Multi Franchise States Draft - R1 - flaco* vs Snakebites

[durantbird]

Here is a quick list of what you need in your writeup.

1. Specific years for each player on your team
2. Rotations and minutes for each player
3. Reasoning as to why your team will win and/or why people should vote for you.

Do not vote in this thread until both managers have submitted their writeups.

If writeups aren't posted within 24 hours, we will vote solely based on the players they have drafted (and any rotations they have posted on their roster page).

**First to 3 votes advances**

[flaco]

Best of luck, Snake!



Rotation
PG: Jason Kidd (36) / Alex Caruso (12)
SG: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (24) / JJ Redick (24)
SF: Jimmy Butler (36) / Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (12)
PF: Kevin Durant (36) / Serge Ibaka (12)
C: Kristaps Porzingis (30) / Serge Ibaka (18)

Offense
KD and KP shoot at will from the perimeter. Nobody is tall/long enough to contest their shots. Even Chandler has a relavely modest wingspan of 7'3'' compared to KD's 7'4.75'' and KP's 7'6''. I don't see an individual defender on Snake's team who can slow down Durant 1-on-1. Butler slashes to the basket. He excels at absorbing contact as evidenced by his FTr of 62.5% in his selected season. With so much space in the paint, he should be unstoppable. Chandler would face serious problems trying to both contest the 3 against KP and protect the rim against Butler. Kidd spams the PnP. He keeps everyone involved, hence he keeps everyone happy. At that point in his career, he had become a reliable volume 3pt shooter averaging a 3PAr of 61.7%. JJ and Ibaka provide even more shooting ability off the bench.

Defense
Porzingis drops back to protect the rim. He's at his best in a drop scheme. Chandler cannot force him to step out of his comfort zone. KCP, Kidd and Caruso are my POA defenders. Wing D should be strong with six switchable defenders on the roster including my Point Guards who are both oversized at their position. KD and KP have the height and length to at least try to contest Dirk's fadeaway.

FGA
2017 Kevin Durant 16.5
2023 Jimmy Butler 13.9
2010 Jason Kidd 8.4
2020 Kentavious Caldwell-Pope 7.3
2021 Kristaps Porzingis 15.9
2020 Alex Caruso 4.5
2017 Serge Ibaka 12.4
2012 JJ Redick 9.0

Total: 87.9

[Snakebites]

PG: Jalen Brunson 22-23 17.6 FGA Knicks
24/6/1, 60% TS, 42% 3pt on 6.6 Attempts

SG: Klay Thompson 14-15 16.9 FGA Warriors
All NBA Third
22/3/3, 59% TS, 44% 3pt on 7.1 Attempts

SF: Andrew Wiggins 21-22 14.0 FGA Warriors
All Star
17/4/3, 56% TS, 39% 3pt on 5.5 Attempts

PF: Dirk Nowitzki 10-11 16.2 FGA Mavericks
Finals MVP, All NBA 2nd
23/7/3, 61% TS, 39% 3pt on 2.3 Attempts, 28 PPG on 61%TS in Playoffs

C: Tyson Chandler 10-11 5.5 FGA Mavericks
All Defensive 2nd
10/9/1, 70% TS


B: George Hill 10-11 8.3 FGA Spurs
12/3, 38% 3pt on 2.7 Attempts

B: Nicolas Batum 20-21 6.1 FGA Clippers
40% 3pt on 4.1 Attempts, 3 and D forward

B: Dwight Powell 20-21 3.3 FGA Mavericks
6/4

Rotation:

Brunson (37)/Hill (11)
Thompson (37)/Hill (11)
Wiggins (26)/Batum (22)
Dirk (38)/Wiggins (10)
Chandler (36)/Powell (12)

Alrighty, lets do this.

I think Dirk placed in a modern style offense in this era would be an absolutely terrifying force of nature. While I still pair him with his ideal defensive complement (and the one he won a championship with in real life), the rest of the pieces give me a pace and space offense that I think this version of Dirk would absolutely thrive in.

Jalen Brunson hasn't gotten much burn in these games, likely due in part to relatively high cost and depth of the point guard position, but in 22-23 I think he really proved his worth. He's a high end pick and roll ball handler who also has terrific shooting and scoring chops. He and Dirk should have an extremely efficient two man game (not that Dirk necessarily needs a playmaker setting him up- he can also make his own offense as he dramatically proved throughout the season and especially in the 2011 playoffs), and Klay Thompson is an absolutely ideal piece to throw into the mix. This top 3 scoring crew is extremely complementary and I don't think there's really a reliable option to way it given the spacing and Brunson's own shooting ability. Wiggins slides in as the perfect fourth option, and of course Chandler can feast on whatever high percentage opportunities he gets as a rim runner here. Every player who gets minutes anywhere but center on this team is a very good outside shooter, so this offense should operate in space effectively. I also don't particularly love Dallas Porzingis, who hadn't really begun the resurgence we saw in Washington (that is obviously continuing in Boston).

Defensively flaco's three wing offense is admittedly tough to deal with, though it's a double edged sword in that I don't particularly like any of his players guarding Dirk. We'll pick our poison and put Dirk on KCP while putting Klay and Wiggins on Butler and Durant, respectively. While flaco's spacing is strong his playmakers (Kidd and Butler) aren't as effective as perimeter scorers, with Butler being an inconsistent shooter and Kidd mostly hitting open spot-up shots.

Overall I think my team has an extremely effective and well-fitting offense that maximizes the strengths of its two primary offensive creators.

[Fadeaway_J]

Really like the formula for Snake with Dirk and Brunson running two-man game with two spacers and an elite roll man. As I alluded to in the previous round, I'd like to see a bit more dynamic guard play on flaco's team. Dirk on KCP is only the lesser of two evils as KCP is a capable movement shooter, but flaco seems to have some concerns on the other end with only KD having the physical tools to guard Dirk; that's a pretty gruelling matchup (physically and mentally) given his offensive responsibilities. Porzingis playing drop is still exploitable even without a stretch 5 because Brunson is a major threat to shoot the pullup three or midranger when he comes off the screen.

Vote: Snakebites

[Dr Positivity]

I preferred Snake's starting lineup but I don't love the matchup here on D with Dirk on a SG and Chandler spaced out by Porzingis, in addition to a weaker defensive PG in Brunson (I was hoping someone would eliminate flaco for the same matchup reason). I could still see the starting lineup as close but since flaco has the depth advantage I'll vote for him. Vote flaco.

[Fadeaway_J]

[lilroddyb]

I really like both teams in terms of talent and fit.

This is one of the matchups that could go either way but I like Flaco team slightly more. I think his defense will be a bit better overall with no bad defenders in his starting lineup and I think Butler is the best second option in this matchup.

vote Flaco

[durantbird]

This is extremely close, and I could've gone either way. But I'll go with Snake as I don't particularly like flaco matchup against Dirk.

Vote Snake

[uberhikari]

KD on Dirk is concerning but it's at least plausible since Dirk is a finesse player who doesn't bang in the low-post. However, Dirk on KCP and Chandler on Porzingis is much more concerning because either matchup can lead to serious defensive breakdowns, especially with Butler and KD both being able to relentlessly attack the paint. flaco also has better top-end talent and depth. Vote: flaco

[durantbird]

flaco advances

[Snakebites]

Damn. Really liked this team.

GG flaco. GL in the semis.