A LEGEND IS BORN II

[Cartar]

Celtics beat Blazers 4-3
MVP: Paul Pierce

[kibaxx7]

Celtics 4, Blazers 3
MVP: Kevin Garnett.

[Fresh8]

Waiting another 3 hours before this is updated!

Onto the offseason we go!

[Fresh8]

The story so far...

New Jersey Nets Hold First, Third Picks

May 20, 2010

NEW YORK (AP) – The New Jersey Nets had the best odds to grab the Number One Overall Pick of the 2010 NBA Draft. They had the second worst record in the league that gave them the second best shot at winning the first pick. The kicker is that the New York Knicks had the worst record in the league last season. And they had traded their first round pick to the Nets for Vince Carter.

With basically two great shots at winning the first pick, the Nets came away from the NBA Draft Lottery more than satisfied. They now own the first and third picks of the NBA Draft. The first pick could have been New York’s.

“I reckon the Knicks are kicking themselves right now,” one league executive stated, “They could have used a player like Jay Gray. Vince Carter is 33 now and on the decline. Gray will be an All-Star one day.” Despite Gray being touted as the best player in the Draft, there have been murmurs that the Nets have already decided that they will be selecting by need and not talent.

An Eastern Conference scout, at the Lottery last night, said, “I’ve heard that the Nets are happy with Yi Jianlian and will be going to pick by the positions they need players right now.” Barney Steele, coming off a solid rookie season, was at the lottery to represent the Nets. Steele was happy with the Nets’ movement, “With Yi and me, hopefully we will be welcoming another two young and talented players. It’s very exciting to be a part of all of this.”

The Milwaukee Bucks holds the second pick; the Toronto Raptors have the fourth pick; and the Charlotte Bobcats round out the Top Five. The rest of the lottery is as follows:

1. New Jersey Nets (Via New York Knicks)
2. Milwaukee Bucks
3. New Jersey Nets
4. Toronto Raptors
5. Charlotte Bobcats
6. Chicago Bulls
7. Los Angeles Clippers
8. Memphis Grizzlies
9. Dallas Mavericks
10. Sacramento Kings
11. Philadelphia 76ers (Via Utah Jazz)
12. Golden State Warriors
13. Phoenix Suns
14. San Antonio Spurs

Read More…

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Leo Chase’s Draft Stock Rising

June 2, 2010

PHOENIX (AP) – Leo Chase is watching his draft stock rise after a number of workouts with lottery teams. Scouts and coaches have been impressed with his athleticism and tenacity on the glass. The La Salle product, currently working out for the Suns over two days, has become a lock to be taken in the first round with many expecting him to be selected in the lottery.

“This guy is just a freak of nature. I can’t see him dropping past the middle of the first round,” a Western Conference scout said, “He just has this uncanny ability to grab every rebound, block a lot of shots. He’s hustles a lot and plays with his heart on his sleeve.”

Chase has been criticised for his lack of offensive ability and only started playing basketball in his junior year of high school. “He is not as polished as any of the other players in the Draft but he’s certainly a very gifted athlete.”

Read More…

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Lliach: Decision Was A Good One

June 5, 2010

DALLAS (AP) – The Dallas Mavericks were very impressed with the play of Estonian Ray Lliach during UConn’s run to the NCAA title. “He has shown poise and leadership beyond his years,” a Mavs staff member praised the youngster.

Lliach told media that leaving Connecticut was a tough choice but he feels that it is the right decision. “I was sad to leave my team mates,” he said, “I was even thinking about staying so that we could defend our title but I think that I have made the right choice to follow my dreams.”

Read More…

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Nissley’s Size Deters Teams

June 11, 2010

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Georgia’s Manfred Nissley has been described as weird and introverted. But of biggest concern to most NBA teams is his short and plump stature. “He does not look like an NBA player to me. Not at all,” one scout has joked. Nissley has a range on a textbook jumper but his lack of conditioning, athleticism is deterring from lottery teams from taking him seriously.

The 5’9’’ SG tried out for the Lakers and Lakers scouts were underwhelmed. “He’s too short to play in the NBA and he just does not have the quickness to stay on the floor,” a Lakers assistant coach said, “He wouldn’t last in the NBA.”

Many coaches and scouts have suggested to Nissley to try and show that he can be a playmaker during workouts but he has not been invited to work out for any teams other than the Lakers. Nissley will have a chance to show off his playmaking ability during the upcoming NBA Draft Combine.

Read More…

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Dela Cruz Impresses In Workouts

June 14, 2010

SAN ANTONIO (AP) – Kenneth Dela Cruz has been called the Phillipines’ answer to LeBron James. He may fall slightly short to those comparisons but not because of his inability; just because James is so good. Dela Cruz certainly has a lot of hype from his home nation and no one will confuse him with ‘The King’ but he still certainly has lottery-worthy talent.

The Spurs, who hold the fourteenth pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, invited Dela Cruz for a workout and Gregg Popovich came away impressed. “I like how he works hard on both ends of the floor,” the veteran coach stated, “He is a big guy who can score as well as pass the rock. He’s got a good feel for the game.”

He stopped short of saying whether he would consider picking Dela Cruz but did note that the team was in need of a defensive swingman, a role that the 6’8’’ Dela Cruz could fill.

Read More…

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Boston Celtics Win Championship In Five Games

June 16, 2010

BOSTON (AP) – Victory was sweet as the Boston Celtics triumphed over the Portland Trailblazers for the 2010 NBA title. The Celtics won their second title in three years and enjoyed this one even more than their first. “Winning at home is the best feeling,” NBA Finals MVP Kevin Garnett stated.

The Blazers were able to take Game 2 away from Boston but the Celtics romped to the title, winning the series 4-1. The 34 year old Garnett was named MVP after averaging 21.8 ppg, 12.2 rpg, 4.3 apg, 1.6 spg, and 2.3 bpg. “It was a well-deserved honour,” retiring head coach Doc Rivers stated, “KG is the heart and soul of our team.”

The win has convinced SG Ray Allen to stay in Boston after word spread that he wanted to finish his career elsewhere because he thought the team was getting old and would not be able to contend for another title.

Read More…

[Valor]

boo at Celtics winning

Bulls with 6th pick! who will they choose?

[Martti.]

Damn, MVP prediction went correctly, but the series was just one game off.

Memphis will have a great PF next season.. Watch out KG, Bosh, Brand and others

[homicide1550]

Yay! My prediction was right, Celtics are champions and KG is the Finals MVP.. Also missed the series prediction by 1 game.. dang!

[puttincomputers]

The story so far...



Nissley’s Size Deters Teams

June 11, 2010

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Georgia’s Manfred Nissley has been described as weird and introverted. But of biggest concern to most NBA teams is his short and plump stature. “He does not look like an NBA player to me. Not at all,” one scout has joked. Nissley has a range on a textbook jumper but his lack of conditioning, athleticism is deterring from lottery teams from taking him seriously.

The 5’9’’ SG tried out for the Lakers and Lakers scouts were underwhelmed. “He’s too short to play in the NBA and he just does not have the quickness to stay on the floor,” a Lakers assistant coach said, “He wouldn’t last in the NBA.”

Many coaches and scouts have suggested to Nissley to try and show that he can be a playmaker during workouts but he has not been invited to work out for any teams other than the Lakers. Nissley will have a chance to show off his playmaking ability during the upcoming NBA Draft Combine.

Read More…

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hmmm. and on my birthday... will need to surprise the folks at the combine with my new passing abilities.

i just keep laughing when i read this.... yes i know i am weird. introverted not so much

[Skills]

This is what I get for underestimating KG.
Raps get the fourth pick?! Aww damn, now there's no way I'll end up there.

[kibaxx7]

I am in this draft class or the next one?

[Fresh8]

Thierry, I think you are in the next one after this coming season.

Thanks for participating everyone! The post under this one will explain how you guys have reaped the benefits of being in the tipping comp. Remember to send PMs as I don't want this thread to be too spammed up!

As for those who don't have virtual rookies, PM me and I will reply to you about what we can do.

[Fresh8]

Tipping Competition Rewards
Now Your Virtual Player Reaps The Benefits Of Your Participation!

Thank you for participating in the tipping competition. As a result of your readership, you will now be able to use the points you earned on improving your virtual player!

Final Leaderboard

Leaderboard: Current Position. (Previous Position) Name | Points | Tiebreaker*

1. (1) ratrac | 180 | 12
T-2. (2) lamrock | 140 |10
T-2. (3) Martti. | 140 | 10
T-2. (4) homicide1550 | 140 | 10
3. (12) thierryhenry50 | 105 | 9
4. (5) puttincomputers | 95 | 8
5. (6) nba_baller | 95 | 7
6. (7) C-77 | 90 | 8
7. (8) Valor | 85 | 8
7. (14) newc | 85 | 8
8. (9) The X | 80 | 9
9. (10) KlemenPipic | 80 | 8
10. (11) mark. | 80 | 7
11. (13) StupidBoy | 75 |7
12. (15) hova | 50 | 3
13. (16) kasier_kobe | 30 | 2
14. (--) Skillmatic | 15 | 1

* Tiebreaker – If two or more people have the same amount of points, the tiebreaker is decided by how many series you correctly picked.

What Do You Do Now?

It’s very simple. Every participant now has a certain number of points that they will be able to use on improving attributes of their virtual player. You only have one chance to use all these points so don’t waste your points (i.e. any leftover points are not able to be brought forward to the next tipping competition).

For every Skill-based attribute, it costs you 4 points in order to improve that certain attribute by 1. For every Physical-based attribute, it costs you 8 points in order to improve that certain attribute.

Skill-based attributes are skills like shooting, dribbling, passing, rebounding, etc. Physical-based attributes includes attributes like strength, speed, endurance, as well as mental attributes such as awareness. If you are unsure whether the attribute you want to include is a skill-based or physical-based one, you are able to post and pose your question.

A quick example of how to let me know how you want to improve your player:

Player: 75 points
Three point shooting + 5 (20 points)
Mid range shooting + 4 (16 points)
Layup + 3 (12 points)
Stamina + 3 (24 points)
3 Points left over that cannot be spent

Please send me your edit player requests (Don’t forget to include your player’s name!) via PM and in the format that is in italics.

You have 5 days to send in your requests!

[kibaxx7]

Very interesting. Will do it later at my job

[Valor]

can the points be saved and used when my player is actually drafted? cause for the guys who aren't and have earned a heap of points...we cant spend it on...anything lol

[Mark.]

Trade Durant, hes a ball bag in your story

Congrats on a succesful season, if it hadn't been for Durants poor treatment of Tyson im sure your team would have had that second go-to scorer it needed.

[Fresh8]

All of the guys who are in future draft classes (ie. 2011, 2012, 2013)... ur points will go towards your draft stock and potential. That's what I have decided and it is final. So you don't need to worry about PMing me as I will keep a note of it!

[hova-]

Tough loss against the Blazers. As Ive been away for a week I couldnt post ... Looks like a decent Draft for the Nets with two top 3 picks. Im not too sure right now wether or not I am in this year's draft class ... I hope so

Celtics did really well and seems like they are starting a Spurs like era - one year off - on year champion.

Keep it up

[Fresh8]

2010 Mock Lottery

2010 Mock Draft | 2011 Mock Draft | Create Mock

Updated: 20/06/10 11:23 am

1. New Jersey (via New York) – Jeremy Mason, SG
2. Milwaukee – Jay Gray, PF
3. New Jersey – Leonard Cassell, SG
4. Toronto – Chris Hova, PG
5. Charlotte – DJ Schmidt, C
6. Chicago – Bradley Emerson, SG
7. LA Clippers – Ray Lliach, PG
8. Memphis – Kenneth Dela Cruz, SF
9. Dallas – Stan Erickson, SF
10. Sacramento – Shawn Skinner, C
11. Philadelphia (via Utah) – Aaron Karl, PG
12. Golden State – Louis Nixon, PG
13. Phoenix – Manfred Nissley, SG
14. San Antonio – Donnie Meyers, C

Click For 2010 Mock Draft | 2010 Draft Board

[puttincomputers]

ouch! i would probably be a better fit with phoenix! please not gsw again!

[hova-]

I would love to end up with the Bulls or the Mavs. But Toronto would also be a decent city I guess

[KlemenPipic]

damn havent been here for a couple of days and i couldnt make predictions
lol nets drafted 2 SGs

[Fresh8]

Hey guys, just need to say that all 2010 draftees can improve their players too!

[Fresh8]

NBA Draft Combine 2010

Day One

The NBA invited 20 of the top NBA draft prospects to the inaugural NBA Draft Combine. NBA execs, scouts, and coaches from all 30 teams were present on the day. After having their heights and weights measured, the players converged onto the practise floor and participated in various drills.

The first day of the Combine was relatively uneventful with many of the scouts interested in seeing how all of the point guards fared in comparison to eachother. PG Ray Lliach, NCAA winner with UConn, impressed the most by blitzing a ‘dribbling obstacle course’. PG Aaron Karl, who played for Rhode Island, was the next best. Undersized SG Manfred Nissley failed to even complete the course and did not help himself at all. He finds himself rapidly falling out of being projected to be selected in the first round.

TCU’s PF Jay Gray was revealed to be shorter than what many believed him to be. Listed in College at 6’11”, his height was measured at 6’9” although some scouts were sceptical and stated that they believed he to be close to 6’7”. However, any issues about his stock taking any kind of hit would be dispelled as he proved to be the strongest player at the Combine as well as having the fourth best vertical leap of the prospects.

PF Leo Chase had the best vertical leap of the 20 players while also being surprisingly quick for his size. He also held his own in a series of 40 metre sprints losing out to only a handful of guards. UCLA’s SG James Carter was the fastest in the 40 metre sprint but drew many shaking heads as he boasted to fellow prospects. Unhearalded PG Dustin Thompson surprised many in the 40 metre sprint. He was second fastest overall on the day.

A series of shooting drills proved that UCLA’s SG Jeremy Mason had the best looking jump shot but it was Seton Hall’s 19 year old SF Herbert Horsley who did not seem to miss a shot. PFs Jay Gray and Shaun Skinner were the most impressive in the low post, using various low post moves to score layups and hook shots. 7 foot C DJ Schmidt showed great improvement since he last played Washington State a few months ago. His low post game was not limited to just dunks as he showed some mobility and variety with his movements near the hoop.

The first day of the Combine ended with the players fielding interviews from the press. One of the most interesting comments of the day came from Georgia’s Manfred Nissley who stated, “Please don’t draft me Golden State.”

[puttincomputers]

nice!

[Fresh8]

NBA Draft Combine 2010

Day Two

The 20 players were separated into four teams. They were as follows:

Team One: C Donnie Meyers, PF Jay Gray, SF Herbert Horsley, SG Jeremy Mason, SG Manfred Nissley
Team Two: C Shaun Skinner, PF Bruce Jamieson, SF Stan Erickson, SG Leonard Cassell, PG Aaron Karl
Team Three: C Gerard Hughes, PF Leo Chase, SG Bradley Emerson, PG Dustin Thompson, PG Ray Lliach
Team Four: C DJ Schmidt, PF Colin Warren, SG James Carter, PG Corey Brady, PG Louis Nixon

Team One was slated to play against Team Two and Team Three would play Four before midday. After lunch and another press opportunity, the players would re-emerge onto the practise floor as the winners from each game played each other in a ‘Final’ for the Combine.

Game 1

Team Two won the first game of the day 12-10. Team One got off to a hot start and looked like they were going to roll to an easy win, thanks to SF Herbert Horsley hitting three triples in a row. However, PG Aaron Karl came to his team’s rescue; his quick feet and hands on both ends of the floor helped his team to the win. Karl scored 5 of his team’s 12 points and assisted on all of the rest. His defensive intensity forced Team One’s Manfred Nissley into multiple turnovers and bothered SG Jeremy Mason. Stan Erickson caused murmurs around the gym as he locked down on Horsley and hit back to back three pointers, including the game winning shot.

Manfred Nissley was placed onto Team One in order for scouts to assess whether he had any of the tools to have any chance of shifting to the PG position in the NBA instead of playing at SG. He did the least to improve his draft stock and might actually drop out of the lottery. One Eastern Conference scout stated about Nissley, “He’s overwight, slow, and has no idea what he’s doing. He’s unpredictable and looks for his own shot too much.”

Jeremy Mason and Jay Gray wound up together on Team One and the two of them were extremely underwhelming. Gray was evidently the strongest player on the floor and pulled down plenty of rebounds but was not assertive on offence. Mason was even worse, looking uninterested during the whole match, and helped bring the ball up but rather unenthusiastically. That was disappointing considering that some people have called these two the top two talents in the Draft.

Game 2

Teams Three and Four were locked in the second close encounter of the day with Four winning 12-9. The best player for Game Four was PG Corey Brady, a 21 year old PG out of Ohio State. His unorthodox shot kept dropping while he was able to set up team mates James Carter and DJ Schmidt. Carter showed a lot of energy on both ends of the floor as he blocked shots as well as dived for loose balls. On offence, he wowed everyone with some athletic plays and two big dunks.

DJ Schmidt was an intimidating presence in the paint, knocking back plenty of shots, as well as pulling down rebound after rebound. He was not very involved on offence but did have one impressive put back dunk off of a Brady miss.

Ray Lliach proved himself to be the premier playmaker of the Draft Combine as he set up his team mates for his team’s first three baskets as Team Three took a convincing 7-2 lead. He scored a baseline three to put his side 2 points away from winning the scrimmage. His combination of dazzling dribbling moves and pin-point passing made him tough to stop. Bradley Emerson carried the scoring load but proved to be a very streaky shooter. He was on fire early on but with the game nearly won, his shot lost out to form and he went cold. Emerson was terrible as he missed multiple shots as his side lost to a spirited Team Four.

Leo Chase did little to improve the opinions of scouts. He had a great opportunity to do so but missed a handful of ‘gimmes’. Little known Dustin Thompson surprised everyone with his quickness, one scout noted, “I never knew he was that quick. He might be the quickest guy I’ve seen all day.”

Final

Teams Two and Four took on each other in the Combine’s final scrimmage. Team Two, led by Leonard Cassell and Aaron Karl, romped to an 11-2 win. Cassell did well for himself as he played great defence to lock down on James Carter. His back to back threes sealed the deal for Team Two. Cassell has been touted as the second best SG in the Draft but his performance at the two-day camp make him a contender to unseat Jeremy Mason as the best SG prospect.

Aaron Karl was once again impressive; a dependable player with the ball in his hands and always making the right decisions. He showed that he is an excellent finisher at the rim. Big man Shaun Skinner did not make much of an impact in his team’s game in the morning but made up for it in the final. Skinner intercepted three passes and ran the floor like a guard. He finished layups with ease over the taller and stronger DJ Schmidt; it was Skinner’s hustle that helped his team to victory.

Team Four was terrible. Corey Brady and James Carter, the two players who performed so well in the morning game, were selfish with the ball. Brady was 0-5 from the field and had 4 turnovers, struggling against Aaron Karl’s defence. Carter dominated the ball and did not pass to his team mates. He was labelled a ‘black hole’ by one onlooker, “If you pass it to him, it’s not coming back.” Carter’s performance earlier in the day drew praise from scouts but his ball-hogging in the Final did him no favours; a similar story with him blaming his team mates for the loss.