I'm usually a positive guy when it comes to these picks, but.....
Tayshaun - Although I do beleive that Assani is spot on with the "role players overvalued" argument, I think that Tayshaun is more valuable than your average role-player. Apart from playing great defense, he does pretty much everything else quite well. I think this is a nice solid pick to go with your team.
Mark Eaton - If you could go back and look at posters of superstars from the 80s, Mark Eaton would be on many of them. It's hard to talk about him without mentioning other players, but let's just say that he wasn't nearly the monster on defense that some claim. He blocked a ton of shots(not in top 5 figuring block %), but like all many other freakishly tall players, he was completely exposed by a lot of offenses. Mark was extremely slow and immobile, and would very often be caught out of position. How he won 2 DPOYs is beyond me, because he seemed to give up a facial for every one of his blocks. I think he'd be even more exposed in this format because there are so many big men who can shoot, and he had no defense to speak of outside the paint. On offense, he was deplorable. For a guy who had such a low usage, he was a turnover machine due to his inability to set a legal screen and his hands of stone. With Mark Eaton on offense, the opposing team's defense has free reign to cheat all they want because Mark had little concept of basketball and how to use his size... not really his fault, because he did pick up the game very late. If there were a stat for "offensive loss shares," I'm quite sure Eaton would be at or near the lead. I understand that a defensive stopper is a big need for many teams, but I think this was quite a reach given who is available.
Whoop de damn do Coleman - Man I'm so tilted by Bobbo's pick here. When you talk about team cancers, usually that player has one or two of these characteristics:
Alienating the media/fans
Primadonna attitude
Individual success over team success
Locker room Distraction
Laziness
Off the court issues
Not living up to potential
Injury problems
Derick Coleman... Check, check, check, check, check, check, check aaaaaand check.. And let's not forget that we he could have been a few fast breaks away from joining Hank Gathers and other unmentionables. Seriously, this guy makes Melo look like David Robinson from a character standpoint. He had tremendous talent, one of the most gifted players that I've ever seen, and he managed to piss it all away with for the above reasons. I understand that you want a low post guy who can pass for an inside-outside game, but DC wasn't that type of player. Early on, he got his assists (and turnovers) from running around thinking he's Scottie Pippen. As his health and athleticism deteriorated, so did his ballhandling and passing. Besides, why do you need another post up guy? You have freaking SHAQ! The most efficient player in the draft on the low block, and the only guy who can get position whenever he wants it. With Shaq, do you need to pick on the "worst post defender"? I don't care who you're playing, DC will never be a better option on the low Block than Shaq. That's like having AI and Jordan on the same team and watching Iverson hoist contested 20 footers.
Defensively he was ok, but aside from his rebounding was nothing spectacular. He was primarily a help defender, like Shaq. He became a much better 1v1 defender later in his career, but by that time he had been reduced to a role player, which will be more than easy to find during later rounds.
I don't think you can find #2 offensive options who rebounded and passed like DC, but I don't think you needed one either, especially a PF who has had a TS >55% all of one time in his entire career. And now you've got two players who
will have to be subbed at the end of big games.
I think you had so many better options here given the awesomeness of your first two guys...
DC did have a couple really cool commercials though, they were pretty controversial at the time. Couldn't find them on youtube unfortunately..
Last edited by Seadood228; 05-26-2008 at 10:27 AM.