Beale Street Fantasy Draft Part 4, Whose Team Wins?
By Hal Brown
It’s been a little while since we’ve put up one of our Fantasy Draft Rounds, but here’s the next one: round 4 is here!
A reminder of how this works: four of us are participating; Hal, Daniel, Kevin, and Andrew. We randomized the names and the resulting draft order was Daniel, Hal, Kevin, Andrew. The order “snakes,” meaning that Daniel picked first, but will pick last in the second round, and so on.
We’ll have a post for each round, with everyone listing their picks and their reasons for picking them. Each post will end in a summary of each writer’s team up to that point.
The success of the team is based off of real-life skill and construction, not the stats someone would use for actual fantasy basketball. So, for example, the floor spacing that Marc Gasol brings to the table would be relevant in picking him for this team, while it wouldn’t matter in real fantasy. In that sense, we’re trying to build teams that would really work.
At each step, let us know what you think of the teams! Do you agree with the picks? Disagree? What would you have done?
Jun 20, 2013; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat center Chris Bosh (1) reacts during the fourth quarter of game seven in the 2013 NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Andrew:
With the 13th overall pick, I’ll take the Miami Heat’s Ray Allen. With Rose and Harden filling up the lane on drives, we’ll need a spot up shooter to stand on the perimeter and drain 3’s, and Allen is the best — in fact, he might be greatest shooter in league history.
If there’s a drawback to Allen, it’s his age (37). But maybe we should call it “experience” after he single-handedly saved the Heat from elimination in the waining seconds of Game 6 of this year’s finals.
Kevin:
With the 14th pick, I’ll take LaMarcus Aldridge. Obviously, as a Blazers fan and writer, I’m a little biased towards Aldridge. That said, I’d be glad to have him with my existing group.
He’s extremely talented on the offensive floor. He has one of the best midrange jumpers in the game, along with a nice post game he can go to. Aldridge might just be the best scoring big man in the NBA.
LMA offers a nice contrast to Dwight Howard offensively, and Dwight can pick up LMA’s slack on defense, where Aldridge is average at best. And, of course, Aldridge is just another weapon for CP3 to take advantage of. The idea of Paul running a horns pick-and-roll (where both bigs come up to set a screen on both sides) with Aldridge popping out for the midrange jumper and Dwight rolling to the rim for the dunk sounds so fun to me.
Hal:
With the 15th pick of the fantasy Draft, I take Chris Bosh. Of all the offensively strong stretch fours left in the draft, Bosh is by far the best defender.
According to Basketball-reference, a league average personal defense allows 105 points per 100 possessions. Last season, Bosh allowed 103, and the season before, he only allowed 100.
The best part about his defense, though, is its flexibility. Having Bosh as a four on my team will allow Durant to guard wings on the perimeter, where his length is a major advantage, but the two could very easily switch positions and be comfortable. Bosh turns defense, typically a weakness for Durant, into a strength. Similarly, Bosh and Noah could switch comfortably.
Bosh’s major deficiency is rebounding, but he plays like a much more aware, active, and smart Boozer. The Boozer-Noah tandem has proven to rebound well, and the Bosh-Noah tandem will as well. The two can shut down the lane and cover up for any defensive mistakes a Steph Curry would make.
But to ignore his offense would be a deadly mistake. Other than Dirk, he has the most deadly midrange jumper of any bigman in the game. He has an amazing passing game, and runs trick PnRs day in and out. As well, being able to hold out on the elbow allows Noah lots of time to work (and REBOUND REBOUND REBOUND) inside. Bosh and Noah could even run Smith-Horford-esque Pick and Rolls.
Last season, Bosh had an offensive rating of 114 points per 100 possessions.
Daniel:
With the 16th pick, I’ll select Kyrie Irving.
Yeah, he’s young. He’s inexperienced. But he’s also Uncle Drew.
While he’s devastatingly effective with the ball in his hands, he’s also quietly become on the of the league’s premiere three-point threats. Giving Lebron James and Tim Duncan room to operate will be key in my offense.
He’ll also supply the team with Pepsi. Something you can never undervalue.
Teams so far:
Daniel: LeBron James, Tim Duncan, Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving
Hal: Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Joakim Noah, Chris Bosh
Kevin: Chris Paul, Dwight Howard, Paul George, LaMarcus Aldridge
Andrew: Derrick Rose, Marc Gasol, James Harden, Ray Allen