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Let's see....Numbers Ali. Assuming that Ali doesn't defect to Macau this week, or suffer some horrible injury (possibly a hand injury from too much counting), I think that any manager would put Ali on the team, and give him a major role. I also think that if everyone has equal game shape, Ali would frequently be the guy to start at SF. That is looking at the current skills of all the players, and how the overall lineup fits together. I do think, though, that there are situations where it could make sense to have someone else starting at SF, and Ali doing something else.

I can't really say much more than that without going into the details, so there's my very vague and not that helpful answer. :P

Last edited by The Mogul at 3/25/2010 9:19:47 AM

For: All Candidates
- What do you believe is the purpose of the U21 team?
- How heavily do you value saving prospects whose owners are going to go bot? Is it worth sacrificing enthusiasm during competition?
- How will you encourage more managers to get involved in the NT?
- What skills do you most value in NT players? What sorts of role players do you think could find room on the u21 team? Given the fact that it's rare for SFs to be fully developed in time to contribute to the u21 team and any potential u21 SF will have some significant gaps, what sort of players would you play at the SF spot?

The purpose of the U21 Team is to take the best group of younger players and get the best possible result out of them. The hard work is trying to get managers to train the right balance of players, not just centres and shooting guards. Eventually these guys should be on the National Team and showing them how competitive the U21 team will hopefully make sure they continue to train the players.

I believe saving prospects is a huge part, but not at the expense of winning. If I ever have to choose between a prospect and winning a game, it's always a game. I know that if you save a player half way through a season you can still get good results, but at the end of the season, a player needs great potential and great starting skills to still have a chance of making the team.

To new owners, you need to stress the benefits of having NT players. Training quality players will help you win games, you will receive more revenue, and for me, I was always so excited to have a player on the U21 team and always wanting to make him the best. Plus even if you train a well rounded player up, the money you can make just selling him could be enough to buy at least 1 quality player.

I am a big fan of having well rounded players. You can find the skills of my best player if you look around and you can see the focus I give him. I love good secondaries on a player and that would play a big role in my decision. Also, I am not as big on stamina at the U21 level. I will gladly take a pop in a primary skill over a stamina pop as one level or outside defence could be huge at this level. For SF's, I will see what the other team generally does at this position. Ideally you'd want to have a great inside-outside guy, but a lot of the times you can hopefully use a shooting guard to match up against theirs and it not be too much of a problem. Plus with Perkins and Moran, it won't be a bad thing to often play the 3-2 zone if they are as good as I hear.

I think I'm at a bit of a disadvantage as unless a player has their skills posted on the offsite forum, I have no idea what their skills are. So for answering questions about tactics or who should be the SF, as of right now, I couldn't tell you.

At the end of the season, you're not looking to save a player for the U21 because the odds are low that he's going to make the U21 team. So then you're looking at a guy who is hopefully an NT prospect then a perennial allstar may have a shot based on his current skill set. But the lower the salary, the higher the potential the player needs.

I'd also be interested in keeping a list of Canadian managers who would be looking for a specific player type. Maybe someone's looking for a PG and one is about to go bot. Then when that guy goes on the market, the manager knows and could hopefully buy him. I'd love for Canadian managers to pick these guys up and keep them in the country and hopefully they get the right training to perhaps become an NT player.

Don't know if something like that is doable, but would give it a try.

Last time I wade into the debate, I promise.

I know some (maybe all, I have not been keeping track) of the candidates have helped with the draft scouting. However, The Mogul really distiguished himself in this category. He went through all the divisions and found all of the players that would require saving this weekend. He also narrowed it down to a short list of players for me to add to the team to be saved.

I added all of his recommendations to the team. There are also some 19 year olds left over and he is going to check with RIP to see if he can save those.

So, if you have any question as to who will work the hardest for our U21, you have the answer. Well, at least you have my answer. ;-)

Last edited by HeadPaperPusher at 3/25/2010 1:36:21 PM

By the way, the schedule for the 1st round is up. Feel free to comment.

Once again we get the weird pool A, where finishing 1st puts you in a precarious situation.

Last edited by HeadPaperPusher at 3/25/2010 3:22:43 PM

It looks like a great opportunity to build some enthusiasm at least. The two hardest teams are our two last games. I would just be worried about teams from other pools doing the same thing, trying to land in the easier pool.

You make 2 good points there. Yes our schedule is nicely back loaded so we can build up enthusiasm but what happens if the teams from the other pools have also figured this out? Is it just going to be best for us to simply play to win every time we send our boys out on the floor?

Hi HPP, thanks for the question.

It is difficult for me to really say that Ali would be the clear cut starter at SF all season. He will be trained fully this season and will continue to improve but I am sure that there will be times when there might be another player with more of an inside focus who might fit the tactics for that match better. There is also the possibility that that somebody overtakes Ali with a better skillset, but right now I really don't know exactly who that would be. Whoever is manager will also have the option to start Ali at SG and have him defend the SF position because of his ability to defend well inside.