The Golden Era | A Golden State Warriors Dynasty (NBA 2K20)

[trekfan]

That is some legendary lottery luck for the Warriors -- what a terrible loss for the T'Wolves though, once more the lottery gods have frowned upon them. That franchise just can't catch a break.

[marshdaddy]

Quote: Originally Posted by trekfan

That is some legendary lottery luck for the Warriors -- what a terrible loss for the T'Wolves though, once more the lottery gods have frowned upon them. That franchise just can't catch a break.

Honestly I wouldn’t fault someone for thinking that I re-did the lottery to get the pick, but it really did just roll that way. Very fortunate because our depth is seriously lacking and we need young pieces to keep this thing going.


Sent from my iPhone using Operation Sports

[marshdaddy]

2021 NBA Offseason - The NBA Draft

At the top of the draft, scouts and experts had waivered back and forth between a trio of young players. In one camp was Jalen Green, a presumptive top overall pick who possessed the scoring ability to be a focal point of an NBA offseason. Others favored Cade Cunningham, the long point guard who can defend one-through-four and has the ability to get to the rim whenever. And lastly was Jonathan Kuminga, a smooth shooting wing who has the length to be a stopper on the perimeter and interior.

The Magic ended any debate early, taking just seconds to select Jalen Green first overall as they look to add a scoring punch to an offense heavy on defensive wings.

The Thunder gladly took Cade Cunningham, pairing him with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and giving them an extremely long, young and talented backcourt that should be difficult to defend and score on in the West.

At third, the Hornets took Jonathan Kuminga, though there were rumors that they wouldn’t be holding onto the selection despite an assumedly seamless fit alongside James Wiseman.

At four, the Pistons gave LaMelo Ball a rim running center in Evan Mobley. Mobley may not end up turning into becoming an elite, top man on a championship team, but should be a dynamic combination for a Pistons team looking to build around Ball.

The Warriors came to the clock at five, and the rumors that had been percolating around three came to light. The Warriors selected Joshua Christopher, a smooth shooting guard out of Arizona State, but would be sending him to the Hornets in exchange for Kuminga. In total, the Warriors would be dealing Christopher, Eric Paschall, Kevon Looney, a 2022 first round pick swap with the Hornets and a 2023 unprotected first. In exchange, the Warriors received Kuminga and the option to swap first in 2022.

The Golden State-Charlotte trade wouldn’t be the last deal, as Phoenix traded the 11th overall pick to San Antonio for DeMar DeRozan, the Trail Blazers dealt the 15th overall pick to Atlanta in exchange for Clint Capela, and the New York Knicks aquired the 17th overall pick along with Nerlens Noel from the Cavaliers for Bryn Forbes and a 2022 unprotected 1st.

2021 NBA Draft
Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Ht	Wt
1 (3)	Orlando Magic	Jalen Green	SG
2 (5)	Oklahoma City Thunder (via HOU)	Cade Cunningham	PG
3 (6)	Charlotte Hornets*	Jonathan Kuminga (dealt to GSW)	SF
4 (8)	Detroit Pistons	Evan Mobley	C
5 (1)	Golden State Warriors (via MIN)*	Joshua Christopher (dealt to CHA)	SG
6 (2)	San Antonio Spurs	Scottie Barnes	PF
7 (4)	Sacramento Kings	Usman Garuba	PF
8 (7)	New York Knicks	Jalen Sugg	PG
9	Atlanta Hawks	Brandon Boston	SG
10	Indiana Pacers	Caleb Love	PG
11	Phoenix Suns*	Daishen Nix (dealt to SAS)	PG
12	New York Knicks (via DAL)	Jalen Johnson	SF
13	Oklahoma City Thunder	Greg Brown	PG
14	Washington Wizards	Terrence Clarke	SG
15	Portland Trail Blazers*	Jaden Springer (dealt to ATL)	SG
16	Los Angeles Lakers	Scottie Lewis	SG
17	Cleveland Cavaliers*	Moses Moody (dealt to NYK)	SG
18	Chicago Bulls	Ziaire Williams	SF
19	Utah Jazz	Sharife Cooper	PG
20	Denver Nuggets	Wendell Moore	SF
21	Toronto Raptors	Day'ron Sharpe	C
22	Philadelphia 76ers	Jeremiah Robinson-Earl	PF
23	Memphis Grizzlies	D.J. Steward	PG
24	Los Angeles Clippers	R.J. Davis	PG
25	Brooklyn Nets	Nimari Burnett	SG
26	Boston Celtics	Jeremy Roach	PG
27	Milwaukee Bucks	Isaiah Todd	PF
28	Houston Rockets (via MIA)	Matthew Hurt	PF
29	New Orleans Pelicans	Oscar Tshiebwe	PF
30	Orlando Magic (via GS)	Shareef O'Neal	PF

[trekfan]

Well, damn, Golden State paid a pretty penny for Kuminga but it looks like they got their man. Questionable trades for both the Blazers and the Suns -- DeRozan and Capela are not worth those 1st rounders long-term, in three years max those deals could look bad.

[marshdaddy]

Quote: Originally Posted by trekfan

Well, damn, Golden State paid a pretty penny for Kuminga but it looks like they got their man. Questionable trades for both the Blazers and the Suns -- DeRozan and Capela are not worth those 1st rounders long-term, in three years max those deals could look bad.

Both moves were definitely surprising. I’m not doing 30-team control during the draft to try to get some trades like this to happen and to have a better chance at bad picks being made. I’m approving trades but that’s it.

For Portland, it’s a win-now move. A mid-first won’t help Dame and CJ at the end of their primes. Capela has a chance to do that.

In Phoenix, it’s more of the same old Suns issue. They see Booker’s free agency looming and are trying to put together a team that entices him to stick around. Not a move I would’ve made, but they are getting desperate.

The Kuminga trade I’m banking on us staying competitive and the Hornets not. We’ll see how that turns out for us.

[marshdaddy]

2021 NBA Offseason - Free Agency

We continue moving at a breakneck pace to catch up to the current point in the franchise. But first, the 2021 Free Agency period. Giannis, Kawhi and Paul George, at one time the big names expected to be on the market, quickly ended any concerns. Giannis had previously re-signed with the Bucks the summer before, and now fresh off a trip to the NBA Finals, is feeling confident he can bring a ring to Milwaukee.

Kawhi and Paul George felt similarly. The duo has one ring and two years of contention. With that, the duo picked up player options to remain with the Clippers.

But while the biggest names on the market were gone, that still left one name surprisingly still available.


Kevin Durant is known for not sticking around. And after two years in Brooklyn, he shocked the Nets organization and his close friend Kyrie Irving when he opted out of the third year of his contract after Kyrie Irving opted into his. The decision was surprising, not only because Durant had made no indication about his intentions, but because Irving had voiced confidence that the duo could take the Nets over the top after they were eliminated by the Heat in the Conference Semifinals the year before.

Durant now headlined an intriguing free agency class that included Rudy Gobert, Andre Drummond and John Collins.

Early on in free agency, the name that continually came up was the Miami Heat. The Heat, having made a run to the Eastern Conference Finals before falling to Giannis and the Bucks, had been preserving cap space in anticipation of a big free agent bid. Now, that opportunity would present itself.

Durant met with the Nets, Clippers and Bucks before meeting with the Heat in New York. And on the first day of the free agency moratorium, Durant did what few thought he would do again: left a contender to join the team that beat him.

By signing Durant, the Heat rocketed to the top of championship odds lists in Vegas, with a roster perfectly crafted for Durant to slide into. Alongside Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, the Heat now boast three elite defenders and talented playmakers with shooters sprinkled across the roster.

With Durant’s domino falling, the next question mark was in Utah. The rift caused by Gobert’s positive COVID test that led to the NBA suspending their season in 2020 had not been eased, and those close to Jazz superstar Donovan Mitchell said the young guard felt that if Gobert was signed long-term, he would begin exploring options to leave Utah when his contract came to an end next summer.

Disappointed that the Jazz didn’t offer him a super max contract on the opening day of free agency, Gobert immediately took meetings with the Knicks, Heat, Raptors, 76ers and Bucks. The Heat offer quickly was off the table after having signed Durant, but with cap space and an opportunity to star, Gobert signed with the Raptors. The signing bolstered an already elite defense that only lacked an anchor in the middle.

The Jazz wouldn’t use the Gobert departure as an excuse to hoard cap space. Instead, they went on the offensive, inking Andre Drummond to a four-year, $111.11 million contract before signing John Collins to a four-year deal of his own. The two signings allowed the Jazz to keep their defensive approach and provided a pair of pick and roll threats to partner with Mitchell.

[Knickerbocker91]

Good grief the Jazz gave Drummond too much money

[marshdaddy]

Quote: Originally Posted by Knickerbocker91

Good grief the Jazz gave Drummond too much money

For the 2k world, I don't hate it. Good rebounding center who can anchor a defense. Plays a very similar role as Rudy Gobert. In the real-world, I'd back away from that one. But in 2k, it makes sense.

Also, with Mitchell's potential extension coming next summer, this was the last year they had cap space. Is it the right move? I'd personally have gone for a 3 that fits next to Mitchell, but with a market that's bare of those, it makes sense. The real answer will come over the next four years and how they make use of a team that calls it's Big Three Donovan Mitchell, Andre Drummond and John Collins.