Post by House on Jul 17, 2010 11:16:56 GMT -5
So.. James did the East, and he did a fine job. But I figured I'd get the West done (mostly to camp the guy in the picture above). So, here goes.
Just a note, the pre-TC rating is before, the post-TC rating is after. Also, these are in no particular order, I'm going down by team.
Winners
Jordan Sibert SG 6'6'' 200 22 B- B- B+ C C C
Jordan Sibert SG 22 6'6'' 200 B- B A- C C C
Well, that's a good way to start off your career. Go up in outside and handles for a team that is poised to possibly contend this year. The only thing they were missing before the year was a shooting guard, and they may have found their man in Sibert, who can now capably score at the top level. The only question with him is his defense, and with some work, that should be able to go up. Solid player for the Nuggets, should be their SG of the future to pair with Wall.
Chris Bosh PF 29 6'10'' 235 A- C C B+ B+ C
Chris Bosh PF 30 6'10'' 235 A- C+ C A- B+ C
Ugh. Having a team competing with the Kings out West, this was the LAST thing I wanted to see: Bosh improving his game. His outside game and his defense improving means he'll be even MORE of a force down low for the Kings, who, after this improvement, have to be considered the favorites out West if they weren't already. Credit to Marty for hanging onto him.
Tony Mitchell SF 6'8" 216 22 A- C- D C C C
Tony Mitchell PF 22 6'8'' 216 A C D B- C B (C+ D at SF)
Wooooooowww. Of all the TC gains, this might have garnered the most talk. Before the draft, he was labeled as "only another high-flier". Well, he is showing that he may end up as the absolute steal of the draft. Going up to A inside is absolutely insane. That means he has an incredibly high strength and jumping rating, yes, but it also means he has to have an inside scoring rating of at least 70 too (correct me if I'm wrong Broph). And the increase on D was huge, now he's passable at getting playing time. GREAT pick by the Jazz, and great job to extend him. However... well, I'm not gonna get into the trade. I still think it was good for the Jazz at getting one of my picks, since I never can decide what I'm doing, so that pick might be gold. But with work, he could become a superstar in this league.
The Supersonics
Gonna be naming a few teams here too, I'm gonna start off with my own (selfishly, but then again, I'm going in playoff order right now). Besides Tony Mitchell's improvement (which was while he was still on the Jazz), Dwight Howard kept his ratings, but the big news here was the backcourt just continuing to improve. Evans went up to A defense at SG (he already had it at PG), and he's becoming an all-around force. Mo Williams CONTINUES to get better in TC, as he's gone up to A handles now. I think it's safe to say that Mo-Evans forms possibly the best backcourt in the league right now. Time will tell if that will translate into playoff success, as so far it hasn't, but maybe this year they'll finally be able to do it.
Jereme Richmond SF 6'7" 220 22 B C D+ B+ C+ B
Jereme Richmond SF 22 6'7'' 220 B+ C D+ A- C+ B
Big fan of Richmond's game, had I been able to trade into the lotto, I would have tried to nab him. He's got a really solid game for an SF, and I really think he could be one of the better players to come out of the draft when it's all said and done. He should continue to improve, and if Prince works on his rebounding and his outside game, he could be an absolute monster.
Jonas Valanciunas C 20 6'11'' 265 B+ C+ C B A- A
Jonas Valanciunas C 21 6'11'' 265 A- C+ C A- A- A
Oh my god. I mean, seriously? After that last TC where he went up, i figured he might level out a bit. At the very least I thought he'd lose his A scouted. But no, definitely not, a +3 AND he kept his scouted potential. Dude is an absolute monster ratings-wise. Doesn't get as many blocks as one would want, but that really doesn't matter. He does everything else really well. Kobe is one lucky sonofabitch.
The Spurs
REALLY loved this TC for the Spurs, especially since they are in their CY. CJ Leslie had a great TC, going up in inside and rebounding (which was huge, fwiw), and they used that success to trade him for Rudy Gay, arguably one of the 5 best players in the league. The Spurs also were able to acquire Ray Allen in the offseason, and he didn't die, which is huge, since in an outside offense or even a balanced offense he could be deadly. Especially in an outside one though (MINE), but that's neither here nor there. Deron even went +1 for the Spurs in defense, which is not to be overlooked. If the Spurs can get back on track after the Gay move, they could contend in the West.
Kenny Boynton SG 23 6'2'' 170 B B C B+ D+ B
Kenny Boynton SG 24 6'2'' 170 B A- C+ A- C- B
WOW, a +5 for Boynton. The Suns truly needed that, as it looks as though now that he is the future for this team. Besides the horrific percentages he's shooting at the start of the season, he's otherwise gotten off to a great start for them, no doubt helped by that +5 TC. He can score, defend, and now not be useless rebounding. Plus, his handles improved. Look for him to wind up as a top 10-15 SG before it's all said and done.
Durand Scott SG 22 6'3'' 195 B- C+ B- C+ C C
Durand Scott PG 23 6'3'' 195 B- B- B B C C
Yeah, he got moved to PG, where Austin Rivers already is, but I really think the move helped him out. His game rounded out a bit and got better in places it definitely needed to get better in. Now I think he could end up as a fringe starter in the league, or at the very least a solid backup.
Josh Selby SG 22 6'2'' 180 A- C+ C B D+ B
Josh Selby SG 22 6'2'' 180 A- B- C B+ C- A
Yipes, great TC by Selby. He definitely needed to do it this year, and he did. A +3 (not including the bump back up to A scouted potential) in all the right places. Defense, rebounding, outside scoring. For a guard, he's going to turn out pretty good. My one problem is his turnovers, but I think he's going to start cutting those down very soon with some work put into him. Overall, very solid TC for him.
Tobias Harris SF 22 6'10'' 234 B C+ C B- B- B
Tobias Harris PF 22 6'10'' 234 B C+ C B B+ B
Almost forgot Tobias. Had a nice TC, the move from SF to PF certainly was a wise move, as his defense is at B now and he went up 2 in rebounding. Harris should be a good player for the Warriors in the future, whether off the bench or starting. Another good TC like this one and it'll be the latter for awhile.
Vander Blue SG 21 6'3'' 185 B C- D+ B C B
Vander Blue SG 21 6'3'' 185 B C C- A- C B
I still think he was picked too high, but a +4 TC does ease that worry a bit. He needs to work even more on his scoring, in my opinion, but the defensive bump was huge. And the outside did go up, which was absolutely necessary. I still don't see him being a star, but he should be a solid player for awhile.
That's all for the winners. If I forgot someone, it is pure oversight, I swear.
Losers
Nuggets Centers
So, apparently, Thabeet got bumped up to B- rebounding RIGHT before TC. Bad move. Thabeet didn't like that, so he went back down to where he was most comfortable at, which was C+. I STILL hate Thabeet's contract, and I still say it was a bad move for the Nuggets to go get him. Also, Elton Brand finally started to decline, going down in defense and rebounding. Luckily, he's expiring, so he won't hurt the Nuggets long-term. They really just wanted him for this year instead of trading him. So that should work out OK. Still, not a great TC for those two centers.
Sebastian Telfair PG 29 6'1'' 173 C+ A- A B+ C- D
Sebastian Telfair PG 29 6'1'' 173 C+ A- A- B C- D
Bad time to start going down, Seabass, bad time. Well, bad for the Wolves, lucky for you you got that contract in the offseason (ludicrous after TC to look at, to be honest). That contract is going to be near impossible to move if Telfair continues like this. Going down in handles and defense certainly isn't good for the Wolves now or in the future. Good luck Trunks.
Yao Ming C 33 7'6'' 311 B C+ C- A- A- C
Yao Ming C 33 7'6'' 311 B- C+ C- A- A- D
Uh oh, Yao's got a 5 year deal worth a shit-ton of money, and he's begun to go down in inside. Not good at all. Starting to look like that he could end up as an Eddie Griffin type player. I fully expect him to play out the full-length of that contract, and if DBW can't end up moving it very, very soon, he's going to be stuck with it until either Yao retires early or until it runs out.
Tim Duncan PF 38 7'0'' 252 B+ C- C- B+ A F
Tim Duncan PF 38 7'0'' 252 B C- C- B A- D
Well, there it goes, Duncan goes down 3, and it's only a matter of time before he hangs it up. He's been one of the greatest players in UOSLR history, but it's about time to call it quits. He's still serviceable this season for sure, but if he doesn't retire after the year, he could decline even further next season. Hopefully not, it's sad to see players so good end their careers poorly (IE Griffey in real life).
Rakeem Christmas C 22 6'9'' 230 B C- C- B- B- B
Rakeem Christmas C 22 6'9'' 230 B C- D+ B- B- B
Oy vey, that is a shittastic TC for Christmas. One of the top picks in this past UOSLR draft, he doesn't impvoe, and he actually goes DOWN in a category (handles). Not good at all, looks like he could be a bust pick for the Clippers. And that's not good at all for Crazymike, because he certainly needs some hope.
Terrence Jones SF 22 6'9'' 210 B- C+ C B C A
Terrence Jones SF 22 6'9'' 210 B- C+ C B C+ B
Yes, he went +1, however, he was the #3 pick in the draft, and some people thought he was a reach at that point. He may very well have been. Memphis expected an explosion from him in TC, but all they got was a little bump in his rebounding and a drop in scouted, which is big. Not necessarily a bust, but not a great TC for him.
Marcus Paige PG 19 6'3'' 182 C+ C+ C+ C+ C A
Marcus Paige PG 19 6'3'' 182 C+ C+ C+ C+ C A
Didn't do ANYTHING in training camp. Still waiting on him. He could still be a great player in the future, but this first training camp leaves us hanging. He's got all-around great skills, just needs to develop them into something solid.
I probably forgot some of the losers too, so let me know if I missed out on anyone big. Otherwise, hope you enjoyed.
(And for what it's worth, both James and I had 19 total players on our lists.)
