Post by Skillz on Jan 15, 2011 17:57:46 GMT -5
Western Conference Team Grades
This sequence of articles will do something we all love to do: grade. This grade is not a GM ranking, nor is it a power ranking. Rather, this grade is simply designated based on how well off a franchise currently is.
What will be factored in:
1. Current Roster—how good is it?
2. Future—picks, youth, etc.
3. GM—Will they be able to climb out of the hole eventually?
So, without further ado, your WC team grades:
Dallas Mavericks
GM: Greg
Roster:
630 Andrew Bynum C 27 7'0'' 288 B+ C- C- B+ B+ D
438 Hassan Whiteside C 25 7'0'' 241 B- D+ C- A- B- C
252 Michael Bradley C 23 6'10'' 210 C D D+ B C C
276 Amir Johnson PF 27 6'11'' 229 B C- C A- A- D
253 John Henson PF 23 6'10'' 206 B C- D+ B+ B- C
582 Jalen Kendrick SF 21 6'7'' 200 B- C B+ C+ C A
343 Brian Cardinal SF 37 6'8'' 248 B- A- D- C- C- F
314 Dane Miller SF 23 6'7'' 213 C+ C+ C- A- C B
244 Travis Leslie SG 24 6'4'' 209 B C+ C- A C+ B
428 J.J. Redick SG 30 6'4'' 197 C A+ C B- C- C
373 Jonathan Bender SG 33 6'11'' 208 B- B B- C C- D
405 Ty Lawson PG 26 5'11'' 199 C A C+ A- C- D
527 Rodrigue Beaubois PG 26 6'0'' 170 B- A- C A C D
277 Malcolm Lee PG 24 6'5'' 190 C+ B B B D+ C
504 Corey Fisher PG 26 6'1'' 185 B B- B C C- D
Grade: B. This is probably Greg's best sequence as a GM. He has a really nice team/ Amir and Bynum form a pretty great young front court, and he has the outside shooters in Reddick, Beabuoiis, and Lawson to make his system work. He is missing a legitimate star player, which is why the Mavs grade is not higher. Still, this is a solid system team with two nice future pieces in Leslie and Kendrick. If I was Greg, I would trade both of them for a stud SF and try to compete for a title.
Denver Nuggets
GM: Greeme
Roster:
167 Jason Thompson C 28 6'11'' 253 B C D+ A- B D
149 Paul Millsap C 29 6'8'' 253 B C D- B A- C
596 Darko Milicic PF 29 7'0'' 271 C+ C D+ A- A D
546 Boris Diaw SF 32 6'8'' 219 A- B+ C+ A- B- D
380 Danilo Gallinari SF 26 6'11'' 232 C A+ C+ B+ C C
547 Kawhi Leonard SF 23 6'7'' 228 B C+ C- C+ B B
472 J.R. Smith SG 28 6'6'' 222 C+ A+ C B C- C
435 Doron Lamb SG 22 6'4'' 180 C B+ C B D+ B
595 Stephen Curry PG 26 6'3'' 186 C+ A+ A A- C- B
18 Jose Calderon PG 33 6'3'' 210 C- A- B C D+ D
Grade: B. Is the current team worth more than a "B?" Yes. However, I do not expect Greeme's luck to continue. Darko will hurt that team in the near future and until Greeme gets a grasp on player value, he is going to suffer the consequences. Seriously, he's a good guy and not a bad GM, but some of the offers he makes are just so bad. Not really sure what I would do with this team though to be honest....definitely an interesting/unique mix of players.
Houston Rockets
GM: Jordan
Roster:
610 LaMarcus Aldridge C 29 6'11'' 249 A- C+ C- A B+ C
141 David Lee C 31 6'9'' 254 B C C+ B+ B- C
430 Damontre Harris C 22 6'10'' 215 C+ C- C- B B- A
358 Keith Benson C 26 6'11'' 226 C+ C- D+ B+ B- B
392 Thaddeus Young SF 26 6'9'' 226 A- A- C- A- C+ C
548 Karron Johnson SF 23 6'7'' 220 B- B C B C+ C
363 Wesley Johnson SG 27 6'7'' 213 B- A- C- B+ C+ C
289 Guillermo Diaz SG 29 6'2'' 193 B B+ C- C D+ D
186 Noel Johnson SG 24 6'7'' 196 C+ C+ C B C D
593 Kirk Hinrich PG 33 6'3'' 196 C A- B A C- C
542 Cory Joseph PG 23 6'3'' 183 B B- B B+ C C
418 Austin Rivers PG 21 6'4'' 178 C B+ C+ B+ C A
Grade: B. Jordan is going to have a sick team soon. The Burks trade was great and Jordan has a lot of picks to work with. He'll probably get one of Horford or Smith from me in the offseason for my picks back and Jordan is a very good gm when he is active. Obviously, he doesn't have the type of talent right now that would warrant a higher grade, but the Rockets have a bright future.
Memphis Grizzlies
GM: Insane
Roster:
488 Solomon Alabi C 26 7'1'' 251 C+ D+ D B B- C
175 Terrence Jones PF 22 6'9'' 210 B- C+ C B C+ A
398 Tobi Oyedeji PF 23 6'7'' 205 B C- C- C+ C+ C
602 Chris Bosh SF 30 6'10'' 240 B+ C+ C- A B C
355 Tyler Honeycutt SF 24 6'8'' 200 B+ B+ C- B- C A
640 Travis McKie SF 22 6'7'' 190 C+ A- C B- B B
388 Harrison Barnes SG 22 6'8'' 215 B+ B C- A- C+ A
421 Andre Iguodala SG 30 6'6'' 213 C+ B+ C B+ C D
517 Tony Parker PG 32 6'2'' 184 B+ B B B- D- D
508 D.J. Cooper PG 24 5'11'' 165 C C+ B B- C- B
Grade: A-. Barnes, Honeycutt, and Jones is a pretty sick core and Insane has some nice picks to work with as well. Barring some stupid moves, this team should be a top team in the league in no time and should be able to win a title or two. Still, Insane's teams historically underachieve, so I guess we should expect Barnes to be a horrible simmer.
Minnesota Timberwolves
GM: DBW
Roster:
165 Ronny Turiaf C 31 6'10'' 266 C+ C- B- A B D
621 Elton Brand PF 35 6'9'' 278 B C C B+ B D
625 Drew Gooden PF 33 6'10'' 238 B- C D- C A- C
393 Dwight Powell PF 22 6'10'' 223 C+ C- D C+ C+ B
644 Andrea Bargnani SF 28 7'0'' 231 B B+ C B- C C
458 Devin Ebanks SF 25 6'7'' 207 C+ B- C- B+ C D
291 Will Regan SF 22 6'8'' 215 C+ C+ D+ B- C+ C
391 Monta Ellis SG 28 6'3'' 190 A- A- C+ A C C
312 Lester Hudson SG 30 6'3'' 190 B A- C C C- C
199 Jordan Sibert SG 22 6'6'' 200 B- B A- C C B
483 Brandon Roy PG 30 6'6'' 227 B+ A- A- A C C
453 Dwyane Wade PG 32 6'5'' 224 A- B B- A C C
Grade: B-. Eh. This team could have been a lot better, but DBW definitely sat on his team for a bit too long. Even though Roy and Monta form the best backcourt in the league, I feel like this could have been a title contender if DBW had gone the extra mile. Now, the core is on its last legs and does not have any bigs to go with its guard play.
New Orleans Hornets
GM: Aar
Roster:
646 Rakeem Christmas C 22 6'9'' 230 B- C- C- B+ C+ A
624 Nene PF 32 6'11'' 278 B+ C- C C+ A D
636 Joshua Smith PF 22 6'9'' 300 B+ D D+ C+ C+ B
130 Leon Powe PF 30 6'8'' 243 B C- D C+ A- C
316 Jarvis Varnado PF 27 6'9'' 210 C D F+ A- C C
426 Donatas Motiejunas SF 24 7'0'' 227 B- A- C- B C+ B
439 Hedo Turkoglu SF 35 6'10'' 225 B- B+ C- C C C
365 Tristan Thompson SF 22 6'9'' 234 B C C- B+ C+ C
415 Casey Prather SF 22 6'6'' 190 C+ C C A C C
329 Eric Gordon SG 25 6'3'' 225 C+ A B+ A- C D
194 Durand Scott SG 23 6'3'' 195 B- B- B- B- C+ B
513 Jonny Flynn SG 25 6'0'' 186 B B+ B- B- C B
184 Matthew Dellavedova SG 24 6'4'' 185 C A- B C D C
370 Kemba Walker PG 24 6'0'' 180 B- B+ A+ A- D+ B
Grade: C+. Sure, Aar has a number of nice rebuilding pieces, but I feel like Aar rebuilds way too much. He finally built his team up really nicely a year or two ago and decided to tear it down far too quickly after it underachieved. Now, the cycle continues. Aar is very good at rebuilding but has not gotten to the elite level yet and really hasn't had sustained success lately. Christmas and Scott look good, but neither are superstar level prospects. They probably need another two top 5 picks to really be in great position.
San Antonio Spurs
GM: JAH
Roster:
133 Martynas Andriuskevicius C 28 7'2'' 240 B C C+ B A C
326 Andray Blatche C 28 6'11'' 247 B- C C- B+ B+ C
348 Adreian Payne C 22 6'10'' 235 B- D D+ B B B
212 Rick Jackson C 25 6'9'' 240 B- D D C+ B C
437 Patric Young PF 23 6'9'' 240 B D+ C- A- A- B
267 Terrence Williams SF 27 6'6'' 220 B B- A- A- C+ B
601 Michael Beasley SF 25 6'9'' 235 B+ B+ D+ C+ C+ C
441 DeQuan Jones SF 24 6'6'' 190 A- C- D- B+ C C
482 Rudy Fernandez SG 29 6'6'' 185 B+ A- B+ C+ C- C
342 K.T. Harrell SG 21 6'4'' 185 C+ C+ C- B C- C
501 Dajuan Wagner PG 31 6'2'' 203 B- A- B B C- C
539 Darren Collison PG 27 6'0'' 160 C+ A- A- B+ C C
609 Yotam Halperin PG 30 6'5'' 210 C A B- B C- C
295 Marcus Paige PG 19 6'3'' 182 C+ C+ C+ C+ C C
Grade: C-. They are what they will always be: average. JAH completely blew his chance to compete for a title by playing the value game and staying complacent with his young players. He's afraid to make the big move and does not like risking any cap difficulties. In order to win, however, you have to do more than hang onto your guys. This team will probably win 40 again.
Golden State Warriors
GM: Game
Roster:
386 DeAndre Jordan C 26 6'11'' 250 C+ D- D+ B+ B+ D
225 Mason Plumlee C 23 6'11'' 226 C+ C+ C- A- B A
576 Derrick Williams PF 22 6'9'' 233 B C C- A- B A
117 J.J. Hickson PF 26 6'9'' 248 B+ C- C- C+ B- D
551 Jayvaughn Pinkston PF 22 6'6'' 220 C+ C C- B B B
173 Kyle Wiltjer PF 21 6'9'' 225 C+ B+ C- C C C
650 Renardo Sidney SF 24 6'10'' 275 B- C C C C C
530 Richard Hamilton SG 36 6'6'' 202 B- A- C B+ D D
575 O.J. Mayo SG 26 6'4'' 212 B+ A- B- C+ C C
349 Scotty Hopson SG 24 6'6'' 195 B- C+ C B- B- C
567 Avery Bradley SG 24 6'2'' 180 B C C+ B- D+ B
524 Dexter Strickland SG 23 6'3'' 185 B- C+ C C+ D+ C
257 Scottie Reynolds PG 27 6'2'' 195 C A+ B+ A- D B
387 Quinn Cook PG 21 5'11'' 158 C+ B- A A- D+ B
359 Marquis Teague PG 21 6'2'' 180 C+ B B B+ C- B
Grade: C. This team has a ton of young talent, I am just worried about how Game will use it. Game seems far too content with his team, which doesn't really make sense to me. He needs to put some AC's into Williams and decide on a point guard of the future. Once he does that, he has to deal his other two point guards for some serious wing help and a shot blocker. He may have the pieces, but they do not fit well at all right now and this could be a CY team soon.
Los Angeles Clippers
GM: Marty
197 Brook Lopez C 26 7'0'' 266 B C C A- A- C
15 Louis Amundson C 32 6'9'' 225 C+ D+ D+ A- C+ B
340 Herb Pope C 25 6'8'' 233 B+ D D+ C+ B- C
633 Jonas Valanciunas PF 21 6'11'' 260 A- C+ C+ B A A
313 Rudy Gay SF 28 6'9'' 230 B A- C B+ C D
608 Kevin Love SF 24 6'10'' 260 B+ B- C B- A C
271 Mladen Sekularac SF 33 6'8'' 231 C+ B- C B- B C
446 Arron Afflalo SG 28 6'5'' 215 C+ A C+ B C D
525 Chris Douglas-Roberts SG 27 6'7'' 204 C+ A- C+ A C C
541 Mike Miller SG 34 6'8'' 226 C+ A C C D+ D
505 Mike Dunleavy SG 34 6'9'' 226 C+ A C+ C+ C- C
231 Leslie McDonald SG 23 6'4'' 210 C B C- C+ D C
169 J.T. Terrell SG 23 6'4'' 175 C+ C+ C B+ C+ C
502 Jon Diebler SG 25 6'5'' 200 C A- C C- D D
402 Kyrie Irving PG 22 6'1'' 172 C+ B+ A B+ D- A
Grade: A. As long as Marty doesn't make any dumb trades, this team should win a lot of games for a long time. JV looks like he is a top 5 value guy in the league and Lopez always sims higher than his ratings. Love is not your ideal small forward because of his turnovers, though, so it may be in the Clippers best interest to bring Love off the bench at the 3/4/5 and have CDR and Gay starting. If Marty AC's Irving, the Clipps should be elite.
Los Angeles Lakers
GM: Nanz
Roster:
219 Marc Gasol C 29 7'1'' 271 A- C- C A- A C
606 Chris Kaman C 32 7'0'' 270 A- C- C- B B+ D
318 Troy Murphy PF 34 6'11'' 251 C A- D+ C+ B- F
639 Gorgui Dieng PF 22 6'10'' 210 C+ C- C- B- B C
559 Josh Huestis PF 23 6'7'' 230 C+ C- D+ C+ B+ A
571 Michael Gilchrist SF 21 6'7'' 193 B+ A- C A- B A
466 Ersan Ilyasova SG 27 6'9'' 239 B- A- C- B+ C D
379 De'Sean Butler SG 26 6'7'' 225 C+ C+ C C C C
309 Alexey Shved PG 26 6'6'' 187 C+ A- B+ A- C B
Grade: A-. Nanz is a great gm who had another successful rebuild. His frontcourt is the best in the league and Michael Gilchrist is randomly really good now. The team could use some more depth--feasible because he has 5 mil to use on leftover fa's--and an upgrade at the two. Though the Lakers are in their CY, they should get past it with ease and contend for a title. It should be interesting to see if Shved keeps developing into an elite point guard.
Oklahoma City Thunder
GM: Habes
Roster:
613 Greg Oden C 26 7'0'' 267 B- C F+ A- B C
191 Robin Lopez C 26 7'0'' 255 C+ C D B C+ C
523 Dallas Lauderdale C 24 6'8'' 260 B- D D+ B- C+ C
451 Mac Koshwal C 25 6'10'' 240 C+ D D+ C B- C
420 Gus Gilchrist PF 23 6'10'' 236 C+ C D A- B+ C
442 Tobias Harris PF 22 6'11'' 237 B+ C+ C B- B- A
417 Luc Mbah a Moute SF 28 6'8'' 230 C+ C+ C A- B- D
390 Dominic Cheek SF 22 6'6'' 185 C+ B- C- A- C- C
447 Arnett Moultrie SF 24 6'11'' 224 A- D+ D+ A- C B
204 Will Barton SG 23 6'7'' 206 B+ B+ C C+ C B
531 Greivis Vasquez SG 27 6'6'' 200 B B+ B+ C+ C D
429 Jamal Crawford SG 34 6'7'' 191 C A C C D- F
460 Ray McCallum PG 21 6'1'' 185 B- B B B D+ A
592 Tommy Mason-Griffin PG 23 5'11'' 170 C A B C D D
Grade: C. The Thunder have two really nice pieces in Roy McCallum and Tobias Harris, but do not have their pick and are kind of stuck in the middle for this year. If the Thunder had an inactive GM at the helm, they probably would get a D, but Habes thrives in these kind of situations and should have a good team pretty soon. It is also pretty clear that McCallum had 90+ potential and will be an all-star point guard.
Phoenix Suns
GM: Mark
Roster:
166 Joakim Noah C 29 7'0'' 247 B C C A- A C
491 Marcus Morris C 23 6'9'' 235 C+ C C C C+ C
157 Chris Mihm C 35 7'1'' 274 C C F B C+ F
486 Derrick Favors PF 23 6'10'' 249 A- C- D B+ A- B
189 Sean Williams PF 28 6'10'' 235 C+ D+ C- A- B- C
135 Xue Yuyang SF 31 7'0'' 219 B C+ D+ A- B D
450 Martell Webster SG 27 6'7'' 216 B+ A- C+ C+ C- D
16 Kelenna Azubuike SG 31 6'5'' 220 B- A- C- B C+ C
545 Deron Williams PG 30 6'3'' 218 B+ A- A A C- C
Grade: A. Mark's team took a bit of a hit in TC, but as the reigning champions, the Suns deserve the "A." Favors and Noah form quite a front court duo, and the Suns have an excellent scoring and handling backcourt to complement their two bigs. The Suns also have better depth than most of the other elite teams, which should make them the favorites for the title again. Mark is probably hoping that Xue's hit does not effect the team much, considering he is a huge X-factor.
Portland Trailblazers
GM: Dan
Roster:
299 Amare Stoudemire PF 31 7'0'' 253 A- C- C A- A- C
303 Henk Norel PF 27 6'11'' 215 B- D+ C- B+ A- C
469 Luke Babbitt PF 25 6'9'' 227 C+ B C- C+ C+ C
570 Kyle Singler SF 26 6'9'' 216 C A- B- B- C+ C
520 Tornike Shengelia SF 23 6'9'' 210 C+ C+ B- B- C+ B
401 Quincy Pondexter SF 26 6'7'' 215 C+ B- C- B C+ C
448 Bobby Simmons SF 34 6'7'' 215 B- C+ C C+ C F
243 Alec Burks SG 23 6'6'' 191 B A C A- C- A
296 Tony Allen SG 32 6'4'' 213 B C C A- C+ D
213 Trey Zeigler SG 22 6'5'' 195 C+ B C B C B
487 Leandro Barbosa PG 31 6'3'' 188 C A+ B+ C+ C- D
578 Jameer Nelson PG 32 6'0'' 191 C B+ B+ B- C- D
492 Delonte West PG 31 6'4'' 195 C B+ B+ C+ C C
470 Ian Miller PG 22 6'2'' 180 B- B C C+ D+ C
Grade: B? I have no idea who's on this roster anymore. Amare, Thad and Gordon I think? Decent team. Dan definitely did a good job dealing picks for established guys, but I don't think it will be enough to compete in a conference that is just on another level. I probably would have liked to see Dan hang onto Burks, but you can't blame the guy for trying to win now.
Utah Jazz
GM: Don
Roster:
628 Tyson Chandler C 31 7'1'' 256 C+ C- F+ B B D
221 Samuel Dalembert C 33 6'11'' 251 B- C- D- B B F
319 Meyers Leonard C 23 6'10'' 243 C+ C C+ B C B
230 Mouhamed Sene C 28 6'11'' 233 C+ D F+ B C+ D
140 Jason Maxiell PF 31 6'7'' 264 B- D+ F+ A- A- C
264 Fran Vázquez PF 31 6'11'' 246 C+ D+ D B B D
414 LeBron James SF 29 6'9'' 243 A A- B+ B B+ C
171 DeShaun Thomas SF 22 6'7'' 215 B C+ D+ C C B
479 Donta Smith SG 30 6'7'' 224 B+ A- C+ A- C C
444 Jason Richardson SG 33 6'6'' 226 C+ A C+ B C C
489 Devin Harris SG 31 6'3'' 188 C+ B C+ C D+ D
467 George Hill PG 28 6'2'' 188 C B+ B+ B+ D+ C
594 Baron Davis PG 35 6'3'' 218 C+ B C+ B- C- F
Grade: C-. Yea, this team is pretty much going nowhere right now. Aside from Lebron, I don't know if anyone on that roster is worth anything more than a couple of 1sts. Donta had a nice season last year but is not well regarded around the league and the rest of the team just blows. It is definitely time for Don to tear it down and rebuild. Lebron is 29 and not getting and younger. He should get a sick package for LB23, obviously.
This sequence of articles will do something we all love to do: grade. This grade is not a GM ranking, nor is it a power ranking. Rather, this grade is simply designated based on how well off a franchise currently is.
What will be factored in:
1. Current Roster—how good is it?
2. Future—picks, youth, etc.
3. GM—Will they be able to climb out of the hole eventually?
So, without further ado, your WC team grades:
Dallas Mavericks
GM: Greg
Roster:
630 Andrew Bynum C 27 7'0'' 288 B+ C- C- B+ B+ D
438 Hassan Whiteside C 25 7'0'' 241 B- D+ C- A- B- C
252 Michael Bradley C 23 6'10'' 210 C D D+ B C C
276 Amir Johnson PF 27 6'11'' 229 B C- C A- A- D
253 John Henson PF 23 6'10'' 206 B C- D+ B+ B- C
582 Jalen Kendrick SF 21 6'7'' 200 B- C B+ C+ C A
343 Brian Cardinal SF 37 6'8'' 248 B- A- D- C- C- F
314 Dane Miller SF 23 6'7'' 213 C+ C+ C- A- C B
244 Travis Leslie SG 24 6'4'' 209 B C+ C- A C+ B
428 J.J. Redick SG 30 6'4'' 197 C A+ C B- C- C
373 Jonathan Bender SG 33 6'11'' 208 B- B B- C C- D
405 Ty Lawson PG 26 5'11'' 199 C A C+ A- C- D
527 Rodrigue Beaubois PG 26 6'0'' 170 B- A- C A C D
277 Malcolm Lee PG 24 6'5'' 190 C+ B B B D+ C
504 Corey Fisher PG 26 6'1'' 185 B B- B C C- D
Grade: B. This is probably Greg's best sequence as a GM. He has a really nice team/ Amir and Bynum form a pretty great young front court, and he has the outside shooters in Reddick, Beabuoiis, and Lawson to make his system work. He is missing a legitimate star player, which is why the Mavs grade is not higher. Still, this is a solid system team with two nice future pieces in Leslie and Kendrick. If I was Greg, I would trade both of them for a stud SF and try to compete for a title.
Denver Nuggets
GM: Greeme
Roster:
167 Jason Thompson C 28 6'11'' 253 B C D+ A- B D
149 Paul Millsap C 29 6'8'' 253 B C D- B A- C
596 Darko Milicic PF 29 7'0'' 271 C+ C D+ A- A D
546 Boris Diaw SF 32 6'8'' 219 A- B+ C+ A- B- D
380 Danilo Gallinari SF 26 6'11'' 232 C A+ C+ B+ C C
547 Kawhi Leonard SF 23 6'7'' 228 B C+ C- C+ B B
472 J.R. Smith SG 28 6'6'' 222 C+ A+ C B C- C
435 Doron Lamb SG 22 6'4'' 180 C B+ C B D+ B
595 Stephen Curry PG 26 6'3'' 186 C+ A+ A A- C- B
18 Jose Calderon PG 33 6'3'' 210 C- A- B C D+ D
Grade: B. Is the current team worth more than a "B?" Yes. However, I do not expect Greeme's luck to continue. Darko will hurt that team in the near future and until Greeme gets a grasp on player value, he is going to suffer the consequences. Seriously, he's a good guy and not a bad GM, but some of the offers he makes are just so bad. Not really sure what I would do with this team though to be honest....definitely an interesting/unique mix of players.
Houston Rockets
GM: Jordan
Roster:
610 LaMarcus Aldridge C 29 6'11'' 249 A- C+ C- A B+ C
141 David Lee C 31 6'9'' 254 B C C+ B+ B- C
430 Damontre Harris C 22 6'10'' 215 C+ C- C- B B- A
358 Keith Benson C 26 6'11'' 226 C+ C- D+ B+ B- B
392 Thaddeus Young SF 26 6'9'' 226 A- A- C- A- C+ C
548 Karron Johnson SF 23 6'7'' 220 B- B C B C+ C
363 Wesley Johnson SG 27 6'7'' 213 B- A- C- B+ C+ C
289 Guillermo Diaz SG 29 6'2'' 193 B B+ C- C D+ D
186 Noel Johnson SG 24 6'7'' 196 C+ C+ C B C D
593 Kirk Hinrich PG 33 6'3'' 196 C A- B A C- C
542 Cory Joseph PG 23 6'3'' 183 B B- B B+ C C
418 Austin Rivers PG 21 6'4'' 178 C B+ C+ B+ C A
Grade: B. Jordan is going to have a sick team soon. The Burks trade was great and Jordan has a lot of picks to work with. He'll probably get one of Horford or Smith from me in the offseason for my picks back and Jordan is a very good gm when he is active. Obviously, he doesn't have the type of talent right now that would warrant a higher grade, but the Rockets have a bright future.
Memphis Grizzlies
GM: Insane
Roster:
488 Solomon Alabi C 26 7'1'' 251 C+ D+ D B B- C
175 Terrence Jones PF 22 6'9'' 210 B- C+ C B C+ A
398 Tobi Oyedeji PF 23 6'7'' 205 B C- C- C+ C+ C
602 Chris Bosh SF 30 6'10'' 240 B+ C+ C- A B C
355 Tyler Honeycutt SF 24 6'8'' 200 B+ B+ C- B- C A
640 Travis McKie SF 22 6'7'' 190 C+ A- C B- B B
388 Harrison Barnes SG 22 6'8'' 215 B+ B C- A- C+ A
421 Andre Iguodala SG 30 6'6'' 213 C+ B+ C B+ C D
517 Tony Parker PG 32 6'2'' 184 B+ B B B- D- D
508 D.J. Cooper PG 24 5'11'' 165 C C+ B B- C- B
Grade: A-. Barnes, Honeycutt, and Jones is a pretty sick core and Insane has some nice picks to work with as well. Barring some stupid moves, this team should be a top team in the league in no time and should be able to win a title or two. Still, Insane's teams historically underachieve, so I guess we should expect Barnes to be a horrible simmer.
Minnesota Timberwolves
GM: DBW
Roster:
165 Ronny Turiaf C 31 6'10'' 266 C+ C- B- A B D
621 Elton Brand PF 35 6'9'' 278 B C C B+ B D
625 Drew Gooden PF 33 6'10'' 238 B- C D- C A- C
393 Dwight Powell PF 22 6'10'' 223 C+ C- D C+ C+ B
644 Andrea Bargnani SF 28 7'0'' 231 B B+ C B- C C
458 Devin Ebanks SF 25 6'7'' 207 C+ B- C- B+ C D
291 Will Regan SF 22 6'8'' 215 C+ C+ D+ B- C+ C
391 Monta Ellis SG 28 6'3'' 190 A- A- C+ A C C
312 Lester Hudson SG 30 6'3'' 190 B A- C C C- C
199 Jordan Sibert SG 22 6'6'' 200 B- B A- C C B
483 Brandon Roy PG 30 6'6'' 227 B+ A- A- A C C
453 Dwyane Wade PG 32 6'5'' 224 A- B B- A C C
Grade: B-. Eh. This team could have been a lot better, but DBW definitely sat on his team for a bit too long. Even though Roy and Monta form the best backcourt in the league, I feel like this could have been a title contender if DBW had gone the extra mile. Now, the core is on its last legs and does not have any bigs to go with its guard play.
New Orleans Hornets
GM: Aar
Roster:
646 Rakeem Christmas C 22 6'9'' 230 B- C- C- B+ C+ A
624 Nene PF 32 6'11'' 278 B+ C- C C+ A D
636 Joshua Smith PF 22 6'9'' 300 B+ D D+ C+ C+ B
130 Leon Powe PF 30 6'8'' 243 B C- D C+ A- C
316 Jarvis Varnado PF 27 6'9'' 210 C D F+ A- C C
426 Donatas Motiejunas SF 24 7'0'' 227 B- A- C- B C+ B
439 Hedo Turkoglu SF 35 6'10'' 225 B- B+ C- C C C
365 Tristan Thompson SF 22 6'9'' 234 B C C- B+ C+ C
415 Casey Prather SF 22 6'6'' 190 C+ C C A C C
329 Eric Gordon SG 25 6'3'' 225 C+ A B+ A- C D
194 Durand Scott SG 23 6'3'' 195 B- B- B- B- C+ B
513 Jonny Flynn SG 25 6'0'' 186 B B+ B- B- C B
184 Matthew Dellavedova SG 24 6'4'' 185 C A- B C D C
370 Kemba Walker PG 24 6'0'' 180 B- B+ A+ A- D+ B
Grade: C+. Sure, Aar has a number of nice rebuilding pieces, but I feel like Aar rebuilds way too much. He finally built his team up really nicely a year or two ago and decided to tear it down far too quickly after it underachieved. Now, the cycle continues. Aar is very good at rebuilding but has not gotten to the elite level yet and really hasn't had sustained success lately. Christmas and Scott look good, but neither are superstar level prospects. They probably need another two top 5 picks to really be in great position.
San Antonio Spurs
GM: JAH
Roster:
133 Martynas Andriuskevicius C 28 7'2'' 240 B C C+ B A C
326 Andray Blatche C 28 6'11'' 247 B- C C- B+ B+ C
348 Adreian Payne C 22 6'10'' 235 B- D D+ B B B
212 Rick Jackson C 25 6'9'' 240 B- D D C+ B C
437 Patric Young PF 23 6'9'' 240 B D+ C- A- A- B
267 Terrence Williams SF 27 6'6'' 220 B B- A- A- C+ B
601 Michael Beasley SF 25 6'9'' 235 B+ B+ D+ C+ C+ C
441 DeQuan Jones SF 24 6'6'' 190 A- C- D- B+ C C
482 Rudy Fernandez SG 29 6'6'' 185 B+ A- B+ C+ C- C
342 K.T. Harrell SG 21 6'4'' 185 C+ C+ C- B C- C
501 Dajuan Wagner PG 31 6'2'' 203 B- A- B B C- C
539 Darren Collison PG 27 6'0'' 160 C+ A- A- B+ C C
609 Yotam Halperin PG 30 6'5'' 210 C A B- B C- C
295 Marcus Paige PG 19 6'3'' 182 C+ C+ C+ C+ C C
Grade: C-. They are what they will always be: average. JAH completely blew his chance to compete for a title by playing the value game and staying complacent with his young players. He's afraid to make the big move and does not like risking any cap difficulties. In order to win, however, you have to do more than hang onto your guys. This team will probably win 40 again.
Golden State Warriors
GM: Game
Roster:
386 DeAndre Jordan C 26 6'11'' 250 C+ D- D+ B+ B+ D
225 Mason Plumlee C 23 6'11'' 226 C+ C+ C- A- B A
576 Derrick Williams PF 22 6'9'' 233 B C C- A- B A
117 J.J. Hickson PF 26 6'9'' 248 B+ C- C- C+ B- D
551 Jayvaughn Pinkston PF 22 6'6'' 220 C+ C C- B B B
173 Kyle Wiltjer PF 21 6'9'' 225 C+ B+ C- C C C
650 Renardo Sidney SF 24 6'10'' 275 B- C C C C C
530 Richard Hamilton SG 36 6'6'' 202 B- A- C B+ D D
575 O.J. Mayo SG 26 6'4'' 212 B+ A- B- C+ C C
349 Scotty Hopson SG 24 6'6'' 195 B- C+ C B- B- C
567 Avery Bradley SG 24 6'2'' 180 B C C+ B- D+ B
524 Dexter Strickland SG 23 6'3'' 185 B- C+ C C+ D+ C
257 Scottie Reynolds PG 27 6'2'' 195 C A+ B+ A- D B
387 Quinn Cook PG 21 5'11'' 158 C+ B- A A- D+ B
359 Marquis Teague PG 21 6'2'' 180 C+ B B B+ C- B
Grade: C. This team has a ton of young talent, I am just worried about how Game will use it. Game seems far too content with his team, which doesn't really make sense to me. He needs to put some AC's into Williams and decide on a point guard of the future. Once he does that, he has to deal his other two point guards for some serious wing help and a shot blocker. He may have the pieces, but they do not fit well at all right now and this could be a CY team soon.
Los Angeles Clippers
GM: Marty
197 Brook Lopez C 26 7'0'' 266 B C C A- A- C
15 Louis Amundson C 32 6'9'' 225 C+ D+ D+ A- C+ B
340 Herb Pope C 25 6'8'' 233 B+ D D+ C+ B- C
633 Jonas Valanciunas PF 21 6'11'' 260 A- C+ C+ B A A
313 Rudy Gay SF 28 6'9'' 230 B A- C B+ C D
608 Kevin Love SF 24 6'10'' 260 B+ B- C B- A C
271 Mladen Sekularac SF 33 6'8'' 231 C+ B- C B- B C
446 Arron Afflalo SG 28 6'5'' 215 C+ A C+ B C D
525 Chris Douglas-Roberts SG 27 6'7'' 204 C+ A- C+ A C C
541 Mike Miller SG 34 6'8'' 226 C+ A C C D+ D
505 Mike Dunleavy SG 34 6'9'' 226 C+ A C+ C+ C- C
231 Leslie McDonald SG 23 6'4'' 210 C B C- C+ D C
169 J.T. Terrell SG 23 6'4'' 175 C+ C+ C B+ C+ C
502 Jon Diebler SG 25 6'5'' 200 C A- C C- D D
402 Kyrie Irving PG 22 6'1'' 172 C+ B+ A B+ D- A
Grade: A. As long as Marty doesn't make any dumb trades, this team should win a lot of games for a long time. JV looks like he is a top 5 value guy in the league and Lopez always sims higher than his ratings. Love is not your ideal small forward because of his turnovers, though, so it may be in the Clippers best interest to bring Love off the bench at the 3/4/5 and have CDR and Gay starting. If Marty AC's Irving, the Clipps should be elite.
Los Angeles Lakers
GM: Nanz
Roster:
219 Marc Gasol C 29 7'1'' 271 A- C- C A- A C
606 Chris Kaman C 32 7'0'' 270 A- C- C- B B+ D
318 Troy Murphy PF 34 6'11'' 251 C A- D+ C+ B- F
639 Gorgui Dieng PF 22 6'10'' 210 C+ C- C- B- B C
559 Josh Huestis PF 23 6'7'' 230 C+ C- D+ C+ B+ A
571 Michael Gilchrist SF 21 6'7'' 193 B+ A- C A- B A
466 Ersan Ilyasova SG 27 6'9'' 239 B- A- C- B+ C D
379 De'Sean Butler SG 26 6'7'' 225 C+ C+ C C C C
309 Alexey Shved PG 26 6'6'' 187 C+ A- B+ A- C B
Grade: A-. Nanz is a great gm who had another successful rebuild. His frontcourt is the best in the league and Michael Gilchrist is randomly really good now. The team could use some more depth--feasible because he has 5 mil to use on leftover fa's--and an upgrade at the two. Though the Lakers are in their CY, they should get past it with ease and contend for a title. It should be interesting to see if Shved keeps developing into an elite point guard.
Oklahoma City Thunder
GM: Habes
Roster:
613 Greg Oden C 26 7'0'' 267 B- C F+ A- B C
191 Robin Lopez C 26 7'0'' 255 C+ C D B C+ C
523 Dallas Lauderdale C 24 6'8'' 260 B- D D+ B- C+ C
451 Mac Koshwal C 25 6'10'' 240 C+ D D+ C B- C
420 Gus Gilchrist PF 23 6'10'' 236 C+ C D A- B+ C
442 Tobias Harris PF 22 6'11'' 237 B+ C+ C B- B- A
417 Luc Mbah a Moute SF 28 6'8'' 230 C+ C+ C A- B- D
390 Dominic Cheek SF 22 6'6'' 185 C+ B- C- A- C- C
447 Arnett Moultrie SF 24 6'11'' 224 A- D+ D+ A- C B
204 Will Barton SG 23 6'7'' 206 B+ B+ C C+ C B
531 Greivis Vasquez SG 27 6'6'' 200 B B+ B+ C+ C D
429 Jamal Crawford SG 34 6'7'' 191 C A C C D- F
460 Ray McCallum PG 21 6'1'' 185 B- B B B D+ A
592 Tommy Mason-Griffin PG 23 5'11'' 170 C A B C D D
Grade: C. The Thunder have two really nice pieces in Roy McCallum and Tobias Harris, but do not have their pick and are kind of stuck in the middle for this year. If the Thunder had an inactive GM at the helm, they probably would get a D, but Habes thrives in these kind of situations and should have a good team pretty soon. It is also pretty clear that McCallum had 90+ potential and will be an all-star point guard.
Phoenix Suns
GM: Mark
Roster:
166 Joakim Noah C 29 7'0'' 247 B C C A- A C
491 Marcus Morris C 23 6'9'' 235 C+ C C C C+ C
157 Chris Mihm C 35 7'1'' 274 C C F B C+ F
486 Derrick Favors PF 23 6'10'' 249 A- C- D B+ A- B
189 Sean Williams PF 28 6'10'' 235 C+ D+ C- A- B- C
135 Xue Yuyang SF 31 7'0'' 219 B C+ D+ A- B D
450 Martell Webster SG 27 6'7'' 216 B+ A- C+ C+ C- D
16 Kelenna Azubuike SG 31 6'5'' 220 B- A- C- B C+ C
545 Deron Williams PG 30 6'3'' 218 B+ A- A A C- C
Grade: A. Mark's team took a bit of a hit in TC, but as the reigning champions, the Suns deserve the "A." Favors and Noah form quite a front court duo, and the Suns have an excellent scoring and handling backcourt to complement their two bigs. The Suns also have better depth than most of the other elite teams, which should make them the favorites for the title again. Mark is probably hoping that Xue's hit does not effect the team much, considering he is a huge X-factor.
Portland Trailblazers
GM: Dan
Roster:
299 Amare Stoudemire PF 31 7'0'' 253 A- C- C A- A- C
303 Henk Norel PF 27 6'11'' 215 B- D+ C- B+ A- C
469 Luke Babbitt PF 25 6'9'' 227 C+ B C- C+ C+ C
570 Kyle Singler SF 26 6'9'' 216 C A- B- B- C+ C
520 Tornike Shengelia SF 23 6'9'' 210 C+ C+ B- B- C+ B
401 Quincy Pondexter SF 26 6'7'' 215 C+ B- C- B C+ C
448 Bobby Simmons SF 34 6'7'' 215 B- C+ C C+ C F
243 Alec Burks SG 23 6'6'' 191 B A C A- C- A
296 Tony Allen SG 32 6'4'' 213 B C C A- C+ D
213 Trey Zeigler SG 22 6'5'' 195 C+ B C B C B
487 Leandro Barbosa PG 31 6'3'' 188 C A+ B+ C+ C- D
578 Jameer Nelson PG 32 6'0'' 191 C B+ B+ B- C- D
492 Delonte West PG 31 6'4'' 195 C B+ B+ C+ C C
470 Ian Miller PG 22 6'2'' 180 B- B C C+ D+ C
Grade: B? I have no idea who's on this roster anymore. Amare, Thad and Gordon I think? Decent team. Dan definitely did a good job dealing picks for established guys, but I don't think it will be enough to compete in a conference that is just on another level. I probably would have liked to see Dan hang onto Burks, but you can't blame the guy for trying to win now.
Utah Jazz
GM: Don
Roster:
628 Tyson Chandler C 31 7'1'' 256 C+ C- F+ B B D
221 Samuel Dalembert C 33 6'11'' 251 B- C- D- B B F
319 Meyers Leonard C 23 6'10'' 243 C+ C C+ B C B
230 Mouhamed Sene C 28 6'11'' 233 C+ D F+ B C+ D
140 Jason Maxiell PF 31 6'7'' 264 B- D+ F+ A- A- C
264 Fran Vázquez PF 31 6'11'' 246 C+ D+ D B B D
414 LeBron James SF 29 6'9'' 243 A A- B+ B B+ C
171 DeShaun Thomas SF 22 6'7'' 215 B C+ D+ C C B
479 Donta Smith SG 30 6'7'' 224 B+ A- C+ A- C C
444 Jason Richardson SG 33 6'6'' 226 C+ A C+ B C C
489 Devin Harris SG 31 6'3'' 188 C+ B C+ C D+ D
467 George Hill PG 28 6'2'' 188 C B+ B+ B+ D+ C
594 Baron Davis PG 35 6'3'' 218 C+ B C+ B- C- F
Grade: C-. Yea, this team is pretty much going nowhere right now. Aside from Lebron, I don't know if anyone on that roster is worth anything more than a couple of 1sts. Donta had a nice season last year but is not well regarded around the league and the rest of the team just blows. It is definitely time for Don to tear it down and rebuild. Lebron is 29 and not getting and younger. He should get a sick package for LB23, obviously.
