Welcome to the newest iteration of the CmanCalzone sim league! We have 32 GMs managing 32 teams. We fantasy drafted our rosters, have made a few trades, and are ready for the year to start. You can follow along with our updates throughout the year on YouTube, the playoffs will be streamed on Twitch, and of course my yearly preseason power rankings will be right here!
Last year ended in a way no one could have predicted. The Milwaukee Bucks entered the playoffs as underdogs in every series they played. Yet somehow, they fought their way through perhaps the most impressive gauntlet of foes we've ever seen to get GM RJDriven his first ring. Seriously, look at how they stack up to their opponents by round:
RJ's team: #5 seeded Milwaukee Bucks; +4.0; roster including Tyrese Haliburton, Bam Adebayo, Christian Wood, and Dejounte Murray
Round 1: #4 seeded Chicago Bulls; +5.0; roster including Nikola Jokic, Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Myles Turner, Terry Rozier, and Spencer Dinwiddie
Round 2: #1 seeded Team Serbia; +16.6; roster including LeBron James, James Harden, Fred VanVleet, and Jordan Poole
Round 3: #2 seeded New York Knicks; +11.8; roster including Jayson Tatum, Julius Randle, DeMar DeRozan, and Lonzo Ball
Finals: #1 (in West) seeded Los Angeles Lakers; +12.6; roster including Luka Doncic, Mikal Bridges, Deandre Ayton, De'Anthony Melton, and Jonathan Isaac
How did they beat arguably the top 3 teams in the league despite not having a single 90+ player on their roster? I don't know! A few clutch performances from unlikely heroes like Kelly Olynyk, a well-fitting two-way roster, and perhaps a dash of luck are all possibilities. All other playoff teams, take note; if you can just make it into the playoffs, you can always get hot, play a good month or two of basketball, and walk away with the Larry O'B. Never be afraid to go for it.
Now another question: does winning the championship make the Milwaukee Bucks our number 1 team in the preseason power rankings? Let's take a look...
CONTENDERS
1. Los Angeles Lakers - This team was #1 even before swapping Ayton for Brandon Ingram, but now they're even better. Being gifted the #1 overall pick to use on Luka was a blessing, yes, but you still have to fill out a roster around them, and the Lakers have certainly done so. Ingram and Mikal Bridges provide a very balanced forward duo, while De'Anthony Melton and Jakob Poeltl bring some defensive intensity. They could use a backup point guard, but make no mistake; this is the best team in the league, and it's not particularly close.
2. Atlanta Hawks - Similar to the Suns last year, the Hawks added Kevin Durant to Devin Booker late in the season, but flamed out of the playoffs early. R.J. Barrett is an excellent third option, Rudy GObert is overpaid but still very good, and there are 3-4 solid players on the bench. Perhaps their chemistry simply wasn't there yet last year, but there are no excuses now; anything less than a Finals appearance with this roster would be a failure.
3. New York Knicks - This team doesn't seem all that amazing, with Jayson Tatum flanked by a good-but-not-great trio of Julius Randle, Lonzo Ball, and DeMar DeRozan. CmanCalzone teams always have excellent depth too. Still, you wouldn't have expected this squad to be the third-best team in the league... and yet they were. With no real changes (outside of some progression for Ball and regression for DeRozan), expect them to be in a very similar position again this year.
PLAYOFF LOCKS
4. Utah Jazz - This team may not stay here for long, as the whole team is on the block. Still, we just saw them cruise to a 2nd place finish in the West, and with essentially the exact same roster, I'd expect the same result. If they want to be true contenders though, they'll need to give Steph another source of offense other than Anthony Davis.
5. Seattle Sonics - This team drastically outperformed expectations last year, with Donovan Mitchell and Tyler Herro looking like a real long-term solution in the backcourt instead of just two shot chuckers sharing space. Robert Williams and Miles Bridges took steps forward too, which makes this team an even bigger threat than last year. However, they do still seem to be a tier below some of the contenders above them right now.
6. Team Serbia - This team did lose James Harden, and with their luxury tax stipulations, there's absolute no way they can replace him given his new $50 million cap hit. However, the best regular season team from last year kept every other player who got rotation minutes, including their full starting lineup (lest we forget Harden was coming off the bench last year). Is their ceiling the same without Harden, and should they be considered the favorites to win the championship this year? Absolutely not. But does that mean they should go from the #1 ranked team to say, #18, and considered a low play-in team? I certainly wouldn't go that far either.
7. Milwaukee Bucks - The reigning champs lost Christian Wood in free agency, and he was one of their best playoff performers, but they still have their three man core (Tyrese Haliburton, Bam Adebayo, and Dejounte Murray), so I wouldn't expect any crazy regression. However, this team is a Rorshach test in whether you put more weight on the 82 regular season games or the 20-25 playoff games. As mentioned in the intro, they won an championship while plowing through four "better" teams, so one could argue they truly are the best themselves and should be ranked #1 (before accounting for Wood leaving). Conversely, you could say they were maybe the 8th or 9th best team for the majority of the year, and then went on a 2011 Mavericks run that won't be replicable, and should slip outside of the top 10 now that their fourth best player is gone. This ranking splits that difference.
8. Brooklyn Nets - I'm excited to see this team play together. Joel Embiid and James Harden should be the best pick and roll duo in the league, full stop. Jalen Duren should be a nice source of general big man stuff as well, and Tari Eason is solid too (even if he struggled a bit as a rookie). However, when your 5th and 6th best players are 77 overall Dalano Banton and 76 overall Terence Davis... you could be in for a rough year. As a 76ers fan, I know how incredible Harden and Embiid can be together... but I also know they tend to be a second round exit, especially now that Harden is down to an 87.
9. Phoenix Suns - I can't see this team missing the playoffs with Jimmy Butler, Jamal Murray, Andrew Wiggins, and Draymond Green. Yet they had the same squad plus Vucevic last year and didn't do much in the playoffs, so I can't really call them a contender either. With Butler and Draymond regressing a bit, Murray and Wiggins seemingly capped out, and their third scorer gone, things seem like they'll get worse before they get better.
10. Chicago Bulls - After a disappointing first round exit to the red-hot Milwaukee Bucks, the fate of these Bulls only got worse as Khris Middleton left in free agency and Jrue Holiday regressed. Nikola Jokic is still dominant, and additional solid players like Myles Turner, Terry Rozier, Spencer Dinwiddie, and more will make this team very good. But like Serbia and Phoenix, a key player leaving in free agency means this team may have missed their best shot at a title.
11. Indiana Pacers - Pascal Siakam sucked something awful in Philly, but I really like what he showed when he was moved to SF in Indiana. Damian Lillard and Zach LaVine aren't getting any younger, but this threesome has a chance to make some playoff noise for a year or two; we've seen what teams with a few good guards can do if they get hot, even as a lower seed. Item number one on the Pacers list has to be turning De'Andre Hunter's massive contract either into a true star (if they have multiple firsts they can add to him), or at least selling him for some better performing role players on more manageable contracts.
12. Golden State Warriors - You'd have to try pretty hard to miss the playoffs with Zion Williamson. The Warriors did not miss the playoffs last year, and I doubt they will this year either. But with Bradley Beal reaching his 30s and starting to regress, I don't think I can project much growth either. Nic Claxton shooting up to an 85 is nice, but losing Kyle Kuzma in free agency is a blow they might not be able to replace. Again, if they keep this roster, the playoffs should be attainable, but they'd be unwise to expect more than a first round exit. It might be wiser to sell off players like Beal, Tyus Jones, and Reggie Bullock to rebuild a deeper team around Zion and Claxton for the future.
PLAY-IN TEAMS
13. New Orleans Pelicans - I love how this squad looks, with a dynamite backcourt of Kyrie Irving and Anthony Edwards surrounded by gritty defenders in Jarred Vanderbilt, Walker Kessler, and Xavier Tillman. They surged out to a hot start last year, but it seemed like the addition of Kyrie destabilized them as they stumbled down the stretch, and this bench is woefully thin (if your 6th man is Edmond Sumner, you're doing something wrong). But the Pels do have a treasure trove of assets, so if things aren't looking well early on, you can be sure they'll pivot.
14. Boston Celtics - On paper, this should be a top 5 roster in the league. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jalen Brunson, and Kristaps Porzingis might be the best big three in the league if you just took a straight average of their overall. Depth pieces like Jerami Grant, Derrick White, Bojan Bogdanovic, and Lu Dort are all theoretically perfect fits too. Yet that was all true last year, and this team failed to make the playoffs at all. They're too talented for me to predict a repeat there, but something might need to change in Boston.
15. Sacramento Kings - I definitely can see a scenario where this team is ranked wayyy too low. Darius Garland and Jabari Smith Jr. have both improved, and the other three starters (D'Angelo Russell, Clint Capela, and Brook Lopez) are all solid upgrades to 83+ players that should lift this team's ceiling. Saddiq Bey, Cole Anthony, and Davion Mitchell round a 8 man rotation of 80+ players, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl isn't bad either. With such a talented young squad (and a plethora of assets), I could see them adding a role player or two, consolidating some assets, and possibly even having home court advantage throughout the playoffs. For now though, they're still in a lump of teams with only one true star, and their weaknesses at forward could be a weakness that prevents them from maintaining true "playoff lock" status.
16. Memphis Grizzlies - This team is the definition of mid, but not necessarily in a bad way. Domantas Sabonis and Lauri Markkanen are both very solid players. Their backcourt rotation is a lot cleaner with Gary Trent Jr. and Mike Conley gone, as now C.J. McCollum and Malcolm Brogdon are the undisputed starters. However, there's not much to get excited about otherwise, and none of those players listed are not a TRUE #1 star.
17. Philadelphia 76ers - This team finished as a middling team that barely squeaked into the playoffs, and I'd expect a repeat. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is young and ascending, as is most of the team. There may be marginal improvements by many players, but losing Siakam for a full season (who sucked here, but looked revitalized in Indiana) and Clint Capela should be equally as detrimental. GM Sul Nea stumped for a GMOTY nomination last year, but sadly, making an in-season trade to take your team from the 12th seed to the 9th seed is not exactly the sort of move that wins such an award. Perhaps they'll be able to find a true second star to pair with SGA this year.
18. Portland Trail Blazers - LaMelo Ball, Desmond Bane, and Jaylen Brown score from the perimeter, while James Wiseman and Mitchell Robinson patrol the interior. It's a proven 2k formula that generally works... and yet, I don't recall the Blazers doing much with this squad last year. Perhaps some tweaks to the bench or coaching scheme will unlock this roster, but they've performed below what you'd expect up to this point, so we're in wait-and-see mode with them at the moment.
19. Washington Wizards - I'm not sure what's wrong with this team. With Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, CP3, and Brook Lopez, the Wizards seemingly had a dominant (if old) big 4. Yet they hardly made the playoffs, Brook Lopez left in free agency, and the other three all regressed. There's no team in need of a full reset more badly than this squad. I don't expect them to suck with three 86+ guys, but if last year is any indication, they won't be very good either.
20. Detroit Pistons - A lot of this team's success could hinge on how much Khris Middleton has left in the tank. The Pistons hung around the playoff area last year and just added an 88 overall, so perhaps it's disingenuous to not rank them higher, but there are a lot of good teams in the league! If Middleton still has it, Giddey performs like a true 88, and other players like Chet Holmgren, Herb Jones, and Ben Simmons take a step forward, then this squad could rise out of the play-in entirely; but that's a lot of ifs.
LOTTERY TEAMS
21. Miami Heat - This is one of the most one-sided teams in the game. Ja Morant, Anfernee Simons, and Michael Porter Jr. are unstoppable offensively, but are equally atrocious on the other end. Outside of possibly Jonas Valanciunas, there's not a single defensively oriented player above a 74 on the roster. Expect a very good offense, but a defense so bad that it keeps them out of the playoffs anyway.
22. Orlando Magic - Copy and paste most of what was said about the Heat here. Tyrese Maxey and Paolo Banchero really took big steps from last year, especially after the latter won Rookie of the Year. With them still in the starting lineup and Sexton still coming off the bench, this team should again have top-5 potential offensively. Yet they were top-5 last year offensively too, and still missed the playoffs thanks to an utterly atrocious defense. With Gobert getting shipped out, and players like Marcus Smart, Jeremy Sochan, Isaiah Stewart, and Isaac Okoro evidently not living up to their defensive reputations, it's hard to see how this team will improve much barring some massive changes.
23. Oklahoma City Thunder - De'Aaron Fox and Deandre Ayton should be a lot of fun together, and Klay Thompson is still an excellent release valve that might also take on more of a shot creation role with Brandon Ingram gone. Solid forwards like Jonathan Isaac, Norman Powell, and Deni Avdija are nice as well, even if this team has no true backup PG or C. Still, similar to some other teams, this squad looks solid on paper but didn't really produce last year, and I think their trade will make them take a slight step back if anything. With that in mind, I won't be moving them up very high until they earn it.
24. Toronto Raptors - Trae Young is transcendent, and will keep this team from tanking. Gary Trent Jr. is a solid wing next to him, and John Collins is decent (if vastly overpaid). There's not much else to get excited about on this team outside of rookie Cam Whitmore though, and they missed the playoffs by a longshot last year. Unless Whitmore is the second coming of Luka, I expect the same again this year.
25. Denver Nuggets - Cade Cunningham is up to a 90 overall, and the Nuggets just added Victor Wembanyama to their core of Cade and Jaden Ivey. Mark Williams and Talen Horton-Tucker are presumably the final starters, but might both have to change their positions as this group currently has no forwards. With a nice bench, I might believe in this squad, but as it stands they don't have a single backup above a 75. Still, with oodles of cap space and assets, the Nuggets have lots of time to change course if making the playoffs this year is a priority for them.
26. Cleveland Cavaliers - This team is moving up in the world, but not by much. Nikola Vucevic and Christian Wood were nice signings, but they also play the same position and make little sense together; look for one or both to be moved. This team is very very deep, and #2 and #3 overall picks Scoot Henderson and Brandon Miller should form a thrilling young quarter with Jalen Green and Keegan Murray. In real life, this team would struggle heavily relying so much on such young players. In 2k though, you never know.
27. Los Angeles Clippers - This team was not very good last year, as the Jaren Jackson Jr. and Karl-Anthony Towns duo never seemed to get rocking. They stayed stagnant while many teams improved, so while they aren't truly tanking, I don't have a lot of optimism for their squad.
TANKERS
28. San Antonio Spurs - Shockingly, all the 21 year olds are now 22! Check back when they ripen in 2-4 years.
29. Houston Rockets - Jarrett Allen being your first option offensively is generally not a good sign. This team is a little frustrating, because in many ways it's built perfectly, with all the right role players ready to surround one or two true stars. If Trae Young or Luke Doncic was on this team, I'd love it. However, there isn't one here, and there's really no conceivable way for them to get one this year. Many a spot-up shooter (Jalen Williams Malik Monk, Buddy Hield, Tim Hardaway Jr.) will spend most of the year waiting for a kickout pass that will never come.
30. Minnesota Timberwolves - Immanuel Quickley has done well to progress up to an 84 overall, but if that's your best player, you're in some hot water. benedict Mathurin is best suited for a 6th man role, but he's the 2nd best player here. The only reliable vet is Tobias Harris, and he probably gets released before the year is over. GM RNT took over a roster in the worst salary cap hell I've ever seen, and should have them completely out of it by the end of the year, and that's a commendable result (even if some may question a few of the individual moves). Moving forward, I think they might actually be in relatively healthy shape, and if one or two of their draft picks hit, they'll be ready to go. But that's a conversation for next year; for now, they'll be letting Harris and Gobert's money expire, playing their young guys, and losing a lot of games.
31. Dallas Mavericks - What a fall from grace for a team expected to make a deep playoff run last year. The only player above an 80 that they got back in return for Kevin Durant, John Wall, and DeMar DeRozan was Franz Wagner, and he performs pretty poorly in the sim. This team's best player is Alperen Sengun, which should be funny to watch, but should not make for a competitive team.
32. Charlotte Hornets - Scottie Barnes is good, but his playstyle is not conducive to carrying bad rosters, which is surely what he'll have to do considering the second best player on this team is Naz Reid. Keyontae George, Noah Crawley, and Ausar Thompson will certainly get a lot of playing time this year!