by Dirkules on Wed Nov 10, 2004 11:09 pm
I have made a list of suggestions for the next roster update. I did this last year as well, and Andrew was able to use quite a lot of my suggestions for his roster, so I figured I'd do it again this year.
If someone disagrees, please say so. If someone wants to add someting, then feel free to do it.
Of course you can't change every players ratings, so I only listed those of the stars, or those which I felt were really off.
Also, I mostly suggested upgrades, because I feel it is worse when a player isn't as good in NBA Live as he is in reality than when a player is a little overrated. Who cares if someones 3Pt rating or whatever is a little high. But it really sucks when a player like Carlos Boozer, who is tearing it up in Utah, can hardly do anything in NBA Live (offensively).
I hope this helps you a little, Andrew.
So here we go:
Atlanta Hawks
(Atlanta has been as bad as they are supposed to be with that roster so far, and no one really should be upgraded on that team. Well, with the exception of Drobnjak perhaps, whose FG and 3Pt could be UPgraded a little. But the rest is fine. Does anyone even care about the Hawks?)
Boston Celtics
Paul Pierce: 3Pt UP a little, Passing UP
Ricky Davis: FG and 3Pt both UP a little
Mark Blount: Ins.Scr. UP, maybe Block UP a little
Raef LaFrentz: 3Pt Up a little, Ins.Scr. DOWN a little
(Celts have a pretty solid starting five ... for the East.)
Charlotte Bobcats
Primoz Brecez: FT, Off.Reb, & Def.Reb. all UP, FG & Ins.Scr. UP a little
(THE find of the (off-)season: Primoz Brecez. Okafor's ratings seem just fine to me.)
Chicago Bulls
Luol Deng: FG UP, Off.Reb. UP, Def.REB. UP a little
(People thought Gordon could win ROY. Don't overlook Deng, who is very very solid.)
Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron James: FG UP, 3Pt Up a little, Steals UP a little, Speed & Quickness UP
Drew Gooden: FG UP
(LeBron is getting better and better. Gooden makes the loss of Boozer a little easier for the Cavs.)
Dallas Mavericks
Erick Dampier: Ins.Scr. UP
Dirk Nowitzki: 3Pt UP, Steal and Block UP a little
Jerry Stackhouse: FG DOWN, 3Pt DOWN
Michael Finley: Speed DOWN
Marquis Daniels: FG UP, 3Pt UP a little (maybe), Passing UP a little, Speed and Quickness UP (a lot), Dribbling UP, Def.Awareness UP, Stamina UP (a lot)
Devin Harris: FG UP a little, 3Pt UP a lot, Steal UP, Off. & Def.Awareness UP, Speed & Quickness UP a little
Dan Dickau: FG DOWN, 3Pt Down a little, Speed & Quickness DOWN a little
(Well, I'm am Mavs fan, so you may think I'm a homer or something. But I tried to be objective and even suggested some downgrades. Finley doesn't deserve a 87 Speed rating, and Stack just isn't the 29 ppg scorer he once was anymore. Overall I think there is a lot wrong with the Mavs ratings. For instance, how can Dickau have higher ratings for Speed and Quickness than Marquis Daniels? Daniels is as smooth as anyone out on the court, whereas Dickau has to be the slowest guard in the league. Seriously. And I really believe how EA rated Daniels is their worst mistake this year. You just can't rate a player by his season stats when he didn't start until late in the season and was his team's second best scorer by playoff time.)
Denver Nuggets
Kenyon Martin: Ins.Scr. UP a little, FG UP a little, Off.Reb. UP a little
(WTF is wrong with Melo? Did he just have a miserable first week or did he lose his game over the summer?)
Detroit Pistons
Ben Wallace: Passing UP a littlem Strength UP
Rasheed Wallace: Steal UP a little, Strength UP a little
Tayshaun Prince: Steal UP
Richard Hamilton: Passing UP, FG UP a little, maybe 3Pt up a little
Chauncey Billups: 3Pt UP a little, Steal UP a little
(The champs deserve a little more respect.)
Golden State Warriors
Derek Fisher: FG & 3PT DOWN
(Man, is ANYONE playing well for the Warriors??)
Houston Rockets
Tracy McGrady: FG UP
(Houston's ratings are kind of okay. Some minor mistakes, but nothing that really jumps at me. Jimmy Jackson's shooting ratings may seem a little high to everyone who has seen him play this season, but one week doesn't make or break a player.)
Indiana Pacers
Jermaine O'Neal: FG UP a little
Ron Artest: FG UP, 3Pt UP a little
(O'Neal can hit from 10-15 feet, so he should be able to do it in NBA Live as well. Meanwhile, "Mr. Defense" Ron Artest is becoming quiet a scorer for the Pacers.)
LA Clippers
Elton Brand: Block UP, FT DOWN a little
Chris Wilcox: FG UP a little, Quickness UP a little, Strenth UP, Ins.Scr. UP
Corey Maggette: FG Up a little
Bobby Simmons: FG UP, 3 Pt UP, Quickness UP, Steal DOWN, Off.Reb DOWN, Def.Reb. UP, Stamina UP, Ins.Scr. UP
(Two talented players seem to finally be able put it together in the NBA: Wilcox and Simmons. Meanwhile, Brand started out a little slow, but he should recover, as will his numbers. Maggette can score, but has a suspect shot. Kind of hard to find the appropriate ratings for that combination. That's why I suggested a slight increase of his FG rating.)
LA Lakers
Kobe Bryant: FG Up a little
Caron Butler: FG UP, 3Pt UP
Lamar Odom: Steal UP, Block Up a little, FG UP a little, Passing UP a little
Chris Mihm: Ins.Scr. & Block UP a little
(Lakers are deeper than in previuos years, but they need a big man to put them over the top. Oh wait, they had one...)
Memphis Grizzlies
(Well, I just don't know what to think of Memphis. They had a VERY slow start, but one bad week shouldn't lead to downgraded ratings. But no one has deserved an upgrade so far, that's for sure. So maybe leaving Memphis' ratings as they are is best. Maybe Wells' 3Pt rating could be a little higher, but that's it.)
Miami Heat
Dwyane Wade: FG UP, 3Pt UP, Def.Reb. UP, Passing UP, Speed and Quickness UP a little, Primacy UP, Stamina UP
Udonis Haslem: FG UP, Def.Reb. UP, Ins.Scr. UP
Rasual Butler: 3Pt DOWN a little
(Wade has been spectacular so far. He looks like he has gotten even faster over the summer, if that is possible. Haslem is solid. Shaq is unstoppable in NBA Live, but then again, so he is in real life when he is at 100%. Maybe 95 for FG and Ins.Scr. are enough, but since that wouldn't change too much, he can as well have 99 for both categories.)
Milwaukee Bucks
(The Bucks' ratings seem okay to me. Desmond Mason's FG could be a little higher, and Gadzuric could be upgraded a little overall, and Maurice Williams should have higher ratings for Speed, Quickness and Passing. But these are minor things, so who cares.)
Minnesota Timberwolves
Kevin Garnett: FG UP, Quickness UP a little
(KG can shoot from 20 foot.)
New Jersey Nets
Richard Jefferson: FG UP, Def.Reb. UP, Passing UP a little, Speed UP
Alonzo Mourning: FT UP
(As with Maggette above, finding appropriate ratings for Jefferson isn't easy. His jumper isn't even average, I think. Still, he scores a lot, so he should be upgraded a little shooting-wise. And why does Zo have a 32 rating for Free Throws? He can hit 'em from the line. And by the way, welcome back, Zo!)
New Orleans Hornets
Jamaal Magloire: FG UP, Ins.Scr. UP a little
Baron Davis: 3Pt DOWN a little
David Wesley: FG & 3Pt UP
(David Wesley can't do much, but he can shoot.)
New York Knicks
Stephon Marbury: 3Pt UP a little
Kurt Thomas: Block UP
(I'm not sure about Trevor Ariza. He has been solid so far, but it may be a little too early to upgrade him.)
Orlando Magic
Steve Francis: FG UP a little (maybe), Def.Reb. UP, Primacy UP a little
Pat Garrity: FG and 3Pt Down (a little)
Dwight Howard: Block UP, Ins.Scr. UP a little, Quickness UP a little, Off.Reb. UP, Def.Reb. UP a little
Jameer Nelson: Speed & Quickness UP, FG UP a little
(Orlando has a much better team than they had last year. And Howard is looking very good so far.)
Philadelphia 76ers
Willie Green: FG UP
Andre Igoudala: FG UP, 3Pt UP (a lot), Strength UP, Dribbling UP
(Iverson's ratings seem to be right on.)
Phoenix Suns
Amare Stoudamire: FG UP a little, FT UP a little, Block UP a little, Off. & Def.Reb. UP a little, Strength UP a little, Ins.Scr. UP (!)
Joe Johnson: FG and 3Pt UP, Speed UP, Primacy UP,
Shawn Marion: FG UP a little, Block UP, Quickness UP a little, Ins. Scr. UP
Steve Nash: Steal UP a little, 3Pt UP a little (maybe), Dribbling UP a little, Off.Awareness UP
Quentin Richardson: Steal UP, Speed & Quickness UP a little
Leandro Barbosa: FG UP
(Amare keeps getting better year after year. Marion can do a bit of everything. Steve Nash is one of the best ball handlers and playmakers in the league, and he's showing it in Phoenix. Q-Rich's shot has been off so far, but he can shoot, so it's too early for a downgrade.)
Portland Trail Blazers
Zach Randolph: FG UP
Shareef Abdur-Rahim: FG UP a little, Steal UP a little
Nick Van Exel: 3Pt UP
(Nick Van Exel is a great shooter, he just never is really healthy. Randolph and Reef are both good.)
Sacramento Kings
Chris Webber: Block UP a little, Def.Reb. UP a little
Brad Miller: FG UP, Block UP a little
Mike Bibby: FG & 3Pt UP a little
Bobby Jackson: 3Pt DOWN a little
(Webber is more of a jump shooter these days, but he still has game. Miller is becoming a threat from mid range as well. Peja has been ugly so far, but we all know he can shoot the ball, so I wouldn't touch his shooting ratings yet.)
San Antonio Spurs
Tim Duncan: Strength UP a little
Emanuel Ginobili: FG, 3Pt, Def.Reb., Speed & Quickness all UP a little
(Parker's FG rating (70) may be a litte low, but he hasn't shot well so far this year, so I wouldn't upgrade him. Ginobili has been great so far as he is finally starting, and Duncan is Duncan.)
Seattle Sonics
Ray Allen: 3Pt UP a little
Rashard Lewis: FG UP, Block UP a little, Primacy UP
(Ray Allen has the best shot in the league, and he has been showing it so far. And Lewis is really coming into his own.)
Toronto Raptors
Vince Carter: 3Pt UP a little
Chris Bosh: FG UP, Steal UP, Ins.Scr. UP a little, Strength UP a little, Quickness UP
Rafer Alston: FG UP a little, Quickness UP, Primacy UP a little
Donyell Marshall: FG UP a little, 3Pt DOWN a little
(A few years ago NBA Live had a "Clutch" rating. Until today I don't know why they took that out. Carter would have to have a 95 in that category IMO. Meanwhile, Rafer Alston seems to have fully adjusted to the NBA game. Has become a good playmaker and shooter. And Bosh, despite struggling early, will be good down the road.)
Utah Jazz
Carlos Boozer: Ins.Scr. UP, FG UP a little
Andrei Kirilenko: FG UP, Steal UP a little, Block UP (!), Speed, Quickness & Jumping UP a little, Ins.Scr. UP a little
Matt Harpring: FG & 3Pt UP a little
Gordan Giricek: 3Pt UP a little
(Utah has been impressive so far. Kirilenko has been REALLY impressive so far.)
Wahington Wizards
Antawn Jamison: Ins.Scr. UP, Stamina UP
Gilbert Arenas: FG UP a little, Passing UP a little
Juan Dixon: FG & 3Pt UP a little
(This team looks and feels like the Golden State Warriors of two years ago. But they are in the East, so they could win some games.)