![[Account Deleted] Avatar](http://storage.proboards.com/5589790/avatar/ZhaFVHTxVPwmyuOiOKEd.png)
Post by [Account Deleted] on Jul 1, 2014 0:08:55 GMT -6
With the awesome new twist to TMBSL 4.0 where the draft classes are randomly assigned to years rather than following any type of linear progression, it's become a lot harder to strategically plan a tank more than several years in advance. However, there are some classes, like the 1984 class coming up in the 3004 TMBSL Draft that are just too enticing to miss out on if possible. Here are the remaining classes I'd consider shamelessly tanking for. This takes into account not only the top talent in each class, but also the depth of the top talent. There is nothing worse than planning a tank only to miss out on those guys, so these represent to me to the best opportunities to tank and still have a shot at a really good player if you overperform in your tanking season.
This is the first part of a two part series to be followed by "Five Remaining Classes I'll Just Go Ahead and Trade My 1st For"
1. 1996
All-League/All-Star Players:
Kobe Bryant
Allen Iverson
Stephon Marbury
Ray Allen
Steve Nash
Shareef Abdur-Rahim
Antoine Walker
Peja Stojakovic
Jermaine O'Neal
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Ben Wallace
Other Notable Players:
Marcus Camby
Kerry Kittles
Derek Fisher
This class is absurdly deep. The number of players from this draft class that have made an All-Star Appearance or All-League Team is staggering. This draft class should really be able to put up a lot of points and really add to the depth of talented guards in TMBSL. Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Ray Allen are all guys that I could see being 30ppg scorers as players in TMBSL. Add in a great floor general point guard in Nash, a few solid wings (Abdur-Rahim, Walker, and Stojakovic), 2.0 GOAT Net Kerry Kittles, and great defensive bigs like Camby, O'Neal, and Ben Wallace, and you can easily see that this class really has a lot to offer throughout the first round.
Also let's not forget that the FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME CHAMPION OF THE WORLD, Derek Fisher, is a part of this class.
2. 2003
All-League/All-Star Players:
LeBron James
Carmelo Anthony
Chris Bosh
Dwyane Wade
Chris Kaman
David West
Josh Howard
Mo Williams
Other Notable Players:
Darko Milicic
Sasha Pavlovic
Nick Collison
Kirk Hinrich
Leandro Barbosa
Boris Diaw
Kendrick Perkins
This is an incredibly deep class as well. On top of the four obvious superstars (LBJ, Melo, Wade, and Bosh), you've got several guys who put in all-star or all-league seasons in their primes in Kaman, David West, Josh Howard, and Mo Williams. You also have a couple of guys in Milicic and Pavlovic who were solid contributors in 2.0. Then there are guys like Nick Collison, Kirk Hinrich, Leandro Barbosa, and Boris Diaw in this class who have carved out nice careers as complementary players and could do the same in 4.0. Then you've got a guy like Kendrick Perkins who is always a candidate to be a very valuable brick-handed defensive specialist big. This is a class that everyone in the top twenty may find some value and those drafting at the top will get real prizes.
3. 1959-1960
oFIeLoOq2OBSSFTK3Wo!~~_35.JPG)
Hall of Famers:
Wilt Chamberlain
Oscar Robertson
Jerry West
Bailey Howell
Lenny Wilkens
All-League/All-Star Players:
Bob Boozer
Dick Barnett
Johnny Green
Rudy LaRusso
Darrall Imhoff
Lee Shaffer
Other Notable Players:
Paul Neumann
Al Attles
This class only registers after 1996 and 2003 because recency bias and a lack of similar depth (considering it spans two actual drafts). However, the top flight talent in this class is really elite. You could make a legitimate "Mount Rushmore" for the NBA with 3 of the 4 placements coming from guys in this draft class - Wilt, Oscar, and West. After that, you've got two more HOFers in Howell and Wilkens and a handful of other players who made All-League teams or All-Star appearances. Rudy LaRusso was a solid defensive specialist in 2.0, so maybe we can get some players like that out of this class behind the elite talent. 2.0 superstar PG Paul Neumann should be a member of this class as well.
4. 1985
Hall of Famers:
Patrick Ewing
Chris Mullin
Karl Malone
Joe Dumars
All-League/All-Star Players:
A.C. Green
Charles Oakley
Detlef Schrempf
Xavier McDaniel
Terry Porter
Michael Adams
Other Notable Players:
Wayman Tisdale
Benoit Benjamin
Spud Webb
This is another draft class with several HOFers. Patrick Ewing should be a great TMBSL center. Malone, Dumars, and Mullin should all be solid scorers and defenders and worst, and there may be some value in the handful of players that were All-League or All-Star caliber guys in real life. This may be a good year for teams looking for tough defenders and rebounders with players like A.C. Green and Charles Oakley available. This class also features 2.0 stud Wayman Tisdale, who briefly wrecked worlds for Ocho's Pacers teams near the end of 2.0's run. Spud Webb could also be a late first round guy and back-up PG that finds a place with a team. Benoit Benjamin could also end up being a solid defensive option at center for a team.
5. 2008
All-League/All-Star Players:
Derrick Rose
Russell Westbrook
Goran Dragic
Kevin Love
Roy Hibbert
Brook Lopez
Other Notable Players:
Michael Beasley
O.J. Mayo
Eric Gordon
Javale McGee
Serge Ibaka
Nicolas Batum
DeAndre Jordan
Omer Asik
Call me a homer, but I really love this draft class. With Westbrook, Rose, and Dragic, you have three quick PGs who can put up points and create some turnovers. These skills usually transition well to elite TMBSL PGs. This class also has some elite defensive stoppers in Ibaka, Jordan, and Hibbert. There are other centers that are super-athletic like McGee and then pounding, brutal players like Pek and Asik who should have really good strength ratings and will play excellent post D while maybe not putting up high block totals. In Brook Lopez and Kevin Love, you get some bigs with the potential to really put up points, albeit with questionable amounts of defense. Eric Gordon should also be a guy who can put up some points; he was very effective in 2.0. Guys like Beasley and Mayo who were well-regarded out of college often end up having more successful TMBSL careers than NBA careers, so there is a good chance one of those two guys may blossom more than their IRL counterparts. This should be a solid class.
Honorable Mentions
1987.
1998.
1961-1962.
This is the first part of a two part series to be followed by "Five Remaining Classes I'll Just Go Ahead and Trade My 1st For"
1. 1996
All-League/All-Star Players:
Kobe Bryant
Allen Iverson
Stephon Marbury
Ray Allen
Steve Nash
Shareef Abdur-Rahim
Antoine Walker
Peja Stojakovic
Jermaine O'Neal
Zydrunas Ilgauskas
Ben Wallace
Other Notable Players:
Marcus Camby
Kerry Kittles
Derek Fisher
This class is absurdly deep. The number of players from this draft class that have made an All-Star Appearance or All-League Team is staggering. This draft class should really be able to put up a lot of points and really add to the depth of talented guards in TMBSL. Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury, Ray Allen are all guys that I could see being 30ppg scorers as players in TMBSL. Add in a great floor general point guard in Nash, a few solid wings (Abdur-Rahim, Walker, and Stojakovic), 2.0 GOAT Net Kerry Kittles, and great defensive bigs like Camby, O'Neal, and Ben Wallace, and you can easily see that this class really has a lot to offer throughout the first round.
Also let's not forget that the FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME FIVE TIME CHAMPION OF THE WORLD, Derek Fisher, is a part of this class.
2. 2003
All-League/All-Star Players:
LeBron James
Carmelo Anthony
Chris Bosh
Dwyane Wade
Chris Kaman
David West
Josh Howard
Mo Williams
Other Notable Players:
Darko Milicic
Sasha Pavlovic
Nick Collison
Kirk Hinrich
Leandro Barbosa
Boris Diaw
Kendrick Perkins
This is an incredibly deep class as well. On top of the four obvious superstars (LBJ, Melo, Wade, and Bosh), you've got several guys who put in all-star or all-league seasons in their primes in Kaman, David West, Josh Howard, and Mo Williams. You also have a couple of guys in Milicic and Pavlovic who were solid contributors in 2.0. Then there are guys like Nick Collison, Kirk Hinrich, Leandro Barbosa, and Boris Diaw in this class who have carved out nice careers as complementary players and could do the same in 4.0. Then you've got a guy like Kendrick Perkins who is always a candidate to be a very valuable brick-handed defensive specialist big. This is a class that everyone in the top twenty may find some value and those drafting at the top will get real prizes.
3. 1959-1960
Hall of Famers:
Wilt Chamberlain
Oscar Robertson
Jerry West
Bailey Howell
Lenny Wilkens
All-League/All-Star Players:
Bob Boozer
Dick Barnett
Johnny Green
Rudy LaRusso
Darrall Imhoff
Lee Shaffer
Other Notable Players:
Paul Neumann
Al Attles
This class only registers after 1996 and 2003 because recency bias and a lack of similar depth (considering it spans two actual drafts). However, the top flight talent in this class is really elite. You could make a legitimate "Mount Rushmore" for the NBA with 3 of the 4 placements coming from guys in this draft class - Wilt, Oscar, and West. After that, you've got two more HOFers in Howell and Wilkens and a handful of other players who made All-League teams or All-Star appearances. Rudy LaRusso was a solid defensive specialist in 2.0, so maybe we can get some players like that out of this class behind the elite talent. 2.0 superstar PG Paul Neumann should be a member of this class as well.
4. 1985
Hall of Famers:
Patrick Ewing
Chris Mullin
Karl Malone
Joe Dumars
All-League/All-Star Players:
A.C. Green
Charles Oakley
Detlef Schrempf
Xavier McDaniel
Terry Porter
Michael Adams
Other Notable Players:
Wayman Tisdale
Benoit Benjamin
Spud Webb
This is another draft class with several HOFers. Patrick Ewing should be a great TMBSL center. Malone, Dumars, and Mullin should all be solid scorers and defenders and worst, and there may be some value in the handful of players that were All-League or All-Star caliber guys in real life. This may be a good year for teams looking for tough defenders and rebounders with players like A.C. Green and Charles Oakley available. This class also features 2.0 stud Wayman Tisdale, who briefly wrecked worlds for Ocho's Pacers teams near the end of 2.0's run. Spud Webb could also be a late first round guy and back-up PG that finds a place with a team. Benoit Benjamin could also end up being a solid defensive option at center for a team.
5. 2008
All-League/All-Star Players:
Derrick Rose
Russell Westbrook
Goran Dragic
Kevin Love
Roy Hibbert
Brook Lopez
Other Notable Players:
Michael Beasley
O.J. Mayo
Eric Gordon
Javale McGee
Serge Ibaka
Nicolas Batum
DeAndre Jordan
Omer Asik
Call me a homer, but I really love this draft class. With Westbrook, Rose, and Dragic, you have three quick PGs who can put up points and create some turnovers. These skills usually transition well to elite TMBSL PGs. This class also has some elite defensive stoppers in Ibaka, Jordan, and Hibbert. There are other centers that are super-athletic like McGee and then pounding, brutal players like Pek and Asik who should have really good strength ratings and will play excellent post D while maybe not putting up high block totals. In Brook Lopez and Kevin Love, you get some bigs with the potential to really put up points, albeit with questionable amounts of defense. Eric Gordon should also be a guy who can put up some points; he was very effective in 2.0. Guys like Beasley and Mayo who were well-regarded out of college often end up having more successful TMBSL careers than NBA careers, so there is a good chance one of those two guys may blossom more than their IRL counterparts. This should be a solid class.
Honorable Mentions
1987.
1998.
1961-1962.
