Friday, December 21, 2012

NBA 2K13 Roster Analysis 12/21/12



2K Sports released a 12/21/12 roster "update" that changed very little.  I guess they expected the world was going to end today with the Mayan Apocalypse.

I speculated in my 12/18 analysis that we would probably see 2K release a quick roster update to get Pau Gasol back into the Lakers lineup and that's exactly what they did.  Unfortunately, they needed to do a lot more than that, and had time to get it done.

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PLAYER EDITS

Not a single player was edited in the past three days.

Player attribute edits per roster
12/21: 0
12/18: 9
12/13: 1
12/8: 15
12/5: 14
11/17:  16

On the bright side, I guess I won't be staying in on a Friday night.

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INJURED PLAYERS

76ers: Andrew Bynum (87/C)
Bobcats: Tyrus Thomas (71/PF)
Bucks: Beno Udrih (68/PG), Tobias Harris (68/SF)
Bulls: Derrick Rose (92/PG), Richard Hamilton (73/SG)
Cavaliers: N/A
Celtics: Avery Bradley (79/SG)
Clippers: Chauncey Billups (81/PG), Grant Hill (77/SF), Trey Thompkins (63/PF)
Grizzlies: N/A
Hawks: N/A
Heat: N/A
Hornets: Eric Gordon (84/SG), Jason Smith (60/C)
Jazz: Raja Bell (71/SG)
Kings: N/A
Knicks: Amare Stoudemire (83/PF), Iman Shumpert (80/SG), Marcus Camby (73/C)
Lakers: Steve Nash (87/PG), Steve Blake (68/PG)
Magic: Hedo Turkoglu (72/SF), Al Harrington (71/PF)
Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki (84/PF)
Nets: N/A
Nuggets: Wilson Chandler (80/SF)
Pacers: Danny Granger (83/SF), Lance Stephenson (59/SG)
Raptors: Kyle Lowry (82/PG), Andrea Bargnani (73/PF), Landry Fields (73/SF)
Rockets: Patrick Patterson (75/PF), Royce White (68/PF)
Spurs: N/A
Suns: Channing Frye (67/PF)
Thunder: N/A
Timberwolves: Brandon Roy (80/SG), Chase Budinger (71/SF), Malcolm Lee (SG/65)
Trail Blazers: Elliot Williams (66/SG)
Warriors: Andrew Bogut (79/C), Richard Jefferson (74/SF), Brandon Rush (71/SG)
Wizards: John Wall (82/PG), Trevor Ariza (76/SF), Trevor Booker (67/PF), A.J. Price (55/PG)

NEW
Jason Smith (60/C, Hornets)
Marcus Camby (73/C, Knicks)
Patrick Patterson (75/PF, Rockets)

RECOVERED
Pau Gasol (81/PF, Lakers)
Stephen Jackson (78/SF, Spurs)

MISSING
Glen Davis (73/PF, Magic) - Will miss the next 4-6 weeks with a shoulder sprain.
Josh Howard (70/SF, Timberwolves) - Out for the season after tearing his ACL, shouldn't be on Timberwolves roster to begin with.

INCORRECT
Lance Stephenson (59/SG, Pacers) - Was listed as day-to-day, played on 12/18 and 12/19, and is still injured in the 12/21 roster.  Pathetic.

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MISSING PLAYERS

No new players were added (last on 12/18).

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UPDATED MISSING PLAYER LIST
Kevin Jones (PF) - Cavaliers (5 games, 6.6 mpg)
Terrel Harris (SG) - Heat (4 games, 5.8 mpg, played 22 games and 14.5 mpg last season)
Kevin Murphy (SG) - Jazz (3 games, 3.0 mpg)
Julyan Stone (PG/SG) - Nuggets (0 games, currently injured, played 22 games and 8.1 mpg last season)
Ben Hansbrough (PG/SG) - Pacers (8 games, 8.5 mpg)
Scott Machado (PG) - Rockets (1 game, 3.0 mpg)
Diante Garrett (SG) - Suns (5 games, 5.6 mpg)
Kent Bazemore (SG/SF) - Warriors (13 games, 1.3 mpg)
TOTAL: 8

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PLAYERS ON WRONG TEAMS

James Anderson (65/SG) - Spurs
Josh Howard (70/SF) - Timberwolves

McGuire signed with the Hornets and played on 12/16.  This roster is dated 12/18.  2K Sports' continued sloppiness simply cannot and should not be tolerated.

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INCORRECT LINEUPS

Heat finally had their lineup fixed after nearly a month.  Other than that, the same errors haven't been fixed.  The number of incorrect lineups is 9.

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BOBCATS
Kemba Walker (PG), Jeff Taylor (SG), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (SF), Byron Mullens (PF), Brendan Haywood (C)
Bismack Biyombo replaced Haywood in the starting lineup on 12/8. Gerald Henderson returned to the starting lineup on 12/15.

BUCKS
Brandon Jennings (PG), Monta Ellis (SG), Marquis Daniels (SF), John Henson (PF)Epke Udoh (C)
Larry Sanders took over starting duties from Henson on 12/5.  Luc Richard Mbah a Moute moved into the starting lineup on 12/12, shifting Sanders from PF to center, and Udoh to the bench.

HAWKS
Jeff Teague (PG), Kyle Korver (SG), Josh Smith (SF), Al Horford (PF), Zaza Pachulia (C)
As I pointed out 12/5, the Hawks proper starting lineup is DeShawn Stevenson at SG, Kyle Korver at SF, Josh Smith at PF, and Al Horford at C.  Korver has missed the last few games due to injury and Devin Harris has started in his place, shifting Stevenson to SF. (i.e. NOT Zaza Pachulia)

LAKERS
Chris Duhon (PG), Kobe Bryant (SG), Metta World Peace (SF), Pau Gasol (PF), Dwight Howard (C)
Jodie Meeks is the new starting SG in LA.  Kobe is shifting to SF, while Metta World Peace becomes the team's 6th man.

MAGIC
Jameer Nelson (PG), Arron Afflalo (SG), Maurice Harkless (SF), Glen Davis (PF), Nikola Vucevic (C)
Glen Davis will miss the next 4-6 weeks with injury.  His likely replacement in the starting lineup is Andrew Nicholson.

NETS
Deron Williams (PG), Joe Johnson (SG), Gerald Wallace (SF), Reggie Evans (PF), Brook Lopez (C)
Kris Humphries returned to the starting lineup on 12/18.

PACERS
George Hill (PG), Gerald Green (SG), Paul George (SF), David West (PF), Roy Hibbert (C)
Lance Stephenson is the starting SG, but is erroneously injured despite playing games on 12/18 and 12/19.

RAPTORS
Jose Calderon (PG), Demar DeRozan (SG), Linas Kleiza (SF), Ed Davis (PF), Jonas Valanciunas (C)
Mickael Pietrus has been starting at SF since 12/3.  Kleiza has started a grand total of three games on the season.

SUNS
Goran Dragic (PG), Shannon Brown (SG), Michael Beasley (SF), Markieff Morris (PF), Marcin Gortat (C)
Beasley lost his starting job to Jared Dudley on 12/8.

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SUMMARY
This was a half-assed injury update and nothing more.  Three new injuries, two players who recovered, all in the span of three days.  Sounds like 2K alright.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

NBA 2K13 Roster Analysis 12/18/12


2K Sports released their 12/18/12 roster with little fanfare.  They added four more missing players, but are quickly falling even further behind on the existing players who need adjustments based on this season's performance, not to mention all the role players who haven't received a proper adjustment in years.

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PLAYER EDITS

Eight players were edited this week, which is better than last week if you're an optimist.
If you're a realist like me, you realize 2K has only edited 9 players in the last 10 days.

Player attribute edits per roster
12/18: 8
12/13: 1
12/8: 15
12/5: 14
11/17:  16

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Evan Turner
82 Overall (+4)
80 Inside (-3)
77 Close (-5)
82 3pt (+18)
79 FT (+11)
73 Traffic (+5)
70 Pass (+11)
75 Hands (+2)
67 OffReb (+7)
79 OffAwr (+7)
63 DefAwr (+2)
65 Consistency (+15)
78 Hustle (+4)


2013
Inside: 38-69 (55.1%)
Close: 54-121 (44.6%)
Mid: 33-95 (34.7%)
3pt: 19-41 (46.3%)
FT: 63-78 (80.8%)
ORB%: 2.6

2012
Inside: 110-177 (62.1%)
Close: 131-332 (39.4%)
Mid: 67-180 (37.2%)
3pt: 11-55 (20.0%)
FT: 73-108 (67.6%)
ORB%: 1.7

Turner's Offensive Rebound rating going up AGAIN (it already went up 8 points in the 12/5 roster) really pisses me off considering he rarely grabs them and hasn't improved at it one bit.  It has risen from 52 for absolutely no good reason, and is now 30 points overrated.  If you're wondering how Evan Turner could possibly be 82 overall (i.e. a top 10 SF), this is your starting point.

The big news though is the improvement to his 3pt shot.  Turner has legitimately improved it, but 82 seems a bit steep given his low volume.  Unfortunately, we know exactly how most online players will use Turner online, jacking it up multiple times a game with the wing player.

Dropping Turner's Close shot rating also doesn't make much sense when he's actually hitting a high percentage of them this season.  Overall, this was a terrible adjustment by 2K Sports.


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Kemba Walker
83 Overall (+5)
72 Close (-9)
80 FT (+1)
88 Layup (+7)
75 SOD (+2)
90 Handle (+4)
88 OHD (+2)
81 Pass (+11)
84 Steal (+16)
87 Hands (+3)
35 OffReb (-6)
85 OffAwr (+5)
72 DefAwr (+6)
75 Consistency (+15)
99 Stamina (+3)
99 Speed (+4)

2013
Inside: 63-120 (52.5%)
Close: 29-79 (36.7%)
Med: 35-75 (46.7%)
3pt: 24-79 (30.4%)
AST%: 32.4
STL%: 2.9

2012
Inside: 83-166 (50.0%)
Close: 55-157 (35.0%)
Med: 74-218 (33.9%)
3pt: 69-226 (30.5%)
AST%: 30.0
STL%: 1.8

Kemba's Close shot rating went down because it was overrated dating back to last year, which is also the same reason why his Pass rating went up.  His stealing on the other hand, has improved.  Kemba was an excellent ball thief in college but that didn't really translate as expected in his rookie season.  He appears to have gotten it together this season.

Kemba is averaging 18 points and 6 assists per game, up from 12 points and 4 assists as a rookie.  At only 22 years old, his (if not the Bobcats) future looks pretty bright.

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Samuel Dalembert
73 Overall (-1)
75 Standing Dunk (-5)
88 Block (-4)
80 DefPost (-2)
81 DefAwr (-3)
50 Consistency (-15)

2013
BLK%: 5.7

2012
BLK%: 5.7

Lowering Dalembert's ratings is silly because he's performed just as well as he did last season.  He just hasn't played as much due to his team's crazy front court depth, not to mention his ridiculous coach.  Dalembert will likely be traded and then go right back to doing what he's been doing the last couple years (blocking shots, rebounding at a high rate, and dunking).

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Al Horford
84 Overall (+2)
96 Inside (+3)
75 Close (-7)
68 FT (-5)
55 Pass (+5)
86 Hands (+4)
88 OffReb (+2)
86 DefReb (+6)
82 OffAwr (+6)
82 Hustle (+10)
88 Potential (+2)


2013
Inside: 94-119 (79.0%)
Close: 23-73 (31.5%)
Med: 28-74 (37.8%)
3pt: 0-1 (0.0%)
FT: 36-66 (54.5%)
ORB%: 8.9
DRB%: 22.7

2012
Inside: 39-54 (72.2%)
Close: 22-42 (52.3%)
Med: 16-40 (40.0%)
3pt: 0-1 (0.0%)
FT: 22-30 (73.3%)
ORB%: 8.8
DRB%: 17.1

2011

Inside: 183-240 (76.2%)
Close: 180-401 (44.8%)
Med: 206-411 (50.1%)
3pt: 2-6 (33.3%)
FT: 150-188 (79.8%)
ORB%: 8.2
DRB%: 23.7

Included Horford's 2011 data since he missed most of last year with injury.

Horford has not beeing shooting well from Close and Medium range this season.  I would agree a Close shot decrease IF he hadn't shot it so efficiently the last two years.  Horford may still come around, and if anything his 82 Close was underrated going by that data.  Standing pat would have been acceptable.

Horford's FT rating dropping I can agree more with since he has shot it horrifically... as long as they bump it up if he starts draining them again.

The rebound ratings going up is totally unnecessary as Horford's rebounding was OVERRATED to begin with.  ORB is now 10-15 points overrated even though he hasn't increased his production here.



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Paul Millsap
83 Overall (+1)
74 3pt (+20)


2013
Inside: 68-99 (68.7%)
Close: 40-114 (35.0%)
Med: 19-51 (37.3%)
3pt: 11-24 (45.8%)

2012
Inside: 219-310 (70.6%)
Close: 137-373 (36.7%)
Med: 83-198 (41.9%)
3pt: 7-34 (20.6%)

Millsap has definitely improved as a 3pt shooter since last season (something he dedicated his summer workouts to). I would have liked to see his mid-range game take a small hit since it isn't as good as last season, but this is to be expected from 2K who will often only edit a single attribute for a player if enough people complain about it (Patrick Patterson's 3pt rating a few weeks back was another example).


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David West
81 Overall (+5)
90 Inside (+4)
75 FT (-6)
49 Pass (+13)
65 Block (+23)
60 Steal (-4)
82 Hands (+3)
80 OffReb (+5)
72 DefReb (+16)
84 OffAwr (+3)
68 DefAwr (+4)

2013
Inside: 42-67 (62.7%)
Close: 102-191 (53.4%)
Med: 41-88 (46.6%)
3pt: 0-3 (0.0%)
BLK%: 2.4
ORB%: 6.8
DRB%: 18.3

2012
Inside: 121-194 (62.4%)
Close: 207-467 (44.3%)
Med: 85-194 (43.8%)
3pt: 2-9 (22.2%)
BLK%: 1.9
ORB%: 6.9
DRB%: 19.8

Shame on 2K for raising the wrong shooting rating. West's close shot should have gone up, not his Inside which is as pedestrian as ever.

My first reaction when seeing David West's block rating, I will opt not to print as this is a family website. West's block rating was underrated at a mere 42, but only by about 10-15 points.  He is not a big-time shot blocker, not that 2K seems to care as they give tons of mediocre shot blockers high ratings (and then never get around to giving higher ratings to elites like Larry Sanders).

As is the usual trend, West's rebounding hasn't even improved one iota but 2K still pumped him up.  His defensive rebounding WAS underrated, but his offensive rebounding was overrated, and now is even more so.  Why 2K doesn't follow their own ratings formula, I'll never know.

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Andre Drummond
66 Overall (+7)
78 Inside (+8)
75 Close (+9)
45 Med (+5)
40 FT (+10)
56 Traffic (+6)
42 Fade (+12)
53 Hook (+2)
56 Steal (+8)
55 Hands (+5)
88 OffReb (+7)
72 DefReb (+5)
56 OffPost (+7)
70 DefPost (+2)
54 OffAwr (+9)
70 DefAwr (+2)
40 Consistency (+5)
76 Stamina (+3)
64 Hustle (+8)
75 Potential (+5)

2013
Inside: 69-105 (65.7%)
Close: 6-25 (24.0%)
Med: 0-2 (0.0%)
3pt: 1-2 (50.0%)
FT: 23-54 (42.6%)
STL%: 2.2
ORB%: 16.6
DRB%: 23.7

Improvement to Inside shot was certainly warranted... improvement to Close shot was certainly not.
Puzzled why Mid-range would go up when he hasn't even hit one and doesn't even attempt them.

Drummond has the 2nd best offensive rebound rate in the NBA so his rating definitely deserved to go up... and should go up even further if he keeps it up.  His defensive rebounding has also been a surprise after struggling with it in NCAA, and his rating should go up again if he continues at his pace.

Drummond's steal rating should go up more if his excellent STL% (for a center) holds steady deeper into the season.  I'm surprised his block rating didn't likewise go up since his 6.1 BLK% ranks 7th in the NBA.

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Chandler Parsons
78 Overall (+4)
80 Inside (-6)
64 Close (+5)
84 3pt (+5)
75 FT (+20)
67 Traffic (+2)
70 DefReb (+5)
79 OffAwr (+12)

2013
Inside: 58-89 (65.2%)
Close: 14-43 (32.5%)
Med: 9-24 (37.5%)
3pt: 48-128 (37.5%)

ORB%: 3.6
DRB%: 16.0


2012

Inside: 131-210 (62.4%)
Close: 30-99 (30.3%)
Med: 27-62 (43.5%)
3pt: 60-178 (33.7%)
ORB%: 5.7
DRB%: 13.6

Parsons defensive rebounding has improved from last season, but it was already overrated to begin with and thus remains overrated.  Even worse, his offensive rebounding has gone down, which makes his 79 ORB rating look even more dubious.  Does 2K really think the Rockets could stick Parsons at PF and dominate the glass next to Asik?



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Omer Asik
70 Overall (+2)
92 OffReb (+9)
88 DefReb (+12)


2013
ORB%: 11.9
DRB%: 28.3


2012
ORB%: 14.9
DRB%: 25.1

These changes aren't due to Asik's play this season; they are corrections to a player who was underrated since last season.

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INJURED PLAYERS

76ers: Andrew Bynum (87/C)
Bobcats: Tyrus Thomas (71/PF)
Bucks: Beno Udrih (68/PG), Tobias Harris (68/SF)
Bulls: Derrick Rose (92/PG), Richard Hamilton (73/SG)
Cavaliers: N/A
Celtics: Avery Bradley (79/SG)
Clippers: Chauncey Billups (81/PG), Grant Hill (77/SF), Trey Thompkins (63/PF)
Grizzlies: N/A
Hawks: N/A
Heat: N/A
Hornets: Eric Gordon (84/SG)
Jazz: Raja Bell (71/SG)
Kings: N/A
Knicks: Amare Stoudemire (83/PF), Iman Shumpert (80/SG)
Lakers: Steve Nash (87/PG), Pau Gasol (81/PF), Steve Blake (68/PG)
Magic: Hedo Turkoglu (72/SF), Al Harrington (71/PF)
Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki (84/PF)
Nets: N/A
Nuggets: Wilson Chandler (80/SF)
Pacers: Danny Granger (83/SF), Lance Stephenson (59/SG)
Raptors: Kyle Lowry (82/PG), Andrea Bargnani (73/PF), Landry Fields (73/SF)
Rockets: Royce White (68/PF)
Spurs: Stephen Jackson (78/SF)
Suns: Channing Frye (67/PF)
Thunder: N/A
Timberwolves: Brandon Roy (80/SG), Chase Budinger (71/SF), Malcolm Lee (SG/65)
Trail Blazers: Elliot Williams (66/SG)
Warriors: Andrew Bogut (79/C), Richard Jefferson (74/SF), Brandon Rush (71/SG)
Wizards: John Wall (82/PG), Trevor Ariza (76/SF), Trevor Booker (67/PF), A.J. Price (55/PG)

NEW
Tobias Harris (68/SF, Bucks)
Lance Stephenson (59/SG, Pacers)
Kyle Lowry (82/PG, Raptors)
Andrea Bargnani (73/PF, Raptors)
Malcolm Lee (65/SG, Timberwolves)

RECOVERED
Brook Lopez (80/C, Nets)
Jeff Pendergraph (62/PF, Pacers)
Alan Anderson (66/SF, Raptors)
Kawhi Leonard (80/SF, Spurs)
Ricky Rubio (78/PG, Timberwolves)

MISSING
Jason Smith (60/C, Hornets) - Out since 12/12, tore shoulder labrum, out indefinitely

INCORRECT
Lance Stephenson (59/SG, Pacers) - Was listed as day-to-day and ended up playing on Tuesday.
Stephen Jackson (78/SF, Spurs) - Was available to play 12/17, and DID play on 12/18. Meanwhile 2K activated Kawhi Leonard who has still yet to return from his injury.
Pau Gasol (81/PF, Lakers) - Returned from injury on Tuesday, which he was expected to do.

Expect another roster update quickly as Laker fans will be quick to complain about Gasol's absence.

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MISSING PLAYERS

Maalik Wayns (PG) - 63 Overall, 76ers
Addition could not have come sooner as Jrue Holiday is hurting and Wayns will play a larger role.

James White (SG/SF) - 69 Overall, Knicks
Has played in 18 games this year and will get run anytime Jason Kidd's body is sore.

Darius Johnson-Odom (SG) 68 Overall, Lakers
Has been playing a ton in the D-League, but not likely to contribute at the NBA level anytime soon (probably not until Kobe retires, IF Johnson-Odom keeps developing).

Luke Zeller (PF/C) - 59 Overall, Suns
Zeller is fringe material and best known for being Tyler and Cody's older brother. Honestly not sure why he's in the league since he didn't even play well in the D-League last season.  I'm guessing the team merely wants to get brother Cody more familiar with the organization since he's a probable draft target of the team.

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UPDATED MISSING PLAYER LIST
Kevin Jones (PF) - Cavaliers (4 games, 5.5 mpg)
Terrel Harris (SG) - Heat (4 games, 5.8 mpg, played 22 games and 14.5 mpg last season)
Kevin Murphy (SG) - Jazz (3 games, 3.0 mpg)
Julyan Stone (PG/SG) - Nuggets (0 games, currently injured, played 22 games and 8.1 mpg last season)
Ben Hansbrough (PG/SG) - Pacers (6 games, 8.2 mpg)
Scott Machado (PG) - Rockets (1 game, 3.0 mpg)
Diante Garrett (SG) - Suns (5 games, 5.6 mpg)
Kent Bazemore (SG/SF) - Warriors (12 games, 1.4 mpg)
TOTAL: 8

To be perfectly honest, 2K now needs to STOP worrying about missing players and focus on the ones in the game as their ratings are falling apart right now.  None of these guys NEEDS to be in the game if it means we aren't going to get updates to the players we actually ARE going to use.

If 2K feels the need to add any of these players, Ben Hansbrough (who has replaced D.J. Augustin as Indiana's backup PG) is the easy choice.

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PLAYERS ON WRONG TEAMS

Dominic McGuire (SF) - Free Agent

McGuire signed with the Hornets and played on 12/16.  This roster is dated 12/18.  2K Sports' continued sloppiness simply cannot and should not be tolerated.

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INCORRECT LINEUPS

I have more to say that I haven't already.  2K simply hasn't been paying attention to lineup changes, which I have begun documenting by date.

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BOBCATS
Kemba Walker (PG), Jeff Taylor (SG), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (SF), Byron Mullens (PF), Brendan Haywood (C)
Bismack Biyombo replaced Haywood in the starting lineup on 12/8. Gerald Henderson returned to the starting lineup on 12/15.

BUCKS
Brandon Jennings (PG), Monta Ellis (SG), Marquis Daniels (SF), John Henson (PF)Epke Udoh (C)
Larry Sanders took over starting duties from Henson on 12/5.  Luc Richard Mbah a Moute moved into the starting lineup on 12/12, shifting Sanders from PF to center, and Udoh to the bench.

HAWKS
Jeff Teague (PG), Kyle Korver (SG), Josh Smith (SF), Al Horford (PF), Zaza Pachulia (C)
As I pointed out 12/5, the Hawks proper starting lineup is DeShawn Stevenson at SG, Kyle Korver at SF, Josh Smith at PF, and Al Horford at C.  Korver has missed the last few games due to injury and Devin Harris has started in his place, shifting Stevenson to SF. (i.e. NOT Zaza Pachulia)

HEAT
Mario Chalmers (PG), Dwyane Wade (SG), LeBron James (SF), Shane Battier (PF), Chris Bosh (C)
Battier has not started since 11/24.  Udonis Haslem has been starting since 12/6.

HORNETS
Grevis Vasquez (PG), Roger Mason (SG), Al-Farouq Aminu (SF), Anthony Davis (PF), Robin Lopez (C)
Austin Rivers returned to the starting lineup on 12/11, replacing Mason.

RAPTORS
Jose Calderon (PG), Demar DeRozan (SG), Linas Kleiza (SF), Ed Davis (PF), Jonas Valanciunas (C)
Mickael Pietrus has been starting at SF since 12/3, FOUR ROSTERS AGO.

SPURS
Tony Parker (PG), Danny Green (SG), Kawhi Leonard (SF), DeJuan Blair (PF), Tim Duncan (C)
After finally getting the Spurs lineup right, 2K decided to uninjure Leonard for whatever reason.  The correct Spurs lineup for the past month has been Gary Neal starting at SG with Green sliding to SF.  Tiago Splitter has also moved into the starting lineup a few games ago, replacing Blair.

SUNS
Goran Dragic (PG), Shannon Brown (SG), Michael Beasley (SF), Markieff Morris (PF), Marcin Gortat (C)
Beasley lost his starting job to Jared Dudley on 12/8

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SUMMARY
Fans can finally stop complaining about missing players.  They can now focus on 2K's lack of attention to everything else.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

NBA 2K13 Roster Analysis 12/13/12


2K Sports appears to have heard the complaints of the fans (and possibly this blog) as they released another NBA 2K13 roster update after only three days (the previous roster took 18 days).  Unfortunately, as with all things 2K, it seems everytime they take a step forward they take two steps back.

I've combed through the roster and posted the comprehensive details (and my thoughts) for your viewing pleasure.

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PLAYER EDITS

One player saw an attribute adjustment this week (and almost predictably, only one attribute was changed).

Player attribute edits per roster
12/13: 1
12/8: 15
12/5: 14
11/17:  16

It goes without saying that this is a step in the wrong direction after 2K showed much promise in their 12/8 roster.  They follow up 15 players in only 3 days with 0 in 5 days, which I suppose should have been totally expected.

In the past few days we've seen...
Jeremy Lin drop 38 points (after multiple rating decreases)
Tony Parker record his first career triple double
Joakim Noah go for 30/23/6
Larry Sanders record a triple double off the bench.
Carmelo Anthony tie Harden's NBA high of 45 points.

2K didn't feel any of this was worth adjusting, which shouldn't surprise anyone whose been playing 2K more than a year (I assure you, the last 12 haven't been much different).

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Paul George
79 Overall (+1)
Height 6'10" (+2)

If you didn't know before, you know now.  Height affects overall rating.

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James Harden
83 Overall (0)
80 3pt (-6)

2013
Inside: 73-120 (60.8%)
Close: 20-57 (35.0%)
Med: 17-53 (32.1%)
3pt: 40-116 (34.5%)

2012
Inside: 191-281 (68.0%)
Close: 37-128 (28.9%)
Med: 27-64 (42.2%)
3pt: 146-370 (39.5%)

Odd timing for a decrease to Harden's 3pt shot given that he is 9-21 over his last three games.

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INJURED PLAYERS

76ers: Andrew Bynum (87/C)
Bobcats: Tyrus Thomas (71/PF)
Bucks: Beno Udrih (68/PG)
Bulls: Derrick Rose (92/PG), Richard Hamilton (73/SG)
Cavaliers: N/A
Celtics: Avery Bradley (79/SG)
Clippers: Chauncey Billups (81/PG), Grant Hill (77/SF), Trey Thompkins (63/PF)
Grizzlies: N/A
Hawks: N/A
Heat: N/A
Hornets: Eric Gordon (84/SG)
Jazz: Raja Bell (71/SG)
Kings: N/A
Knicks: Amare Stoudemire (83/PF), Iman Shumpert (80/SG)
Lakers: Steve Nash (87/PG), Pau Gasol (81/PF), Steve Blake (68/PG)
Magic: Hedo Turkoglu (72/SF), Al Harrington (71/PF)
Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki (84/PF)
Nets: Brook Lopez (80/C)
Nuggets: Wilson Chandler (80/SF)
Pacers: Danny Granger (83/SF), Jeff Pendergraph (62/PF)
Raptors: Landry Fields (73/SF), Alan Anderson (66/SF)
Rockets: Royce White (68/PF)
Spurs: Kawhi Leonard (80/SF), Stephen Jackson (78/SF)
Suns: Channing Frye (67/PF)
Thunder: N/A
Timberwolves: Brandon Roy (80/SG), Ricky Rubio (78/PG), Chase Budinger (71/SF)
Trail Blazers: Elliot Williams (66/SG)
Warriors: Andrew Bogut (79/C), Richard Jefferson (74/SF), Brandon Rush (71/SG)
Wizards: John Wall (82/PG), Trevor Ariza (76/SF), Trevor Booker (67/PF), A.J. Price (55/PG)

NEW
Kawhi Leonard (80/SF, Spurs)
A.J. Price (55/PG, Wizards)

RECOVERED
Kyrie Irving (85/PG, Cavaliers)
Anthony Davis (79/PF, Hornets)
Victor Claver (62/SF, Trail Blazers)

MISSING
Dion Waiters (71/SG, Cavaliers) - Out since 12/1
Kyle Korver (63/SG, Hawks) - Out since 11/28
Kyle Lowry (82/PG, Raptors) - Partial triceps tear on 12/10, will be out 10 days.
Andrea Bargnani (73/PF, Raptors) - Tore elbow ligament on 12/10

2K corrected all inaccuracies from the previous roster, but did not keep up with new injury developments.  Irving and Davis returning is huge for fans of their respective teams.  We will probably (hopefully) see another update over the weekend as Brook Lopez (Friday) and Ricky Rubio (Saturday) also make their returns.

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MISSING PLAYERS

No additional players were added.

Maalik Wayns has played in 9 of the last 10 games, replacing Royal Ivey as backup PG.
James White has played in 9 of the last 10 games.
Ben Hansbrough just replaced D.J. Augustin as backup PG.

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UPDATED MISSING PLAYER LIST
Maalik Waayns (PG) - 76ers
Kevin Jones (PF) - Cavaliers
Terrel Harris (SG) - Heat
Kevin Murphy (SG) - Jazz
James White (SF/SG) - Knicks
Darius Johnson-Odom (SG) - Lakers
Julyan Stone (PG/SG) - Nuggets
Ben Hansbrough (PG/SG) - Pacers
Scott Machado (PG) - Rockets
Diante Garrett (SG) - Suns
Luke Zeller (C/PF) - Suns
Kent Bazemore (SG/SF) - Warriors
TOTAL: 12

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INCORRECT LINEUPS

2K Sports finally fixed the Spurs lineup after nearly a month of having the injured Kawhi Leonard in the starting lineup, but they haven't kept up with other happenings in the league.

Last week 2K had 7 incorrect lineups, down from 13, which was a positive development.  However instead of knocking out the rest of them, 2K seems to have rested on their laurels this week and the number has risen back up to 11.

The NBA is a fluid league where we can anticipate rotation and lineup changes happening thanks to minutes played.  It is very easy to keep up with rotations on a daily basis, so 2K's inability to keep up with this is for the most part inexcusable.

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76ERS
Jrue Holiday (PG), Jason Richardson (SG), Evan Turner (SF), Thaddeus Young (PF), Kwame Brown (C)
As I pointed out on December 5th, Lavoy Allen has been starting at center, not Kwame Brown.

BOBCATS
Kemba Walker (PG), Jeff Taylor (SG), Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (SF), Byron Mullens (PF), Brendan Haywood (C)
Bismack Biyombo replaced Haywood in the starting lineup on December 8th (three starts since).

BUCKS
Brandon Jennings (PG), Monta Ellis (SG), Marquis Daniels (SF), John Henson (PF)Epke Udoh (C)
Larry Sanders took over starting duties from Henson on December 5th.  Maddeningly, Samuel Dalembert was placed in reserve even though he is still playing.  Dalembert even started a game on 12/12.  Luc Richard Mbah a Moute has moved into the starting lineup again (Skiles couldn't resist his man-crush), shifting Sanders from PF to center.

CAVALIERS
Kyrie Irving (PG), Dion Waiters (SG), Alonzo Gee (SF), Tristan Thompson (PF), Anderson Varejao (C)
Waiters has been hurt, and C.J. Miles has been starting in his place and dropped 28 points in each of his last two games.

CELTICS
Rajon Rondo (PG), Courtney Lee (SG), Paul Pierce (SF), Brandon Bass (PF), Kevin Garnett (C)
As I pointed out November 17th, Jason Terry is the starting SG, not Courtney Lee.

HAWKS
Jeff Teague (PG), Kyle Korver (SG), Josh Smith (SF), Al Horford (PF), Zaza Pachulia (C)
As I pointed out December 5th, the Hawks proper starting lineup is DeShawn Stevenson at SG, Kyle Korver at SF, Josh Smith at PF, and Al Horford at C.  Korver has missed the last few games due to injury and Devin Harris has started in his place, shifting Stevenson to SF. (i.e. NOT Zaza Pachulia)

HEAT
Mario Chalmers (PG), Dwyane Wade (SG), LeBron James (SF), Shane Battier (PF), Chris Bosh (C)
Battier has not started since November 24th.  Rashard Lewis and Udonis Haslem have been taking turns starting at PF in his stead, with Haslem drawing 3 of the last 4 starts.  Battier missed some games to injury, but has been coming off the bench since returning.

HORNETS
Grevis Vasquez (PG), Roger Mason (SG), Al-Farouq Aminu (SF), Anthony Davis (PF), Robin Lopez (C)
Austin Rivers returned to the starting lineup on 12/11, replacing Mason.

NETS
Deron Williams (PG), Joe Johnson (SG), Gerald Wallace (SF), Kris Humphries (PF), Andray Blatche (C)
Reggie Evans replaced Humphries in the starting lineup on 12/9.

RAPTORS
Kyle Lowry (PG), Demar DeRozan (SG), Linas Kleiza (SF), Andrea Bargnani (PF), Jonas Valanciunas (C)
Mickael Pietrus has been starting since December 3rd (6 games ago).  Kleiza hasn't even been healthy, missing the last 3 games with injury.  Andrea Bargnani will miss about two months to injury and Ed Davis has taken his place in the starting lineup.  Lowry will miss a little over a week and Jose Calderon will start in his place.

SUNS
Goran Dragic (PG), Shannon Brown (SG), Michael Beasley (SF), Markieff Morris (PF), Marcin Gortat (C)
Beasley just lost his starting job to Jared Dudley on 12/8 and may not even have a place in the rotation by the end of the week.

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SUMMARY
This roster takes away all the good feelings built up in the December 8th roster.  We had bare bones changes that have allowed the league to progress further out of date.  Here's hoping 2K has something big planned for the weekend.

Sunday, December 9, 2012

NBA 2K13 Roster Analysis 12/8/12

2K Sports appears to have heard the complaints of the fans (and possibly this blog) as they released another NBA 2K13 roster update after only three days (the previous roster took 18 days).  Unfortunately, as with all things 2K, it seems everytime they take a step forward they take two steps back.

I've combed through the roster and posted the comprehensive details (and my thoughts) for your viewing pleasure.

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PLAYER EDITS
15 players were edited over the course of three days, a much better showing than the previous roster's 14 in 18. In the 11/17 roster there were 16 player edits, so 15 seems to be the average we should expect from 2K regardless of time gap.

However, 5 of those edits were minor as only 1-2 attributes were edited for those players (more or less cleaning up obvious errors in a specific attribute).  There is also no hope in sight for role players and small-market teams long-underrated to get their due, as 2K once again only focused on popular players.

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Eric Bledsoe
81 Overall (+14)
83 Inside (+2)
85 Close (+14)
72 3pt (+6)
78 FT (+6)
88 Layup (+5)
72 Dunk (+4)
68 Traffic (+4)
90 Handle (+6)
88 OHD (+8)
84 Security (+14)
75 Pass (+5)
49 Block (+20)
88 Steal (+6)
82 Hands (+9)
78 OBD (+2)
55 OffReb (+27)
51 DefReb (+18)
68 OffAwr (+3)
79 DefAwr (+24)
75 Consistency (+35)
99 Stamina (+7)
96 Speed (+2)
97 Quickness (+2)
51 Strength (+6)
88 Vertical (+6)
96 Hustle (+26)
95 Durability (+15)

SIG SKILLS ADDED
Interceptor
Finisher

2013
Inside: 41-63 (65.1%)
Close: 21-42 (50.0%)
Med: 7-31 (22.6%)
3pt: 6-18 (33.3%)
FT: 31-39 (79.5%)
AST%: 25.1
ORB%: 8.2
DRB%: 10.0
BLK%: 3.0
STL%: 4.2
PER 22.4 (352 minutes)

2012
Inside: 51-81 (63.0%)
Close: 14-41 (34.1%)
Med: 12-30 (40.0%)
3pt: 9-37 (24.3%)
FT: 28-44 (63.6%)
AST%: 21.6
ORB%: 5.6
DRB%: 11.1
BLK%: 2.5
STL%: 3.6
PER: 11.2 (464 minutes)

Bledsoe's +14 Overall makes this the biggest rating edit NBA 2K has ever given out in it's 12 year history.
The shot rating changes were all deserved.  Bledsoe has literally doubled his Player Efficiency Rating which is practically unheard of, and he should be the favorite for Most Improved Player award.
Improvements to Bledsoe's ball handling and athleticism were all required, as explosive would be the best way to define his playstyle.
Block and Steal rating upgrades were badly needed as they were actually underrated based on last season's performance.
Bledsoe's rebound ratings are a bit iffy.  His offensive rebounding definitely needed to go up, but his defensive rebounding has been pretty average for a PG and didn't need to move from where it was.

Bledsoe's Defensive Awareness definitely needed to go up as he's been one of the league's best PGs on that end.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Bledsoe's Offensive Rebounding is actually still underrated, though I'm guessing 2K compensated with his defensive rebounding as they didn't want to raise it too far.  It's a pity though, since Bledsoe is a clearly better offensive rebounder than many of the bigger forwards who they do give high ratings to.
I was surprised Bledsoe's Offensive Awareness only went up 3 points.  He is averaging 19 points per 36 minutes compared to 10 points over his previous two seasons.  That should definitely go up as his monster season continues.

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Mike Conley
82 Overall (+2)
87 Inside (+6)
82 Close (+10)
79 Med (+2)
86 3pt (+2)
83 FT (-3)
63 Traffic (+3)
71 DefAwr (+11)

2013
Inside: 36-70 (51.4%)
Close: 13-37 (35.1%)
Med: 5-9 (55.6%)
3pt: 29-65 (44.6%)

2012
Inside: 129-215 (60.0%)
Close: 55-173 (31.7%)
Med: 73-191 (38.2%)
3pt: 71-181 (39.2%)

There was absolutely no reason for Conley's Inside, Close, or Medium shot ratings to go up.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Conley's steal rate has risen every season of his career, and is currently sitting at 4.1% which is Chris Paul territory.
Conley has also been one of the league's most durable players, missing only 7 games over the prior three seasons, but only has 70 Durability rating.

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Raymond Felton
79 Overall (+5)
84 Inside (+2)
81 Med (+2)
83 3pt (+7)
72 FT (-7)
66 Traffic (+7)
90 Handle (+5)
88 OHD (+7)
88 Security (+5)
83 Pass (+4)
82 Hands (+5)
85 OffAwr (+7)
75 Consistency (+20)

2013
Inside: 42-80 (52.5%)
Close: 17-59 (28.8%)
Med: 29-71 (41.8%)
3pt: 37-89 (41.6%)
FT: 26-35 (74.3%)

2012
Inside: 94-173 (54.3%)
Close: 41-104 (39.4%)
Med: 64-162 (39.5%)
3pt: 62-203 (30.5%)
FT: 100-124 (80.6%)

There was no reason to improve Felton's Inside or Med shot as he isn't performing any differently than last season... especially after last night's 9-30 effort (8-27 on twos).  It's only his 3pt shooting that has been much improved.
Felton's FT dropping was based on a measly 26 shot sample.  He went 8-9 last night and raised his shooting percentage above where he's now rated.  This is why it's stupid to drastically adjust FT rating so early in the year.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Felton is a much better defensive player than 2K gives him credit for (74 Steal, 74 On-Ball Defense, 30 Post Defense 62 Defensive Awareness).

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Dwight Howard
92 Overall (-1)
91 OffReb (-3)
82 DefReb (-9)
75 OffAwr (-4)

2013
Inside: 90-122 (73.8%)
Close: 43-100 (43.0%)
Med: 1-5 (20.0%)
3pt: 1-2 (50.0%)
ORB%: 11.1
DRB%: 23.7

2012
Inside: 274-375 (73.1%)
Close: 142-342 (41.5%)
Med: 0-2 (0%)
3pt: 0-7 (0%)
ORB%: 11.0
DRB%: 33.1

2K once again ignored their own rebound scale as Howard deserves around 80 OffReb and 85 DefReb (rather than 91 and 82 respectively).
I'm not sure what Howard did to deserve an Offensive Awareness decrease, given that he is still averaging 19 points while sharing shots with Kobe Bryant.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
I have never understood why Howard's always had a low "Shoot In Traffic" rating (currently 80, which is the highest it's been since he entered the league), as he gets clobbered anytime he touches the ball.  Teammate Pau Gasol for example has 79 and there is a stark contrast between the amount of contested shots and defensive coverage the two receive.

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Pau Gasol
81 Overall (-3)
74 Close (-10)
78 Med (-3)
81 Fade (-5)
80 Hook (-5)
81 OffReb (-3)
75 DefReb (-6)
82 OffAwr (-5)
60 Consistency (-15)

2013
Inside: 30-47 (63.8%)
Close: 23-77 (29.8%)
Med: 29-69 (42.0%)
3pt: 2-7 (28.6%)
ORB%: 8.1
DRB%: 19.6

2012
Inside: 206-300 (68.7%)
Close: 197-468 (42.0%)
Med: 109-259 (42.1%)
3pt: 9-33 (27.3%)
ORB%: 8.8
DRB%: 21.8

Including changes from 12/5 roster...
81 Overall (-6)
74 Close (-18)
78 Med (-6)
62 3pt (+4)
81 Fade (-5)
80 Hook (-5)
81 OffReb (-10)
75 DefReb (-13)

83 DefPost (-2)
82 OffAwr (-7)
76 DefAwr (-2)
60 Consistency (-15)

It would appear that 2K saw my previous analysis of Gasol and made additional changes (he hasn't played any games over the last three days, so what else did they have to go off to inspire these changes?).  I pointed out in my 12/5 roster analysis that Gasol's Close/Fade/Hook, Rebounding, Offensive Awareness, and Consistency ratings were in need of a decrease and that's exactly what they got.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Gasol's 70 Hustle rating seems a bit high for a player whose primary criticism is not playing hard every night (not to mention lumbering 7 footers don't exactly dive on the floor very much).

Gasol has an 80 block rating, but hasn't deserved a rating that high since the 2007 season, his last full year with the Grizzlies.  He posted 2.6 BLK% last year and that's exactly where he is right now in 2013.

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Derek Fisher
69 Overall (-1)
60 Consistency (-10)

2013
Inside: 1-3 (33.3%)
Close: 0-6 (0%)
Med: 2-9 (22.2%)
3pt: 4-9 (44.4%)

2012
Inside: 24-52 (46.2%)
Close: 31-90 (34.4%)
Med: 70-167 (41.9%)
3pt: 53-157 (33.8%)

Well, that's a start.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Oh god, where to begin?  For starters, Fisher's 3pt rating (86) clearly ignores how poorly he shot the three ball last season.  Fisher's awareness ratings are extremely high (78 Offense, 79 Defense) for a player who hasn't been close to effective at either in five years.
The early results with Fisher starting at PG for the Mavericks have been nothing short of disastrous - he's shooting 27% from the field while not contributing much in any other area.  He was never a PG who could run a team and that's why he stuck with the Triangle offense for so long.

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O.J. Mayo
81 Overall (+1)
80 Consistency (+30)

2013
Inside: 29-51 (56.9%)
Close: 30-68 (44.1%)
Med: 30-75 (40.0%)
3pt: 58-111 (52.3%)

2012
Inside: 88-158 (55.7%)
Close: 47-159 (29.5%)
Med: 75-182 (41.2%)
3pt: 107-299 (35.8%)

That change was grossly overdue as Mayo has quickly transitioned from disappointing sixth man to blossoming star SG.  This change came BEFORE he dropped a career high 40 points on the Rockets last night.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Mayo's 3pt rating has only gone up 3 points since the start of the season (85 from 82), and should go up even further than that as he's kept up his absurdly good 3pt shooting.  Mayo has also improved his Close shot substantially and will deserve a higher rating soon (currently 72).

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Chris Kaman
76 Overall (-1)
65 Consistency (-15)

2013
Inside: 29-46 (63.0%)
Close: 53-110 (48.1%)
Med: 27-49 (55.1%)
3pt: 0-1 (0%)

2012
Inside: 86-157 (54.8%)
Close: 133-340 (39.1%)
Med: 47-100 (47.0%)
3pt: 0-0 (N/A)

Kaman makes the second Maverick whose only rating change was a decrease to his Consistency rating. As usual, 2K is "consistent" in their laziness.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Kaman's shot ratings are all out of date and reflect the 2011 season (they are one of few that 2K never updated for NBA 2K13).  92 Close rating in particular does not reflect last season's production, but DOES reflect this season's.  Should Kaman continue to drop buckets (this is easily the most efficient season of his career), the rating will cease to be bad.  Sometimes 2K gets lucky like that.

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Andray Blatche
74 Overall (+1)
77 Med (-11)
72 Fade (+4)
68 Hook (+3)
85 OffReb (+5)
74 DefReb (+2)
72 OffAwr (+3)
60 DefAwr (+2)
75 Consistency (+5)
70 Hustle (+4)

2013
Inside: 54-86 (62.8%)
Close: 13-52 (25.0%)
Med: 11-23 (47.8%)
3pt: 1-4 (25.0%)
ORB%: 17.3
DRB%: 21.3

2012
Inside: 39-67 (58.2%)
Close: 22-76 (28.9%)
Med: 30-95 (31.6%)
3pt: 2-7 (28.6%)
ORB%: 7.5
DRB%: 19.6

Blatche's mid-range shot was grossly overrated based on last season's numbers.  While his current shooting percentage would actually merit an 88 rating, he only shot 34% in 2011 so I don't believe that will sustain.
Blatche has been an offensive rebounding monster playing exclusively at center (rather than mostly PF in the past).  If he keeps it up he'll deserve an even higher ORB rating.
Blatche is in the middle of a career year, rebounding nicely from the worst season of his career.  I have to wonder if the Wizards regret using the amnesty clause on him this past summer.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
It's been years since Blatche has deserved anywhere close to 75 Block rating.

BLK%
2008: 5.7%
2009: 3.5%
2010: 2.4%
2011: 1.8%
2012: 2.1%
2013: 2.1%

While he's adequately replaced Brook Lopez's offense, the Nets defense has slipped with Lopez on the sidelines and Blatche manning the middle.

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Andrea Bargnani
73 Overall (-3)
78 Inside (-5)
87 Close (-5)
79 Med (-13)
78 3pt (-3)
70 Traffic (-4)
70 DefReb (-6)
82 OffAwr (-7)

2013
Inside: 20-40 (50.0%)
Close: 38-91 (41.7%)
Med: 35-83 (42.2%)
3pt: 28-87 (32.2%)
DRB%: 13.4

2012
Inside: 53-86 (61.6%)
Close: 63-137 (45.9%)
Med: 59-146 (40.4%)
3pt: 34-115 (29.6%)
DRB%: 16.6

As with most players who somehow had ridiculously high Medium shot ratings (Andray Blatche is another), Bargnani's rating dropped not because he got worse, but because he was never that good at it to begin with.
Bargnani's rebounding deserved to drop, but the trouble is it was already grossly overrated to begin with and still is.  Going by 2K's own defensive rebounding scales, his production last year warrants low-mid 60s while his current production merits low 50s... yet he sits pretty with a 70 rating for a player known to be an egregiously poor rebounder.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Bargnani's offensive rebound rating has always been much higher than his actual production.
Bargnani's block rating is absurdly overrated.  His block rate has been under 2% for three seasons (1.5, 1.2, 1.7 from 2011-13) yet he has 70 block rating!

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Jonas Valanciunas
68 Overall (+9)
81 Inside (+5)
79 Close (+16)
70 Med (+12)
74 FT (-4)
64 Fade (+22)
64 Hook (+3)
73 Block (+6)
55 Steal (+24)
86 OffReb (+11)
67 OffPost (+7)
67 DefPost (+4)
58 OffAwr (+14)
70 DefAwr (+10)
45 Consistency (+15)

2013
Inside: 37-54 (68.5%)
Close: 26-64 (40.6%)
Med: 5-16 (31.2%)
3pt: 0-0 (0%)
BLK%: 4.0
STL%: 0.7
ORB%: 9.9

Raptors fans have been complaining about Valanciunas' rating since the beginning of the season when it was clear he would start for the team.  2K rectified their mistake - now it's time to see if they'll do the same to fellow rookie centers Andre Drummond and Meyers Leonard.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
I don't know why Valanciunas' Medium shot went up as much as it did, but it should go down soon as he's only hit 5 shots in 20 games and doesn't shoot a high percentage (it is not part of his game yet).  As with all rookies getting significant playing time, a close eye should be kept on the entirety of his production.

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Jeremy Lin
75 Overall (-1)
69 3pt (-1)

2013
Inside: 40-70 (58.6%)
Close: 10-42 (23.8%)
Med: 8-28 (28.6%)
3pt: 13-49 (26.5%)

2012
Inside: 64-123 (52.0%)
Close: 57-128 (44.5%)
Med: 26-57 (45.6%)
3pt: 24-75 (32.0%)

Including changes from the 12/5 roster...

75 Overall (-3)
81 Inside (-5)
80 Close (-7)
72 Med (-6)
69 3pt (-6)
81 OffAwr (-3)
60 Consistency (-5)

2K only made this tweak so they could get Lin to a specific overall rating (his 3pt% actually went up slightly over the last 3 days).  Since the edit was the definition of minimal, my prior commentary still applies...

It's been a tale of two seasons for Lin, as his last season's impressive close range game has seemingly evaporated.  He came into the season hurting, and there's no way he can be this bad all season when you look at last season's production.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Lin has about 1800 minutes of NBA experience under his belt, so keep watching those shooting percentages to see how they balance out.  The rest of his production has primarily held steady.

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Patrick Patterson
75 Overall (+1)
77 3pt (+37)
79 FT (+9)

2013
Inside: 40-57 (70.2%)
Close: 37-75 (49.3%)
Med: 19-44 (43.2%)
3pt: 12-37 (32.4%)

2012
Inside: 56-91 (61.5%)
Close: 114-281 (40.5%)
Med: 55-136 (40.4%)
3pt: 0-3 (0%)

Patterson obviously expanded his shooting range and it's nice to see 2K finally acknowledged that.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Patterson's rebounding and shot blocking have declined quite a bit since his rookie season.

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Michael Beasley
76 Overall (-3)
78 Close (-14)
72 Med (-12)
74 3pt (-8)
73 FT (+9)
70 Traffic (-4)

2013
Inside: 37-59 (62.7%)
Close: 21-70 (30.0%)
Med: 22-66 (33.3%)
3pt: 18-59 (30.5%)

2012
Inside: 62-99 (62.6%)
Close: 76-195 (38.9%)
Med: 45-102 (44.1%)
3pt: 38-101 (37.6%)

Beasley has shot the ball poorly this season, but in the case of his Close shot, it was badly overrated to begin with and his current rating is more in line with last season's production (and thus not actually reflecting this season yet).

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
It's a bit odd to see Beasley's shot ratings drop so precipitously, yet see no change made to his absurdly high 86 Offensive Awareness or 80 Consistency.  Beasley has regressed each season of his career and hasn't deserved such ratings since his once promising NCAA days.

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Alexey Shved
71 Overall (+6)
85 Inside (+10)
79 Close (+3)
79 3pt (+8)
82 FT (+1)
68 Traffic (+3)
70 Pass (+11)
63 Steal (+2)
74 Hands (+3)
73 OffAwr (+11)
58 DefAwr (+7)
65 Consistency (+25)

2013
Inside: 23-36 (63.9%)
Close: 8-21 (38.0%)
Med: 5-18 (27.8%)
3pt: 27-83 (32.5%)
AST%: 25.2

Shved's ratings never should have been that low, which should have been clear to anyone who watched his impressive play in the Olympics.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Shved has posted a pretty good block rate so far (1.5%) compared to his relatively low rating (33).  He's also dunked 3 times so far and only has 46 dunk rating.

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INJURED PLAYERS

76ers: Andrew Bynum (87/C)
Bobcats: Tyrus Thomas (71/PF)
Bucks: Beno Udrih (68/PG)
Bulls: Derrick Rose (92/PG), Richard Hamilton (73/SG)
Cavaliers: Kyrie Irving (85/PG)
Celtics: Avery Bradley (79/SG)
Clippers: Chauncey Billups (81/PG), Grant Hill (77/SF), Trey Thompkins (63/PF)
Grizzlies: N/A
Hawks: N/A
Heat: N/A
Hornets: Eric Gordon (84/SG), Anthony Davis (79/PF)
Jazz: Raja Bell (71/SG)
Kings: N/A
Knicks: Amare Stoudemire (83/PF), Iman Shumpert (80/SG)
Lakers: Steve Nash (87/PG), Pau Gasol (81/PF), Steve Blake (68/PG)
Magic: Hedo Turkoglu (72/SF), Al Harrington (71/PF)
Mavericks: Dirk Nowitzki (84/PF)
Nets: Brook Lopez (80/C)
Nuggets: Wilson Chandler (80/SF)
Pacers: Danny Granger (83/SF), Jeff Pendergraph (62/PF)
Raptors: Landry Fields (73/SF), Alan Anderson (66/SF)
Rockets: Royce White (68/PF)
Spurs: Stephen Jackson (78/SF)
Suns: Channing Frye (67/PF)
Timberwolves: Brandon Roy (80/SG), Ricky Rubio (78/PG), Chase Budinger (71/SF)
Trail Blazers: Elliot Williams (66/SG), Victor Claver (62/SF)
Warriors: Andrew Bogut (79/C), Richard Jefferson (74/SF), Brandon Rush (71/SG)
Wizards: John Wall (82/PG), Trevor Ariza (76/SF), Trevor Booker (67/PF)

MISSING INJURIES
Kyle Korver (63/SG, Hawks) - Out since 11/28
Kawhi Leonard (80/SF, Spurs) - Out since 11/17
A.J. Price (55/PG, Wizards) - Fractured his right hand last night (12/8) and will miss 4-6 weeks.

INCORRECT INJURIES
Victor Claver (62/SF, Trail Blazers) is not injured.  He was assigned to the D-League on 12/7.

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MISSING PLAYERS

The missing player list is down to 12.  Unfortunately, aside from James White (veteran w/ guaranteed contract who used to be in 2K and even has his own dunk package), and possibly Darius Johnson-Odom and Kevin Murphy (second round picks), I don't anticipate 2K adding anymore of these players.

Lance Thomas
64 Overall (PF/SF) - Hornets

Thomas was only added to get Eric Gordon off the team's active roster (replacing the waived Matt Carroll).

It's worth noting that Cory Higgins, who was missing until the 12/5 roster, was waived today.  The Bobcats signed PF Jeff Adrien to take his place.  Adrien is thankfully already in the game's free agent pool.

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UPDATED MISSING PLAYER LIST
Maalik Waayns (PG) - 76ers
Kevin Jones (PF) - Cavaliers
Terrel Harris (SG) - Heat
Kevin Murphy (SG) - Jazz
James White (SF/SG) - Knicks
Darius Johnson-Odom (SG) - Lakers
Julyan Stone (PG/SG) - Nuggets
Ben Hansbrough (PG/SG) - Pacers
Scott Machado (PG) - Rockets
Diante Garrett (SG) - Suns
Luke Zeller (C/PF) - Suns
Kent Bazemore (SG/SF) - Warriors
TOTAL: 12

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INCORRECT LINEUPS

Only 7 lineups are incorrect now, down from 13 in the last update.  However 5 of those lineups were incorrect dating back to the 12/5 roster, and two of them incorrect since 11/17.  The Spurs lineup is particularly mind-boggling.

76ers
PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Jason Richardson
SF: Evan Turner
PF: Thaddeus Young
C: Kwame Brown

As I pointed out on December 5th, Lavoy Allen has been starting at center, not Kwame Brown.

Bucks
PG: Brandon Jennings
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Marquis Daniels
PF: John Henson
C: Epke Udoh

Larry Sanders took over starting duties from Henson on December 5th.  Maddeningly, Samuel Dalembert was placed in reserve even though he is still playing.

Celtics
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Courtney Lee
SF: Paul Pierce
PF: Brandon Bass
C: Kevin Garnett

As I pointed out November 17th, Jason Terry is the starting SG, not Courtney Lee.

Hawks
PG: Jeff Teague
SG: Kyle Korver
SF: Josh Smith
PF: Al Horford
C: Zaza Pachulia

As I pointed out December 5th, the Hawks proper starting lineup is DeShawn Stevenson at SG, Kyle Korver at SF, Josh Smith at PF, and Al Horford at C.  Korver has missed the last few games due to injury and the birth of his child, and Devin Harris has started in his place (NOT Zaza Pachulia with Stevenson at SG).

Raptors
PG: Kyle Lowry
SG: Demar DeRozan
SF: Linas Kleiza
PF: Andrea Bargnani
C: Jonas Valanciunas

As with the Mavericks, the Raptors signed Mickael Pietrus with the intention of starting him.  He played 40 minutes tonight against the Kings.

Spurs
PG: Tony Parker
SG: Danny Green
SF: Kawhi Leonard
PF: Boris Diaw
C: Tim Duncan

As I pointed out November 17th, Kawhi Leonard hasn't played since November 15th due to injury, but isn't even classified as an injured player. Gary Neal has been starting in Leonard's place at SG, with Green sliding over to SF, and DeJuan Blair replaced Boris Diaw in the starting lineup.

Suns
PG: Goran Dragic
SG: Shannon Brown
SF: Michael Beasley
PF: Markieff Morris
C: Marcin Gortat

Beasley just lost his starting job to Jared Dudley.

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SUMMARY
2K did well to rebound from last roster's criticisms in a hurry, but reincorporating injuries is nothing short of a disaster from a roster editing standpoint.  There is no longer any point to downloading 2K's roster for personal use, and they are solely for online play now.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

NBA 2K13 Roster Analysis 12/5/12


NBA 2K13 (finally) released another roster after two and a half weeks (and I thought I was slow).

I've combed through the roster and posted the comprehensive details (and my thoughts) for your viewing pleasure.

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PLAYER EDITS
After two and a half weeks off, many fans were hoping for lots of rating changes.  Last roster we got 16 player edits, and there was a larger time gap for this roster.  Unfortunately, only 14 players received rating edits in this roster, an average of 0.67 players edited by 2K Sports per day.  This is a disappointing development, as there are still many players who need rating edits.  Even worse, there are FOUR PLAYERS who had already received rating edits in prior rosters!  If you're hoping for 2K to get around to adjusting your favorite role players this season, it's a pipe dream.

Now that the doom and gloom is out of the way....

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Jrue Holiday
87 Overall (+4)
88 Inside (+9)
86 Close (-2)
84 3pt (+1)
80 FT (+2)
89 Layup (+7)
68 Traffic (+14)
89 Security (+4)
90 Pass (+7)
76 Steal (-2)
92 Hands (+6)
84 OBD (+4)
88 OffAwr (+6)
86 DefAwr (+3)
98 Stamina (+2)
Sig Add: Dimer

2013
Inside: 40-65 (61.5%)
Close: 38-89 (42.6%)
Mid: 29-71 (40.8%)
3pt: 20-55 (36.4%)
AST%: 44.0 (3rd in league)
STL%: 1.9

2012
Inside: 137-253 (54.2%)
Close: 125-330 (37.8%)
Mid: 87-210 (41.4%)
3pt: 85-220 (38.6%)
AST%: 21.6
STL%: 2.5

While Holiday is scoring more efficiently at the rim, 88 Inside is a stretch.
Close shooting has improved, but rating reduced because it shouldn't have been that high to begin with based on 2012 performance.
3pt went up a point even though his percentage has gone down a point.
Don't have a problem with big bumps to Pass rating or Offensive Awareness as Holiday's assist rate is 3rd in league behind Rondo and Greivis Vasquez. Holiday is actually 0.1% ahead of Chris Paul at the moment.
I would not have bothered changing his steal rate as his 2.3% career rate is certainly within reach and samples are still small for steals/blocks.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
2K should drop Holiday's 47 DefReb as he hasn't been a decent rebounder since his sophomore season.
Holiday has 4 dunks on the year, had 22 last season, and only has 40 dunk rating.  He is one of the few PGs I wouldn't mind dunking on me, unlike Nate Robinson, Mario Chalmers, Kyrie Irving, etc.

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Evan Turner
78 Overall (NC)
75 Med (-4)
60 OffReb (+8)
78 DefReb (+10)

2013

Inside: 26-50 (52.0%)
Close: 40-80 (50.0%)
Mid: 19-64 (29.7%)
3pt: 13-30 (43.3%)
FT: 50-62 (80.6%)
ORB%: 2.6
DRB%: 20.9

2012

Inside: 110-177 (62.1%)
Close: 131-332 (39.4%)
Mid: 67-180 (37.2%)
3pt: 11-55 (20.0%)
FT: 73-108 (67.6%)
ORB%: 1.7
DRB%: 22.8

The only shot rating Turner had changed was his mid-range shot, despite significant improvements from Close and especially 3pt.  Turner only has 64 3pt rating and should clearly be mid-70s.  Turner came into this season with 25 career threes made, and will have doubled that by the end of the month.
Turner's defensive rebounding badly needed improvement, but his offensive rebounding likewise needed to go down and instead went up!  Turner's ORB rating is overrated by 20-25 points now!

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Not a rating change but Turner is a point forward and isn't a listed as a "Play Initiator".  Consequently. he won't ever bring the ball up or run plays.
Aside from the shot/rebound corrections, Turner doesn't deserve 91 Potential anymore as it's looking clear he'll never be a superstar.

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Byron Mullens
69 Overall (+7)
74 3pt (+24)
78 FT (-4)
53 SOD (+19)
36 Pass (+8)
63 Block (+7)
68 Steal (+14)
66 Hands (+8)
75 OffReb (+3)
68 DefReb (+3)
68 OffPost (+5)
70 OffAwr (+6)
54 DefAwr (+5)
50 Consistency (+10)
77 Stamina (+4)
79 Durability (+6)
72 Potential (+2)

2013
Inside: 25-40 (62.5%)
Close: 19-45 (42.2%)
Mid: 9-36 (25.0%)
3pt: 24-84 (28.6%)
AST%: 6.3
BLK%: 2.0
STL%: 1.6
ORB%: 5.4
DRB%: 23.1

2012
Inside: 117-181 (64.6%)
Close: 33-100 (33.0%)
Mid: 89-259 (34.4%)
3pt: 12-51 (23.5%)
AST%: 7.5
BLK%: 2.6
STL%: 0.8
ORB%: 7.3
DRB%: 18.8

Mullens ratings are a mess.
3pt rating was improved so that he can actually hit the shot (he attempts 5 per game) so this is was a sizable portion of his offense missing.  However in adding the 3pt shot, he has abandoned long twos... yet inexplicably still has an 87 Medium rating that he never deserved in the first place.
Block rating went up despite a decline in rate.  Mullens has 2.4 BLK% in his career (2100 minutes) and his rating was fine in the mid-50s.
Mullens has doubled his steal rate from last year, but it's still early. At 1.0 STL% for his career, it's probably going to go back down.  Apparently 2K decided Mullens & Jrue Holiday's steal ratings should only be separated by 8 points, and that this wouldn't raise any eyebrows.
Mullens is posting the worst offensive rebound rate of his career, so of course 2K would raise his rating there.  Would have been nice to see a decrease there with a larger increase to his defensive rebound rating.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
2K really needs to drop Mullens medium shot which is obviously way off (to all but the 2K ratings team it would seem).
Decrease blocks/steals/ORBs, while increase DRBs if rates hold steady.
Improve On-Ball Defense, Ball Handling, Ball Security, Speed, and Quickness, as these are all way too low for an athletic stretch four.

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Monta Ellis
85 Overall (-1)
53 OffPost (-12)

2013
Inside: 52-85 (61.2%)
Close: 27-69 (39.1%)
Mid: 23-73 (31.5%)
3pt: 12-57 (21.1%)

2012
Inside: 166-263 (63.1%)
Close: 105-263 (39.9%)
Mid: 117-313 (37.4%)
3pt: 62-201 (30.8%)

Synergy Post Data
2013 MIL: 2.3% (0.88 PPP) - 8 poss
2012 MIL: 2.6% (1.00 PPP) - 11 poss
2012: GSW: 7.7% (1.07 PPP) - 69 poss (PPP ranked 6th in NBA)

Sometimes I just cannot get over the sheer laziness of 2K Sports.  Monta absolutely CAN post up, he just doesn't in Scott Skiles' system.  You know what else Monta Ellis doesn't do in Skiles' system?  Hit jumpers.  It's flat out embarrassing that 2K went in and made a single rating change to Monta without touching a single one of his shot ratings.  Ellis has been BRUTAL outside of 15 feet and maintains 91 Medium shot and 76 3pt ratings.  Monta's medium shot rating was already ridiculously high (along with his 90 Close rating) and ignoring it is simply insulting.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
There isn't a soul in Milwaukee who thinks Monta Ellis is the Bucks' best player, much less all-star caliber (5th among SGs, 23rd overall in 2K's roster).  A severe drop in his shot ratings is paramount.

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Richard Hamilton
73 Overall (-1)
63 Vertical (-9)

At this risk of sounding like a broken record, sometimes I just cannot get over the sheer laziness of 2K Sports.  I want to know what lame brain complained to 2K about Rip's VERTICAL, of all ratings.  He's old.  Fine.  Nobody will dispute that.  Surely there are other ratings that could also have been changed?

Does 34 year old Rip deserve 94 Stamina?  He hasn't played 30+ minutes per game as a starter in four years.

Does Rip deserve 78 FT rating when he is a career 85% shooter and last season's career low 78% came in a ridiculously small 38 shot sample?  He is hitting 93% this year in a likewise small sample.  These are obvious, small adjustments that could have been made in addition to a vertical rating that isn't even all that important.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Aside from a large decrease to stamina, I would hold off on any further adjustments until Rip returns from injury.  He missed over half of last season and has only played about 1100 minutes for the Bulls.  Last year his shot was affected by the injuries and it remains to be seen if that will be the case this year.

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Dwyane Wade
91 Overall (-2)
83 Close (-9)
79 Mid (-2)
66 3pt (-2)
76 FT (-3)
84 Dunk (-4)
62 Block (-8)
97 Hands (-2)
70 Consistency (-5)
93 Quickness (-2)
90 Vertical (-3)

2013
Inside: 51-69 (73.9%)
Close: 27-79 (34.1%)
Mid: 21-49 (42.9%)
3pt: 2-10 (20.0%)
BLK%: 1.7

2012
Inside: 300-441 (68.0%)
Close: 198-460 (43.0%)
Mid: 90-272 (33.1%)
3pt: 25-90 (27.8%)
BLK%: 3.1 (highest ever for a SG)

Wade's close range game has not been there this season. In my opinion his floaters will start to fall once he gets in better shape (or adjusts to his declining athleticism).  An 83 is fine since it's in-between his production from last season.
Wade has been shooting the ball better from mid-range, and the drop to his rating there would be dubious IF it weren't overrated to begin with.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Wade's declining athleticism hasn't just affected his scoring, but all areas of his game.  Assists, rebounds, steals, and blocks have all gone down as well.  If Wade is going to play a smaller offensively as he gets older, he'll need to step his production in these categories again for the Heat to have a shot at winning another championship.

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J.R. Smith
Overall 79 (+4)
82 Inside (+4)
76 Close (-5)
80 Med (-1)
87 3pt (+6)
85 FT (+11)
81 SOD (+2)
68 Hands (+7)
73 OBD (+5)
53 DefReb (+3)
76 OffAwr (+3)
64 DefAwr (+3)
60 Consistency (+15)
95 Stamina (+2)
52 Strength (+6)
76 Durability (+13)
83 Potential (+4)

2013
Inside: 14-27 (51.9%)
Close: 18-58 (31.0%)
Med: 26-58 (44.8%)
3pt: 21-46 (45.7%)

2012
Inside: 44-73 (60.3%)
Close: 27-71 (38.0%)
Med: 46-116 (39.7%)
3pt: 72-221 (32.6%)

I am not a fan of these J.R. Smith changes.  All you have to do is look at the balance of where his shots are coming from.
Smith has not been finishing at the rim, so an upgraded Inside shot was not needed.
Decrease to Smith's Close shot is completely justified, as his conversion rate has been poor.
Decrease to Smith's Medium shot is NOT justified as he's been shooting the ball better, and is also taking more shots from mid-range than ever before (as I write this, he just hit a contested mid-range game winner).
Smith didn't need such a large increase to his 3pt rating as it was overrated to begin with.  Smith is not taking nearly as many threes this season, and this shift will only lead online players to continue to use him in a manner not consistent with his performance.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Smith has long held a ridiculously high dunk rating that he simply doesn't deserve.  Smith has an 87 dunk rating, but only has 4 dunks on the year.  Compare this to Dwyane Wade who has 17 dunks and just saw his rating dropped to 84.

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Carmelo Anthony
90 Overall (+1)
91 Inside (+2)
87 Med (+3)
86 3pt (+7)
84 Traffic (+2)
85 SOD (+3)
96 OffAwr (+2)
96 Stamina (+2)

2013
Inside: 54-102 (52.9%)
Close: 27-67 (34.1%)
Mid: 29-63 (46.0%)
3pt: 37-85 (43.5%)
AST%: 11.2 (career low)

2012
Inside: 203-336 (60.4%)
Close: 107-303 (35.3%)
Mid: 111-289 (38.4%)
3pt: 72-221 (32.6%)
AST%: 21.0 (career high)

2013 Dunks
Durant: 25 in 754 minutes (1.59 per 48)
LeBron: 18 in 602 minutes (1.43 per 48)
Melo: 6 in 568 minutes (0.50 per 48)

2012 Dunks
Durant: 127 in 3383 minutes (1.80 per 48)
LeBron: 134 in 3309 minutes (1.94 per 48)
Melo: 31 in 2080 minutes (0.71 per 48)

Melo's Inside shot going up is ABSURD considering how poorly he is shooting it at the rim.  Melo has NEVER been a good finisher at the rim, and this is what has always separated him from elite players like LeBron James and Kevin Durant.  They throw down consistently and Melo cannot.  Take away the dunking though, and they are still more proficient at finishing acrobatic drives than Melo is.  Melo is hitting under 50% of his layups this year, and that advocates an INCREASE to his Inside shot rating?

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
In addition to being a poor finisher at the rim, Melo has long been overrated from Close range as well, and absolutely not worthy of the 87 Close rating he holds.  Melo has been at his best from 16 feet and out this season, and has struggled mightily inside of that.
After posting a career high 21.0 AST% last season under coach Mike D'Antoni, Melo is posting a career low 11.2 AST% under Mike Woodson.  What makes this especially disturbing is that Melo leads the league in Usage, and has a vastly lower assist rate than all other usage leaders (only DeMarcus Cousins is close, and his 13.2 AST% is still better than Melo's... not a good sign when you're a bigger ball-hog than DMC).
Finally, 72 Defensive Awareness for Melo is laughable.  Always has been, always will be.

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Kobe Bryant
94 Overall (+1)
89 Inside (+5)
88 Med (+4)
82 3pt (+6)

2013
Inside: 49-73 (67.1%)
Close: 56-121 (46.2%)
Mid: 30-64 (46.9%)
3pt: 34-90 (37.8%)

2012
Inside: 162-239 (67.8%)
Close: 245-582 (42.0%)
Mid: 145-469 (41.6%)
3pt: 104-437 (30.0%)

Kobe's shots at the rim aren't going in any more frequently, but you'd better believe he deserves an Inside shot boost if Carmelo Anthony is going to have an even higher rating than that (91 to Kobe's 89) when you compare their bodies of work (58.6% for Melo to Kobe's 67.6% when you combine this year and last).
Kobe has been shooting the ball much better this season outside of 16 feet.  Kobe's 3pt game was horrendous last season (2nd worst 3pt% of his career) but is having much more success this season (2nd best 3pt% of his career).

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Kobe still has elite defensive ratings, but hasn't been a plus defender in years.  A lot of this lately is due to how much energy he expends on the offensive end, but also because the Lakers have had Metta World Peace to cover the top perimeter assignment every night.
Kobe's dunk rating is also a bit high, as like Melo he only has 6 on the year (not to harp on this again, but Kobe is another player who is much better finishing at the rim with acrobatic layups than Melo).

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Pau Gasol
84 Overall (-3)
84 Close (-8)
81 Med (-3)
62 3pt (+4)
84 OffReb (-7)
81 DefReb (-7)
83 DefPost (-2)
87 OffAwr (-2)
76 DefAwr (-2)

2013
Inside: 30-47 (63.8%)
Close: 23-77 (29.8%)
Med: 29-69 (42.0%)
3pt: 2-7 (28.6%)
ORB%: 8.1
DRB%: 19.6

2012
Inside: 206-300 (68.7%)
Close: 197-468 (42.0%)
Med: 109-259 (42.1%)
3pt: 9-33 (27.3%)
ORB%: 8.8
DRB%: 21.8

While Gasol has been attempting more jumpers per game playing next to Dwight Howard, his efficiency close to the basket has simply not been there, and that is what's more concerning for Gasol, who is easily having the worst season of his career.
Gasol's rebounding predictably saw a slight decrease playing next to Howard, but the reason for such a large drop in his rebound ratings is that they were overrated to begin with.  Aside from scoring, the rest of Gasol's production has held steady.
A two point decrease to Gasol's Offensive and Defensive Awareness and his Post Defense just exhibits how little 2K knows about the players and how they are merely chasing a specific overall rating when they make adjustments.  Gasol is a fantastic defensive player and his defensive awareness should easily be higher than a 76, as his struggles have been limited to the offensive end!  Consequently, 87 offensive awareness seems very high for a player who is deferring to much, and one who has notably struggled on the offensive end this season.  I don't think anyone would complain if they saw Gasol get -10 OffAwr and +10 DefAwr.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
It's curious to me how Dwyane Wade's Consistency dropped to 70 yet Gasol's Consistency held steady at 75.
Gasol's 70 Hustle rating seems a bit high for a player whose primary criticism is not playing hard every night (not to mention lumbering 7 footers don't exactly dive on the floor very much).

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Deron Williams
89 Overall (-1)
88 Inside (+4)
81 Med (-3)
73 3pt (-8)
90 OffAwr (-4)

2013
Inside: 26-38 (68.4%)
Close: 19-52 (36.5%)
Med: 19-51 (37.3%)
3pt: 27-91 (29.7%)

2012
Inside: 108-190 (56.8%)
Close: 83-214 (38.7%)
Med: 85-215 (39.5%)
3pt: 115-342 (33.6%)

Deron's Inside shot rating going up feels wrong due to the small sample size and the fact that it was already overrated based on last season's performance.
Not really a big fan of taking Deron's 3pt rating that low since it's only a matter of time before the shots start going down (a drop halfway to 77 would have been preferable).
I have a big problem with dropping Offensive Awareness for a player averaging 16 points and 9 assists, who would be averaging closer to 20 if he weren't shooting the ball so poorly.  For those keeping score at home, Antawn Jamison has been a bum for years and he still has 90 Offensive Awareness. 

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
82 Defensive Awareness?  Really?

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Jeremy Lin
76 Overall (-2)
81 Inside (-5)
80 Close (-7)
72 Med (-6)
70 3pt (-5)
81 OffAwr (-3)
60 Consistency (-5)

2013
Inside: 39-66 (59.1%)
Close: 10-41 (24.3%)
Med: 8-26 (30.8%)
3pt: 11-43 (25.6%)

2012
Inside: 64-123 (52.0%)
Close: 57-128 (44.5%)
Med: 26-57 (45.6%)
3pt: 24-75 (32.0%)

It's been a tale of two seasons for Lin, as his last season's impressive close range game has seemingly evaporated.  He came into the season hurting, and there's no way he can be this bad all season when you look at last season's production.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Lin has about 1800 minutes of NBA experience under his belt, so keep watching those shooting percentages to see how they balance out.  The rest of his production has primarily held steady.

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Serge Ibaka
84 Overall (+3)
83 Close (+11)
85 Med (+2)
80 FT (+14)
60 Hook (+3)
66 OffPost (+8)
70 OffAwr (+10)
84 Stamina (+4)

2013
Inside: 49-63 (77.8%)
Close: 28-48 (58.3%)
Med: 36-72 (50.0%)
3pt: 3-12 (25.0%)

2012
Inside: 188-265 (70.9%)
Close: 75-179 (41.8%)
Med: 81-198 (40.9%)
3pt: 2-7 (28.6%)

The improvements to Ibaka's offensive ratings are clearly justified by looking at the vast improvement of his jump shot.
Improving Ibaka's hookshot is an uninformed move as a quick visit to Synergy reveals Ibaka does most of his damage on faceup/fadeaway jumpers.

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Improving Ibaka's 3pt rating is a must.  He is now 5-18 in his career (6-22 including playoffs) and obviously deserves more than a 25 rating.
Ibaka without 99 block rating (he's had 96 for two years) is simply wrong.
I am not a fan of Ibaka's 92 Defensive Awareness because he gets absolutely killed by stretch fours.

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Damian Lillard
82 Overall (+5)
82 Med (+8)
83 3pt (+8)
84 FT (-4)
93 Layup (+2)
76 SOD (+2)
86 Pass (+4)
80 Steal (+8)
85 Hands (+6)
70 OBD (+2)
86 OffAwr (+4)
62 DefAwr (+7)
70 Consistency (+5)
99 Stamina (+4)
94 Speed (+2)
97 Quickness (+2)
78 Hustle (+5)

2013
Inside: 34-69 (49.3%)
Close: 15-46 (32.6%)
Med: 24-46 (52.2%)
3pt: 44-113 (38.9%)
AST%: 29.7
STL%: 1.9

Lillard has been money from distance, but things get hazy inside of 15 feet.  He is not finishing shots at the rim and ANOTHER increase to his layup rating to make it elite seems dubious.  Lillard is only hitting 47% of his layups and actually seems to be better at dunking the ball (5 already).

Lillard received another increase to his pass rating, which was totally excessive.
The increase to Lillard's steal rating makes no sense since we started off with Jrue Holiday having the same steal rate and getting his rating dropped to 76 (despite a much stronger career history).

FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS
Lillard isn't as good of a defensive rebounder as his rating suggests.  Beyond what was discussed above, that's the only nitpick I really have.

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POSITION CHANGES
2K made a large number of position changes, most of which were derived from 82games lineup data.  There are still some inaccuracies, and still a few players who need their rating changed,

Byron Mullens PF/C (from C)
Bismack Biyombo C (from PF/C)
Larry Sanders C/PF (from PF/C) - Udoh should have been changed to C instead.
Daniel Gibson SG/PG (from PG/SG)
Leandro Barbosa PG/SG (from SG)
Josh Selby SG/PG (from PG) - Wroten should have been changed to SG/SF instead.
Shane Battier PF/SF (from SF/PF)
Rashard Lewis PF/SF (from SF/PF)
Chris Bosh C/PF (from PF/C)
Udonis Haslem C/PF (from PF/C)
Austin Rivers SG/PG (from PG/SG)
Anthony Randolph PF/C (from C/PF)
Jason Smith C/PF (from PF/C)
E'Twaun Moore PG/SG (from SG/PG)
Dominique Jones PG/SG (from SG/PG)
Vince Carter SG/SF (from SF/SG) - Dumb change. Has played VAST MAJORITY of his mins at SF.
Brandan Wright C/PF (from PF)
Jerry Stackhouse SF/SG (from SG/SF)
Andre Iguodala SG/SF (from SF/SG)
Gerald Green SF/SG (from SG/SF)
Gary Neal PG/SG (from SG/PG) - Should have left this alone as Neal starting at SG right now.
Jared Dudley SG/SF (from SF/SG)
Luke Babbitt PF/SF (from SF)
J.J. Hickson C/PF (from PF/C)
Nene PF/C (from C/PF)
Chris Singleton PF/SF (from SF/PF)
Jan Vesley PF/C (from SF/PF)
Kevin Seraphin C/PF (from PF/C)

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MISSING PLAYERS

2K added seven more players to the roster, cutting what was once a 30 player deficit to 13.  At the current rate, they just might have everyone in before the end of the calendar year.

Cory Higgins
66 Overall (SG) - Bobcats
The worst player in the NBA has better ratings than Bobcats' current starting SG Jeff Taylor.  Higgins ranks 66th among SG and 306th Overall, for what it's worth.

Brian Roberts
60 Overall (PG) - Hornets
Roberts has played extremely well backing up Grevis Vasquez in New Orleans, and has BADLY outplayed fellow rookie Austin Rivers.  With Lance Thomas still missing, the injured Anthony Davis is still on the Hornets active roster.

Robert Sacre
60 Overall (C) - Lakers
Sacre has played only 8 games so far, but should get additional burn now that Pau Gasol is sidelined.  Now 2K needs to add Darius Johnson-Odom so Gasol, Steve Nash, and Steve Blake all fit on the injured reserve.

Viacheslav Kravtsov
56 Overall (C) - Pistons
No, I can't pronounce his name either.  Given that he has a 3-year guaranteed deal, we have plenty of time to learn.

Greg Smith
56 Overall (C/PF) - Rockets
Smith dropped 21/9 on the Lakers in only 24 minutes, after posting a season high 13 points in only 16 minutes  the game prior.  He can play.

Nando De Colo
62 Overall (PG/SG) - Spurs
NDC had 15/6/5 during that infamous Spurs/Heat game.  He probably won't play much until Ginobili retires (or inevitably gets hurt for an extended period).

Victor Claver
62 Overall (SF/PF) - Trail Blazers
Claver has barely played this season, but given that his primary competition for backup minutes  is Sasha Pavlovic, that will change deeper into the year (especially as the Blazers fall out of playoff contention).

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UPDATED MISSING PLAYER LIST
Maalik Waayns (PG) - 76ers
Kevin Jones (PF) - Cavaliers
Terrel Harris (SG) - Heat
Lance Thomas (PF/SF) - Hornets
Kevin Murphy (SG) - Jazz
James White (SF/SG) - Knicks
Darius Johnson-Odom (SG) - Lakers
Julyan Stone (PG/SG) - Nuggets
Ben Hansbrough (PG/SG) - Pacers
Scott Machado (PG) - Rockets
Diante Garrett (SG) - Suns
Luke Zeller (C/PF) - Suns
Kent Bazemore (SG/SF) - Warriors
TOTAL: 13

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PLAYERS ON THE WRONG TEAMS
It sucks that this still needs it's own section.

Matt Carroll - Hornets
Carroll was waived by the Hornets on 11/20.  His removal would have lead to Eric Gordon's inclusion on the active roster.  If they were so worried about that, the proper course of action should have been ADD LANCE THOMAS TO THE GAME. 

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INCORRECT LINEUPS
In 2K's 11-17-12 roster they had ten teams with incorrect lineups lineups.  Instead of getting better, they've gotten worse, as THIRTEEN teams now have incorect lineups.  Incredulously, three of those teams still have the same lineup they did 18 days ago.

76ers
PG: Jrue Holiday
SG: Jason Richardson
SF: Evan Turner
PF: Thaddeus Young
C: Kwame Brown

Lavoy Allen has been starting over Kwame.

Bucks
PG: Brandon Jennings
SG: Monta Ellis
SF: Tobias Harris
PF: Ersan Ilyasova
C: Samuel Dalembert

Harris lost his starting job to Marquis Daniels.  Starting PF has been a bit of a revolving door due to Ilyasova's poor play this season.  Rookie John Henson had been drawing starts, but it would appear Larry Sanders is the new starter after some insane lines off the bench.  Epke Udoh also appears to have replaced Samuel Dalembert.  Beno Udrih got hurt and is still on the active roster, while Luc Richard Mbah a Moute got healthy and is still reserved.

Bulls
PG: Kirk Hinrich
SG: Richard Hamilton
SF: Luol Deng
PF: Carlos Boozer
C: Joakim Noah

Hamilton just got hurt and will miss 2-4 weeks.  Marco Belinelli has been starting in his place.

Celtics
PG: Rajon Rondo
SG: Courtney Lee
SF: Paul Pierce
PF: Brandon Bass
C: Kevin Garnett

As I pointed out November 17th, Jason Terry is the starting SG, not Courtney Lee.

Hawks
PG: Jeff Teague
SG: Kyle Korver
SF: Josh Smith
PF: Al Horford
C: Zaza Pachulia

While the Hawks have utilized this lineup, it is not their primary lineup: Teague-Stevenson-Korver-Smith-Horford.

Hornets
PG: Grevis Vasquez
SG: Austin Rivers
SF: Al-Farouq Aminu
PF: Ryan Anderson
C: Robin Lopez

Rivers lost his starting job due to some truly atrocious play.  Roger Mason has been starting instead.

Kings
PG: Isaiah Thomas
SG: Tyreke Evans
SF: James Johnson
PF: Jason Thompson
C: DeMarcus Cousins

As I pointed out November 17th, Isaiah Thomas and James Johnson were replaced in the starting lineup by Aaron Brooks and John Salmons.  Salmons is once again not even on the active roster.  Terrible.

Lakers
PG: Darius Morris
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: Metta World Peace
PF: Pau Gasol
C: Dwight Howard

Morris was recently supplanted by Chris Duhon in the starting lineup.  Gasol is out indefinitely with knee tendinitis (and/or blown confidence), and Antawn Jamison will start at PF until Gasol returns.

Magic
PG: Jameer Nelson
SG: J.J. Redick
SF: Arron Afflalo
PF: Glen Davis
C: Nikola Vucevic

Maurice Harkless has been starting at SF for weeks now.  Redick has been the team's 6th man all season, starting a grand total of four games (to Hark's 8).

Mavericks
PG: Darren Collison
SG: O.J. Mayo
SF: Jae Crowder
PF: Shawn Marion
C: Chris Kaman

The Mavericks signed Derek Fisher with the intention of making him their starting PG.  It makes no sense to add Fisher to the team with that knowledge in hand and then have him coming off the bench.

Raptors
PG: Kyle Lowry
SG: Demar DeRozan
SF: Linas Kleiza
PF: Andrea Bargnani
C: Jonas Valanciunas

As with the Mavericks, the Raptors signed Mickael  Pietrus with the intention of starting him.  He played 40 minutes tonight against the Kings.

Spurs
PG: Tony Parker
SG: Danny Green
SF: Kawhi Leonard
PF: Boris Diaw
C: Tim Duncan

As I pointed out November 17th, Kawhi Leonard hasn't played in weeks due to injury, Gary Neal has been starting in his place at SG, with Green sliding over to SF, and DeJuan Blair replaced Boris Diaw in the starting lineup.

Suns
PG: Goran Dragic
SG: Jared Dudley
SF: Michael Beasley
PF: Luis Scola
C: Marcin Gortat

Dudley and Scola were replaced in the starting lineup by Shannon Brown and Markieff Morris over a week ago.

SUMMARY
While 2K got some things right in this update, they got far more wrong despite taking twice as long to put it out there.  It remains to be seen how they rebound from this, but one would hope swiftly and definitively.  Unfortunately, we all know after 12 years of this that it won't happen.