Adam Himmelsbach @AdamHimmelsbach
Also, Gregg Popovich asked the assistants at Team USA camp to bring a favorite drill from their NBA teams to use. Larranaga showed one.
“And Pop said, ‘OK we probably won’t do that for practice, but we’re definitely stealing that. So tell Brad thanks.”

Pop's nefarious reasons for coaching Team USA become more clear.

Nate Silver posed a question a couple days ago on twitter:

More Nate Silver Retweeted The Ringer
This is a fun article and led me to thinking: how many MLB teams would you need to form a team that would beat a team composed of players from all the other teams? It's a pretty good measure of competitive balance.Nate Silver added,
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@ringer
Can combining the rosters of two terrible teams—the #Orioles and #Royals—make a winning one?
@BenLindbergh: http://therin.gr/hCptXNf
34 replies 40 retweets 434 likes

He then went on to suggest that the greater number of teams it takes, the more competitively balanced the league is. Not sure how I feel about that statement, but I am interested in what you guys think the NBA's answer. Twitter responses were mostly GSW+LAL. I think it oversells the quality of GSW's 3-5 and completely ignores the value of a deep bench. But I defer to your answers.

Side question: when do diminishing returns kick in for roster depth? Could having talent as the 11th and 12th men on the roster actually help in a 1 off game? What about a 7 game series played in a tight span? Or at that point, is shaving minutes off the better players not worth it?

He then went on to suggest that the greater number of teams it takes, the more competitively balanced the league is. Not sure how I feel about that statement, but I am interested in what you guys think the NBA's answer. Twitter responses were mostly GSW+LAL. I think it oversells the quality of GSW's 3-5 and completely ignores the value of a deep bench. But I defer to your answers.

So to make sure I'm understanding the question, we're wondering if a team composed of just Lakers and Warriors could beat a team picked from all of the other best players from the other 28 teams?

My initial response is yes and obviously so: Draymond/Durant/LeBron/Klay/Curry would be a monster.

If not a mere 2 teams, because GSW+LAL might not have the best center, then definitely GSW+LAL+UTA or GSW+LAL+PELICAN.

If not a mere 2 teams, because GSW+LAL might not have the best center, then definitely GSW+LAL+UTA or GSW+LAL+PELICAN.

Team GSW/LAL/NOP of Curry, Thompson, KD, LeBron, AD with a bench of Draymond, Boogie, Iguodala, Ingram, KCP, Kuzma, Lonzo versus Team Everyone Else of Harden, Kawhi, George, Butler, Giannis with a bench of Westbrook, Embiid, Horford, Irving, Aldridge/Towns/Booker/Mitchell/Taytum, etc. would be a really fun match up.

Starting 5 of Team Everyone Else would be able to use the Rockets switch everything defense that gave GSW problems but with better defenders to counter the KD, LeBron and AD isos that would be forced. Offensively, there is nowhere for Steph or LeBron (depending on defensive effort) to hide.

Over a season, I'd definitely take Team Everyone Else because of the extra depth but over a 7 game series, I don't know. If LeBron plays defense to the level he is capable of, I think I would take Team GSW/LAL/NOP. Too good and too versatile.

I think team GSW+LAL would win a majority of single games, but the relative lack of depth would hurt them even in a 7 game series. In a single game, adding NOP to the team is just as valuable for denying the other team AD as it is adding KD. In 7 games, I think adding AD and then having a seven man rotation of Lebron, KD, Curry, Klay and AD with Draymond and Jrue Holiday off the bench would be unbeatable.

The rest team would be... Harden, CP3, Kawhi, Giannis and... Gobert?

On the other hand, if you take this farther, you assume that the rest team has Ainge as GM and Pop as coach with Stevens as assistant coach... I think if you gave that braintrust the entire rest of the league to pick from they could probably figure something out that would win.

On the other other hand, for a 7 game series maybe you go GSW + LAL + BOS, then you get Stevens to coach and you get a bit deeper.

I don't subscribe to Insider, but apparently Pelton's numbers have the Jazz as the third-best team in the league next year, with a projection of 53.4 wins. They are behind the Warriors (58.6) and the Raptors (55.1) and just head of Boston (53.2) and Houston (53). His numbers also have the Lakers (41.2) just barely missing the playoffs.

I would take rest of league against GSW+LAL for sure.

I would probably take GSW+HOU+LAL for the three-teamer. The Rockets were really good last year and despite some pundits bemoaning the loss of Ariza and LRMaM, I don't think that was really because of their depth. In this rarefied air, I think you need to upgrade from Klay (who would be easily the worst starter on the floor in the GSW+LAL or GSW+LAL+NOP versus the league situation), you get Capela as your center, and Paul would obviously be a great backup point. If Harden can play with Paul I bet he can play fine with Curry.

Capela / LeBron / KD / Harden / Curry
Draymond / Klay / Paul

vs

Embiid / Davis / Giannis / Butler / Westbrook
Gobert / Simmons / Irving / Lowry / Lillard / George / etc

I think that's a better matchup than taking NOP for just Davis (and Holiday, I guess). You just have absolutely no hope of stopping that team on offense.

EDIT: I'm assuming Kawhi is injured / not at 100% until proven otherwise.

Dunno. If you can only pair Golden State with one other team you probably still take the Lakers because there's so much value in depriving the opponent of LeBron. Take Houston, for example, and you're up against a lineup of e.g. Simmons/Butler/LeBron/Giannis/AD with plenty of depth backing it up (and, presumably, Gregg Popovich coaching). Switch to the Lakers and the opponents still get Harden (and Paul) but you get LeBron and that's probably for the better.

For a three teamer I might prefer GSW+LAL+BOS and let the opponents have Harden, who is really the only player worth considering for the Rest of the NBA Team in this exercise. Paul as a backup, maybe, but there are other guards about as good. Boston's horde of switchy wings plus Al Horford plus Kyrie for bench scoring would be nice to have.

Awesome as Anthony Davis is, for this exercise I'd definitely rather have Horford+Tatum+Brown+Kyrie+Haywood than just Davis and, I guess, Jrue Holiday.

On the gripping hand (I'm just thinking out loud, can you tell?) even if this scenario is a 7 game series, with this much star power and versatility you really only need about an 8 man rotation. So you take the Warriors and add LeBron and you really only need two more rotation guys, and for preference one of them should be a center. Which makes the Pelicans look pretty good. Or the Sixers with Embiid and Simmons.

I don't actually see Harden adding a great deal of value to a Warriors superteam and am pretty okay with letting the opponent have him for this scenario.

Let's take a look at Pelton's forecast for the Western Conference:

1) Warriors -- 58.6 wins
2) Jazz -- 53.4 wins
3) Rockets -- 53 wins
4) Nuggets -- 50.5 wins
5) Timberwolves -- 49.6 wins
6) Thunder -- 47.2 wins
7) Pelicans -- 44.1 wins
8) Blazers -- 42 wins
9) Lakers -- 41.2 wins
10) Spurs -- 38.5 wins

link

Thank you all for answering. GS + LAL felt too shallow, and adding NO specifically for AD feels like the best compromise.

If anyone's bored, I wouldn't mind seeing what's the biggest combination of teams that, combined, probably couldn't beat GSW. But now I'm just getting greedy in terms of picking your brains.

ATL:
CHI:
SAC: hield
ORL: fournier
PHX:
LAC: harris, louwill
MIA: dragic, johnson, richardson, olynyk
BRK: allen
CLE: love, korver
DAL:
MEM: conley, gasol
CHO: kemba, batum
NYK: porzingis

G: conley, kemba, dragic, louwill
W: hield, fournier, batum, harris, johnson, richardson, korver
B: love, gasol, porzingis, allen

this NBA world v. africa game is pretty fun. embiid is playing PG.

@jonjohnsonwip
After several emails, texts, phone calls, here is the latest info I can provide in Sixers GM search: Nothing. At all.