Post by ashes on May 9, 2008 10:34:00 GMT -5
UOSL2 GM Rankings
Disclaimer: If you’ve been sitting on your team or not making many moves recently, you’ll be towards the bottom of the list, even if your team is doing well. Don’t like it? Well, be happy with winning, this list is just an opinion anyway. Not like I’m trying to be mean.
I’d like to say that this was much harder than I thought it was going to be, but hey, I can’t sleep.
1. nova (Jazz) – Historically best season win percentage, but not a single Championship, even with that amazing team a couple of seasons back. Not even a single Finals appearance. It’s been mostly bad luck, in my opinion, but nova has done an excellent job in my opinion. He finally has to go into a rebuilding mode, yet is still pretty close to a playoff birth in the West. He has put together a pretty good young core with Jenkins, Smith, Williams, and Garrett. He even has a few more young pieces he could probably move. He also acquired several good picks, including the Knicks 1st this season, the Celtics 1st next season, and the Hornets 1st next season. The latter two of the three have the potential to be very good lotto picks.
2. jayborne (Pacers) – Well, first of all, back-to-back-to-back championships speak for themselves. Jay did a great job putting together the most dominant frontcourt the league has ever seen by teaming up Greg Oden and Dwight Howard, and he rode that to three titles. Eventually they got too pricey, and had to go, but instead of going into immediate full-blown rebuilding, Jay went out and replaced Oden with Derrick Favors, who has turned out to be a complete beast. Last season the Pacers were once again one of the best teams in the league; however, this season Favors was sidelined with a season-ending injury. Jay went out and acquired Justin Brooks for Brandan Wright, getting a little younger and continuing the rebuilding. Not only do the Pacers have a high pick this year to look forward to, but also they have a coveted Hornets 1st Rounder next season, so the Pacers may be rising again soon.
3. shaunkol (Sonics) – Shaun has built a great team. He’s had a great team since I’ve been here, and even though it’s undergone many changes as time has gone on, one thing has remained the same. The Sonics win. After winning a championship behind their very young backcourt, the future looks very bright for the Sonics. They may not have a Marreese Speights anymore, but they added Strickland to their backcourt last season, and his defense along with Reese’s and Rubio’s makes for a scary team come playoff time. They have made the Finals the past two seasons, one being a championship, the other falling short. There’s no reason to think that pattern can’t continue. Excellent job.
4. DB (Lakers) – DB has been quiet for awhile, but after a few years of rebuilding and developing, his Lakers have reemerged in the West. DB made some very good moves this season acquiring Tavon Sledge and Winston McLeod. Even Trae Golden is playing very well for the Lakers. Their team seems to have very good chemistry, and DB deserves a lot of credit for showing patience and assembling a capable team. Not only is his team very good, but it’s also very young. His Lakers will be competitive for a long time now. The Cavs pick next season may not be as good as DB had hoped, but there’s always a chance, you never know. Behind the young star core of Sledge and Ibaka, the Lakers are poised to make a deep playoff run.
5. allstar0608 (Mavericks) – The Mavericks have been one of the most consistent teams in the leagues, leading the league in playoff appearances, and that can only be attributed to a good job of GM’ing by allstar. However, his playoff win percentage is atrocious, and I’m sure that’s got to be bothering him. But he has assembled a great team and has done well to keep it together. He has depth and a great starting lineup. This could finally be the year that the Dallas Mavericks win a championship. A nice defensive/rebounding frountcourt paired with the amazing play of Brandon Knight and the emergence of Chase Budinger, this team’s high-octane offense has led Dallas to the 3rd best record in the West. Allstar may be one of the most consistent GMs in UOSL2, but I’m sure he’s itching for a title. This could be the year.
6. play34basketball (Warriors) – After tanking for a millennia, the Warriors have found themselves in the thick of a playoff race thanks to play. Though he gets a hard time, probably in good fun, he’s built an excellent young team centered on the outstanding young guard, Kyle Anderson. Not only is his team young, but also it’s deep. And the depth is more youth! There are plenty of options for play in the upcoming future, and the only direction for the Warriors is up. After parting ways with former #1 Overall Pick, Dre Kalo, the Warriors have been playing very well with the addition of Doron Lamb, a guard who has struggled finding a home. The Warriors may not be able to win it all this year, but with this young team, they will be scary for many years to come. Good job, play.
7. CC (Grizzlies) – New GM’s beware! But yeah, CC put together a pretty scary team that took him to a championship victory several seasons ago, but that’s long since torn down. He has good players in Riek, Sidney, Jordan, and Williams. But a few of them are getting up there in age, and the others are just a level below that. He doesn’t have much youth, and isn’t sitting on an overabundance of picks. However, he will have a pretty good pick this year, and he should be able to bounce back next season with a move or two. (Especially if we get a new GM! J/k 
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8. lumley316 (Bucks) – Last season lumley assembled a mostly veteran team to make a run, and he won it all. Behind Beasley, Paul, Gay, and Sullivan, the Bucks were a damn good playoff team. However, this season the East has gotten tougher and Chris Paul has been riddled with injuries. Lumley dealt Gay and a handful of picks for guard Brandon Jennings, but it hasn’t panned out. Recently, he dealt Chris Paul in order to save cap space to re-sign Michael Beasley. Lumley has caught some tough breaks this season, but next season he should be back in good form if he can bring back Michael Beasley. He needs to be anyways, he’s been giving up some future picks here and there.
9. Bluedevil$ (Knicks) – Bluedevil has been consistently a top GM in the East for awhile, but this season the competition passed him up. His Knicks are still right in the thick of things, but time is running out. Some cap-driven moves in the offseason may have hurt his team a bit, but in general, it boils down to not doing enough to improve and keep up with the rest of the Eastern Conference. However, he has two young guards entering their prime, but he may need to move either Cheek or Boynton for a true SF. Emeka may be on his last leg, so that’s another position that may have to be addressed in the offseason, and unfortunately for the Bluedevil, he doesn’t own his 1st Round Pick this season, so next season may be another tough one for the Knicks. But Bluedevil has been consistently competitive and will find a way to bounce back, whether it’s back into the playoff race, or off to rebuilding, either way, the Knicks won’t be down long.
10. aar (Spurs) – Aar blew up his roster last season and it’s showing. But after winning a championship, he’s taken his team in another direction. He has a great young PG in Jevon Thomas to build around, so that right there is promising for the future. Couple that with a top 3 pick in the upcoming draft and a few other nice looking young players, and that equates to a good-looking future. Possibly package some of his young talent outside of Thomas and his pick this year, and go after a nice superstar and jump right back into the thick of things in the West next season, or the one after that, considering the West is pretty vulnerable right now.
11. ifliphottboi (Timberwolves) – He floats in and out every once in awhile, and he hasn’t made any big splash trades, no, instead, he did all his splashing in the Free Agency Pool this year. Looking over it, he had a RIDICULOUS Free Agency. I don’t know if anyone else could top the kind of FA he had. He literally built a team out of FA basically. Kudos to iflip for making the right offers and having a bit of luck on his side. KCRM, Stephenson, Martin, and their defensive three-headed monster of a frontcourt have led the team to the best record in the league and the Timberwolves are a top contender for the UOSL2 Championship this year. I guess it goes to show that with a lot of money and a little luck, you can go a long way.
12. nybombers3 (Suns) – Rebuild, rebuild, rebuild. Seems to be the name of the Western Conference’s current chapter. However, the Suns are still stuck IN the playoff race amidst the weak Western Conference, much to the chagrin of nybombers3. He’s done a good job of assembling some good young players in Pinson, London, and Garrett along with gathering a number of 1st Round Picks. Not to mention the fact that he could have a pretty decent amount of cap room for Free Agency next season, even after re-signing Pinson, assuming he does so. He’s done a great job rebuilding his team in a fairly short amount of time. And given the recent decline of the West, the entire rebuilding process could be accelerated greatly for the Suns.
13. dmoneY (Heat) – dmoneY has seemingly been rebuilding since I’ve gotten here, and he was apparently doing so before I got here as well. He’s broken out of his UOSL2 shell this season, though, and he now sits atop the tough Eastern Conference. His team has the makings of a championship team. He has a dominant frontcourt, a stud wing, and a good point to run the show. The trade for Brandan Wright escalated the team to the next level, and now dmoneY is hoping his team can contend for the title, and I think they have a very good chance of doing so. After rebuilding for so long, dmoneY has shown the capable GM that he is, and has taken the step towards achieving the goal we all hope to achieve, and that’s winning a championship.
14. ib4 (76ers) – The past few seasons have been tough for the 76ers. Frequent injuries to ib4’s superstars led to some disappointing showings, and then the departure of Chris Bosh plus the decline of Andre Iguodala finally led ib4 to rebuild. Though he has his pick this season, he doesn’t have next seasons, so this rebuilding process will be tough and most likely long. He’ll probably have to just sit on Iguodala’s remaining contract, but when that contract comes off the book, ib4 should be poised to rise back in the Eastern Conference.
15. jroy13 (Cavaliers) – Jroy13 has quietly brought his team to the fourth best record in the East, and for awhile was actually leading the entire conference. He’s gone largely unmentioned or unnoticed, but he’s made some pretty damn good moves in my opinion. Half the league was quick to jump on the Cavs when he dealt for Durant, but he wasn’t done there. He managed to Derrick Rose pretty cheaply. Now, Rose isn’t a stud anymore, but he’s a great fit for the Cavs, and jroy has built a pretty good team around three very good defensive players in Durant, Bargnani, and Towns. He’s quietly built a pretty good team and is looking to contend for the championship.
16. aaronjh (Raptors) – After acquiring LeBron James and Alexey Shved, the Raptors have seemed to hit a road block in their team’s direction. The team is scoring as much as it’s allowing and only recently began to win more games they were losing. Aaron has been actively trying to trade his two stars, but to no success. After LeBron finally showed some signs of aging and declined in Training Camp, the time to get value for him is now. Or he can surround LeBron with more talent and win a title. Either way, he’s made a few moves that have been pretty beneficial, but the way the team is built right now, it’s go with what you have or start over. I think Aaron is choosing the latter.
17. jusstaddwatrr (Bulls) – Though he hasn’t made many trades recently, he has directly influenced his team’s current position through the Draft. John Wall, Ralston Turner, Delvon Roe, Rashad Wattie, and DaVante Moore are all players that have been drafted by the Bulls, the latter two have turned out to be not only steals, but pretty surprising as well. I think jusstaddwatrr deserves some credit for those two picks, since they’ve panned out well and are probably the future of his team, which is pretty young and finally coming into its own.
18. MaarinX (Wizards) – After something like 8 consecutive losing seasons, the Wizards are finally back in the Eastern Conference picture, and what impeccable timing, they decide to compete when everyone else decides to as well! That doesn’t make MaarinX’s job easy. He hasn’t really made that many trades, but he’s made his team better through the Draft and Free Agency, which isn’t all that easy. Tyrone Johnson has been the catalyst for the Wizards’ success, and he has developed into a very nice young PG, which seems to be common sight nowadays throughout the league. I feel that Bogut has been underutilized though. MaarinX may regret not finding a suitor for him, especially considering his glaring hole at the 3 spot.
19. gotrunks226 (Hornets) – The Hornets are playing well, but the East is tough, and they will probably miss the playoffs. Gotrunks has gotten into a habit of trading off his picks, which may come to bite him. Gotrunks might have a hard time for awhile, since he’s missing a lot of picks, but he will have a decent amount of cap space, even more if he can unload Pinkston somewhere. Eaton seems to be a pretty good fit at the SF spot, so even after the lackluster TC, the guy has been playing very well, so that’s definitely a bright spot for Gotrunks, except for the fact that he’ll be asking for some cash money this offseason.
20. w6602876 (Magic) – The frontcourt is sexy, but that’s about it. He acquired Cousins, though for a pretty hefty price, giving up Theo Pinson and some 1sts, including a coveted Hornets 1st Round that just about everyone has gotten their hands on. Then he went and acquired Dwight Howard, which has worked decently for him. Lacey is putting up disappointing numbers in my opinion, and with Dwight’s monster contract, things will only get harder as the years go on. w6624839058349085239874 will have to find a PG somehow in the future, and there aren’t many options to do that. The only tradable asset I see is Cousins, so it won’t be easy for w#. He needs to surround Howard and Cousins with talent, and he needs to do it soon before Howard eats the Magic’s bankroll.
21. ashes (Nets) – Not really good about talking about myself, and I was even tempted to just leave myself out of these rankings, but I decided to put myself in there for comparison’s sake. I’ve been pretty active pursuing trade options for my team. After an attempt to sit on picks and develop young players, I decided to ship out most of them (They were basically busts anyways) to gather some older, more proven talent, like Carlos Boozer, Gerald Green, Greg Oden, and now Chris Paul. I also managed to snag one gem from the Draft, Art Kimber, who may very well be the future of my franchise. I’ve decided to build around Tyreke Evans for a long time ago, and I want to put at least one ring on his finger, so hopefully, I can do that soon.
22. donatello2424 (Kings) – It finally seems like the Kings will make the playoffs after years of lotto picks. Donatello struck gold with Ferrell and Sulaimon, plus he still has Nocedal. But he hasn’t done much else. He’s been more prone to sit on his team and hope for the best when it comes to the draft rather than pursue big trades, with a fear of shipping youth it seems. Not to mention some solid big men to help carry him into the playoffs and get some experience for the young guys. The draft is deep, so they could end up landing a decent player to add to their core, but I feel it’ll boil down to donatello finally shipping off some youth to land a big name, and if that happens, the Kings will finally be able to rise to that next level.
23. unholy (Clippers) – Tiger left right as his Clippers passed their peak and began to decline. Unholy took over and some really nice moves in my opinion. He landed a handful of picks in the future and held on to Hood to build around. He’ll get a decent pick this season to add to that core, and he’s currently looking to ship out Gay and Deng, which would be the best thing for his team, but if he can’t, he’ll still have a nice future with picks and then Gay and Deng will turn into rather large expirings.
24. mark (Rockets) – Mark has made some nice moves lately, acquiring numerous picks and stepping into rebuilding with full stride. Though, he doesn’t really have too many promising looking personnel, so he’ll be putting all his eggs in the Draft basket, which can either be golden or can bite you. However, he’ll have a decent amount of cap room, and if he can ship off Zabelin for expirings, he’ll have even more.
25. seergobin (Celtics) – Though not very active, seer has entered full-out rebuilding mode, so his team is achieving the goal he set forth. He’ll land a nice pick to add to the good-looking core of Goldwire and Richmond that he’s done a good job of putting together. Thank God that Young is front-loaded, because he has really slipped into the realm of mediocrity this season and looks to be on a severe decline. Seer should be able to put together a nice young team in the future.
26. idlewildsouth70 (Pistons) – I don’t think Eric Gordon will be moving any time soon, but at least idle has been trying. I hate to put him down here, but he really hasn’t done much of anything, and his team is terrible, even with arguably the best scorer in the league. The recent addition of “Taco” has only come through the draft, and idle will have another top pick this year. Hopefully Prince improves and starts earning that rather large contract he signed. The future is pretty bright though, if idle can make a move to add another piece with Gordon and draft another stud, he could be heading back into the playoffs soon.
27. insaneradical (Trailblazers) – I think inactive would be an understatement, but at least he pays attention. However, he’s not done anything in beyond ages, but his team is playing incredibly well behind the stellar play of OJ Mayo. Sitting on his team has worked, but for how long will it continue to do so? Maybe one day he’ll venture out into the sun, but for now, insane is playing it safe in the shade.
28. jahallstar (Hawks) – Jah hasn’t made a move in ages, but his team is gelling now. They’re winning and doing pretty well in the tough Eastern Conference. But this isn’t a Power Rankings. Plus it’s cute that Marvin Williams is still on the team.
29. sagapolutele50 (Nuggets) – He hasn’t done much lately, but his team sucks, and he doesn’t have many pieces to build on, so it’s a slow process for saga. He’ll land a top 3 Pick in a nice draft, so he’ll definitely have something to work with in the future. The question is, will he turn it into anything? He hasn’t done anything at all recently, so if history is an indication it may spell trouble for the city of Denver. The Nuggets haven’t been a good team in recent memory, but with the soon to be multiple lotto picks over the next few years, that could change.
Whew. There ya go.
Disclaimer: If you’ve been sitting on your team or not making many moves recently, you’ll be towards the bottom of the list, even if your team is doing well. Don’t like it? Well, be happy with winning, this list is just an opinion anyway. Not like I’m trying to be mean.
I’d like to say that this was much harder than I thought it was going to be, but hey, I can’t sleep.
1. nova (Jazz) – Historically best season win percentage, but not a single Championship, even with that amazing team a couple of seasons back. Not even a single Finals appearance. It’s been mostly bad luck, in my opinion, but nova has done an excellent job in my opinion. He finally has to go into a rebuilding mode, yet is still pretty close to a playoff birth in the West. He has put together a pretty good young core with Jenkins, Smith, Williams, and Garrett. He even has a few more young pieces he could probably move. He also acquired several good picks, including the Knicks 1st this season, the Celtics 1st next season, and the Hornets 1st next season. The latter two of the three have the potential to be very good lotto picks.
2. jayborne (Pacers) – Well, first of all, back-to-back-to-back championships speak for themselves. Jay did a great job putting together the most dominant frontcourt the league has ever seen by teaming up Greg Oden and Dwight Howard, and he rode that to three titles. Eventually they got too pricey, and had to go, but instead of going into immediate full-blown rebuilding, Jay went out and replaced Oden with Derrick Favors, who has turned out to be a complete beast. Last season the Pacers were once again one of the best teams in the league; however, this season Favors was sidelined with a season-ending injury. Jay went out and acquired Justin Brooks for Brandan Wright, getting a little younger and continuing the rebuilding. Not only do the Pacers have a high pick this year to look forward to, but also they have a coveted Hornets 1st Rounder next season, so the Pacers may be rising again soon.
3. shaunkol (Sonics) – Shaun has built a great team. He’s had a great team since I’ve been here, and even though it’s undergone many changes as time has gone on, one thing has remained the same. The Sonics win. After winning a championship behind their very young backcourt, the future looks very bright for the Sonics. They may not have a Marreese Speights anymore, but they added Strickland to their backcourt last season, and his defense along with Reese’s and Rubio’s makes for a scary team come playoff time. They have made the Finals the past two seasons, one being a championship, the other falling short. There’s no reason to think that pattern can’t continue. Excellent job.
4. DB (Lakers) – DB has been quiet for awhile, but after a few years of rebuilding and developing, his Lakers have reemerged in the West. DB made some very good moves this season acquiring Tavon Sledge and Winston McLeod. Even Trae Golden is playing very well for the Lakers. Their team seems to have very good chemistry, and DB deserves a lot of credit for showing patience and assembling a capable team. Not only is his team very good, but it’s also very young. His Lakers will be competitive for a long time now. The Cavs pick next season may not be as good as DB had hoped, but there’s always a chance, you never know. Behind the young star core of Sledge and Ibaka, the Lakers are poised to make a deep playoff run.
5. allstar0608 (Mavericks) – The Mavericks have been one of the most consistent teams in the leagues, leading the league in playoff appearances, and that can only be attributed to a good job of GM’ing by allstar. However, his playoff win percentage is atrocious, and I’m sure that’s got to be bothering him. But he has assembled a great team and has done well to keep it together. He has depth and a great starting lineup. This could finally be the year that the Dallas Mavericks win a championship. A nice defensive/rebounding frountcourt paired with the amazing play of Brandon Knight and the emergence of Chase Budinger, this team’s high-octane offense has led Dallas to the 3rd best record in the West. Allstar may be one of the most consistent GMs in UOSL2, but I’m sure he’s itching for a title. This could be the year.
6. play34basketball (Warriors) – After tanking for a millennia, the Warriors have found themselves in the thick of a playoff race thanks to play. Though he gets a hard time, probably in good fun, he’s built an excellent young team centered on the outstanding young guard, Kyle Anderson. Not only is his team young, but also it’s deep. And the depth is more youth! There are plenty of options for play in the upcoming future, and the only direction for the Warriors is up. After parting ways with former #1 Overall Pick, Dre Kalo, the Warriors have been playing very well with the addition of Doron Lamb, a guard who has struggled finding a home. The Warriors may not be able to win it all this year, but with this young team, they will be scary for many years to come. Good job, play.
7. CC (Grizzlies) – New GM’s beware!
But yeah, CC put together a pretty scary team that took him to a championship victory several seasons ago, but that’s long since torn down. He has good players in Riek, Sidney, Jordan, and Williams. But a few of them are getting up there in age, and the others are just a level below that. He doesn’t have much youth, and isn’t sitting on an overabundance of picks. However, he will have a pretty good pick this year, and he should be able to bounce back next season with a move or two. (Especially if we get a new GM! J/k 
)8. lumley316 (Bucks) – Last season lumley assembled a mostly veteran team to make a run, and he won it all. Behind Beasley, Paul, Gay, and Sullivan, the Bucks were a damn good playoff team. However, this season the East has gotten tougher and Chris Paul has been riddled with injuries. Lumley dealt Gay and a handful of picks for guard Brandon Jennings, but it hasn’t panned out. Recently, he dealt Chris Paul in order to save cap space to re-sign Michael Beasley. Lumley has caught some tough breaks this season, but next season he should be back in good form if he can bring back Michael Beasley. He needs to be anyways, he’s been giving up some future picks here and there.
9. Bluedevil$ (Knicks) – Bluedevil has been consistently a top GM in the East for awhile, but this season the competition passed him up. His Knicks are still right in the thick of things, but time is running out. Some cap-driven moves in the offseason may have hurt his team a bit, but in general, it boils down to not doing enough to improve and keep up with the rest of the Eastern Conference. However, he has two young guards entering their prime, but he may need to move either Cheek or Boynton for a true SF. Emeka may be on his last leg, so that’s another position that may have to be addressed in the offseason, and unfortunately for the Bluedevil, he doesn’t own his 1st Round Pick this season, so next season may be another tough one for the Knicks. But Bluedevil has been consistently competitive and will find a way to bounce back, whether it’s back into the playoff race, or off to rebuilding, either way, the Knicks won’t be down long.
10. aar (Spurs) – Aar blew up his roster last season and it’s showing. But after winning a championship, he’s taken his team in another direction. He has a great young PG in Jevon Thomas to build around, so that right there is promising for the future. Couple that with a top 3 pick in the upcoming draft and a few other nice looking young players, and that equates to a good-looking future. Possibly package some of his young talent outside of Thomas and his pick this year, and go after a nice superstar and jump right back into the thick of things in the West next season, or the one after that, considering the West is pretty vulnerable right now.
11. ifliphottboi (Timberwolves) – He floats in and out every once in awhile, and he hasn’t made any big splash trades, no, instead, he did all his splashing in the Free Agency Pool this year. Looking over it, he had a RIDICULOUS Free Agency. I don’t know if anyone else could top the kind of FA he had. He literally built a team out of FA basically. Kudos to iflip for making the right offers and having a bit of luck on his side. KCRM, Stephenson, Martin, and their defensive three-headed monster of a frontcourt have led the team to the best record in the league and the Timberwolves are a top contender for the UOSL2 Championship this year. I guess it goes to show that with a lot of money and a little luck, you can go a long way.
12. nybombers3 (Suns) – Rebuild, rebuild, rebuild. Seems to be the name of the Western Conference’s current chapter. However, the Suns are still stuck IN the playoff race amidst the weak Western Conference, much to the chagrin of nybombers3. He’s done a good job of assembling some good young players in Pinson, London, and Garrett along with gathering a number of 1st Round Picks. Not to mention the fact that he could have a pretty decent amount of cap room for Free Agency next season, even after re-signing Pinson, assuming he does so. He’s done a great job rebuilding his team in a fairly short amount of time. And given the recent decline of the West, the entire rebuilding process could be accelerated greatly for the Suns.
13. dmoneY (Heat) – dmoneY has seemingly been rebuilding since I’ve gotten here, and he was apparently doing so before I got here as well. He’s broken out of his UOSL2 shell this season, though, and he now sits atop the tough Eastern Conference. His team has the makings of a championship team. He has a dominant frontcourt, a stud wing, and a good point to run the show. The trade for Brandan Wright escalated the team to the next level, and now dmoneY is hoping his team can contend for the title, and I think they have a very good chance of doing so. After rebuilding for so long, dmoneY has shown the capable GM that he is, and has taken the step towards achieving the goal we all hope to achieve, and that’s winning a championship.
14. ib4 (76ers) – The past few seasons have been tough for the 76ers. Frequent injuries to ib4’s superstars led to some disappointing showings, and then the departure of Chris Bosh plus the decline of Andre Iguodala finally led ib4 to rebuild. Though he has his pick this season, he doesn’t have next seasons, so this rebuilding process will be tough and most likely long. He’ll probably have to just sit on Iguodala’s remaining contract, but when that contract comes off the book, ib4 should be poised to rise back in the Eastern Conference.
15. jroy13 (Cavaliers) – Jroy13 has quietly brought his team to the fourth best record in the East, and for awhile was actually leading the entire conference. He’s gone largely unmentioned or unnoticed, but he’s made some pretty damn good moves in my opinion. Half the league was quick to jump on the Cavs when he dealt for Durant, but he wasn’t done there. He managed to Derrick Rose pretty cheaply. Now, Rose isn’t a stud anymore, but he’s a great fit for the Cavs, and jroy has built a pretty good team around three very good defensive players in Durant, Bargnani, and Towns. He’s quietly built a pretty good team and is looking to contend for the championship.
16. aaronjh (Raptors) – After acquiring LeBron James and Alexey Shved, the Raptors have seemed to hit a road block in their team’s direction. The team is scoring as much as it’s allowing and only recently began to win more games they were losing. Aaron has been actively trying to trade his two stars, but to no success. After LeBron finally showed some signs of aging and declined in Training Camp, the time to get value for him is now. Or he can surround LeBron with more talent and win a title. Either way, he’s made a few moves that have been pretty beneficial, but the way the team is built right now, it’s go with what you have or start over. I think Aaron is choosing the latter.
17. jusstaddwatrr (Bulls) – Though he hasn’t made many trades recently, he has directly influenced his team’s current position through the Draft. John Wall, Ralston Turner, Delvon Roe, Rashad Wattie, and DaVante Moore are all players that have been drafted by the Bulls, the latter two have turned out to be not only steals, but pretty surprising as well. I think jusstaddwatrr deserves some credit for those two picks, since they’ve panned out well and are probably the future of his team, which is pretty young and finally coming into its own.
18. MaarinX (Wizards) – After something like 8 consecutive losing seasons, the Wizards are finally back in the Eastern Conference picture, and what impeccable timing, they decide to compete when everyone else decides to as well! That doesn’t make MaarinX’s job easy. He hasn’t really made that many trades, but he’s made his team better through the Draft and Free Agency, which isn’t all that easy. Tyrone Johnson has been the catalyst for the Wizards’ success, and he has developed into a very nice young PG, which seems to be common sight nowadays throughout the league. I feel that Bogut has been underutilized though. MaarinX may regret not finding a suitor for him, especially considering his glaring hole at the 3 spot.
19. gotrunks226 (Hornets) – The Hornets are playing well, but the East is tough, and they will probably miss the playoffs. Gotrunks has gotten into a habit of trading off his picks, which may come to bite him. Gotrunks might have a hard time for awhile, since he’s missing a lot of picks, but he will have a decent amount of cap space, even more if he can unload Pinkston somewhere. Eaton seems to be a pretty good fit at the SF spot, so even after the lackluster TC, the guy has been playing very well, so that’s definitely a bright spot for Gotrunks, except for the fact that he’ll be asking for some cash money this offseason.
20. w6602876 (Magic) – The frontcourt is sexy, but that’s about it. He acquired Cousins, though for a pretty hefty price, giving up Theo Pinson and some 1sts, including a coveted Hornets 1st Round that just about everyone has gotten their hands on. Then he went and acquired Dwight Howard, which has worked decently for him. Lacey is putting up disappointing numbers in my opinion, and with Dwight’s monster contract, things will only get harder as the years go on. w6624839058349085239874 will have to find a PG somehow in the future, and there aren’t many options to do that. The only tradable asset I see is Cousins, so it won’t be easy for w#. He needs to surround Howard and Cousins with talent, and he needs to do it soon before Howard eats the Magic’s bankroll.
21. ashes (Nets) – Not really good about talking about myself, and I was even tempted to just leave myself out of these rankings, but I decided to put myself in there for comparison’s sake. I’ve been pretty active pursuing trade options for my team. After an attempt to sit on picks and develop young players, I decided to ship out most of them (They were basically busts anyways) to gather some older, more proven talent, like Carlos Boozer, Gerald Green, Greg Oden, and now Chris Paul. I also managed to snag one gem from the Draft, Art Kimber, who may very well be the future of my franchise. I’ve decided to build around Tyreke Evans for a long time ago, and I want to put at least one ring on his finger, so hopefully, I can do that soon.
22. donatello2424 (Kings) – It finally seems like the Kings will make the playoffs after years of lotto picks. Donatello struck gold with Ferrell and Sulaimon, plus he still has Nocedal. But he hasn’t done much else. He’s been more prone to sit on his team and hope for the best when it comes to the draft rather than pursue big trades, with a fear of shipping youth it seems. Not to mention some solid big men to help carry him into the playoffs and get some experience for the young guys. The draft is deep, so they could end up landing a decent player to add to their core, but I feel it’ll boil down to donatello finally shipping off some youth to land a big name, and if that happens, the Kings will finally be able to rise to that next level.
23. unholy (Clippers) – Tiger left right as his Clippers passed their peak and began to decline. Unholy took over and some really nice moves in my opinion. He landed a handful of picks in the future and held on to Hood to build around. He’ll get a decent pick this season to add to that core, and he’s currently looking to ship out Gay and Deng, which would be the best thing for his team, but if he can’t, he’ll still have a nice future with picks and then Gay and Deng will turn into rather large expirings.
24. mark (Rockets) – Mark has made some nice moves lately, acquiring numerous picks and stepping into rebuilding with full stride. Though, he doesn’t really have too many promising looking personnel, so he’ll be putting all his eggs in the Draft basket, which can either be golden or can bite you. However, he’ll have a decent amount of cap room, and if he can ship off Zabelin for expirings, he’ll have even more.
25. seergobin (Celtics) – Though not very active, seer has entered full-out rebuilding mode, so his team is achieving the goal he set forth. He’ll land a nice pick to add to the good-looking core of Goldwire and Richmond that he’s done a good job of putting together. Thank God that Young is front-loaded, because he has really slipped into the realm of mediocrity this season and looks to be on a severe decline. Seer should be able to put together a nice young team in the future.
26. idlewildsouth70 (Pistons) – I don’t think Eric Gordon will be moving any time soon, but at least idle has been trying. I hate to put him down here, but he really hasn’t done much of anything, and his team is terrible, even with arguably the best scorer in the league. The recent addition of “Taco” has only come through the draft, and idle will have another top pick this year. Hopefully Prince improves and starts earning that rather large contract he signed. The future is pretty bright though, if idle can make a move to add another piece with Gordon and draft another stud, he could be heading back into the playoffs soon.
27. insaneradical (Trailblazers) – I think inactive would be an understatement, but at least he pays attention. However, he’s not done anything in beyond ages, but his team is playing incredibly well behind the stellar play of OJ Mayo. Sitting on his team has worked, but for how long will it continue to do so? Maybe one day he’ll venture out into the sun, but for now, insane is playing it safe in the shade.
28. jahallstar (Hawks) – Jah hasn’t made a move in ages, but his team is gelling now. They’re winning and doing pretty well in the tough Eastern Conference. But this isn’t a Power Rankings. Plus it’s cute that Marvin Williams is still on the team.
29. sagapolutele50 (Nuggets) – He hasn’t done much lately, but his team sucks, and he doesn’t have many pieces to build on, so it’s a slow process for saga. He’ll land a top 3 Pick in a nice draft, so he’ll definitely have something to work with in the future. The question is, will he turn it into anything? He hasn’t done anything at all recently, so if history is an indication it may spell trouble for the city of Denver. The Nuggets haven’t been a good team in recent memory, but with the soon to be multiple lotto picks over the next few years, that could change.
Whew. There ya go.
