Post by Ian Noble on Jun 21, 2014 14:57:27 GMT
2014 Executive of the Year
Introduction: Commissioner's 2014 Address to the League
2014 Executive of the Year
CHRIS MULLIN
Golden State Warriors
The 2014 Dynasty Five Executive of the Year award goes to Chris Mullin of the Golden State Warriors!
This year there was really only one team who was expected to win every game they played. They had the longest win streak in D5 history to start the season, vaulting themselves to a 25-0 position by mid December, performing at a level of domination never before seen! 2014 was the year of the Golden State Warriors, their emergence as one of the most mighty squads assembled, with their inside-outside combination of splash-brothers backcourt and Dwight Howard front court, they towered over the Western Conference all season!
The first stroke of brilliance came on July 17th, 2013, when real-life rookie of the year, Michael Carter-Williams, fell all the way to #9 in the 2013 Rookie Draft whereupon Chris Mullin snatched him up and actually had to sit him on the bench behind Steph Curry all season!
On August 10th the biggest signing in the 2013 Off Season Free Agency class also fell to Golden State when they landed superstar Dwight Howard in a move which would instantly cement the Warriors as contenders! Within two months Chris Mullin had achieved both the best rookie pick-up and the biggest free agent signing of the 2013 off season! Mullin wasn't done with free agency and continued to use the Warriors cap space, signing Anthony Morrow, Darrell Arthur, Daniel Gibson and Jamal Crawford.
The Warriors had an off-season glut at point guard, with Steph Curry, Goran Dragic and Michael Carter-Williams all vying for court time, but in perhaps the most questionable trade of his season Mullin could only find Omer Asik to fill a need at Center that would later be filled by Dwight Howard, in exchange for future real-life MVP candidate Goran Dragic.
With perhaps the biggest off season for any team in D5 history over and done with, Chris Mullin's Warriors set about obliterating all competition during the regular season. Perhaps the only drawback to Mullin's achievement is that his trading didn't entirely lend itself to success and occurred at times when continuity would've been a better mantra, as well as the fact that his drafting of MCW and signing of Dwight were also feats of luck as much as GM skill. End of season Golden State were a team that did seem mortal afterall, as evidenced by their 6 game series loss in the Western Conference Finals against eventual champions, Portland. Having started the season looking like a 70-win team, Golden State lost their edge towards the end of the season but still finished with an impressive 64 wins.
Prior to the season start, in January 2014, Mullin traded Kenneth Faried for real-life Warrior Andre Iguodala in a trade which then gave Golden State a quality starting small forward and probably was the boost they needed to begin their early-season domination. But as early as in-game-January both Iguodala and, most notably, Michael Carter-Williams were packaged together and sent to Brooklyn for Pau Gasol and Kemba Walker and the Warriors 32W - 2L start up until that point changed into a mirror image 32W - 16L by season's end.
Nevertheless Mullin kept an eye on his dynasty status throughout the year and made deals such as the one that jettisoned Omer Asik for both Ray Allen and Brandon Bass, giving Golden State a true starting power forward who was turned into Pau Gasol as well as the greatest three-point shooter of all time to sit behind two other greats in Golden State's backcourt!
Chris Mullin's nemesis in the Western Conference, Clyde Drexler, called it way back when Dwight put pen to paper. Congratulations Chris Mullin, 2014 Executive of the Year!
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
Second Place
LA Lakers - Magic Johnson
Third Place
Philadelphia 76ers - Allen Iverson
Fourth Place
Milwaukee Bucks - Glenn Robinson
Fifth Place
Dallas Mavericks - Danny Longley
This year there are five shortlisted candidates for the Dynasty Five 2014 Executive of the Year Award! Each candidate will be announced from last to first over the next five days to see who has won the most prestigious award in the league!
Introduction: Commissioner's 2014 Address to the League
When Dynasty Five began in the 2011/12 season there was immediately a tumult of activity as each General Manager sought to put their stamp of authority and individuality on their team, this activity continued through to the 2012/13 season as each team and each dynasty status became established and entrenched. Clyde Drexler assembled his championship winning squad, Alex English acquired three of the league's youngest franchise players and Glenn Robinson continues to build a promising young Bucks squad in Milwaukee.
However when the 2013/14 season began most of the groundwork for the future had already been laid, and so the league transitioned from it's early tumultuous state into an era defined more by the continuity of Dynasty Five's most heralded GMs, rather than the initial flurried and masterful trading that led us to where we are today. Most of this year's activity occurred either because new GMs arrived or because an established team changed direction, but as a result there was really only one team who altered their fortunes on the same scale as we've been accustomed to seeing in the past, though they achieved it in quite a different way.
It is within this environment and under these conditions that the 2014 Dynasty Five Executive of the Year will be announced. Though there can be only one winner, thank you to all the General Managers who continue to make D5 the best sim league on the planet!
5th place will be announced either later today or tomorrow.
2014 Executive of the Year
CHRIS MULLIN
Golden State Warriors
The 2014 Dynasty Five Executive of the Year award goes to Chris Mullin of the Golden State Warriors!
This year there was really only one team who was expected to win every game they played. They had the longest win streak in D5 history to start the season, vaulting themselves to a 25-0 position by mid December, performing at a level of domination never before seen! 2014 was the year of the Golden State Warriors, their emergence as one of the most mighty squads assembled, with their inside-outside combination of splash-brothers backcourt and Dwight Howard front court, they towered over the Western Conference all season!
The first stroke of brilliance came on July 17th, 2013, when real-life rookie of the year, Michael Carter-Williams, fell all the way to #9 in the 2013 Rookie Draft whereupon Chris Mullin snatched him up and actually had to sit him on the bench behind Steph Curry all season!
On August 10th the biggest signing in the 2013 Off Season Free Agency class also fell to Golden State when they landed superstar Dwight Howard in a move which would instantly cement the Warriors as contenders! Within two months Chris Mullin had achieved both the best rookie pick-up and the biggest free agent signing of the 2013 off season! Mullin wasn't done with free agency and continued to use the Warriors cap space, signing Anthony Morrow, Darrell Arthur, Daniel Gibson and Jamal Crawford.
The Warriors had an off-season glut at point guard, with Steph Curry, Goran Dragic and Michael Carter-Williams all vying for court time, but in perhaps the most questionable trade of his season Mullin could only find Omer Asik to fill a need at Center that would later be filled by Dwight Howard, in exchange for future real-life MVP candidate Goran Dragic.
With perhaps the biggest off season for any team in D5 history over and done with, Chris Mullin's Warriors set about obliterating all competition during the regular season. Perhaps the only drawback to Mullin's achievement is that his trading didn't entirely lend itself to success and occurred at times when continuity would've been a better mantra, as well as the fact that his drafting of MCW and signing of Dwight were also feats of luck as much as GM skill. End of season Golden State were a team that did seem mortal afterall, as evidenced by their 6 game series loss in the Western Conference Finals against eventual champions, Portland. Having started the season looking like a 70-win team, Golden State lost their edge towards the end of the season but still finished with an impressive 64 wins.
Prior to the season start, in January 2014, Mullin traded Kenneth Faried for real-life Warrior Andre Iguodala in a trade which then gave Golden State a quality starting small forward and probably was the boost they needed to begin their early-season domination. But as early as in-game-January both Iguodala and, most notably, Michael Carter-Williams were packaged together and sent to Brooklyn for Pau Gasol and Kemba Walker and the Warriors 32W - 2L start up until that point changed into a mirror image 32W - 16L by season's end.
Nevertheless Mullin kept an eye on his dynasty status throughout the year and made deals such as the one that jettisoned Omer Asik for both Ray Allen and Brandon Bass, giving Golden State a true starting power forward who was turned into Pau Gasol as well as the greatest three-point shooter of all time to sit behind two other greats in Golden State's backcourt!
Chris Mullin's nemesis in the Western Conference, Clyde Drexler, called it way back when Dwight put pen to paper. Congratulations Chris Mullin, 2014 Executive of the Year!
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
Original Team
Al Jefferson
David Lee
Arron Afflalo
Klay Thompson
Stephen Curry
Current Team
Dwight Howard
Pau Gasol
Klay Thompson
Jamal Crawford
Stephen Curry
Al Jefferson
David Lee
Arron Afflalo
Klay Thompson
Stephen Curry
Current Team
Dwight Howard
Pau Gasol
Klay Thompson
Jamal Crawford
Stephen Curry
Second Place
LA Lakers - Magic Johnson
Second place for this year's Executive of the Year Award goes to Magic Johnson of the LA Lakers, however this lofty standing in the EOTY race may be the only consolation after an absent OSFA period which has seen the Lake-show lose out on using their tremendous amount of cap space.
Magic Johnson primed his Lakers to make a huge splash in free agency this year but left the country and was unfortunately absent from the moment Off Season Free Agency begun. Despite sending a plethora of offers prior to his absence, the inability to negotiate terms came back to haunt LA. The number 1 free agent destination in the league will have to wait another year and see which players might fall to them next off season - time will tell whether the re-signed Kobe Bryant still has that level of patience!
Los Angeles overachieved in the regular season this year and showed expert planning in at least teeing themselves up to be a power player in free agency. Veteran center Marcin Gortat was obtained from the Pelicans in exchange essentially only for filler and a first round pick that sits far in the future, giving the Lakers one of the most formidable frontcourts in the league with Gortat teaming up with Nicola Vucevic and Zach Randolph!
The trade that could have been a boost for the Lakers allowed Arron Afflalo and Gerald Green to leave in exchange for expiring contracts in a move that seemed admirable at the time but disappointing in retrospect.
The big hitter trade this year for the Lakers was the obtaining of Goran Dragic for Omer Asik just moments before Dragic had a season for the Suns in real life in which he was mentioned in discussions in the race for the MVP! Dragic went on to receive a ratings boost and Magic Johnson had himself an All Star backcourt to compliment his front court!
Magic played the long game this season, with a view to bolstering his Lakers for the next decade, and it is this admirable approach and its excellent execution that sees him take second place. EOTY is technically judged on performance prior to the start of Off Season Free Agency and for that reason Magic Johnson earns this consolation prize. Leaving to go on holiday half way around the world is awful timing for the second longest tenured GM in Dynasty Five History, but the trading and planning that went before is how his performance is being judged. For that reason Magic Johnson earns his first mention in the Executive of the Year discussions since it's inception and for the first time in his 7 year career!
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
2013 Team
Nicola Vucevic
Zach Randolph
Harrison Barnes
Kobe Bryant
Chauncey Billups
Current Team
Marcin Gortat
Zach Randolph
Harrison Barnes
Kobe Bryant
Goran Dragic
Nicola Vucevic
Zach Randolph
Harrison Barnes
Kobe Bryant
Chauncey Billups
Current Team
Marcin Gortat
Zach Randolph
Harrison Barnes
Kobe Bryant
Goran Dragic
Third Place
Philadelphia 76ers - Allen Iverson
Third place in this year's Executive of the Year race is awarded to another Filipino GM: Allen Iverson of the Philadelphia 76ers!
Of all the criteria upon which a GM is judged, the ability to make impressive trades is perhaps the most important in the awarding of the Executive of the Year. Trading skill shows an ability to outwit other GMs in the process of improving your own team and it's possible that noone did it better this year than Allen Iverson!
To begin the season Philly had plenty of quality but average players, by the end of the season the Sixers looked a lot more about quality rather than quantity. On March 28th Iverson picked up Chris Bosh and Patty Mills, trading away Andrew Bogut, Kemba Walker and Thomas Robinson to get them. Bosh lined up alongside Al Jefferson and one of the most formidable frontcourt duos in the history of D5 was born.
In a balanced trade two days prior to bringing in Chris Bosh, the Sixers also acquired Jeff Green from Utah but jettisoned Dion Waiters in the process, time will tell whether this deal netted the Sixers a winner but it gave Philly the opportunity to trade Jeff Green and Tyler Hansbrough to Indiana for a starting shooting guard in Monta Ellis and a future 1st.
Allen Iverson has achieved all of this without trading away his future, he still owns all his draft picks except 2016, when he possesses Washington's 1st which is currently scheduled to be a much higher pick after this season's unfortunate mismanagement of the Wizards.
With over $20m in cap space created by their trades, Philadelphia also entered the off season as perhaps one of the most promising free agent destinations, with so much talent to court their targets, and this has been reflected by the signing of Andre Iguodala, one of the highest profile poaches of talent so far this year, in a move which bolsters the 2016 pick Philly holds, only 4 days into free agency.
The Sixers probably still need to take one or two extra steps before they can stand shoulder to shoulder alongside their Eastern championship contenders but, as time progresses, Allen Iverson is gradually ensuring they keep edging towards their final goal. If Iverson keeps on the same track there's no reason why not!
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
2013 Team
Andrew Bogut
Al Jefferson
Derrick Williams
Dion Waiters
Ty Lawson
Current Team
Chris Bosh
Al Jefferson
Andre Iguodala
Monta Ellis
Ty Lawson
Andrew Bogut
Al Jefferson
Derrick Williams
Dion Waiters
Ty Lawson
Current Team
Chris Bosh
Al Jefferson
Andre Iguodala
Monta Ellis
Ty Lawson
Fourth Place
Milwaukee Bucks - Glenn Robinson
Fourth place goes to Glenn Robinson of the Milwaukee Bucks who now holds the prestigious distinction of being the only GM to be shortlisted for Executive of the Year twice!
Big Dog Robinson headlines a crop of GMs who fit into the group of teams that are rebuilding, who are teeing themselves up for major success in the next decade of play. Of all the teams in this group, Milwaukee's future has already materialised and continued to grow perhaps more than any of the other teams in this group during the 2013/14 season. Milwaukee's core is primarily based around their 2012 #1 pick Anthony Davis as well as Andre Drummond, Bradley Beal and now Jrue Holiday.
The lacklustre 2013 draft provided Glenn Robinson with disappointment of the year, Otto Porter, who was unceremoniously traded one month later, before he'd ever played a game, in a balanced trade that saw Jrue Holiday arrive in Milwaukee and Porter join Brandon Knight and John Henson on their way to Houston and Washington.
Perhaps most admirable about Glenn Robinson's GMing is that he continues to pursue his rebuild and has not deviated from his plan since joining the Bucks in August 2012, 3 months after the league began. In May Glenn pulled the trigger on an unequivocally beneficial 3-way trade which sent veteran Jose Calderon and non-entities Trevor Booker and Jon Leuer for the youthful prospects of Maurice Harkless, Perry Jones, Dante Cunningham and Marshon Brooks, as well as Goran Suton. Milwaukee dropped salary, got younger and got some pieces that he now has the choice of whether to re-sign or pick up their team options.
A week after the previous trade, Glenn jettisoned Chase Budinger and Jason Thompson in exchange for the expiring Danny Granger in a move that freed up yet more cap space for the upcoming off season and which further propelled the Milwaukee Bucks towards their ultimate goal.
With a team stacked full of jaw-droppingly talented youngsters, an all-time league record lowest salary situation and an eye for perhaps the most promising free agent crop in recent years, we may very well see Glenn Robinson not only receiving his third mention in Executive of the Year discussion next season, but he may finally take the gold wreaths for himself as he drafts at #15 and enters OSFA with a mere $28m on the books.
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
2013 Team
Andre Drummond
Anthony Davis
Alonzo Gee
Bradley Beal
Brandon Knight
Current Team
Andre Drummond
Anthony Davis
Chandler Parsons
Bradley Beal
Jrue Holiday
Andre Drummond
Anthony Davis
Alonzo Gee
Bradley Beal
Brandon Knight
Current Team
Andre Drummond
Anthony Davis
Chandler Parsons
Bradley Beal
Jrue Holiday
Fifth Place
Dallas Mavericks - Danny Longley
Fifth place in the running for 2014 Executive of the Year is awarded to the Dallas Mavericks Danny Longley!
Dallas headlines a group of productive and already successful teams that continue to shore up their foundations and push to get over the hump and contend for the championship! The Mavericks were the only team during the recent 2014 Playoffs to hold the eventual champion Portland Trailblazers to a full seven-game series and led the South West Division by a significant margin throughout the regular season.
Dallas continues to be led by MVP snubbee Dirk Nowitzki, the man who owns the Dynasty Five All-Time Scoring Records thread, but Danny Longley continues to put in place a retinue of established talent around the future Hall of Famer.
Most significantly this season, in perhaps one of the biggest marquee trades of the year, the Mavericks acquired franchise-player point guard Rajon Rondo from the Boston Celtics in an epic three-way deal with Boston and Indiana, which gave Dirk perhaps the best sidekick he's ever had; a defensively minded distributor to make plays! Dallas may have mortgaged their future to get there, having traded away four first round picks to make the deal (!), but this comes from Mr Longley knowing his team's status and perhaps making one last push with an aging superstar to whom he has remained steadfastly dedicated.
The Mavs lineup otherwise consists of three players acquired by trades that have all been beneficial to the them. Evan Turner was acquired from the Bucks before he exploded for Philly in real life, prior to being unfortunately shipped to the Pacers where he was further down the rotation, but nontheless with a boosted stock. The acquisition of Nene and Tyler Hansbrough from the Grizzlies finally gave Dirk a quality complimentary big-man to draw pressure in the post. Another solid trade worthy of mention was the pickup of the solid Jared Dudley, who became a starter for the Mavs, in exchange for Tyler Hansbrough back in April.
Whilst the window for success in Dallas will no doubt be closing in the next few years, Danny Longley has recognised his team's position and built the Mavericks accordingly, turning Dallas into a team that was one win away from facing Golden State in the Western Conference Finals using a strategy that will no doubt evolve when the sun finally sets on the Dirk-era Mavs.
Trading:
Signing:
Drafting:
Planning:
2013 Team
Dirk Nowitzki
Jason Maxiell
Shane Battier
Louis Williams
Devin Harris
Current Team
Nene
Dirk Nowitzki
Jared Dudley
Evan Turner
Rajon Rondo
Dirk Nowitzki
Jason Maxiell
Shane Battier
Louis Williams
Devin Harris
Current Team
Nene
Dirk Nowitzki
Jared Dudley
Evan Turner
Rajon Rondo