Wizards are champions again!

[Phil89]

1/4/13

March 2013 Summary

Conference Standings

-----

League Leaders

-----

Player Awards

-----

Transactions

-----

Major Injuries

[Phil89]

I guess the addition of Favors and Gay to my team and Orlando's hardcore tanking means that despite a horrible 0-23 start, I'm not bottom of the conference anymore. Not sure how to feel about this. I don't want to finish last, but I also don't want to win games and end up with a 5-10 pick.

[Phil89]

Five game summary - Apr 2-9

2/4/13

Washington Wizards [23-50] vs Chicago Bulls [45-27]

WAS - 24 24 20 25 93
CHI - 24 19 25 30 98

Top Scorers
Rudy Gay - 22
Derrick Rose - 21
Carlos Boozer - 19
Randy Foye - 19
Luol Deng - 15
Nate Robinson - 14
Patrick Patterson - 14
Daequan Cook - 10

Assists
Derrick Rose - 7
Richard Hamilton - 6
Luol Deng - 5

Rebounds
Taj Gibson - 9
Carlos Boozer - 8
Luol Deng - 8
Rudy Gay - 7
Derrick Rose - 6
Jason Maxiell - 6
Patrick Patterson - 6
Derrick Favors - 5
Dominic McGuire - 5

3/4/13

Toronto Raptors [29-45] vs Washington Wizards [23-51]

TOR - 25 18 19 23 13 98
WAS - 20 14 23 28 12 97

Top Scorers
Andrea Bargnani - 29
DeMar DeRozan - 19
Daequan Cook - 18
Jason Maxiell - 17
Randy Foye - 14
John Wall - 13
Dominic McGuire - 11
Derrick Favors - 10
Patrick Patterson - 10
Linas Kleiza - 10

Assists
Kyle Lowry - 10
Randy Foye - 7

Rebounds
Amir Johnson - 12
Jason Maxiell - 12
Dominic McGuire - 9
Randy Foye - 8
Jonas Valanciunas - 7
Andrea Bargnani - 7
Patrick Patterson - 6
Daequan Cook - 5

6/4/13

Washington Wizards [23-52] vs Indiana Pacers [48-28]

WAS - 35 40 30 19 124
IND - 27 34 21 33 115

Top Scorers
Danny Granger - 25
Randy Foye - 23
DJ Augustin - 20
Rudy Gay - 17
Derrick Favors - 16
Jason Maxiell - 16
Paul George - 16
John Wall - 15
Daequan Cook - 14
George Hill - 13
Patrick Patterson - 11

Assists
Randy Foye - 8
DJ Augustin - 7
Dominic McGuire - 5

Rebounds
Jason Maxiell - 14
Patrick Patterson - 9
Roy Hibbert - 8
Tyler Hansbrough - 6
Danny Granger - 5
Rudy Gay - 5
Hamed Haddadi - 5
Dominic McGuire - 5

7/4/13

Boston Celtics [37-39] vs Washington Wizards [24-52]

BOS - 26 34 26 30 116
WAS - 20 20 27 23 90

Top Scorers
Leandro Barbosa - 34
Daequan Cook - 21
Paul Pierce - 18
Randy Foye - 17
Jason Terry - 16
Brandon Bass - 14
Kevin Garnett - 12
Derrick Favors - 11
Rudy Gay - 11

Assists
Paul Pierce - 6

Rebounds
Brandon Bass - 13
Jason Maxiell - 13
Kevin Garnett - 9
Paul Pierce - 6
Derrick Favors - 6
Rudy Gay - 5
Daequan Cook - 5

9/4/13

New York Knicks [37-39] vs Washington Wizards [24-53]

NYK - 33 23 27 24 107
WAS - 22 28 28 25 103

Top Scorers
Randy Foye - 37
Carmelo Anthony - 34
Amare Stoudemire - 24
Iman Shumpert - 17
Daequan Cook - 14
Raymond Felton - 13
Derrick Favors - 12

Assists
Dominic McGuire - 7
Jason Kidd - 6
John Wall - 5
Iman Shumpert - 5

Rebounds
Tyson Chandler - 12
Jason Maxiell - 9
Amare Stoudemire - 8
Carmelo Anthony - 8
Hamed Haddadi - 7
Dominic McGuire - 6
Derrick Favors - 5
Jason Kidd - 5

[Phil89]

Four game summary - Apr 10-17

10/4/13

Washington Wizards [24-54] vs Miami Heat [56-21]

WAS - 24 29 26 31 110
MIA - 21 20 30 29 100

Top Scorers
Randy Foye - 33
Dwyane Wade - 22
Daequan Cook - 18
Mario Chalmers - 17
LeBron James - 16
Jason Maxiell - 15
Roger Mason - 14
Ray Allen - 12
John Wall - 10

Assists
Mario Chalmers - 7
LeBron James - 6
Dwyane Wade - 5
Dominic McGuire - 5

Rebounds
Patrick Patterson - 9
Jason Maxiell - 9
Chris Bosh - 9
Dominic McGuire - 7
Shane Battier - 6
Derrick Favors - 6
Rudy Gay - 6
Hamed Haddadi - 5
Roger Mason - 5

12/4/13

Washington Wizards [25-54] vs Philadelphia 76ers [50-28]

WAS - 25 21 37 25 108
PHI - 23 26 17 31 97

Top Scorers
Randy Foye - 32
Evan Turner - 25
Spencer Hawes - 24
Jason Maxiell - 18
Jrue Holiday - 12
Thaddeus Young - 11
Daequan Cook - 11

Assists
Dominic McGuire - 8
Jrue Holiday - 7
Randy Foye - 6
Evan Turner - 5
John Wall - 5

Rebounds
Spencer Hawes - 10
Arnett Moultrie - 8
Evan Turner - 8
Jason Maxiell - 8
Derrick Favors - 7
Daequan Cook - 7
Rudy Gay - 5

15/4/13

Brooklyn Nets [47-33] vs Washington Wizards [26-54]

BKN - 25 29 24 31 109
WAS - 27 20 31 26 104

Top Scorers
Deron Williams - 32
Rudy Gay - 29
John Wall - 20
Joe Johnson - 16
Gerald Wallace - 14
Brook Lopez - 13
Derrick Favors - 12
Daequan Cook - 12
Patrick Patterson - 11
MarShon Brooks - 10
Kris Humphries - 10

Assists
John Wall - 9
Deron Williams - 6
Randy Foye - 5

Rebounds
Andray Blatche - 10
Kris Humphries - 10
Brook Lopez - 9
Gerald Wallace - 7
Jason Maxiell - 7
Derrick Favors - 7
Patrick Patterson - 7
Dominic McGuire - 5
Rudy Gay - 5
Daequan Cook - 5

17/4/13

Chicago Bulls [50-31] vs Washington Wizards [26-55]

CHI - 23 29 12 27 91
WAS - 23 22 21 28 94

Top Scorers
Patrick Patterson - 24
Rudy Gay - 21
Carlos Boozer - 16
John Wall - 15
Richard Hamilton - 14
Luol Deng - 13
Derrick Rose - 12
Derrick Favors - 12
Joakim Noah - 10
Jason Maxiell - 10

Assists
John Wall - 9
Rudy Gay - 5

Rebounds
Derrick Favors - 12
Jason Maxiell - 8
Rudy Gay - 8
Carlos Boozer - 8
Luol Deng - 8
Taj Gibson - 6
John Wall - 5

[Phil89]

18/4/13

Regular Season Review

2012-13 League Leaders

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Awards

Most Valuable Player

LeBron James - MIA
24.2 PPG - 7.9 RPG - 5.6 APG - 0.8 BPG - 1.5 SPG

Rookie of the Year

Damian Lillard - POR
16.5 PPG - 4.4 RPG - 7.3 APG - 0.0 BPG - 1.6 SPG

Sixth man of the Year

Jordan Crawford - HOU
15.3 PPG - 2.2 RPG - 2.6 APG - 0.0 BPG - 0.7 SPG

Defensive Player of the Year

Josh Smith - ATL
23.3 PPG - 9.2 RPG - 3.4 APG - 1.9 BPG - 1.3 SPG

Most Improved Player

Kemba Walker - CHA
21.2 PPG - 4.4 RPG - 7.7 APG - 0.0 BPG - 2.2 SPG

Coach of the Year

Erik Spoelstra - MIA
Win Percentage - 71.9% - Record - 59-23

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Teams

All-NBA Teams


All-Defensive Teams


All-Rookie Teams

[SuperHueyNewton]

Beat the Heat, Sixers, and Bulls? I'd say the future is looking up. I am also a bit tired of LeBron ALWAYS taking the MVP. I know he is good. But they make it so that no one has a chance to compete in a fair race for the MVP. It makes going after the award a hassle more than anything

[Phil89]

Westbrook really should have won it. His numbers were better than LeBron's, but I think Miami had the better record. I think even Durant had better numbers but he missed half the season.

[Phil89]

30/5/13

2013 Playoffs

2013 Playoffs Results
____________________________________________________________

___________________________________


Western Conference___________________________________________________________________________
The only major upset of the first round in the western conference was the Timberwolves eliminating the Lakers in seven games.
After that the favourites won through to the conference finals, where the Thunder outlasted the Clippers to advance after game seven.


___________________________________________________________________________Eastern Conference
The east however was full of surprises. The 76ers were sent packing in the first round despite being so good during the regular season.
Milwaukee continued their giant killing streak all the way to the finals. They eliminated the top three seeds on their way to the main event.

-----

1. Oklahoma City [12-8] vs. 6. Milwaukee Bucks [12-7]

It's a classic case of David vs Goliath in this season's NBA Finals. Heavily fancied Oklahoma City are expected to make short work of the Bucks.
But anyone who watches sport knows that it's never that simple. If your team isn't involved you always find yourself rooting for the underdogs.
At least the Bucks know that they will be cheered on by all the NBA fans in Seattle. Fans still angry that their team was moved to another city.
This is the second finals appearance for the franchise formerly known as the SuperSonics since the controversial move to Oklahoma City in 2008.

Oklahoma City are making their second trip to the NBA Finals in as many years. Last season they were outplayed by LeBron James and the Heat.
The pain of that series loss has been etched on Kevin Durant's and Russell Westbrook's faces all season. They've used it to improve themselves.
James Harden being traded during the off-season couldn't even slow down their quest to return to the mountaintop and claim the ultimate prize.
Durant and Westbrook both averaged over 27 points per game during the regular season. Easily making them the best scoring duo in the league.
This was mainly due to the fact that Durant missed about half the season through injury and Westbrook had to become the leader of the group.
He filled the role perfectly. His excellent form earned him a starting role in the All-Star game. He scored a superb 37 points and was voted MVP.
Some people firmly believe that he was even robbed of the regular season MVP award because LeBron's Miami team finished with a better record.
Another positive for the Thunder was Kevin Martin. He came over from the Rockets in the Harden trade and quickly took over the sixth man role.
He enjoyed the change of scenery so much that he re-signed for four years just before Christmas. The Thunder have been a very settled team.
They've been in the top two seeds in the western conference all season and never looked like slipping up. This will give them more confidence.

Milwaukee on the other hand were never supposed to make it this far. Their main goal for this season was to merely make it to the post-season.
If you had asked any of their fans at the beginning of the season whether they could have made it this far, they probably would have laughed at you.
But they're here now and aren't planning on just making up the numbers. With Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings in great form they are a real threat.
The tricky pair are both capable of dropping 40 on any given night and will be a real headache for the likes of Westbrook and Sefolosha to worry about.
Milwaukee may not even have them beyond this season though. Ellis has a player option for another year and Jennings may test the free agent market.
This strong playoff run should be enough to convince them to remain in Milwaukee, but winning a championship would make the decision much easier.
Some people wondered what they were up to when they traded away cap flexibility and a first round pick to get Okafor and Ariza from the Wizards.
But given where they are now, it seems that the trade was a real success. Okafor has been a defensive anchor for the team and has led by example.
They made a shaky start before acquiring those guys. But they soon improved and comfortably held down the sixth seed for the rest of the season.

NBA Finals Records

Oklahoma City
(As the SuperSonics)
1978 - Lost 3-4 vs Washington Bullets
1979 - Won 4-1 vs Washington Bullets
1996 - Lost 2-4 vs Chicago Bulls
(As the Thunder)
2012 - Lost 1-4 vs Miami Heat

Milwaukee
1971 - Won 4-0 vs Baltimore Bullets
1974 - Lost 3-4 vs Boston Celtics

Line-ups

Oklahoma City
Starters:
Kendrick Perkins - Serge Ibaka - Kevin Durant - Kevin Martin - Russell Westbrook


Bench:
Eric Maynor - Perry Jones III - Thabo Sefolosha - Jeremy Lamb - Nick Collison - Reggie Jackson - Hasheem Thabeet


-----

Milwaukee
Starters:
Emeka Okafor - Ersan Ilyasova - Trevor Ariza - Monta Ellis - Brandon Jennings


Bench:
Drew Gooden - Ekpe Udoh - Luc Mbah a Moute - Tobias Harris - Chris Singleton - Larry Sanders - Doron Lamb

[SuperHueyNewton]

Bucks knocking out the Heat? BEAST TEAM OF ALL TIME!!!

[Martti.]

Jennings Finals MVP!!

[Mark.]

Whoa very interesting Finals match-up! Lets go Bucks!

Anyway, on the topic of your team. Missed the last few updates, so my opinion on the Gay trade: Good/great for your team. As you said it is better to spend on him than several players in FA. Additionally, his contract isn't as bad as people think IMO. Yes it is large, but not THAT long anymore. Plus he really has a chance to shine.

I think you may want to tweak the tendencies of your players a bit to try get him more shots consistently. Or has he just been shooting poorly?

Lastly.... Randy Foye?!?!?!?! What was that all about. How many 30 point games did he end up on for the year?

[mrmoves20]

You were doing great the last games of the year. Must be a sign of a strong start next season. I like OKC but I want Jennings to win the Finals.

[Phil89]

Bucks knocking out the Heat? BEAST TEAM OF ALL TIME!!!

It certainly gave me a shock when it happened. Had to look twice just to make sure it was right.

Jennings Finals MVP!!

The way he's playing it's certainly possible. Westbrook is on another level this season though, so he'll have his hands full.

Whoa very interesting Finals match-up! Lets go Bucks!

Anyway, on the topic of your team. Missed the last few updates, so my opinion on the Gay trade: Good/great for your team. As you said it is better to spend on him than several players in FA. Additionally, his contract isn't as bad as people think IMO. Yes it is large, but not THAT long anymore. Plus he really has a chance to shine.

I think you may want to tweak the tendencies of your players a bit to try get him more shots consistently. Or has he just been shooting poorly?

Lastly.... Randy Foye?!?!?!?! What was that all about. How many 30 point games did he end up on for the year?

I like what the commentators say in the game, that Gay is a poor man's Kevin Durant (despite earning more than him :p). The only players better than Gay that could be available in the free agency market are Dwight Howard and Chris Paul. I don't need Paul and I won't need Howard if I can draft Nerlens Noel or Cody Zeller.

I like to think of my Wizards as a bit like how the Thunder were built: Gay = Durant, Wall = Westbrook, Beal = Harden, Noel? = Ibaka.
Not saying they are on the same levels, but they are similar in style.

You were doing great the last games of the year. Must be a sign of a strong start next season. I like OKC but I want Jennings to win the Finals.

I was actually annoyed that I won those games because Orlando ended up with the best chance at the number one pick.

[Phil89]

NBA Finals summary

Road to the Finals


First Round - Houston - 4-3
Conf. Semis - Denver - 4-2
Conf. Finals - LA Clippers - 4-3


First Round - Chicago - 4-2
Conf. Semis - Boston - 4-2
Conf. Finals - Miami - 4-3

Game 1 - Thunder dominate Bucks in series opener

31/5/13

Oklahoma City Thunder [12-8] vs Milwaukee Bucks [12-7]

OKC - 31 32 29 27 119
MIL - 29 20 26 22 97

Top Scorers
Russell Westbrook - 42
Monta Ellis - 37
Brandon Jennings - 33
Kevin Durant - 26
Kevin Martin - 15
Serge Ibaka - 12

Assists
Brandon Jennings - 11
Kevin Martin - 6

Rebounds
Kevin Durant - 12
Kendrick Perkins - 7
Ersan Ilyasova - 7
Brandon Jennings - 7
Nick Collison - 5
Serge Ibaka - 5
Chris Singleton - 5

Game 2 - Bucks hit back to tie series at 1-1

2/6/13

Oklahoma City Thunder [13-8] vs Milwaukee Bucks [12-8]

OKC - 17 36 23 17 93
MIL - 34 23 30 18 105

Top Scorers
Monta Ellis - 25
Russell Westbrook - 25
Brandon Jennings - 24
Drew Gooden - 20
Kevin Durant - 15
Kevin Martin - 12
Ersan Ilyasova - 12
Jeremy Lamb - 10
Serge Ibaka - 10

Assists
Brandon Jennings - 16
Russell Westbrook - 6
Monta Ellis - 5

Rebounds
Kevin Durant - 10
Kendrick Perkins - 9
Emeka Okafor - 9
Drew Gooden - 8
Serge Ibaka - 6
Luc Mbah a Moute - 6
Ersan Ilyasova - 6

Game 3 - Bucks go 2-1 up after home win

4/6/13

Milwaukee Bucks [13-8] vs Oklahoma City Thunder [13-9]

MIL - 25 31 23 22 101
OKC - 23 29 18 25 95

Top Scorers
Monta Ellis - 30
Kevin Durant - 27
Russell Westbrook - 24
Brandon Jennings - 19
Kevin Martin - 11
Drew Gooden - 10
Serge Ibaka - 10

Assists
Brandon Jennings - 11
Monta Ellis - 9
Kevin Durant - 6

Rebounds
Emeka Okafor - 12
Ersan Ilyasova - 11
Kevin Durant - 11
Kendrick Perkins - 7
Serge Ibaka - 6
Ekpe Udoh - 6
Drew Gooden - 6
Monta Ellis - 5
Russell Westbrook - 5

Game 4 - Gutsy Thunder win in Milwaukee ties series

6/6/13

Milwaukee Bucks [14-8] vs Oklahoma City Thunder [13-10]

MIL - 36 29 22 34 121
OKC - 30 31 30 36 127

Top Scorers
Kevin Durant - 31
Kevin Martin - 30
Russell Westbrook - 26
Monta Ellis - 26
Brandon Jennings - 25
Ersan Ilyasova - 18
Drew Gooden - 17
Serge Ibaka - 10

Assists
Russell Westbrook - 14
Brandon Jennings - 13
Monta Ellis - 7

Rebounds
Kendrick Perkins - 12
Drew Gooden - 9
Kevin Durant - 6
Ekpe Udoh - 5
Ersan Ilyasova - 5
Brandon Jennings - 5
Serge Ibaka - 5

Game 5 - Thunder on the brink of title after game 5 win

8/6/13

Milwaukee Bucks [14-9] vs Oklahoma City Thunder [14-10]

MIL - 22 16 24 33 95
OKC - 27 20 31 28 106

Top Scorers
Russell Westbrook - 36
Brandon Jennings - 26
Ersan Ilyasova - 19
Kevin Martin - 18
Monta Ellis - 17
Kevin Durant - 15
Drew Gooden - 12

Assists
Monta Ellis - 9
Brandon Jennings - 9
Kevin Martin - 7
Kevin Durant - 6
Russell Westbrook - 5

Rebounds
Serge Ibaka - 11
Emeka Okafor - 10
Kendrick Perkins - 9
Luc Mbah a Moute - 8
Drew Gooden - 7
Ersan Ilyasova - 7
Kevin Durant - 6
Kevin Martin - 5

Game 6 - Thunder demolish Bucks at home to seal championship

10/6/13

Oklahoma City Thunder [15-10] vs Milwaukee Bucks [14-10]

OKC - 24 34 25 29 112
MIL - 19 19 26 22 86

Top Scorers
Monta Ellis - 30
Russell Westbrook - 27
Kevin Durant - 23
Kevin Martin - 17
Serge Ibaka - 16
Brandon Jennings - 13
Ersan Ilyasova - 11

Assists
Brandon Jennings - 12
Kevin Durant - 9
Monta Ellis - 8
Kevin Martin - 6
Russell Westbrook - 6

Rebounds
Kevin Durant - 15
Serge Ibaka - 12
Emeka Okafor - 11
Ersan Ilyasova - 9
Russell Westbrook - 7
Luc Mbah a Moute - 6
Brandon Jennings - 5

Finals MVP


Russell Westbrook - Oklahoma City
26.8 PPG - 5.3 RPG - 6.9 APG - 0.1 BPG - 1.9 SPG
FG% - 50% | FT%- 83% | 3PT%- 29%

13/6/13

Champions visit White House



The recently crowned NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder attended the White House today and spent an hour with President Obama.
Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, Kendrick Perkins, Kevin Martin and coach Scott Brooks in particular spent time talking to him.
Reggie Jackson, Nick Collison, Thabo Sefolosha, Jeremy Lamb, Maurice Evans, Perry Jones, DeAndre Liggins and Daniel Orton were also present.

[Durant35]

Woah. Woah. WOAAAH! Don't worry 'bout the number one pick. Just do your best next season!

[Mark.]

Nice, was hoping for an upset, but seems like it was still a good series!

Looking forward to your offseason coverage!

[Phil89]

I figured using spoilers would add a little bit of suspense to the post instead of just having all the games visible at the same time.

[mrmoves20]

At least the Bucks fought hard. Don't worry much about the pick, what's important is your team is at Top 5. At least for me.

[Phil89]

15/6/13

Duncan headlines 2013 Retirees



It was an emotional day for the city of San Antonio today as legendary big man Tim Duncan formally announced his retirement from basketball.
His decision follows those of Jason Terry, Marcus Camby, Rasheed Wallace, Kurt Thomas, Derek Fisher and veteran coach George Karl recently.
The Big Fundamental, as he is known, played a pivotal role in the Spurs franchise winning four championships in nine seasons between 1999-2007.
In his 16 seasons he won three finals MVP awards, two regular seasons MVP and made thirteen all-star appearances and one all-star game MVP.
NBA Commissioner David Stern has confirmed that Duncan will definitely be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame when he is eligible in 2018.
Now the Spurs have to find a replacement and with Duncan's contract now off their books they could well make a run at signing Dwight Howard.
It could be the start of a new era in San Antonio. Parker and Ginobili are both aging now and newcomer Kawhi Leonard could have a bigger role.

Hall of Fame Inductees


Tim Duncan - San Antonio

Career Averages
1,167 games played
20.1 ppg - 11.2 rpg - 3.1 apg - 0.7 spg - 2.2 bpg

[Phil89]

At least the Bucks fought hard. Don't worry much about the pick, what's important is your team is at Top 5. At least for me.

I'm not really worried about getting top pick. I'm most likely going to get a top 3 pick anyway and there are only 2-3 players that I'm really targeting.
Can't really lose, unless the lottery screws me into pick 6 or something.

[Durant35]

Sucks that Timmy had to retire. But it's his time anyways. Great idea of putting spoilers! Didn't see that one!

Anyways, any clue on who you will be drafting?

[Phil89]

21/6/13

2013 Draft Lottery

Lottery Chances

-----

2013 NBA Draft Order



Orlando Magic fans have a reason to celebrate again, one season after the prolonged saga that saw Dwight Howard force a trade to the LA Lakers.
Their franchise has tonight won the draft lottery for the fourth time in it's history. They were hopeful, going into the draw having the best odds.
It's the first time since 2004 that a team has won the lottery after having had the worst record in the league. Ironically that was Orlando as well.
We all know who they used that pick on. They are still in the process of cleaning up their roster after Dwight left, but this pick will help them a lot.
They have a core of Jameer Nelson, Arron Afflalo and Glen Davis that they are trying to build around. There are still some bad contracts though.
Magic GM Rob Hennigan is taking the same draft-oriented approach that he was apart of with the Thunder during his four years in Oklahoma City.
Don't be surprised to see them in a similar position next season, as they wait for guys like Hedo Turkoglu and Al Harrington to come out of contract.

The lottery draw went mostly as expected, except that the Hornets slipped down one spot to the fourth pick. The Kings moved up to the third pick.
A pair of nineteen year-olds are leading the talk for who will go at number one this season. Kentucky's Nerlens Noel and UCLA's Shabazz Muhammad.
It seems that Washington find themselves in a similar position to Seattle in 2007, with two players who are clearly a level above the rest of the class.
Whether the Magic decide to take Muhammad or Noel, the Wizards can't really lose with whoever is still available when it comes their turn to pick.

Strangely, in the last three seasons, three teams have lost their superstar player to a big market team and then won the lottery the next season.
Cleveland traded star LeBron James to Miami in 2010 and the next season they won the lottery and selected guard Kyrie Irving with the top pick.
Then in 2011 the Hornets traded their star Chris Paul to the Clippers and the next season they won the lottery and selected forward Anthony Davis.
Now Orlando have won the lottery, a season after trading Dwight Howard to the Lakers. Tin-foil hats may not be needed, but it certainly is peculiar.

ORL - 1st =
WAS - 2nd =
SAC - 3rd ↑1
NOH - 4th ↓1
CHA - 5th =
GSW - 6th =
CLE - 7th =
TOR - 8th =
ATL - 9th =
DAL - 10th =
DET - 11th =
POR - 12th =
PHX - 13th =
SAS - 14th =

[Phil89]

Sucks that Timmy had to retire. But it's his time anyways. Great idea of putting spoilers! Didn't see that one!

Anyways, any clue on who you will be drafting?

Top two I'm looking at are Shabazz Muhammad and Nerlens Noel. Pretty much I'll take whoever Orlando don't pick out of those two. Not sure what I'll do if they don't pick either of them though. Flip a coin maybe.

I won't give anything away until draft night.

[Mark.]

Man TImmy D retiring, this day has always been on the horizon

Random OT, I was talking to some mates a while back and they asked "Which Superstar currently active, but hypothetically if they were still in their prime, would you chose to build a franchise around?" I thought it was a no brainier on LeBron, but then I actually thought about it, and it is quite clearly Timmy D.

Ben Mcelmore mate, pick him! pick him!

[Martti.]

Nerlens Noel all day!