NBA SIMS LEAGUE
NSL Insider - Premium: Season Surprises (so far)by jmac, updated on Wednesday, January 22 2025, 09:42 pm EST The Cleveland Cavaliers: Contenders The Cinderella surprise team of the season for mine is the Cleveland Cavaliers. On the back of some terrific aggressive trading, the perfect storm of game, settings and strategy came together to form an unexpected powerhouse of the 24-25 season. The lynchpin of the whole operation was snagging Drummond on a hail-Mary 99 GM bid during free agency, winning him from the Lakers by the barest of margins. The Cavaliers might boast the deepest roster of talent and fit of any of the teams, with proven star-power being the only category they may currently lack in. However, this 2k loves depth and chemistry, so the Cavaliers' current build might be the perfect storm.  OG Anunoby has played EVERY SINGLE GAME One of the newest members of the Hornets and the defensive enforcer to their star power, OG Anunoby is without a doubt one of the best, most versatile defenders we have in the game. Countless value points have been shaved off his trade returns due to the fact that he consistently misses chunks of time with a variety of injuries. Amazingly. he is 29/29 for games played so far in the NSL. More amazingly, is he has been played close to 40mpg for the NBA Knicks and he has barely missed a minute of action. Value! The Play-In Spurs? At the time of writing this article, the mighty spurs might be in the deepest trough of their history as one of the premier teams of the NSL. Still searching for the right formula and mix of players, the Spurs are at .500 at 15-15 and sit in the eight spot in the West. Do I think this is their fate for the season? No, not at all. The Spurs are an impenetrable force of winning and problem solving. But this is also a side we have rarely ever seen from the conquering Spurs - vulnerability. I hope Nels gets on the roll he is searching for. Memphis Mired in Mediocrity Memphis continue to make good trades, continue to tinker and still possess a great roster and still, look mediocre. Rootsey now has more tools at his disposal for improvements after a windfall from his most recent trade. In theory, the Memphis Grizzlies should continue to improve and settle into that play-in area of the standings. With the talent he has on his team, anything other than that would be a disastrous season. Smokey: Be GOOD or Be Good AT IT Does any GM gain traction and value in a team direction than Smokey? Within no time at all, the entire roster is retooled, picks are being swapped, youth being injected and and sought after and they have stumbled upon the perfect recipe to not win any games whatsoever, and somehow have grabbed ahold of the worst record in the league despite having good players and reasonable health. THAT BOY GOOD! All in all, not many (or any) GMs perform as efficiently as Smokey in a re-tool/rebuild and the rest of us can just sit and watch and weep. But... good news is that the great man is feeling rejuvinated and sprightly and immersed back into the fabric of the NSL community. Ty Jerome: 80s-rated Basketball Savant Surely someone has snapped up Ty Jerome?! What?! He is still on the Bulls? Ty 'Hold the Phone' Jerome (I am almost certain that isn't his real nickname) has become an 80-rated player in 2k and absolutely nobody, not even Ty's dear mother, would have expected such occurrences. He is a wildcard of an offensive player and gives the real-life Cavaliers a terrific playmaking and scoring spark every time he steps on the floor. Will the Bulls get the return they are after or will he remain a Bulls' fan favourite? /cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73731291/usa_today_24787890.0.jpg) Holding Out for a Herro Has any player grown more in stature and status in our 2024-2025 campaign than Tyler 'Holding Out For A' Herro? Pigeonholed as a supporting-role shooter, Tyler has begun to show signs of being a shifty, three-level scoring star, with consistency, to boot. He was traded twice in the off-season before landing in Sacramento, where he has put together a terrific start to his campaign - 29 points per game, 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Granted, this engine is a dream for a player like Herro, and a regression is coming in future 2ks. However, the growth is real - an low 80s rated player pushing up to the edge of 90s is excellent and rare growth. Lucky ducky. East > West, finally? At one point it seemed like an impossibility, with the Western Conference bullies embarassing the 'little brother' Eastern Conference at every opportunity, that the Eastern Conference could be the superiour field. The current standings and statistics do nothing to dissuade me from that sentiment; currently, the Eastern Conference boasts arguably the best three contenders in the league in Washington, Cleveland and Milwaukee. Looking at the respective playoff pictures, the middle band of the East has more wins than that of its West counterpart. The lowly underbellies of both conferences is similar, but arguably, the worst teams in the league are teams in the East. Totalling the numbers... The (L)East Conference is now the (B)East conference. Embiid question marks The Utah Jazz, with their loaded roster, are right on the cusp of being a true chance to win the NSL Finals and are firmly in the 'contender' cache of NSL teams. Despite a littany of injuries this season, the Jazz still boast a terrific record in a competitive NSL season. But, a giant shadow looms over a giant of our game, and a giant man - Joel Embiid. Questions about his body aren't a recent development, but something looks different about him, this season. The power and bursts of energy and stamina seem to have left real-life Embiid, for now. Is he out of shape and can round into the MVP-calibre player we, and the Jazz, know and expect of him? Or is this the start of the physical decline for Embiid, where the toll he has put his body through comes to a head? He has played just 8/30 games. |
Archive· Premium: The Sixth Man Advantage · Premium: What is the cost of Wemby? · Premium: Season Surprises (so far) |