with an escape clause in the 4th year. If those demands were not met, he would be traded.

And with George Shinn balking and the team actively looking for trade partners, the sense of optimism enveloping Charlotte was quickly evaporating. This is the critical moment. This is where everything goes downhill. Find a way to sign Zo and Charlotte's NBA future is secured for years to come. Let him leave and...well, that is not an option. There is too much at stake.

George Shinn's office, on an early November afternoon...

Mr. Shinn is sitting in his office staring at paperwork. But something seems off. He's waiting for a call to see whether the Miami Heat will include more in their trade package. Shinn had given up entirely on resigning Zo. With the season coming fast, the trade needs to move quickly. But it's strange. It's almost as if there's a buzzing in his ear, and everything in the office looks a little darker than normal. George checks his blood pressure medication, and sure enough he does not need to take another pill for 2 more hours.

When he looks up, a dark, cloaked figure is standing in the corner of his office. His features are indistinct, as if they are constantly changing. Shinn cannot get a good look at his face, yet for some reason he does not reach for his phone or attempt to yell for security. His brain is urging him to do it, but his muscles relax as the shrouded figure sits across from him.

Man: You know why I am here.

Shinn remains silent. He's seen strange things from the corner of his eye in the past. Nightmares lurking in the shadows. But like a child's fancy they always disappear when looked at through an adult's eye. Not this one. No, this one is talking to him.

Man: I am here to save you.

Shinn: Y...you what?

Man: I know what is going to happen. But you must trust me.

Shinn: Who are you?

Man: That doesn't matter. Only time is important, and we do not have much of it. I have seen what happens, the disasters and the fallout. And I want to save you from a terrible mistake.

Shinn: Me? Why me? Who are you. You don't look like an angel. How did you get in --

Man: I am just a man, a man with very little time. Very shortly, you will receive a call asking you to authorize a trade to Miami. It will be what sounds like a good enough offer, but you need to reject it.

Shinn: What are you talking about? We're not talking to Miami I don't know where you got that idea from.

The light on Shinn's phone blinks. The intercom announces that Pat Riley has decided to call Mr. Shinn personally and that he and the Hornets' GM have agreed in principle. The secretary asks whether she should put the call through.

Shinn: Tell him to hold for just a minute. How did you know about Miami?

Man: Because I know what is going to happen. I cannot explain it further, other than to say you must re-sign Alonzo Mourning at all costs.

Shinn: Ha, you must be some fan that somehow snuck in here. I don't know how you got the Miami info but maybe that was a good guess. We're not New York City, we can't afford to have that high a payroll.

Man: You can call me what you want, but do you want everyone to know about these?

The man passes a large envelope full of pictures to Shinn. Pictures that Shinn does not know where they came from, and would never want anyone to see.

Shinn: What. How? Have you been spying on me? Are you blackmailing me? I can't believe I listened to you.

Man: No. I am just showing you what will come to pass. You think these are secret, but word will get out. For now you are untouchable, but failing to resign Alonzo Mourning will be the first crack in your armor. Soon everything will spill out, and soon everything will crumble. But you can stop it.

Shinn: Why me? Why are you doing this to me?

Man: Because it has to be you. Because you're the only one who can stop it.

Shinn: Stop what?

Man: Please --

Before he can finish answering, the shrouded figure disappears from across the desk as suddenly as he appeared. The lights brighten. The red light on his phone continues to blink. Sitting alone as the sun begins to set, George Shinn is left to contemplate the pictures on his desk and whether $91 million is a small price to pay to save his good name.

After what feels like hours, Mr. Shinn buzzes his secretary.

Shinn: Get me on the phone with Alonzo and his agent. I'm ready to talk.

March 13, 2074

The scene is still chaos. A man collapses on the platform from out of nowhere, his blond hair streaked with sweat and his body bloated due to the stress of the jump and the length of time he stayed. Fortunately, his vitals are stable. They pulled him out in time. But the sirens are still blaring and the building keeps shaking. They'll probably have to give an evacuation order soon.

Doctors rush up to the man on the platform. He's still not all together.

Man: Did we do it?

Doctor: Do what?

Man: Did we succeed? Did we save the Hornets?

A man in uniform had been watching the entire scene in stoic silence. Only now does he break in.

Commander: The mission was a failure. You achieved your objective, but they are still attacking. The effect on their force was negligible.

Man: No. We missed it.

He only has energy left to slink down and let the doctors do their work. How could they have failed? Everyone had calculated and put theories together for months and were sure the Alonzo Mourning trade would change everything. But it must be something else. Something that they missed the first time around. But they can't be far -- every calculation pointed to the Hornets somehow being linked with the disaster around them.

Who knows if they'll have another chance to make it right again.

Next Post: a summary of the basketball consequences of the tampering as a prelude to the Charlotte Hornets' 2011-2012 season.

[waytofailself]

FALLOUT

And after humanity, in its hubris, attempted to alter the flow of time...

• The Charlotte Hornets earn the #3 seed in the Eastern Conference and lose to the Jordan led Chicago Bulls in the Conference Finals. The series lasted 5 games and the team's inexperience and lack of depth is exposed.

• The Hornets never reach that pinnacle again, and a few years later would lose Larry Johnson to a freak back injury and Alonzo Mourning to kidney failure. Muggsy Bogues would carry the torch, and his #1 jersey is the first to be retired by the franchise.
• Hornets GM Bob Bass works magic attempting to keep the franchise competitive, but with so much money tied up in injured players the Hive can't generate enough revenue to keep the Hornets competitive. Despite this, he wins NBA Executive of the Year a second time.
• Bobby Phills never gets in a Porche race that would lead to his death. He is eventually traded to the Dallas Mavericks to lower team costs.
• Charlotte fans are sympathetic to the team's situation and lament what might have been if their two brightest stars had not been injured. But the city has trouble raising enough funds to build a new stadium.

• Enter NBA Commissioner David Stern, who wanted to use the vastly increased financial resources of the NBA to keep hard luck teams like Charlotte in town, lest they relocate and the NBA loses the market entirely (like in Kansas City).

• After a lot of red tape, the NBA helps subsidize a new arena in Downtown (or as the locals call it, Uptown) Charlotte.

• Other non-large market teams, such as the Sacramento Kings and Seattle Supersonics would eventually also take advantage of this program to secure funding for stadium renovations without putting a crushing burden on taxpayers, although in return the NBA got a pro-rata share of non-sport event profits. For that reason, Vancouver refused to use the program and let the Grizzlies move to Memphis.
• Controversy explodes in Charlotte and an uproar rises from the NBA's largest market teams when it is revealed that Charlotte Hornets owner George Shinn embezzled a large portion of the NBA's Stadium Grant Funds to pay off debts, hire prostitutes, and throw lavish sex parties. Shinn is sued by the NBA and eventually settles.
• As part of the settlement agreement, Shinn relinquishes ownership of the Hornets -- who would be owned by the NBA until a suitable owner was found.
• Shinn later is sentenced to 15-25 years of prison after charges are brought by the State of North Carolina and the federal government. In an interview he laments what could have been, and that a "black man" told him to sign Alonzo Mourning to a contract that would set back the Hornets for years. Needless to say, this does little help Shinn's already soiled public image.

• The NBA would eventually find a suitable purchaser of the Hornets in a local ownership group led by NBA legend Michael Jordan. Mr. Jordan would clean house and hire a number of hand picked staff to key positions.
• Unfortunately, this meant no one in the front office would stand up to Michael Jordan or challenge his basketball decisions.

• Adam Morrison is still considered to be one of the worsts busts in Charlotte Hornets history. He would later go on to win an NBA Championship warming the LA Lakers bench.

• Meanwhile, the Seattle Sonics find themselves with a series of terrific drafts. After hovering in late lottery mediocrity for years, Sonics GM Rich Cho decided it was best to slash and burn the core of the team and start over.

• The results take time, but eventually the Sonics climb are one of the top teams in the NBA behind young stars Kevin Durant and Russel Westbrook along with a staggeringly positive series of other draft picks and trades.

• Oklahoma City business mogul Clayton Bennett builds an NBA ready arena in the OKC and pays the league $350 million for the right to create an expansion team. Due to Oklahoma's reputation for severe weather, the team is called the Thunder.
• The Thunder offer Rich Cho far more money than he was currently making to be the Thunder GM, but he instead decides to stay in the Pacific Northwest and take on the challenge being the Portland Trailblazers GM.
• The Thunder experience moderate early expansion success, but cannot crack the top eight in a tough Western Conference.
• In less than a year, Blazers owner Paul Allen fires Cho under mysterious, still not entirely understood circumstances.
• A combination of losing and poor player/personnel choices cause the Hornets to sink into a state of disarray. The local fans are still alienated from the franchise after the George Shinn scandal, and low attendance is causing the Uptown Arena and the franchise to hemorrhage money.
• In a long-time-coming moment of self reflection, Michael Jordan realizes he needs someone to help clean up the mess his team is in. And with rumors of league contraction swirling, the job needs to be done on a budget. Jordan looks to the Seattle Sonics as an example of how his team should build and hires the architect, Rich Cho, as GM.

• The Hornets enter 2011 in the midst of a payroll slash that includes trading all of its veterans with large contracts. Left with a team led by rookies Kemba Walker and Bismack Biyombo, along with trade by-product Corey Maggette, many believe the 2011 Hornets could be the worst NBA team of all time.

Next Post: a run down of how the Hornets fared in the 2011-2012 season, and a look at things to come.

[waytofailself]

Prologue posts are done and the first season is just about finished simming. Hopefully this turns out to be a very "different" style of a Basketball Dynasty, and I hope you enjoy.

Charlotte Rookie PG Kemba Walker makes his home debut for the Hornets.

[waytofailself]

2011-2012 Season Summary

LAST HURRAH!



Rondo Leads Big Three to Unbelievable Title

The season ended in one of the most remarkable playoff runs in recent memory and ended in a thrilling seven game series between a team led by cast offs and a team everyone had counted out. But before we break down how it all shook down for Bean Town, let's start by taking a look at the Charlotte Hornets season:

Hornets Season Summary

The Hornets entered the season with no expectations at all. And what looked like a house cleaning project by Michael Jordan and Rich Cho saw the cubbard possibly get even barer to start the season. With prognosticators already complaining that the Hornets looked primed to tank the season away, they traded two more of their experienced rotation players before the regular season.

Trade #1:
New Jersey Nets Receive: PG D.J. Augustin
Charlotte Hornets Receive: 2012 First Round Draft Pick & PG Jordan Famar

Although some were surprised the Hornets were able to pry a first round pick out of the Nets, it may be because, internally, the Nets believe they have enough good parts to make a playoff push with Deron Williams and Brook Lopez. However, in case Williams bolts next season, the Nets have a much better alternative to fill in the gap in Augustin than they ever would have with Jordan Famar.

Trade #2:
Denver Nuggets Receive: PF Tyrus Thomas
Charlotte Hornets Receive: PF Kenneth Faried & SG Rudy Fernandez

Thomas was out of favor with the Hornets after seeming to only put forth half the effort of what he was capable of. Surprise surprise, sounds like his time in Chicago. However, there's always a buyer in the NBA for someone with length and speed to run the floor, and in this case the buyer was the Denver Nuggets. True, they had to give up Faried, a player they felt they were able to steal in the draft. However, this trade turned into yet another episode of the Hornets trading a player only to have him blow up on another team.

Except this time no one is going to blame the Hornets. Name one person in the NBA who thought Thomas would take his "last chance" as the time to average 19 points, 9 rebounds, and almost two blocks per game? Not even in the Nuggets' wildest dreams.

As for the Hornets, they went into the season with a very "green" starting line-up of Walker, Henderson, Maggette, Faried, and White. But when Kemba Walker, arguably the best player on the team despite being a rookie, suffered a serious injury in the 3rd game of the season, expectations for the Hornets completely disappeared. People stopped wondering if they would break the NBA's futility mark and began wondering if they would win at all for the rest of the season.

The answer, surprisingly, was yes.

Charlotte Hornets 2011-2012 Statistics Stats - 2011*
Player	GP	MIN	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	TPG	FPG
C. Maggette	81	28.3	22.0	3.7	0.8	0.2	0.2	2.5	.479
K. Walker	31	32.7	13.8	3.5	5.7	1.0	0.0	3.1	.408
G. Henderson	82	32.6	12.6	3.2	1.4	1.2	0.8	2.1	.450
B. Mullens	82	24.1	11.9	6.9	1.0	0.2	0.5	1.6	.450
J. Famar	82	23.5	11.3	2.1	3.5	1.3	0.1	2.5	.387
K. Faried	82	33.4	8.9	11.5	1.3	1.4	1.6	1.9	.406
R. Williams	82	13.0	6.2	2.2	0.6	0.5	0.0	1.1	.508
M. Carroll	53	8.7	5.1	0.8	0.3	0.3	0.0	0.8	.472
B. Biyombo	55	11.7	0.8	2.9	0.5	0.1	0.5	0.5	.326
E. Najera	57	7.0	0.6	1.5	0.5	0.3	0.0	0.4	.379

* Unfortunately due to auto-save magically turning on at the end of the season some stats are missing, such as D.J. White's and Rudy Fernandez's.

Corey Maggette would be the steady hand that kept the ship afloat when Kemba went down. Jordan Famar proved his worth to the team essentially taking on the role D.J. Augustin left and leading the charge. Meanwhile, Kenneth Faried proved to be a defensive force in the middle as well as a rebounding machine. His motor helped stop the sieve that the Hornet interior defense had been in prior years.

At the beginning of March, the Hornets found themselves settled nicely in the 6th playoff position in the Eastern Conference. Kemba Walker had come back from injury before the All-Star break and Charlotte had just slain a few giants with him in the lead. Unfortunately, with all the "tank" talk long squelched, the Hornets could not keep it up and faded drastically down the stretch to finish the year with a 35-47 record. For all the cuts made to the payroll, it's amazing to think this is only a game difference from 2010-2011 with a much younger roster.

NBA End of Season Review

Remember what people said before about Carmelo Anthony and the Ewing Theory? Well, maybe they better start believing, because Denver showed it could handle the entire Western Conference without a single star on the roster -- although Tyrus Thomas and Ty Lawson may soon gain that status. Meanwhile, Miami showed star power could win the regular season. The question now is who will prevail in the playoffs?

NBA Standings - Updated: May 1, 2012
ATLANTIC	W	L	GB
(4) Celtics	41	41	-
(7) 76ers	39	43	2
(8) Knicks	37	45	4
Raptors	33	49	8
Nets	29	53	12
CENTRAL	W	L	GB
(2) Bulls	52	30	-
(5) Pistons	46	36	6
Bucks	35	47	17
Pacers	34	48	18
Cavaliers	29	53	23
SOUTHEAST	W	L	GB
(1) Heat	58	24	-
(3) Hawks	48	34	10
(6) Magic	42	40	16
Hornets	35	47	23
Wizards	30	52	28
NORTHWEST	W	L	GB
(1) Nuggets	53	29	-
(5) SuperSonics	46	36	7
Trail Blazers	37	45	16
Timberwolves	35	47	18
Jazz	31	51	22
PACIFIC	W	L	GB
(2) Lakers	52	30	-
(4) Clippers	51	31	1
(8) Warriors	44	38	8
Kings	40	42	12
Suns	33	49	19
SOUTHWEST	W	L	GB
(3) Spurs	51	31	-
(6) Mavericks	46	36	5
(7) Thunder	45	37	6
Grizzlies	41	41	10
Rockets	37	45	14

NBA Playoffs Summary

First Round
Miami 4 - New York 2
Chicago 4 - Philadelphia 3
Atlanta 4 - Orlando 0
Boston 4 - Detroit 1

Denver 4 - Golden State 0
Lakers 4 - Oklahoma City 0
San Antonio 2 - Dallas 4
Clippers 1 - Seattle 4

Conference Semifinals Round
Miami 2 - Boston 4
Chicago 3 - Atlanta 4

Denver 4 - Seattle 1
Lakers 2 - Dallas 4

Conference Finals
Boston 4 - Atlanta 3
Denver 4 - Dallas 1

NBA Finals
Boston 4 - Denver 3

The Celtics coasted through the regular season at 41 wins and 41 losses but turned everything on for the playoffs. Note that the Boston Celtics won the first three games and needed a seven game series to finish off the Nuggets for the Championship. Also keep in mind that Hornets cast-off Tyrus Thomas averaged 28 points per game in the finals, but in the end it would be Rajon Rondo who would carry home the award of Finals MVP.

NBA 2011-2012 Awards
Award	Player	Pos	Team
Most Valuable Player	LeBron James	SF	Miami Heat
Rookie of the Year	Kyrie Irving	PG	Cleveland Cavaliers
Sixth Man of the Year	Marcus Thornton	SG	Sacramento Kings
Defensive Player of the Year	Dwight Howard	C	Orlando Magic
Most Improved Player	Jarret Jack	PG	Oklahoma City Thunder
Coach of the Year	Lawrence Frank	HC	Detroit Pistons
All-NBA 1st Team
All-NBA 1st Team	Dwight Howard	C	Orlando Magic
	Kevin Durant	SF	Seattle SuperSonics
	LeBron James	SF	Miami Heat
	Derrick Rose	PG	Chicago Bulls
	Stephen Curry	PG	Golden State Warriors
All-NBA 2nd Team
All-NBA 2nd Team	Brook Lopez	C	New Jersey Nets
	Blake Griffin	PF	Los Angeles Clippers
	Carmelo Anthony	SF	New York Knicks
	Kobe Bryant	SG	Los Angeles Lakers
	Russel Westbrook	PG	Seattle SuperSonics
All-NBA 3rd Team
All-NBA 3rd Team	Al Jefferson	C	Utah Jazz
	Amare Stoudemire	PF	New York Knicks
	Tyrus Thomas	PF	Denver Nuggets
	Chris Paul	PG	Los Angeles Clippers
	John Wall	PG	Washington Wizards
All-Defensive 1st Team
All-Defensive 1st Team	Dwight Howard	C	Orlando Magic
	LeBron James	SF	Miami Heat
	Kenneth Faried	PF	Charlotte Hornets
	Rajon Rondo	PG	Boston Celtics
	Paul George	SG	Indiana Pacers
All-Rookie 1st Team
All-Rookie 1st Team	Isiah Thomas	PG	Sacramento Kings
	Brandon Knight	PG	Detroit Pistons
	Kenneth Faried	PF	Charlotte Hornets
	Ricky Rubio	PG	Minnesota Timberwolves
	Kyrie Irving	PG	Cleveland Cavaliers

As mentioned before, Kemba Walker was too injured early in the year to make an impact on awards, but it looks like he bounced back from his injury full strength and played very well down the stretch even if the rest of the team hit a wall. With Kenneth Faried and a surprisingly rejuvenated Corey Maggette, the Hornets managed to stay afloat this season and managed to find some strong pieces to build around for the future.

And that means taking advantage of having two lottery picks in the draft for the 2nd year in a row, including the 2nd highest shot at the #1 overall pick thanks to the New Jersey Nets.

Next Post: Draft Summary & an outlook towards the new season.

[TheNumber35]

Man...this is so awesome. First you put together one of my all-time favorite reads in your Guy West legacy, and now you've roped me in again with this one. Cannot wait to see where this goes. And I love the whole theme of "changing the future" so cool...where did you come up with the idea for it?

[waytofailself]

Quote: Originally Posted by TheNumber35

Man...this is so awesome. First you put together one of my all-time favorite reads in your Guy West legacy, and now you've roped me in again with this one. Cannot wait to see where this goes. And I love the whole theme of "changing the future" so cool...where did you come up with the idea for it?

Thanks for the positive feedback.

Honestly, it comes from going to a lot of Hornets games growing up, and then seeing them torn from the city. They were my first "home" team (I grew up in Charlotte, NC). It was quite the suckerpunch.

So I've always kind of wondered what would happen if things had been different.

[MarchotehMrgnFreemns]

I actually had thought about doing this exact same thing the other day, then I came onto the boards and saw this thread. You beat me to it! Definitely interested though. Love the write ups!