They are probably satisfied with it... personally, I'm not. I won't ever spend any more money in scouting until something is changed in the current draft system.
If the others in your league are scouting, it's probably a mistake to invest heavily in the draft if you expect a 17-5 record like you had last season. Most late first-round NBA picks aren't superstars either, although occasionally somebody does slip.
On the other hand, if you expect to have a lousy season, then a heavy investment in scouting is more likely to pay off.
I'm curious how many people with bad records are still unhappy with what they got; I suspect it's a lot fewer. Then again, teams with bad records seem to be less likely to post in the forums here...
I can say nothing else than "what a good draft". A long, long season ran at conference bottom, 10K (then 5K in last couple of weeks) of investments, a very good player, one more than decent, a third bad. And a good draft last two years too - some good luck anyway.
However, in a "managerial" game, I feel frustrated when I cannot have any control on events. Observers work in a funny way, no control on their results over time, no influence on their job. And draft sequence too is unsatisfactory: I had field disadvantage in playout phase, but drafted later than my opponents!
My two cents to contribute to this discussion:
- draft order: keep the same, but give field advantage related to actual record, not position in the conference (easy to do)
- observers: transfer control (partly automated or fully manual) to human manager. For instance: don't waste second observation if evaluation is 2 balls.
- transparency: during RS (let's say 3 times) give evidence of observations to manager, allowing them to decide whether they are satisfied or not
Of course, late picks are not likely to be good, but that would (easily) transfer control to managers. Today, I can be happy for my picks, but just one (my "legendary" Center) is the result of something well planned (and, even, not much controlled, as the double 5 balls went out by hazard).
It's a managerial game, let me manage it!