Friends in fast breaks,
We needed a name for the new bonus Survivor competition (that you can join at no extra costs as an NBA SZN member). It couldn't just be "NBA Survivor II". What name could possibly explain WHY this bonus happened???
WEEK 8 PICKS
- Walking Bucket Wilt OAD
- VC's Knees Survivor
- The Worm Survivor (Starts 12/23)
- Your group picks (get in a group with friends!)
We went with "The Worm Survivor". Why "The Worm"? The Worm was Dennis Rodman's best nickname. The man, for all his techs, snow cone hair, and North Korea associations, could REBOUND and HUSTLE. Did you know that Rodman, at a mere 6'7", has the MOST rebounding titles of any player not named Wilt?
In our first attempt at NBA Survivor, we lost almost 2/3 of the pool. At the rate we've been going, we could be done this week. Or in 10 weeks, because Survivor's sometimes do be like that.
Needless to say, the vast majority of us need a second chance. We're gonna REBOUND from our terrible first performance. And we're gonna HUSTLE some friends to join because the prize here is coming right out of GM's personal wallet. And we're gonna dye our hair a kaleidoscope of colors. And we're gonna befriend KJU because... because... I seem to have lost the plot here. We're gonna pick teams and we're gonna win and we're NOT going to all lose in the first week, dangit! SURVIVE!
AGAIN: JOIN NOW SO YOU DON'T FORGET.
Picks will open on Monday alongside our normal turnover of VC's Knees and Walking Bucket Wilt. Consider this a 🎁 gift 🎁 from me for whatever holiday you celebrate this time of year. It's more fun for us to roll into 2023.
If you're in the pay-it-forward mood: PLEASE get a friend to join NBA SZN. I don't care if they're new to the site or they just didn't jump in for NBA initially. We could really use some more basketball lovers in the community and hopefully these first 8 weeks have given you enough experience to convince them why this is so fun. I've lowered the price of NBA SZN to $10 since they'll have missed out on the original Survivor and a shot at the OAD overall prize.
PICK STATS
Walking Bucket Wilt OAD
This week will decide our first ever NBA SZN prize winners as Interval 1 comes to a close. Remember that next week we "start fresh" with Interval 2. Your selectable player roster will keep dwindling, but we'll start counting over at zero and crown another set of winners after 8 more weeks. And our Overall standings will keep running the whole time!
- Our top pick this week is J. Embiid with 62 picks
- He's been on a rampage since he came back from injury, including a 53 point performance a few days ago
- Our other big picks this week: J. Tatum (40 picks) and S. Gilgeous (30)
- What does the Golden Spreadsheet show?
- 11 players have been used by 35%+ of pickers
- Then there's a dramatic cliff down to 17.1% of pickers who have used the next player: A. Davis
- We're on week 8 and have high usage of 11 players - that feels about right for riding high on the early strong performers
- Interesting low volume picks: Z. Lavine (1 pick), L. Dort (1), J. Green (1), E. Mobley (1), B.Simmons (1)
- No new players picked for the first time this week
| OAD Main Pick | Count |
| Joel Embiid (vs GSW | 12/16) | 62 |
| Jayson Tatum (vs ORL | 12/16) | 40 |
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (vs MIN | 12/16) | 30 |
| Damian Lillard (@ DAL | 12/16) | 26 |
| Luka Doncic (vs POR | 12/16) | 26 |
| Giannis Antetokounmpo (vs UTA | 12/17) | 22 |
| Trae Young (@ CHA | 12/16) | 19 |
| Donovan Mitchell (vs IND | 12/16) | 16 |
| Kevin Durant (@ TOR | 12/16) | 16 |
| Anthony Davis (vs DEN | 12/16) | 15 |
| Jaylen Brown (vs ORL | 12/16) | 14 |
| DeMar DeRozan (vs NYK | 12/16) | 10 |
| Ja Morant (@ OKC | 12/17) | 10 |
| Zion Williamson (@ PHX | 12/17) | 10 |
| Stephen Curry (@ PHI | 12/16) | 7 |
| Lebron James (vs DEN | 12/16) | 5 |
| Nikola Jokic (@ LAL | 12/16) | 5 |
| Anthony Edwards (@ OKC | 12/16) | 4 |
| De'Aaron Fox (@ DET | 12/16) | 4 |
| Julius Randle (@ CHI | 12/16) | 4 |
| Devin Booker (vs NOP | 12/17) | 3 |
| Jordan Poole (@ PHI | 12/16) | 3 |
| LaMelo Ball (vs ATL | 12/16) | 3 |
| Paul George (vs WAS | 12/17) | 3 |
| Bam Adebayo (@ SAS | 12/17) | 2 |
| CJ McCollum (@ PHX | 12/17) | 2 |
| James Harden (vs GSW | 12/16) | 2 |
| Pascal Siakam (vs BKN | 12/16) | 2 |
| Tyler Herro (@ SAS | 12/17) | 2 |
| Ben Simmons (@ TOR | 12/16) | 1 |
| Bradley Beal (@ LAC | 12/17) | 1 |
| Darius Garland (vs IND | 12/16) | 1 |
| Dejounte Murray (@ CHA | 12/16) | 1 |
| Desmond Bane (@ OKC | 12/17) | 1 |
| Evan Mobley (vs IND | 12/16) | 1 |
| Jalen Green (vs POR | 12/17) | 1 |
| Jimmy Butler (@ SAS | 12/17) | 1 |
| Kawhi Leonard (vs WAS | 12/17) | 1 |
| Klay Thompson (@ PHI | 12/16) | 1 |
| Luguentz Dort (vs MIN | 12/16) | 1 |
| Terry Rozier (vs ATL | 12/16) | 1 |
| Tyrese Haliburton (@ CLE | 12/16) | 1 |
| Tyrese Maxey (vs GSW | 12/16) | 1 |
| Zach Lavine (vs NYK | 12/16) | 1 |
VC’s Knees Survivor
- We're down to 12 players this week, 2.6% of our starting size
- Our top pick is BOS (vs ORL) drawing 7 picks
- Is BOS a MUCH better team? Yes
- Has ORL won 4 straight against the likes of TOR, ATL, and LAC? Also yes
- May Bol Bol bless you all with safety
- PHI (vs GSW) is our only other pick with multiple picks - literally just two
- With Curry out, GSW takes an enormous step back in terms of capability
- And with PHI looking crisp again with Harden and Embiid back, this would (hopefully) be a cakewalk
- BKN (@ TOR), LAC (vs WAS), and SAC (vs DET) each have a single pick
- ESPN's "matchup predictor" has BKN as a dead heat, a bold pick
- It thinks LAC is a ~62% favorite
- SAC is already in action, go go go!
| Survivor Picks | Count |
| Boston Celtics (vs ORL | 12/16) | 7 |
| Philadelphia 76ers (vs GSW | 12/16) | 2 |
| Brooklyn Nets (@ TOR | 12/16) | 1 |
| Los Angeles Clippers (vs WAS | 12/17) | 1 |
| Sacramento Kings (@ DET | 12/16) | 1 |
WEEKLY AWARDS
Westbrook Bank Shot Moxie Award
Boldest pick WITH a comment. You can't win a SZN competition without a little Moxie!
@LeviLeo (B. Simmons): "is Ben Simmons good?"
GM says: You didn't... YOU DID. I'mma need Ben to drop a 14-point-bomb just for you 💣
"Who's the GOAT?" Award
Our best weekly comment (or three)
@StatCzar (Z. Williamson): "One time my grandma and her friends drove 3.5 hours from northeast Ohio to Columbus to try this ice cream place they heard was good down there. Then they decided the line was too long and just got ice cream at McDonalds across the street. That's a true story. Anyway, I am going with Zion revenge game and another 360 dunk."
GM says: I love ice cream. Like LOVE. My minimum serving size is a pint, but I can crush a quart happily. But there's no way in HELL I'm spending 7 hours of my day traveling to and from fetching ice cream. Do they not have HOBBIES up there in Ohio?
"I Could Sell You Kings Tickets" Award
Most convincing comment.
@Logan2273 (J. Randle): "Trae Young is a better choice, but I think my chances of winning the overall interval are gone. So, I will punt here and regroup for the second interva"
GM says: You gotta know when to hold'em and when to fold'em. I also folded on Interval 1 this week. But Interval 2 is totally ours!
KD Would Retweet This Award
The spiciest/wildest take.
@kempsoos (L. Ball): "Gm's response to my comment last week reminded me of a hot take I have. Wait for it, Ranch, French and Blue Cheese aren't salad dressings! Ranch and Blue Cheese are clearly just two of the top 3 wing dipping sauces and French should only be used if you're a 90s mid western mom making a non spicy and not that tasty taco sauce... or was that only my family?"
GM says: This is not the follow-up dressing conspiracy arc I expected, but it's the one we deserve
MORE PICK COMMENTS
@Merf (J. Randle): "I am going to posterize @TheCommish in the second Interval."
GM says: TEAM SZN VIOLENCE IN FULL EFFECT
@wettengal (S. Gilgeous): "I have no idea who this person is"
GM says: Knowing who you're picking is for amateurs
@YikesVikes (T. Haliburton): "Haliburton to the top this week. What do the Spurs, Knicks, Jazz, and Wizards all have in common? All these teams are frolicking in mediocrity and still in search of young franchise players to build around. But not Indiana, who now has the liberty of building their franchise around the 22-year-old Haliburton. He's averaging a double-double this season with 19.3 points and 11.2 assists per game."
GM says: I'll agree with you on Haliburton being damn impressive. And on the Knicks and Wizards flailing about. But I think the reset the Spurs and Jazz have taken (raw tank and fake tank but with a mountain of extra resources at hand respectively) are great choices.
@MONSTERXXX (L. Doncic): "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH !!!"
GM says: YEAH MONSTER, WOOOOOOOOOOOH!
@kempsoos (PHI): "I started to feel my brain hurt while attempting to "Rainman" these picks, so I just gave up and picked a good team. I really don't wanna lose to Commish because I didn't have my coffee this morning... I want to beat Commish, preferably on a technicality that haunts him for years. Does Commish have pick reminders on? asking for a friend. Maybe he forgets. Maybe he has an important USC Alumni meeting that runs long. Maybe Commish "wins" an all expenses paid vacation to Cabo San Lucas with a mandatory no phone allowed timeshare pitch at the same time picks are due... maybe I take your mother out to a nice steak dinner and NEVER call her again. Maybe she's born with it Maybe its Maybelline."
GM says: I can neither confirm nor deny if I locked Commish alone in a closet based on this comment.
@wettengal (BOS): "My fantasy football season is shot, so this is all I’ve got left. I don’t even like the NBA… but the thrill of gambling mixed with the feeling of literal survival - now that gets the heart pumpin! "
GM says: I mean, if your FF season is shot in week 15, that's significantly longer than mine ever stayed relevant
Yours in Roundball Rock,
The GM