Post by Dallas Mavericks on Mar 13, 2017 15:25:35 GMT -6
2016 Executive of the Year
Introduction: Commissioner's 2017 Address to the League
Third Place
Each candidate will be announced from last to first. A new candidate will be announced every few days until the executive of the year is finally revealed.
Introduction: Commissioner's 2017 Address to the League
Basketball Guru season two is in the books! Last season was a great success. We laid down the foundation for what would be the start of a long-lasting and great dynasty basketball league and we also found some General Managers along the way.
The league continues onward, continually improving and evolving, as we watch the future dynasties of Basketball Guru rise. Continuity and enthusiasm reached new levels this year, with the additions of several General Managers (Minnesota Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks, Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, LA Clippers, and the Sacramento Kings).
Season two was the season in which we created a new resign process, said goodbye to trading cash in favor of trading waived player contracts, and set up a wonderful media team! The improvements that have come should continue to pay off even more next season, I have a lot of plans and should soon have the time to put them in place!
Let's take a look at some interesting moves done this season:
- Los Angeles Lakers sign Mike Conley (4 years, $10M/yr), Nicolas Batum (4 years, 14 million), and DeAndre Jordan(4 years, 14M/yr).
- New Orleans Pelicans sign Dion Waiters in the regular season (2 years (2nd year team option), $0.5M/year).
- Portland TrailBlazers sign Maurice Harkless in the regular season(4 years, $3M/yr).
- Minnesota Timberwolves sign Malcolm Brogdon in the regular season (Four years, $1.5 million/year, t.o 4th year).
- Sacramento Kings sign Seth Curry in the regular season (2 years at .5 million per year, 2nd year team option).
- Chicago Bulls sign Yogi Ferrell in the regular season ($3 mill/year for 4 years).
- Los Angeles Lakers send Bradley Beal and NOP 2017 2nd rounder for Gary Harris and Cash.
- Chicago Bulls sends Eric Bledsoe, Tobias Harris and $25m for two first rounders, a second rounder and Justin Anderson.
- Minnesota Timberwolves send Justise Winslow, Jerian Grant, and Langston Galloway for Jrue Holiday and the #7 pick in the 2016 draft.
- Boston Celtics sends Bobby Portis, Markieff Morris and 2016 14th overall for Kyrie Irving.
- Los Angeles Lakers send Mike Conley and Nicolas Batum for Jimmy Butler and Alex Len.
- Los Angeles Lakers send DeAndre Jordan, Myles Turner, and Jordan Clarkson for Russell Westbrook and Dwight Powell.
- Los Angeles Lakers send Brandon Ingram, Terrance Jones, and Alex Len for John Wall, Sergio Rodriguez and Charlotte Hornets 2018 2nd rounder.
With all that being said the Executive of the Year race this year was closer than last years. Many teams made many big changes.
The first runner up for Basketball Guru Executive of the Year 2017 will soon be announced! Who do you think will win BG's most prestigious award this year? Stay tuned to find out!Philadelphia 76ers
Executive of the Year
The Executive of the Year is awarded to the General Manager who has improved his team the most, both for the present and the future, in one season. Executives of the Year are awarded the gold wreaths achievement icon.
I didn't see him coming even after he acquired Damian Lillard from the Los Angeles Lakers, but on paper there's no other GM who has turned their team around more this year than the 76ers - going from a team of bloated contracts and low-upside talent to one of the most exciting teams in the league!
The 76ers joined this off-season and took over the Houston Rockets (5-14) that was composed of James Harden, Dwight Howard and Kenneth Faried. The rest of the team was rounded out by players like Rashad Vaughn, Joe Young and Zaza Pachulia who were not contributing and the future of the Rockets looked to be in jeopardy. Until new management took over and relocated the Rockets to the city of Philadelphia and added a new superstar to pair with James Harden, Damian Lillard.
The 76ers first major few moves was waiving Kenneth Faried and replacing him with quality power-forwards. The Philadelphia 76ers signed Dirk Nowitizki (1 year 11 million) and Ryan Anderson (4 years 7 million per year). Although both players are overpaid, Anderson was seen as the perfect power-forward to compliment Mike D'Antoni's system and still has plenty of room to improve and find his groove. Dirk, on the other hand, was traded to the Boston Celtics for Rudy Gay. Rudy (33 FPPG) went on to have a better season than Dirk (26.5 FPPG) and was doing well for the 76ers until his season ending injury.
The real crowning achievements to the 76ers season begins with tree trades:
- The acquisition of Steven Adams for Trevor Ariza
- The acquisition of Damian Lillard for the third overall pick, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, and Kent Bazemore
- The acquisition of Kyle Lowry for Frank Kaminsky, Jeff Teague and a second round pick.
In all three of these trades, it is clear that the 76ers came out on top. Steven Adams is averaging 26.1 FPPG for the season and is on the uptick of a career that is sure to include one or two accolades and recognition around the league. Adams is only 23 years old but is steadily improving and proving to be a major contributer to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Damian Lillard is outperforming his FPPG from last season and is looking like a perennial all-star point guard. Although McCollum has stole some of the shine this season, Lillard has improved and is still the TrailBlazer's franchise player. Kyle Lowry averages 10 more FP than Teague while the struggling Kaminsky looks to have been better sold while his value was still high. One player that 76ers acquired from the same trade is Will Barton, a player on a great value contract with potential to improve.
A low-key move that went unrecognized is the acquisition of Wilson Chandler (28 FPPG) for only $1,000,000 in cash. A great deal for the 76ers! The careful, nuanced trading that the Sixers have done all season is what has separated him from the rest of the pack. The Sixers have raised their team to a new standard. Congratulations to the Philadelphia 76ers!Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:2015 Team (5-14)
Patrick Beverley
James Harden
Kenneth Faried
Dwight Howard
Shelvin Mack
Zaza Pachulia
O.J. Mayo
Rashad Vaughn
2016 Team (16-3)
Damian Lillard
James Harden
James Johnson
Ryan Anderson
Steven Adams
Zach Randolph
Wilson Chandler
Will Barton
Patrick Beverley
Nikola Vucevic
Tim Hardaway Jr.
T.J. McConnell
Ersan Ilyasova
Darren Collison
Derrick Rose
Garrett Temple
Second PlaceLos Angeles LakersThere are two types of people in this league - the ones who believe the Lakers should not receive any type of recognition for EOTY and the ones who believe he should win, hands down. It's a sign of a good GM when a trade is posted and everyone steps back, goes "woah", and commends the GM for making such a fine move. However I've now decided it's the sign of a truly all-time great GM when a trade gets posted and the entire league loses its mind and the Trade Committee takes several days to pass judgement! It's the sign of a great GM when I'm not even sure whether to include him in this award because I'm afraid it will tear the entire league to shreds! Let's take a look at what this General Manager/Jedi has achieved.
Our journey begins in the off-season when the Lakers managed to trade Damian Lillard's albatross contract for the third overall pick in the 2016 draft, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Kent Bazemore. This allowed the Lakers to clear a tremendous amount of cap space and sign some major free-agents (to be discussed later). This trade was later followed up with trading the #3 and #8 overall, Dwight Powell and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson for Chicago's second overall first round draft pick and Taj Gibson. Essentially, this turned Lillard, pick 8 and Powell for Pick 2 (Brandon Ingram) and Taj Gibson.
In a trade that set the stage for the Lakers - Bucks rivalry, The Lakers sent Steven Adams, Ed Davis, Greg Monroe, the Jazz 2016 second round draft pick for CJ Miles, DeMarre Carroll, Dwight Powell, Myles Turner, and the #8 pick in the 2016 draft! Trade committee members were baffled and battled over whether or not to approve, with the trade finally being passed 2-1. In the words of the Pelicans, "I want to say this was great trading by the Lakers, as soon as you have teams regretting deals 24 hours after they have accepted them, you know you are doing a good job."
Indeed even after a season in the role of General Manager the pursuit of dominance has guided the Lakers in every trade and decision in the last year as the Lakers outperformed even his usual high standards, going (15-4) compared to last year's record of (12-7).
This post would not complete without delving into the 'highlight' trades for the Lakers. The really jaw-dropping action came in the form of three moves that occurred this season. As the Charlotte Hornets self destructed, All Star John Wall joined the Lakers in the single most controversial player acquisition of all time. However, this was not the only All Star to come to Los Angeles.
Earlier in the season, the Lakers traded for and acquired Jimmy Butler for recently signed Nicolas Batum and Mike Conley. Both players were signed this past off-season and were seen as quality starting players.
It was the very same day, December 16th, that we awoke bright eyed, stumbling into the morning light to be faced with this. The MVP, Russell Westbrook, was traded for one of the more impressive looking rookies, Myles Turner. It paled in comparison to the John Wall trade, but it was still one of the greatest trades and the envy and noise of other GMs should not detract from it. It might even go down as being bigger than the John Wall trade, depending on the future of Myles Turner. What's even more impressive was that it was a trade with the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had placed third for this prize and who rarely makes such a leap of faith. How did the Lakers manage to get Westbrook? He might be the best trader in the league, and/or a Jedi, that's how.
In the off-season, the Lakers signed the biggest free-agents: Nicolas Batum, DeAndre Jordan and Mike Conley. They got off to an excellent start to the season and it seemed like everything was on the rise for the Lakers. So what stopped them from winning executive of the year?
The salary cap. On December 3rd, 2016, it was realized that the Los Angeles Lakers had exceeded the salary cap by $16.77m. This was because the formula used to calculate 'Cap Remaining' was not including LA's cap hold of $24.25m. This issue was exclusive to the Lakers. Even though the Lakers are not responsible for the error that occurred, the question remains: How did the Lakers not notice this? Why were they not keeping track of their finances and how did they amass $24.25m in waived contracts? The trading, the signing and the drafting were all there, but the lack of accountability and tracking was shocking and left questions whether the Lakers were capable of planning for the future.
Even when the Lakers financial situation looked bleak, the Toronto Raptors were able to bail them out. In a trade that saw the Raptors send out $16m and DeMarre Carroll for Terrence Ross, the Lakers were able to make it under the cap space and make some late season additions via the regular season free-agent pool.
The Lakers accomplishments should not be taken lightly. The amount of trading and the quality of trades that the Lakers have executed this season has been some of the best trading the league has ever seen. One last, late season trade that the Lakers had executed that received quite a bit of flack around the league is the Dirk Nowitizki trade with Boston. Even when it looked like the Lakers were bent over a barrel, they still managed to pull this one off. The Los Angeles Lakers unloaded waived contracts that extended into the 2017/18 season and also picked up Dirk Nowitizki for the mere price of Oklahoma City Thunder's 2017 second round pick and Trey Lyles. Large amounts of criticism were hurled at the Celtics for making such a move. They took on an estimated 9m in the form of waived contracts for next season, giving them zero production!
The Los Angeles Lakers have ascended from a fledgling mediocre treadmill team, led by Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow and Emmanuel Mudiay, into an already championship calibre squad that continues to replenish itself with yet more stunning talent that will lead the team to the top of the West for a long, long time to come. Only the newly introduced Master Roster (which now fully accounts for cap hold!) will restrain them. Whole hearted congratulations to the Los Angeles Lakers for being the runner up in this prestigious award!
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:2015 Team (12-7)
Jordan Clarkson
D'Angelo Russell
Otto Porter Jr.
Dwight Powell
Myles Turner
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
DeMarre Caroll
Archie Goodwin
Jeremy Lamb
Andre Iguodala
C.J. Miles
Gary Harris
Jerian Grant
Justise Winslow
Langston Galloway
2016 Team (15-4)
Russell Westbrook (MVP)
Jimmy Butler
Bojan Bogdanovic
Serge Ibaka
Gorgui Dieng
John Wall
Austin Rivers
George Hill
D'Angelo Russell
P.J. Tucker
Kent Bazemore
Dirk Nowitizki
DeMarre Carroll
Ish Smith
Kyle O'Quinn
Third Place
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves are a dark horse this year, but they have made a remarkable 180 degree turn from where they were last season - going from a team of bloated contracts to one of the most exciting, up-and-coming, young teams in the league!
The Timberwolves season can best be described as, 'Stay competitive, but also focus on the future.' The hallmark trade of the Timberwolves season is Russell Westbrook for the Lakers DeAndre Jordan, Myles Turner and Jordan Clarkson. Russell Westbrook was expiring and, while he's still young and proven to be consistently healthy, the Timberwolves were lacking depth and Westbrook's next contract would have taken up a lot of the Wolve's cap space. Instead of resigning Westbrook, the Timberwolves opt'd to acquire a very talented big man who is only 20 years old and already averaging 30.5 this season with room to improve.
Minnesota has also made some low-key signings that have ended up being stellar. Malcolm Brogdon, the 24 year old rookie out of Virginia, has performed admirably this season. The Timberwolves signed him on a cap-friendly deal of $1.5m for four years with an option on the fourth year.
The Timberwolves have consistently made trades to better their team this season while also keeping an eye on the future. That, combined with going 13-6 this season and securing the fifth seed earns the Timberwolves third place in the EOTY race.
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:2015 Team (6-13)
Jrue Holiday
Kyrie Irving
Andrew Wiggins
Karl-Anthony Towns
Nikola Vucevic
TJ Warren
Kent Bazemore
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist
Shabazz Muhammad
T.J. McConnell
Mirza Teletovic
2016 Team (13-6)
Jrue Holiday
Kyle Lowry
Derrick Favors
Eric Gordon
Kelly Oubre Jr.
Richaun Holmes
Alan Williams
Karl-Anthony Towns
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
Clint Capela
Danilo Gallinari
Myles Turner
Maurice Harkless
Seth Curry
Evan Turner
Cory Joseph
Marvin Williams