Rejected article: Handsome Pete's 3008 futures rankings (125 views)

[Lazy Pete]

was talking about this in shout and thought it would be fun to post an article i scrapped back in 3007/3008 trying to project where franchises would rank in a few seasons. 


Futures rankings



Contenders

Wolves
Top Players: Grant Hill, Alvin Robertson, Lonnie Shelton, James Edwards
Other Assets: Jalen Rose, T-Wolves 10, 11, 12 firsts
Questions about team: Swen Nater contract, Alvin Robertson free agency

Kings
Top Players: Charles Barkley, Neon Boudeaux, Jerod Kundla, Ricky Sobers
Other Assets: Chris Duhon, Luke Jackson, Kings 11 and 12 firsts
Questions about team: Charles Barkley FA, what to do about WBF/Sobers/Dawkins in FA

Mavericks
Top players: David Thompson, Moses Malone, Larry Kenon
Other Assets: Dennis Scott, Robert Swift, Aaron McKie, 0 firsts
Questions about team: Moses FA, limited assets to make deals

Thunder
Top players: Boogie Cousins, Alvan Adams, John Williamson, Ryan DeBernardini
Other Assets: Kendall Gill, Eric Piatkowski
Questions about team: FA for Adams and Williamson, cupboard bare for future moves, is Kendall a bust?

Jazz
Top Players: John Drew, Jamaal Wilkes, John Wall, Artis Gilmore
Other Assets: Jarvis Varnado, Jazz 11 and 12 firsts
Questions about team: FA for Tom Barker and George Johnson, What’s wrong with Wall?

Grizzlies
Top Players: Marques Johnson, Emeka Okafor, Donyell Marshall, Sebastian Telfair
Other Assets: Derrick Favors, Mike Green, Grizzlies 08-12, Kings 09, Bucks 10
Questions about team: How will Telfair develop? Is there a homerun move on the horizon?

Lakers
Top Players: Charlie Ward, Sidney Moncrief, Bernard King, Glenn Robinson
Other Assets: Eric Montross, Mitch Kupchak’s expiring contract, Lakers 12 first
Questions about team: Can Bernard fill the Dr. J void? Will Big Dogg prove worthy of a near-max?

Bucks
Top Players: Champ Godbolt, George Gervin, Don Buse, Eddie Jones
Other Assets: Mark Eaton, Jameer Nelson, Jud Buechler, 0 picks
Questions about team: Will Godbolt resign? How much more does Buse have left in the tank?

Sixers
Top Players: Michael Jordan, Brian Grant, Leon Douglas, Kevin Willis
Other Assets: Lionel Hollins, 76ers 08-12
Questions about team: Will they fall to the 0/0/0 curse? Will Kevin Willis stop shooting so much? What happens with the other FAs?

Magic
Top players: Magic Johnson, Greg Monroe, Dan Roundfield, Richard Washington
Other Assets: Elden Campbell, Adrian Dantley, Magic 08 and 12, Lakers 08
Questions about team: Is Richard Washington worth bringing back?

Raptors
Top Players: Bill Walton, George McGinnis, Sam Bowie, Gary Payton
Other Assets: Evan Turner, Raptors 12
Questions about team: What happens if the big FAs leave? Will GP develop more offensively?

Cavs
Top Players: Julius Erving, Paul George, Jason Kidd, Hakeem Olajuwon
Other Assets: Marvin Webster, Juwan Howard, Cavs 08 and 10
Questions about team: Hakeem’s impending FA decision, should they have held on to Livingston or was Dr. J enough to bring a title to Cleveland?

Nets
Top Players: Khalid Reeves, Theodosios “Catfish” Cathasach, Dwight Howard, Jordan Crawford
Other Assets: Josh Childress, Alexis Gardner, Ed Davis, Gregor Fucka, Alaa Abdelnaby, Mavs 08 and 10, Nets 08-12
Questions about team: Will Dwight develop a better offensive game? Is Jordan Crawford a long term solution at SG? Will Scat ever play Gardner over Childress?

Bullets
Top Players: Sam Perkins, Eric Bledsoe, Walter Davis, Maurice Lucas
Other Assets: Tate George, Bullets 08-12
Questions about team: Will Sam Perkins resign? How much are the willing to pay to bring back McAdoo?



Tankers

Clippers
Top Players: Bo Kimble, Trevor Ariza, Rafael Araujo
Other Assets: Kings 08, Lakers 11, Clippers 08-12
Questions about team: Will Bo keep producing this well with better teammates around him? Will Dirt get burned in the lottery again?

Rockets
Top Players: Stanley Robinson, Andre Iguodala, Mel Turpin, Hank Gathers
Other Assets: Ha Seung-Jin, Dwayne Schintzius, Larry Sanders, Pistons 08, Hawks 08, Nuggets 08, Rockets 08-12
Questions about team: Are Iguodala and Gathers keepers? Will any of Dil’s picks land in the top three this year?

Hornets
Top Players: Derrick Coleman, Devin Harris
Other Assets: Heat 08 and 09, Bucks 11, Hornets 08-12
Questions: How much would Coleman and Harris improve their shooting on a competitive team? Can Heat 09 end up in the lotto?

Warriors
Top Players: John Stockton, John Lucas, Josh Smith
Other Assets: Carlos Rogers, Willie Burton, Delonte West, Warriors 08-12
Questions about team: What will they do about John Stockton’s FA? Will Josh Smith ever develop offensively? Will Devine ever stop tanking?

Celtics
Top Players: TR Dunn, Ben Gordon
Other Assets: Loy Vaught, Anthony Bonner, Thunder 08-11, Pacers 08, Bucks 08-09, Wolves 08-09, Lakers 09, Mavs 09, Jazz 09-10, Suns 12, Celtics 08-12
Questions: How many rotation players will Dump find with those draft picks?

Suns
Top Players: Cliff T. Robinson, Shawn Livingston, Al Jefferson, Bob Lanier
Other Assets: Lawrence Funderburke, Pistons 09, Hawks 10, Suns 08-10
Questions: Will Ank be wheeling and dealing again this offseason? Will Big Al bounce back from a sophomore slump?

Bulls
Top Players: Felton Spencer, Otis Birdsong, JR Smith, Luol Deng
Other Assets: Yinka Dare, Ernie Grunfeld, Bucks 12, Bulls 08-12
Questions: How will Felton develop? Will Luol get any better? Can JR Smith become more efficient?



Mediocre/Directionless

Pacers
Top Players: Dan Issel, Toni Kukoc, Foots Walker, Johnny High
Other Assets: Gordon Hayward, Daniel Orton, Cavs 11, Suns 11, Pacers 09-12
Questions: How will Kukoc do next TC? Will the Pacers GM (Corch or otherwise) trade Issel for assets?

Pistons
Top Players: Paul Westphal, Jimmy Paxson, Lance Stephenson, Cole Aldrich
Other Assets: Al-Farouq Aminu, Trevor Booker, Landry Fields, Jazz 08, Pistons 10-12
Questions: Will Paul Westphal be on the move this offseason?

Knicks
Top Players: Billy Knight, Liam Lynch, Nate Williams, Dave Greenwood
Other Assets: Ekpe Udoh, Knicks 08-12
Questions: Does this team have a GM? Will they fully embrace tanking next season?

Heat
Top Players: Reggie King, Truck Robinson, Brian Taylor, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Other Assets: Heat 10-12
Questions: Should Canes have sold Truck during this season? Will the Heat compete next year or get their pick back and kick off the tank?

Sonics
Top Players: Al Skinner, Bobby Jones, Robert Parish, Bill Laimbeer
Other Assets: James Donaldson, Kris Humphries, Terence Stansbury,
Questions: What the hell happened to Stansbury? Is it time to shake things up in Seattle?

Blazers
Top Players: Mickey Johnson, Robert Hawkins, Patrick Patterson, Xavier Henry
Other Assets: Lionel Simmons, Clifford Rozier, Luke Babbit, Raptors 09-11, Kings 10, Thunder 12, Blazers 08-12
Questions: Will the Blazers go for the full tank, or try to turn around and compete?

Nuggets
Top Players: Pete Maravich, Gus Williams, Otis Thorpe, Kevin Martin
Other Assets: Cedric Ceballos, Dorrell Wright, Sharone Wright, Terry Mills, Antonio Davis, Jerrod Mustaf, Cavs 09, Lakers 10, Cavs 12, Nuggets 09-12
Questions: Will any of these rookies develop into rotation players? How much will Bankz strip down the roster after this season?

Hawks
Top Players: Dominic Long, Quincy Pondexter, Ernie DiGregorio
Other Assets: Jayson Williams, Andris Biedrins, Viktor Khryapa, Raptors 08, Magic 10-11, Mavericks 11-12, Hawks 09, 11-12
Questions: Will RW regret giving away Dennis Scott for free? Will he get Iguodala for free this offseason if the Hawks pick lands Dil Jerry West?



Rankings

Grizzlies
Magic
Kings
Suns
Lakers
Timberwolves
Sixers
Jazz
Nets
Mavs
Bucks
Thunder
Rockets
Raptors
Cavs
Sonics
Celtics
Clippers
Heat
Bulls
Blazers
Warriors
Nuggets
Pistons
Knicks
Pacers
Hawks

[Lazy Pete]

Also, 2poor once was working on a quiz article that never got off the ground, but asked me to submit some questions. I found them in my Google Drive, but can't seem to find the answer key. Here ya go:


The 3004 Grizzlies rallied from a 2-1 series deficit an astonishing three straight series. Against which team did the Grizzlies NOT have to rally?
Denver Nuggets
Minnesota Timberwolves
Boston Celtics
Dallas Mavericks

Everyone knows that DerMarr Hoiberg was no stranger to being traded, but how many times in his career was he actually part of a trade?
5
12
9
7

David Thompson is the last player from the original creation draft that has never been traded or signed elsewhere. Who was second-to-last?
Swen Nater
Robert Parish
Paul Westphal
Jamaal Wilkes

Devine complained a lot that GMs should be able to write more than 2 articles in a season since he wasn’t given any site duties. How many articles has Devine written so far in over 10 seasons of 4.0?
0
3
8
17

Shu briefly joined TMBSL as the GM of the New York Knicks, allowing him the perfect cover story for further investigation into the truth of the events of 9/11. What was Shu’s record in his only year as a GM?
17-65
35-47
52-30
60-22

Out of the first 11 finals, how many times was the Western Conference team from the Midwest division?
6
7
8
9

What player’s draft profile nearly caused Druce to leave the league due to an argument with Ian?
Hank Gathers
Grant Hill
Khalid Reeves
Rony Seikaly

The Utah Jazz have had unfortunate luck hanging on to top-flight FAs in 4.0. Which of these players did NOT leave Utah as a free agent?
George Gervin
Rick Barry
Jamaal Wilkes
John Wall

[Bruns]

Oscar was about to come into my life

[Druce]

oh hank gathers

[Deleted]

Rick Berry was the answer to the last one iirc