#TheStormIsComing | A Nashville Expansion Story | NBA 2K17

[orlegend0208]

I realized quickly in my Spurs Dynasty that it really wouldn't be much of a challenge to keep the Spurs in title contention, which made me lose interest due to it not being the challenge I thought it would be. And with basketball season in full swing right now, I'd really like to do an in depth NBA Dynasty that would hopefully be entertaining, but also rather challenging.

So for this dynasty, I'd like to try something rather different in terms of my writing style... By that, I mean I'd like to write similar to TrekFan. So basically, I will be telling the story and giving game write ups from a 1st person account. The reason for wanting to write a dynasty this way is because i absolutely LOVE TrekFan's St. Louis Dynasty and think it would be fun/very entertaining to write from a 1st person POV.

So, in this dynasty, I will write from the 1st Person POV of Nashville GM, Devin Sutherland.

But before I get into the perspective of Devin Sutherland, I will make a post giving the background behind how the team was founded, who the owner is, etc.

So, I hope you all enjoy the dynasty!

Console: PS4
Starting Point: 2016 Off-Season
Rosters: Default 2K
Sliders: Realistic Sliders (first option, not sure who makes them) and I've lowed the injury sliders just a bit (down to 45 instead of 50)
Games: 82
Draft Classes: EmbraceThaPace's Draft Classes
Goal for Dynasty: I'd like to go through at least a couple seasons with this Dynasty and win at least 1 NBA Title.

[orlegend0208]

Table of Contents

2016 Off-Season

2016-17 Season

2017 Off-Season

2017-18 Season

2018 Off-Season

[orlegend0208]

Season Results

2016-17: 46-36, 5th in the East, Lost in the 2nd Round of Playoffs
2017-18: 66-16, 1st in the East, Won the NBA Finals

[orlegend0208]

Transactions

[orlegend0208]

It's Official: The NBA is Coming to Nashville

March 13, 2016

Untitled.jpg
Bridgestone Arena will be the home of the Nashville NBA Franchise

Nashville, TN -- NBA officials announced today that Nashville will be the second and final city to receive an expansion NBA Franchise.

Last week the NBA announced that the other city to receive an NBA Franchise would be Vancouver. So, the city of Vancouver will once again have an NBA Franchise. Yesterday, the franchise announced their team name will be the Vancouver Ravens. Their colors are purple and white.

Nashville was one of the six cities in contention for an expansion franchise due to the efforts of 67 year old billionaire Kendrick Price. Price, the franchises owner, is known around the Nashville-Davidson County area due to his role in the music industry.

The new franchise will now become Nashville's 3rd professional team along with the Nashville Predators of the NHL and the Tennessee Titans of the NFL. The city also has a baseball team, the Nashville Sounds, who are the Triple A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics.

The Nashville Franchise will share Bridgestone Arena with the Nashville Predators. Bridgestone Arena was built in 1996 when the NHL first expressed interest in giving an expansion team to the city. It was also built due to the possibility of the Sacramento Kings relocating to the city back in 1996. However, that deal obviously did not take place, so it has been used exclusively for the Nashville Predators and other big events like concerts for the past 19 years. It is estimated that the Arena will be able to hold 19,395 people in attendance for basketball games.

Now, despite having the Titans in Nashville since 1997 and the Predators in Nashville since 1998, neither team has won a major championship (Super Bowl or Stanley Cup). The closest either team has gotten to winning it all was back in 1999 when the Titans lost Super XXXIV to the St. Louis Rams.

The Nashville Franchise will begin play in the 2016-2017 season. An expansion draft will be held on June 21, 2016, which is just two days before the 2016 NBA Draft where Nashville will receive either the 4th or 5th pick.

A press conference will be held in Bridgestone Arena next Monday by team Owner Kendrick Price. Price will unveil the team name and logo.

[orlegend0208]

Coaching Search Meeting

One day after I was hired, March 17, a coaching search meeting was held with myself, assistant GM Ryan Jackson, and the owner, Kendrick Price.

First off, let me quickly give you some background behind both of them.

Kendrick Price is the classic story of being a billionaire thanks to his father. His father, Arlie Price, owned music studios in Nashville and he also made a killing off of stocks. One of the companies he invested in was Apple... You may have heard of them before. Anyway, once his father died in 2013, his fortunes were passed down to Kendrick, who was his only kid. And ever since then, Kendrick has been trying to bring the NBA to his hometown. Well, he definitely succeeded.

Kendrick is rather old school with his approach with owning the team. He's real big into the importance of our team image. First and foremost, he wants us to be a classy, well respected organization. And with time, that will come. But I'm not sure why that is what he cares about most at the moment.

The thing that pisses me off the most, is he doesn't care about the morale for the franchise. All of his players could want out and he wouldn't care as long as he makes some money off of them. Hell, he doesn't really care for the success of the Franchise either... Neither of those stances make sense to me, but if you're a billionaire who is the majority owner of an NBA franchise, I guess you do things your way.

Now, let me tell you a bit about the assistant GM, Ryan Jackson. I'm excited to have the guy as an assistant. He's a fantastic negotiator and fantastic at striking trade deals. However, Jackson is young and inexperienced. He's never held a position this high up in an organization before and you can tell. It's his way for the highway... Which is not a good quality in this profession. Especially when you're not even the GM.

So, based on the fact that Mr. Price doesn't care about the morale of anyone associated with his franchise and how Jackson wants his way, you can imagine how these meetings went.

I was relatively quiet throughout the meeting because I already knew who I wanted to hire.

Nonetheless, Ryan and Mr. Price bickered back and forth for a good 30 minutes over the pros and cons of each coach they were interested in hiring. I would give a short opinion every once in a while, but besides that, I just sat back and listened.

Finally, Mr. Price turned to me and asked my opinion.

I responded by saying, "I want to hire Brad Stevens."

They both fell silent and just looked over at me.

Mr. Price asked, "Over Rick Carlisle, Steve Kerr, Tyronn Lue?"

Of course I do. Think about it. Brad Stevens took freakin Butler University. to back-to-back National Title games. Now at this time, you may think to yourself, "well yeah, Butler is a pretty good basketball school." Yeah, they are a pretty good basketball school... And that's because of Brad Stevens.

Before those NCAA Tourney runs, Butler was largely unknown school out of the Horizon League. So, Brad Stevens took a bunch of lowly rated high school players, developed them in college, and through fantastic in game coaching and execution of game plans, was able to advance to 2 straight National Championship appearances. Which is insanely hard for even the likes of Duke, Michigan State, Kansas, Kentucky etc.

After the first National Championship run, he lost his star player, Gordon Hayward. The very next year his team held a worse record, yet he still took a team whose best player was Shelvin Mack, back to the National Championship game. They upset #1 Pittsburgh, #4 Wisconsin, and #2 Florida along the way.

He then accepted the Head Coaching position for the Celtics for the 2013-14 season and only won 25 games... And that was with a very depleted roster. Like, that roster was straight trash.

In 2014-15 they won 40 games, 15 more than the previous season, and earned a playoff berth with just about the same team. Then last season they increased their win total by 8, as they won 48 games earning the #5 seed in the East. And each year, you can see how his young talent improves. That's the sign of a great coach... And that's exactly the type of coach we need with our strategy of signing young players in hopes of building for the future.

And finally, he's only 40 years old. Let's say he accepts the offer, we get the talent in place. Hell, we could have him as our coach for at least the next 20 years. And we'd have a damn good coach too.

After stating my case for Stevens, Mr. Price and Ryan were sold. Surprisingly.

"Call up Stevens and see if he's interested. If so, see when you can meet face to face and strike up a contract." Mr. Price said.

"Any limit on the salary?" I asked as I pulled out my phone.

"There is $6.45 million in the budget for a head coach, but don't you even think about spending all of that on Stevens," Mr. Price responded.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, I called up Brad Stevens and he was interested. Thank God.

A day later I flew up to Boston so we could meet face to face. And after talking for a couple minutes, I got right to the point.

Me: You know what, I'm going to get right to it. You're our guy. I would like to make you an offer to become the first Head Coach of our Nashville franchise.

Stevens: I really appreciate that. But why should I leave a playoff team, with cap space to spend on a a guy like LeBron, and go to an expansion team who may not make the playoffs for years?

Me: Because I'll make sure we acquire the talent necessary to make a playoff run immediately. And I'll make sure you're successful. On top of that, once we're successful, you'll go down in history as the coach that led us to multiple championships.

Stevens: Well then, I have a couple demands of a possible deal. First of all, I would like you to be sign an Assistant Coach who I want to bring in.

Me: Done. Who is it?

Stevens: Elijah Nelson.

Damn. Nelson is a good, but he's not my top choice. My top choice was Tim Duncan. The greatest power forward in NBA history. Duncan decided he was bored in retirement and wanted to get into coaching. Could you have imagined the fan appeal that would bring in?

Me: I'll get Nelson on the phone right after this meeting.

Stevens: I'd also like just a 2 year deal to start off with. I want to see how things go at first.

Me: Done. Now, what's your price?

Stevens: I'd like $4.10M per year.

Oh boy... That was pushing it a bit... But, I was ready to match that and offer even more if it meant getting our guy. I'm 100% sure Stevens will lead us to the promised land.

Me: You know what? Not only will I match that offer, but I'll give you up to $4.35M per year.

Stevens: Wow...

He paused for a moment.

Stevens: I think we have a deal.

We then shook hands after he verbally agreed to the deal.

Me: Great! I'll have my people write up a contract, and we'll get it to you ASAP.

Stevens: Looking forward to the opportunity. Let's take the league by Storm.

[orlegend0208]

Staff Update

We worked tirelessly over the next 3 days to complete our staff. And I'm pleased to say, we have one of the best overall coaching staffs in the NBA.

Here is a look at our completed staff:

Coaching Staff Hires.PNG

And real quick, I'd just like to say a couple words on each of them:

CFO, Robert Hamilton: One of the best CFO's in the NBA. Hamilton's "A" grade on the business aspect of things will really help with the organization moving forward.

Assistant GM, Ryan Johnson: Like I've said before. He's a fantastic negotiator and fantastic at striking trade deals. Between the two of us, we're going to make some great deals over our tenure.

Head Coach, Brad Stevens: We got our guy. Stevens is a great coach who develops his young players very well. We're very confident he'll lead us to multiple championships once we get the core of the team in place.

Assistant Coach, Elijah Nelson: Brad Stevens really wanted Nelson on his staff, so we got a deal done ASAP. Nelson is definitely offensive minded, which will really help this team going forward. He's an average defensive coach, with solid potential.

Head Scout, Don Carter: One of my goals put in place by Mr. Price was to hire one of the best Scouts in the game as we build up this franchise. He gave me 3 years to get it done, so I got it done in a couple days. Carter is easily one of the best at evaluating talent in the NBA. He's a very good addition to our organization.

Trainer, Scott O'Gallagher: O'Gallagher is also one of the very best at his profession. With the uncertainty of players we'll be able to get, as we try to win now, some players may have a history of injury problems. So, signing a great trainer is definitely huge for our organization.

Mr. Price was also very pleased with the fact that after we had completed our coaching staff, we were $2.5 million under the budget he put in place.

[orlegend0208]

The Press Conference

Thankfully, we were able to get the staff in place just in time for the big Press Conference.

The Press Conference, more like a massive pep rally, was held in Bridgestone Arena on the court floor. The staff was split up on two sides of the stage, with the podium being in the middle. On the left side of the podium, sat the front office members. So that included Mr. Price, myself, CFO Robert Hamilton, and Assistant GM Ryan Johnson.

On the right side of the stage, were the coaches: Head Coach Brad Stevens, Assistant Coach Elijah Nelson, Head Scout Don Carter, and Trainer Scott O'Gallagher.

Media members sat in foldable chairs on the court. The event was open to the public as well. So, thousands of eager fans filled the seats of the arena for the introductory press conference of our staff and the unveiling of the team name, logo, and court design.

Of course, Mr. Price spoke first by introducing himself and trying to make himself likable to the fans in attendance. He figured if he seemed likable, people would be more willing to support the team... Whatever floats your boat Mr. Price...

After he spoke for about 5 minutes, he then said, "And I'm pleased to introduce to you the first General Manager of your Nashville Franchise, Mr. Devin Sutherland!"

Thousands of fans cheered after I got up and walked over towards the podium. I shook Mr. Price's hand and we stood for a second for a photo op. He then patted me on the back and took a seat as I stepped up to the podium.

"Isn't this incredible?" I began as the crowd cheered.

"First off, I'd just like to thank Mr. Price for this unbelievable opportunity. I'd also like to thank all the previous coaches I've worked for and with over the years for helping me get to the place I'm at today. I'd also like to thank R.C. Buford, the Spurs' GM for the opportunity to work as a Scout for their organization for the past 7 years. It truly was an honor to work for such a classy organization.

I'd just like to tell you all a little about myself. I grew up in East Tennessee. My junior year in high school killed my hopes of playing pro ball as I suffered a rotator cuff injury that really damaged my right shoulder. So, I went into the next best thing, coaching. After coaching for a couple years, I decided I wanted to help NBA teams evaluate talent. So, I took a low position within the Scouting Department for the San Antonio Spurs. Over the past 7 years I worked my way up in their organization and became one of their main scouts for the southeast region of the U.S.

But, enough about me, I know exactly what you all are wondering... How long until we win?

Well, I'll promise you this. We're going to make some surprising moves this off-season that will help us win immediately."

The crowd cheered.

"We'll think outside the box in making deals that bring the best talent we can acquire to Nashville. And with Brad Stevens as our coach, winning immediately isn't very far fetched. Ya know, how about we hear from him now? I'm proud to introduce to you the first Head Coach of your Nashville Franchise, Brad Stevens!"

The crowd went wild as Stevens walked up to the podium he then spoke for about 10 minutes. The entire staff stood up once Stevens was done and stood side by side for a photo op.

Then, Mr. Price walked to the podium.

"And finally, I'd like to end this press conference by unveiling our team name, logo, uniforms, and court design," Mr. Price began. "I'm proud to introduce to you, the newest team in the NBA, the NASHVILLE STORM!"

Just then on the jumbotron, the logo came up, followed by the court design. The crowd went absolutely nuts.

Logo.jpg
Cx2W0M9VIAAjf_1.jpg

Now came the really challenging part... We had to draft an entire roster.