Chad's Awesome Squad

We'll skip the pleasantries and get right down to business. If you aren't aware of the rules for my selections please check out our blog post "Jake's Awesome Squad + Rules" for a much more in-depth introduction to this topic. In short we set out some guidelines for how and who we were allowed to pick for our teams. From there it was all imagination to see how good we could be. And I do believe I have quite the international and basketball IQ superteam here...

My Squad

1 - John Stockton

2 - Drazen Petrovic

3 - Toni Kukoc

4- Tim Duncan

5 - Arvydas Sabonis

B - Manu Ginobili

B - Patty Mills

B - Marco Belinelli

B - Matt Bonner

B - Len Bias

C - Gregg Popovich

Style of Play

I specifically chose this team with one style of play in mind, it’s won five championships in two different decades and has been in contention in a powerful Western Conference every year in-between. That style is Gregg Popovich’s system he employs with the San Antonio Spurs.

If we’re going with Popovich as the coach, it only makes sense to choose the best player he ever worked with, the best power forward of all-time, Tim Duncan as my MVP selection. Tim was the epitome of Popovich’s Spurs. He bought in fully and everyone else fell in line. He was seemingly shy to outsiders but a great leader. Duncan was a 5x NBA Champ, 2x MVP, 3x Finals MVP, 15x All-NBA, 15x All-Defense, 15x All-Star, and the rookie of the year. In his prime he was averaging over 20 points per game, double digit rebounds, and over 2.5 blocks. These stats aren’t particularly better than other guys I could’ve chosen, say MJ, LeBron, Chamberlain, but I want to win and I want to win with a system so it will transcend the constant flux of talent that NBA teams inevitably have. And with that being my M.O., I know Duncan fits my system perfectly.

With Stockton at the point we have the all-time league leader in assists and steals by 3,700 and nearly 600 respectively. No active player…scratch that…no player in history is even remotely close to touching those records. Mix that with him being the greatest pick-and-roll point guard of all-time and he’s going to be unstoppable working with Duncan who is arguably the only power forward in history that’s better than Karl Malone, Stockton’s Utah Jazz teammate. Stockton helped Malone be so dominant as the screener in the pick-and-roll he’s number two all-time on the NBA scoring list. But unlike those Jazz teams, Stockton is going to be surrounded with high IQ players who can stroke the three. Drive and kick. Drive and kick. Drive and kick.

For my non-all-star starters I’ve got three international sensations in Drazen Petrovic, Toni Kukoc, and Arvydas Sabonis. When in his prime, NBA experts say that Sabonis would’ve been one of the greatest NBA players of all-time. Unfortunately he didn’t make the jump to the league until he was in his twilight years (31 years old) on two bad legs. But even Sabonis was a force on those Blazers teams he played for and a great passer too which fits well in this system. I used to love watching him and Shaq go at it. Anyone who can stand toe-to-toe with The Big Diesel while being in his twilight years is more than qualified to handle any big man in today’s game. Drazen Petrovic was also supposed to be one of the greatest players to ever come out of Europe but a tragic car crash took his life far too soon. Just watch the ESPN film “Once Brothers,” and you’ll know he could ball. He was voted the best Euro player ever in 2013. Yes, 2013. That’s after the world had witnessed Dirk Nowitzki win a championship and Finals MVP, Pau Gasol win two, and Tony Parker win three plus one Finals MVP. We may have just glimpsed the beginning of his prime the season before his tragic passing when he averaged 22.3PPG, 3.5APG, 1.3SPG all while shooting over 50% from the field, 87% from the free throw line, and a lights out 45% from three. Just for reference that’s higher than Steph in seven of Steph’s ten seasons in the league. And then there’s Kukoc. Not the best of these three international phenoms but the dude could shoot. He played four seasons in which he averaged over 40% from three and one of those seasons was on the verge of eclipsing 50%. That’s in an era where three point shots weren’t highly thought of. It was all about the mid-range game. Kukoc was also a smooth player without the ball. Always making brilliantly timed cuts to the perfect spot. That skill alone will fit perfectly in my (Gregg Popovich’s) offensive scheme.

Defensively we’ll be just fine as well. We already discussed Stockton’s defensive record that no one is likely to ever touch. Petrovic is 6’ 5” at the two-guard and as stated above was good for more than one steal per game, Kukoc is 6’ 10” at the three, Duncan was 15x all-defense, and Sabonis averaged 1.1 blocks during his NBA career. To put Sabonis’ blocks into perspective, Tim Duncan who averaged over two blocks for his career and is one of the best defensive big men of all-time was in the one block per game range all but two seasons from the age of 31-38. The same age of Sabonis while he was in the league. And Duncan wasn’t riddled with leg injuries.

Oh and before I forget, my starting five shoots 83, 84, 73, 70, and 79% respectively from the free throw line. I’ll take my chances with that squad up three in crunch time.

As my sixth man I selected arguably the greatest sixth man of all-time, future hall-of-famer, Manu Ginobili. Not a whole lot needs to be said here. He's won multiple championships in Popovich's system while playing with Duncan. He's the ultimate "gamer." He's clutch. He can shoot, pass, attack the basket with finesse. He's one of those guys that you believe undoubtedly will get the job done when the time comes. Essentially I see him as a sixth starter. If I end up with an injury I can easily plug him in and not miss a step. The addition of Ginobili will make my team even that much more fun to watch as well. He's probably in my top five favorite players ever.

As my reserves I went all-Spurs. I’ve selected Marco Belinelli for his three point shooting ability - roughly 39% the past two seasons. And while that’s not an outstanding percentage, just think about how much the Sixers missed Belinelli at the start of this year because they needed guys who could space the floor. Belinelli is a gamer. And he’s also someone who has proven he can be successful playing for the Spurs. Something he’s had the opportunity to do twice now. Sorry, Philly. After Belinelli I wanted to go with Danny Green but he didn’t qualify under our restrictions so I went with Patty Mills. Patty adds another steady hand at the point. I can’t even count how many times Tony Parker would be out of the game and you’d see him stand up on the bench cheering for something Patty had just done on the court. Mills averages nearly 40% from three and 85% from the free throw line. I’ll take that for a guy that will really only be used to give Stockton a quick breather. Lastly, I was going to pick Big Shot Bob, Robert Horry, but like Danny Green he’s had too many individual accolades. But I’m actually kind of happy with that because he’s too seasoned. Too well known.

I’m going with the man of many names, The Red Rocket, The Sandwich Hunter, the one and only, Matt Bonner. Nothing about this dude looked like he should be in the NBA. But boy was it exciting to see him get in and make things happen. Undoubtedly he’d come in and and knock down a big three or make a beautiful fundamental pass to a score. At 6’ 10” I have a 41% three point shooter who can step in to give Duncan or Sabonis a few minutes rest.

Last but not least - because you’re only as strong as your weakest link, right? - is my bench warmer. When I saw that I get to pick a bench warmer I knew exactly who I wanted. There was no way this guy played 13 or more minutes per game as he was known as the NBA version of a walk-on, only coming in at the end of a blowout. Despite that, he was a basketball sensation. And yet, upon further review, The White Mamba himself, Brian Scalabrine averaged exactly 13.0 minutes per game for his career. So I was left to search for names that basically never got to play. And then it dawned on me, there is one guy who was projected to be similar to Michael Jordan going into his 1986 draft, yet he never stepped foot on an NBA floor. Yes, my bench warmer is the man who threw it all away for one night of “fun,” Len Bias. Best to say no to drugs, folks. A #2 overall pick who had MJ projections is hard to turn down. I’d rather have the college version of Bias than literally anyone else I can think of. And 0.0 minutes per game is definitely under 13.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Strengths I believe have already been stated. We have the perfect group of guys to execute Gregg Popovich’s system. Great passers at every position, lights out three point shooters, long players for their position, all-time great defenders, high basketball IQ, arguably the best power forward of all-time, arguably the best point guard of all-time, the list goes on. Our biggest weakness I believe is going to be our athleticism. We have NBA quality athletes and size but we don’t have that explosive guard like an MJ or Kobe that can beat their man whenever we need a bucket. Although Ginobili gets the job done in his own way. We’ll have to rely on team offense to get wins. And while I’m more than fine with that, as I believe it’s more reliable, there will be that one night where we need “the guy” and don’t have him.

Overall Season Prediction

Record: 63-19

I imagine the season for this team looking a bit like San Antonio has looked almost every year since the late ‘90s - in contention in the West but on steroids. The real question being, can smart basketball and international superstars overcome the firepower of the Golden State Warriors? I want to believe so. But at the same time I don’t think there is a team in history, except the Dream Team, that I would put big money on to beat these Warriors. That said, if anyone can do it I think it’s this squad. We have high IQ, shooters, good ball movement, defense, length. Everything we could possibly need other than a five all-star starting lineup. That said, if Petrovic had been able to have a full career and if Sabonis had come over in his early twenties, I’d probably have four all-stars myself. The optimist in me says 4-3 my squad takes it. The realist in me says 4-2 the Warriors repeat.

Stat Leaders

Points: Petrovic - 21.8

Rebounds: Duncan - 12.1

Assists: Stockton - 15.6

Steals: Stockton - 2.4

Blocks: Duncan - 2.6

Turnovers: Stockton - 2.2

Jake's Review

I really like the outline of this team and have long been a fan of the Spurs-esque "beautiful game", surrounded Duncan a.k.a. The Big Fundamental with some excellent shooters and system passers - this team is going to mimic the 2014 Spurs, but on steroids. I can only imagine the demoralising effect of playing intense defense with the ball always one step ahead of you, it's going to be devastating in the regular season where opponents will simply be ground down on a nightly basis. Playing this style of basketball is also bound to lead to less night-to-night fatigue as well as maybe record breaking team assist numbers. This team is going to punish you inside and outside. All. Day. Long. And they'll still be fresh for the playoffs.

You have found a flaw in your masterpiece however within this team's athleticism - when playoff time comes and this team matches up with the Warriors I would imagine they'd have some struggles with a switching defense. You saw how the 2014 Spurs broke down Miami's swarming man defense, but the Warriors are able to switch on ANY screen. When a team is able to switch on you like this you're eventually going to have to rely on some one on one magic. Which leads us to the point that this team is built to be system-orientated/Popovich's magic trick, which I'm not sure could go head to head at every position with the Warriors. I'd take Duncan and Arvydas over Cousins and Draymond but I'd have to give Steph, Klay and KD the edge over the rest of your starting 5. 

I think we see some incredible stretches of unselfish, best shot basketball with this team, and they'd definitely be a League Pass 'must watch' - Tim Duncan's steady leadership, Ardyvas' incredible vision and the supporting cast's basketball IQ would take this team easily through the playoffs. However, I think the Warriors edge them 4-3  but they gain incredible respect as a team that COULD have knocked The Bay area off it's pedestal.