Friday, July 16, 2010

Real 2K Insider: NBA 2K11 (News Update)

Ever the perfectionist, I have yet to release my 2K11 roster as I am still waiting for a few team's rosters to be filled out (notably: Bulls, Clippers, Hawks, Heat).

I've been spending the time perfecting each team's roster, making position tweaks where necessary, continuing to update player ratings and tendencies (as I had only completed about half the teams).

Still, I'm sure many of you are curious as to how the league's power is shifting, and I've got a sneak preview of how the league will primarily look once the dust has settled.

EAST OVERALL
90 Heat - You already know
86 Bulls - Adding Boozer shored up biggest weakness
85 Bucks - Team won 46 last year, added Maggette and Gooden
84 Celtics - Could really use Barnes to replenish team depth
83 Bobcats - Full season of Tyrus will help
82 Magic - Downgraded from Barnes/J-Will to Q-Rich/Duhon
82 Hawks - Barely beat Milwaukee last year, yet making no moves
81 Sixers - Turner will bring this flawed team back to playoffs
79 Knicks - Finally gunning for the 8th seed, still plenty of questions
78 Pacers - Still need a PG and SG... very quiet this offseason
77 Nets - Replaced their backups with... younger backups
76 Pistons - Lots of depth, not enough talent... also quiet this summer
74 Wizards - Might be starting Yi - nuff said
73 Cavaliers - Things will get uglier before the summer is through
70 Raptors - Most unbalanced roster in the league

WEST OVERALL
86 Lakers - Same team as last year, which favors them to win conference
85 Rockets - Might as well call this team "Superman Returns"
84 Mavericks - How many teams can say Shawn Marion would be their 7th man?
84 Nuggets - Harrington a big upgrade over Malik Allen
84 Blazers - Return to health makes them as dangerous as any western power
83 Spurs - Splitter shores up frontcourt, but SF still a weakness
83 Thunder - Same team as last year... will need to improve again
82 Jazz - Replaced Boozer with Big Al, but bench still thin
81 Grizzlies - Improved their depth, but still a starless team (hey Rudy)
81 Hornets - Another sideways season makes CP3 an unhappy camper
80 Clippers - Griffin returns, but team lacks depth
80 Warriors - Ironman David Lee joins most injured NBA team
79 Kings - Cousins provides instant improvement, but still lacking at PG/SF
78 Suns - Just replaced Amare with Turkoglu... I need convincing
75 Wolves - League's worst team gave away their best player for draft picks

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50 comments:

Mike said...

I agree with just about everything in there. Though my prediction is Kings will be stronger than a 79.

Of course they have to prove it first, but I think they will.

If you would give me a minute of your time, can you tell me what you think of Dexter Pittman (or all of Miami's big men in general, like Zydrunas).

I haven't been able to catch their summer league games so I don't know how well Pittman is performing outside of box scores.

Seeing as you pay such close attention to these things for making your roster maybe you could give me some insight.

I'm paranoid about the weaknesses at the C spot and I don't think Zydrunas will do much for it.

Anonymous said...

I really have to say I love the respect you have given towards the Milwaukee Bucks in every one of your updates. 2k has seemingly ignored the Bucks bench with low ratings for Carlos Delfino and Ersan Ilyasova, and now I see some respect for our team who almost beat the Hawks without Andrew Bogut. Just a friendly tip also, Ersan's shot is "Mace" see for yourself. Keep up the great work man!
-Die Hard Bucks Fan

Shelb said...

I've used your last roster update, moved players to their new teams/Free Agency, added some 2k share rookies and the Raptors are the worst team in the game by far.

Here's what I have based on the very flawed rosters (2K share has some terrible rookies but I tried to edit the bad ones as well I could with no real knowledge of their abilities beyond stats):

TEAM/OVERALL/OFF/DEF
PHI - 84/88/81
CHA - 83/71/87
MIL - 84/85/81
CHI - 86/83/84
CLE - 76/70/79
BOS - 87/90/89
LAC - 82/82/77
MEM - 81/86/75
ATL - 83/88/83
MIA - 94/95/92
NOH - 84/84/86
UTA - 87/88/87
SAC - 80/77/75
NYK - 82/83/82
LAL - 88/87/90
ORL - 84/83/89
DAL - 84/82/88
NJN - 79/76/80
DEN - 86/90/87
IND - 80/79/79
DET - 81/78/84
TOR - 69/70/71
HOU - 87/88/86
SAS - 84/81/79
PHO - 81/85/77
OKC - 86/83/89
MIN - 78/77/74
POR - 87/83/87
GSW - 82/80/80
WAS - 75/83/71

Some ratings seem low, some high, some about right. Some are really off (Golden State with an 80 defensive rating, Denver with an 87, Raptors 70 offensive, etc).

Once everyone is signed to their new teams it'll be interesting to see how things change.

That said, awaiting your next roster. Thanks

Shelb said...

Also, still have line-up/roster adjustments to make so some of the higher ratings for some teams may be off because they have players in the game they don't still have in real life.

Still trying to see how I can bring the Raptors back into the 70s also :|

Town Knave said...

Rashidi, please tell me you'll be posting the actual ratings here and not just uploading a new roster... there are many of us who play on PS3 or (far superior) PC version and we know your ratings are the best around by FAR. PC modders are great about adding missing players with accurate portraits and models, but for some reason ratings don't merit the attention of anyone knowledgeable.

I actually just went through the trouble of trying to extract your xbox roster file to my pc, but sadly NBA 2k10 PC doesn't recognize it. If you post the ratings here I promise to write 2k games a letter a week demanding they hire you to replace the sinecured empty suit they currently call the 2kinsider...

btw, still play any Tactics Ogre?

Shelb said...

Don't want to speak for him but I believe Rashidi has said in the past he'll post a spreadsheet once he's finished every player/team.

Rashidi said...

Mike,

I actually have Kings at 80 now as I noticed their depth chart was slightly off. Donte Greene will also probably go up the next time I tweak him. It will be interesting to see what happens with their frontcourt as either Dalembert or Cousins could start... and that will likely affect whether Landry or Thompson start.

Centers won't hurt the Heat the same way Longley/Wennington/Random didn't hurt the Bulls. I wouldn't be surprised if Joel Anthony starts since his shot blocking (league leading 7% of possessions) plays better next to 3 scorers than Ilguaskas (a slow-footed scorer) would. Riley and Spoelstra have always preached defense, after all.

Rashidi said...

Post #2,

I find it sickening how criminally underrated Ersan Ilyasova is, as I've seen him dismantle the Knicks almost single-handedly (in a game Bogut left early).

Rashidi said...

Shelb,

The Raptors biggest problem is so many players are out of position. Bargnani should be a PF, while DeRozan should be a SF.

I really liked the Calderon trade that got nixed, as Chandler is a great compliment for Bargnani, and Diaw would move back to his natural SF after the last 5 years playing PF/C.

As it stands they do not have an above average starter at any position. I might have Kleiza a bit too low, which would be lowering thier rating slightly, but not enough to push them past Minnesota.

Rashidi said...

RAPS WITHOUT CALDERON
PG Jack (73)
SG Weems (66)
SF Diaw (72)
PF Bargnani (72)
C Chandler (70)
6M Barbosa (71)
7M Johnson (69)

RAPS WITH CALDERON
PG Calderon (71)
SG Weems (66)
SF Kleiza (66)
PF Johnson (69)
C Bargnani (70)
6M Jack (73)
7M Barbosa (71)

Raps with Calderon will have their best two guards on the bench, and three sub-70 rated players starting.

Rashidi said...

Town,

For the most part the ratings are the same as the ones I've posted already for the teams. I have a few more teams completed since then, but will post them when I'm done since finishing the roster takes priority.

Also, I have a Tactics Ogre sobstory. I somehow broke my disc. The only game disc I have ever broken in my entire life... and it had to be my favorite game that runs for $100 on ebay.

Rashidi said...

I have about 22 of the 30 teams completed, sans a rookie here or there.

Anonymous said...

tyson chandler went to the mavs & diaw didnt get traded

Mike said...

Thanks for the reply. Look forward to using your rosters...

Sean said...

Rashidi,
I'm new here, so I apologize if this has been asked before.

Will your rosters be available on 2K Share for PC?

thanks

Anonymous said...

once again rashidi proves he has no life

Town Knabe said...

Rashidi,

Great to hear you'll be posting the other teams at some point. The 10 or so "FINAL" rosters you posted here are pretty much picture perfect, so for me a third of the league is pretty much set.

For the rest of the league I've pretty much gone by the smattering of other rosters you posted here before the season and my own guesses to bring things in line with the latest OVR shifts you posted. The results for those teams have been... mixed.

The Sixers, for example, start a lineup rated 81/80/74/74/72, with many of their key guys (Brand, Iggy, Young) taking sizable drops in OVR with my rating edits... and yet their team is somehow 85 overall, as good as the Nuggets' 87/80/76/75/72 lineup, or the Thunder's 87/83/75/74/71 lineup well. I'm sure my changes weren't nearly as accurate as yours, but it seems as though the team rating system is just screwed.

Anonymous said...

can you stop going out of your way to diss the grizzlies?

you have been doin it all year.

and if rudy gay signed in NY he could have sidestepped a joke or two from the great rashidi.

Anonymous said...

So how far away are we from seeing this update uplaoded to 2k share Rashidi?

od361 said...

I'd estimate the end of the week.

Rashidi said...

Post #13,

I'm aware of this. Chandler was originally traded to Toronto for Calderon but Jordan nixed the deal after media sources started reporting it.

Rashidi said...

Post #15,

I have no idea whether or not anyone has taken my work and converted it to PC.

Rashidi said...

Post #16,

Which hasn't stopped you from reading :)

Rashidi said...

Town Knave,

As far as I can tell, defense has a greater effect on overall than offense. Or they're factoring in an unseen category like rebounding.

Eitherway, the team ratings are outdated and I'd like to see 2K take it more in-depth since it's obvious offense/defense isn't really indicitive of a team's strengths. Suns and Nuggets are good offensive teams for example, but one is a 3pt team and the other pounds the paint quite a bit more.

Magic and Celtics are good defensively but Magic are good post team (Howard) with poor perimeter defense (rest of team), while Celtics are the best at steals and man-to-man defense.

Rashidi said...

Post #18,

The Grizzlies are a poorly run franchise. They just gave a max contract to a player who has never made the all-star team.

They are so poorly run they don't even understand the concept of restricted free agency. They could have allowed another team to set Rudy's market. Josh Smith is a vastly superior player to Rudy Gay and he's only making 11 million per season because the Hawks matched the top bidder. Rudy is making 16 million per season. SIXTEEN MILLION for a player that has NEVER made the all-star team and he is not exactly a lock to do it during the contract either. How can a small-market team survive that ineptitude? They're the same team as last year and not any closer to the playoffs than they were a year ago.

Then there's the fact that they traded a first round pick for Ronnie Brewer, didn't even make a qualifying offer, and then signed Brewer clone Tony Allen to a similar deal to the one Brewer got in free agency. They threw away a first rounder for no reason.

Do I even need to mention trading Pau Gasol to "save money" while picking up the inferior/similarly-paid Zach Randolph a mere one year later?

These are common sense moves they are blundering. Any Joe Fan could run this franchise better, yet I'm supposed to compliment them rather than diss them? I'm far from the only one.

Rashidi said...

Also, considering I've been dissing the Knicks since the Isiah era in 2004, Rudy signing with the Knicks would have generated a massive amount of laughter from my end.

Players with .535 TS% and 16.4 PER don't deserve max contracts. Gallinari can trump that for a fraction of the cost.

Wilson Chandler wouldn't command 40 million in free agency, so why does the rich man's Wilson Chandler deserve 80?

Rashidi said...

Post #19,

Possibly the end of the week. Miami is starting to fill out.

Moves I'm currently waiting on
1. Delonte West trade (Sessions involved?)
2. Matt Barnes signing (Cleveland sounding likely)
3. Five teams need to sign backup PGs

I'm not holding my breath on Josh Howard, Shaq, and Iverson signing anytime soon.

Sam said...

will this be the last roster update

Sam said...

You may not have heard about this but Jon Brockman was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks

Jose said...

Rashidi,

Are using these rating as preliminary work to be transferred over to NBA 2K11?

What are your (overall) ratings for Tiago Splitter and James Anderson of the Spurs?

Will you be giving either DeJuan Blair (74) or George Hill (71) a ratings boost prior to this up-coming season?

Imaking6004 said...

Matt Barnes signed with raptors

Shelb said...

Matt Barnes signing with the Raptors flopped.

Two deals already this summer (that we know about) now have been fucked up for the Raptors.

Maybe New Orleans will trade him here out of spite for his really babyish "I'm being left out" trade demand today.

"You wanna play with Superstars? How about Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon? No? But they're the Italian Dirk and the Spanish Stockton!"

Anonymous said...

I can see what your saying about grizz front office.
but if they had done what u mentioned the hawks doing (smith).. in this year's fa market, they coulda been trying to match a max offer from one of the lebron runner's up to tho.
the brewer thing boggles the brain for me to, i just feel the future is bright(er) for the griz right now.

btw looking forward to this next roster, maybe sumthin real epic

Anonymous said...

FUCK YOUR ROSTERS!! WHO THE FUCK DOESN'T WANT MJ BUY 2K11 PEOPLE!!

Anonymous said...

RASHIDI WHERE IS THE PS3 LOVE?!! R U A 360FANBOY?? 2K11 PEOPLE!! IF NOTHING ELSE BUY IT AS A COLLECTOR'S ITEM!! DON'T B FOOLISH...

Anonymous said...

How far away are we from seeing the roster update be released Rashidi?

eVs said...

Been waiting.... lol. It's like getting a fix...

Anonymous said...

m. barnes and t.ratliff to lakers.
is this roster close b'c whatever signings that are remaining arent that significant plus you can just update it right?

Rashidi said...

There's a difference between matching a max offer and giving a player without leverage a max deal before he is offered one.

Rashidi said...

And yes, roster is close.

Anonymous said...

How close are we talking

Anonymous said...

How about Splitter ratings ? and some of the other rookies like Davis, Paul, Monroe, Udoh, Aminu ... at least the top 10 rookies ...

Anonymous said...

The same as above ...

I read somewhere that Paul had skills similars to Granger and it was a reason for IND to explore the market for him, like the rumored NJ trade ...

What are your thoughs ? ...

Anonymous said...

Hi!, rashidi:

Is Tiago a younger version of Varejao, with more size, a little better in the offensive end but not as good on the boards and defensive end ?

I know they played and were paired together in the Brazilian national team, what makes me think they kind of complement each other rather than being redundant.

Rashidi said...

Splitter is more like a cross between Varejao and Scola.

Which is basically Duncan-lite.

Rashidi said...

Poor man's version of the current Duncan, not the prime one.

Anonymous said...

Is the roster update out yet?

Sam said...

Hey what moves are you waiting on before you release the roster?

Anonymous said...

Dude where's the roster update? What are we waiting on exactly?

Rashidi said...

Me to have free time (i.e. not working)