The Bulgarian Brothers – A College Hoops 2K8 & NBA 2K20 Dynasty

[studbucket]

• The Oklahoma City Thunder have been in a free fall. After being as high as second in the West, the Thunder’s Cinderella ball is burning down as they’ve gone 4-12 in the last month and are in the 8^th spot in the West, trying to fend off the Dallas Mavericks.
• The Los Angeles Clippers are also falling apart, they’ve gone 1-9 in their last 10 and 3-12 in March to completely fall out of the playoff picture. They weren’t having a good season with Paul George, but it is objectively worse since Brandon Ingram has come to town.
• On the other hand, Phoenix is the hottest team in the West, as they are 42-30, 3^rd in the West, winners of 8 straight and 11 of their last 14. The changes to their starting lineup (slotting in Elie Okobo, Harrison Barnes, and Robert Covington) and bringing Bridges, Draymond, and Josh Hart off the bench have been very effective.
• The Milwaukee Bucks have managed to finally wrestle first place away from the Brooklyn Nets and have a 2 game lead in the East. The battle for the top spot out East has been a great one all season, and these two teams are the clear title favorites this year. The Bucks have gone 20-2 since February 10 and are the deepest team in the league, led by an absolutely transcendent Antetokounmpo.
• The Miami Heat (16-56) have tanked magnificently, but so have the Washington Wizards (27-45). With the Wizards likely to have the 3^rd best lottery odds, Miami will probably only have one top 10 pick this season, instead of two.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo and Zion Williamson won the March Player of the Month awards.
• Jerry Sparks (PF, CHA) and Gordon Cousinard (SF, POR) won the March Rookie of the Month awards. A Trailblazer (either Cousinard or Perben) has won the West’s Rookie of the Month award every single time this season.

Trade deadline impact review
On February 10, coincidentally the day the Bucks started their 20-2 run, a series of trades went down on deadline Day. Now that we’re about 2 months on from that, with only 2 months left in the season, let’s analyze how those trades went for the teams.

Team	Feb 10	April 1	Diff	Analysis
Houston Rockets	29-21 (5th)	38-34 (6th)	9-13	Bad. Below .500 since the trade for Gallinari and Johnson, the Rockets can’t seem to figure out how to get Harden a title.
Los Angeles Lakers	28-22 (6th)	37-35 (7th)	9-13	Bad. The Lakers didn’t give up much talent and added Paul George… and it hasn’t really helped. They’ll likely make the playoffs and will be somewhat dangerous, but it’s hard to expect them to contend.
Memphis Grizzlies	28-23 (7th)	42-31 (4th)	14-8	Good. Delon Wright and Jrue Holiday have been fantastic depth players for Memphis and only had to give up an ineffective Winslow, an unneeded Len, and a 2nd rounder.
Phoenix Suns	27-24 (8th)	42-30 (3rd)	15-6	Good. It didn’t seem like much, but it turns out that swapping Gallinari for Covington was the catalyst for turning around Phoenix’s season as the Sun’s near the top of the West.
Los Angeles Clippers	27-25 (9th)	33-39 (10th)	6-14	Awful. The Clippers weren’t going very far with Paul George; with Brandon Ingram they are going backwards and have been objectivity bad. They’ll need to figure something out in the off-season.
Cleveland Cavaliers	24-27 (8th)	35-37 (7th)	11-10	Okay. With young talent and a resurgent Andre Drummond, the Cavs wanted more than they had. Griffin and Dinwiddie have been good fits, and the franchise doesn’t seem to miss Kevin Love.
Dallas Mavericks	23-28 (11th)	35-38 (9th)	12-10	Okay. The Mavericks haven’t greatly improved but are fighting for the final playoff spot and would be a scary team if they make it. This group made a Finals run just 2 years ago, and Mark Cuban believes in a Doncic, Porzingis, Fultz, and Fournier core going forward.
Minnesota Timberwolves	23-28 (12th)	30-44 (13th)	7-16	Bad. On paper, this looked great. In reality, they’ve sucked. Another lost season for KAT, Russell, and the Wolves.
Detroit Pistons	20-32 (12th)	31-42 (10th)	11-10	Okay. Detroit gave up quite a bit to get 2 players who’ve never won anything in Bagley and Wiggins. They have a winning record since the trade but aren’t in the playoffs – which was the goal: to get Trevor Merchant postseason experience.
Sacramento Kings	20-32 (13th)	31-42 (12th)	11-10	Okay. The Kings are less talented, but possibly a better team now. Perhaps if they get a bona fide star this supporting cast could be good enough to make an impact in the West.
Orlando Magic	20-32 (13th)	26-48 (15th)	6-16	Okay. The never-ending rebuild continues in Central Florida. This team sucks, but maybe They’ll get an impact rookie?
New Orleans Pelicans	18-33 (14th)	29-45 (15th)	11-12	Okay. The Pelicans were awful and disappointing, so they threw in the towel and gave up Holiday and Ingram… and they’ve been about .500 ever since. Getting rid of Ingram freed up space for Zion and the players they added are solid NBA pros like Kuzma and Beverly. Despite this, they actually fell in the standings, which is great for their lottery odds.
Washington Wizards	18-33 (14th)	27-45 (14th)	9-12	Okay. The Wizards want to tank and keep their top 5 pick (instead of sending it Miami). They’ve managed to do that while also improving their supporting cast.

Projected Playoff Picture
In the East, the disparity between top and bottom has meant that several teams have already clinched the playoffs, while out West, only Denver have managed to secure their spot in the postseason. If the playoffs started today, here would be the matchups.

#1 Milwaukee (63-10) vs #8 Atlanta (33-40)
#2 Brooklyn (61-12) vs #7 Cleveland (35-37)
#3 Philadelphia (45-26) vs #6 Indiana (36-37)
#4 Boston (43-30) vs #5 Chicago (36-36)

#1 Denver (45-27) vs #8 Oklahoma City (37-36)
#2 Golden State (44-28) vs #7 Los Angeles Lakers (35-37)
#3 Phoenix (42-30) vs #6 Houston (38-34)
#4 Memphis (42-31) vs #5 Utah (41-32)

The Warriors vs. Lakers and Suns vs. Rockets matchups are very interesting round 1 matchups involving several superstars. The Mavericks are just 2 games out of 8^th place, and they will be a very dangerous 8 seed if they make the playoffs.

[marshdaddy]

Not sure if it’s just me, but the hyperlink to the trades sent me to a 2002 thread and not the trades that happened.

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by marshdaddy

Not sure if it’s just me, but the hyperlink to the trades sent me to a 2002 thread and not the trades that happened.

Haha, so weird. No, it takes me here: https://forums.operationsports.com/f...ty-51.html#402

[RolePlayer]

The link worked for me too

[studbucket]

Key Performances

• Florida’s run came to a screeching halt as the Gators’ defense could do nothing all game and their offense stopped working in the second half. Florida had a 50-48 halftime lead, but were outscored 52-26 in the second half. Wainright only had 5 points in the loss. For Duke, Oneil and O’Donnell only combined for 17 points, but 7^th man SG Jerald McLaren scored 23 points and starting PF Ian Muhammed scored 20 to push the Blue Devils to victory.
• They’ll face 2 seed Mississippi State, who won 94-82 over Maryland. The Bulldogs were led by senior SG DeAntoine Minnifield’s 31 points. This is their 2^nd Final Four (1996) and first ever national title game. Duke was last here in 2015 when they won it all.

NIT Update

• In the semifinals, Rhode Island beat Army 71-61 and Washington beat Boston 85-70, finally holding Douby in check.
• In the title game, the Washington Huskies came back to win 83-75 over Rhode Island. The Rams’ PG Romain Pilgrim led all scorers with 22 points, but that wasn’t enough.

[studbucket]

Coach K has won his 6^th national championship with the Blue Devils as he took a stacked team through tournament, with most games being close in the first half before they really turned it on in the second half. After falling in the Sweet 16 and second round the previous two seasons, the Blue Devils started the season ranked #2 in the country. They managed to lose 6 games along the way – including a shocker to Oregon State – as they saw Tennessee and Florida steal the spotlight away with their fantastic regular seasons.

However, despite losing by 26 to Maryland in the ACC Championship game, they never lost again after that. With a stacked roster, they smashed their way through the first 5 games of the tournament, even easily handling Florida in the Final Four. Jaan O’Donnell and Seth Oneil were absolutely outstanding together, while freshman center David Bruff was very solid for the national champs, who finish the season at 32-6.

The final score of the championship game was 86-79 and Duke was down by 7 at half but flipped the script (as they did all season) and outscored the Bulldogs by 14 in the second half. Jaan O’Donnell led the Blue Devils with 23 points and 12 rebounds.

National Player of the Year: Sidney Dunnington, C, Notre Dame
For the second straight season Dunnington wins this award, managing to score more points (27.6), grab more rebounds (8.2), and get more steals (1.0) than he did last year. The 6’8” center was a scoring machine for the Fighting Irish, but there are ample questions about how well his game translates to the NBA. He’ll likely be a first round pick, but many are comparing him to Jarek Kickert – the disappointing top 5 pick from the Knicks two seasons ago.


Mid-Major Player of the Year: Ismail Gary, C, St. Mary’s
The 7-footer from San Bernardino took a major step forward this season and was the best player in the West Coast conference and any of the non-power 6 conferences across the country. At 24.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game, he was a force to be reckoned with.


National Coach of the Year: Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
Some folks were a bit surprised by this, but Coach K is an outstanding coach and got the most from his players this year, especially when it mattered.


Defensive Player of the Year: JaMaicus Myles, PF, Florida
The undersized power forward hounded opposing players all year and drew comparisons to Draymond Green and Dana Bright. While Florida’s offense got all of the plaudits, his defense was a big part of this team’s success.


Freshman of the Year: David Bruff, PF, Duke
David Bruff was the #1 recruit in the nation and he clearly showed why this season. After the Blue Devils struggled to make an impact in the tournament two straight years, they won the title this season in large part to his influence in the paint. The 6’10” youngster averaged 8.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game for the Blue Devils.


First Team All-American
PG: Brandin Collucci, Villanova
SG: Kurt Gibbs, Illinois
SF: Jameer Trammell, Kansas State
PF: Chip Queen, Providence
C: Sidney Dunnington, Notre Dame


Second Team All-American
PG: Manourou Wyatt, Syracuse
SG: Darryl Sparrow, UConn
SF: Earl Carney, Michigan State
PF: Steve Beck, Georgia Tech
C: Stewart Mobley, UCLA


Freshman All-American
PG: Damond Conklin, Marquette
SG: Lyle Cortez, Marquette
SF: Melvin Wheeler, Providence
PF: David Bruff, Duke
C: LaCedrick McCullough, LSU

[Careless Whisper]

Knew Oggy's move to Stetson would pay dividends, but didn't expect it to be so soon! Love seeing both brothers make the tournament, and for Dinko's Red Flash to snag another upset! Gotta think Dinko's phone is going to be ringing more and more after another Round of 32 appearance with SFU - will a bigger school in the area attempt to pull him away from Loretto?

[studbucket]

Quote: Originally Posted by Careless Whisper

Knew Oggy's move to Stetson would pay dividends, but didn't expect it to be so soon! Love seeing both brothers make the tournament, and for Dinko's Red Flash to snag another upset! Gotta think Dinko's phone is going to be ringing more and more after another Round of 32 appearance with SFU - will a bigger school in the area attempt to pull him away from Loretto?

Yeah, I think everyone, even Oggy, was surprised by season 1. He gets the UConn transfer next season, which means he'll have a 6'11" PF, a 7'1" Center (Jerimie Scott) and 6'11" Adam Baynes coming off the bench. He will still have Pocius at SF, but will need to replace Fischer and Kann, meaning he's lost all his shooting. If he can get a ballhandler and two shooters, next season could be another very good one for Stetson.


Dinko will absolutely be getting calls, even from schools outside the area. However, if it's not Duquesne, Pitt, or an offer that blows him away, he'll be in Loretto for a while longer.