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DEN, Chuck
Someone was bound to make a play for Kevin Durant and as it turned out, that someone was Chuck! Getting him at $66 had to be one of the steals of the draft, injury or no. (His price was right in-between Russell Westbrook and Jamal Murray’s, as the fortieth highest in RDA.) So with Durant on the mend for the next year, who will slot into his place? How about recovering former All-Star and League of Legends legend Gordon Hayward! No? Crickets?
As Denver treads water this season waiting for KD to return, they should still be interesting and competitive. If Hayward can’t become more than a shell of his former self, the task will fall to Gary Harris, Enes Kanter, or Domantas Sabonis. Okay fine, this team is just gonna wait for Durant to return. Here’s hoping Denver can squeak out enough wins this season to keep the mercurial forward happy.
We do like all the young talent that makes up half of DEN's roster: new Team USA member Derrick White, rookie gunner Tyler Herro, two-time Summer League standout Anfernee Simons, the cursed Michael Porter Jr, sharpshooter Landry Shamet, and another rookie, Talen Horton-Tucker. When 2021 hits, this team should be loaded and all ready to go!
MIN, Jesse
It took awhile to get Anthony Davis off the board and the final duel was between MIN and SAS. In the end, Davis went for $139, the second-highest price behind Giannis Antetokounmpo. Looking for a proper backcourt mate for his do-everything superstar, GM Jesse closed on Bradley Beal just eight picks later. Both Brow and Beal are twenty-six and just entering their primes. (Which would be even scarier if not for the team in the following preview…)
There is some roster construction to do though before we can celebrate the modern day version of Kevin Garnett and Stephon Marbury. The backcourt is filled out with Isaiah Thomas and Summer League first teamer Kendrick Nunn -- who had to be added to our Couch Manager roster before he could be auctioned off. While Davis can play power forward next to Brook Lopez, we’re not sure if there are any wing players on this team aside from Furkan Korkmaz and rookie Romeo Langford. Still, the big two of Davis and Beal smooth a lot of things over and MIN will be one of RDA’s “all star power, no depth” teams to keep a careful eye on.
POR, JT
If you’re looking for the team of RDA's future, this could be it! Reigning Rookie of the Year Luka Doncic is only twenty and Nikola Jokic is a mere twenty-five. Either could be future NBA MVPs. How did we let this happen?! Luckily, grabbing those two cost a hefty $233, leaving only one more double digit player left for POR. General manager JT took that money and invested into another versatile white guy, Zach Collins, who has all the skills to become a building block himself. (Someone get Dwight Howard out of this locker room before he corrupts everyone though!)
Rodney Hood and Bryn Forbes will play alongside Luka in the backcourt while Marcus Morris and Mario Hezonja — or Wesley Matthews and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist — fill out the forward slots. The frightening thing about POR is that they aren’t just going to dominate in the near future, they could start winning games right now if Doncic can up his efficiency and Jokic can just keep being Jokic. Scary!
The whole league has been waiting on Jamal Murray’s true breakout year — it’s still coming we’re pretty sure — but he’s going to have to do it soon if OKC wants to get into the playoffs this season. With the Blue Arrow leading the way on a youth studded roster, GM Zeya was clearly focused on building out his squad to maximum sustainability. While Murray’s star has yet to shine as bright as some of his Northwest peers, OKC should be deeper all around and will challenge for the division crown with some savvy coaching and management.
The OKC core mirrors Dallas’ famed "Three J” team of the Nineties, but this time with Jamal, Jarrett Allen, and Josh Richardson. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Will Barton are young veterans who bring a lot of versatility with their games. Rookie big men Jaxon Hayes and Goga Bitadze may need some seasoning but they could be a monster pair soon. And most of all, we’re going to find out if Kevin Knox is going to be a real piece for the Knicks or not this season — or if he’ll still be historically bad in his sophomore year. We think OKC deserves a winner and Zeya should be here to deliver it for them!
UTA, Viz
Utah has never been know as a offensive powerhouse so GM Viz took the Jazz’s centerpiece and made it his own, constructing a defensive team around Rudy Gobert. The strength of this team will clearly come from the inside as Gobert and Al Horford are two of the best interior defenders around. The pair will even have Ed Davis behind them, who has been a try hard for his entire career. That’s the NBA version of this team anyway. Fantasy wise, Gobert is a stud and Horford may get some stress management in Philadelphia this season.
Still, this team is clearly in win-now mode, unlike the other four teams in the Northwest. That alone sets them apart, along with their defensive mindset. Kyle Lowry and George Hill will lead from the backcourt until rookie Coby White is ready. From there, a nice threesome of forwards — Aaron Gordon, TJ Warren, Thaddeus Young — should serve as good supplementary pieces to a winning team.
GM Viz is clearly a Jazz fan as Royce O’Neale and Utah’s second rounder from this year, Miye Oni, fill out the edges of this team. There’s no doubt UTA can dominate on the boards and on defense but we’re a little curious where the offense will come from to compete with all the fireworks from the rest of the division.
