2019-2020 NBA SHOWDOWN FINAL SET

Hey everyone and Happy Fathers Day!, I know personally for me Father's Day and the NBA go hand and hand as there is usually still the NBA Finals going on, and I remember that fateful game 7 in Oracle Arena on Fathers Day in 2016 as my dad and I watched our Cavs bring home their first NBA Championship in dramatic fashion. After debuting my NBA cards and the game I brought along with it, and I am glad so many of you have given it a chance and played a couple games. As I dove deeper into some of the lower level teams, I noticed how unbalanced some of the offense and defensive ratings were, it is simple, a good defensive team will rate better than a bad team. But once taking the league average and team stats into account before the players stats I have finally been able to settle on how I want these cards to play. So with that I am posting all 30 teams from the 2019-2020 NBA season here in this one blog post. The old posts will be removed and for those that printed I urge you to print these for a more balanced game, and better for drafting purposes, also don't worry the last dance bulls will be updated as well. When looking at players the average offense and defense will fall between an 8 and a 10 for players that are of the 3 quarter or more fatigue. So before the NBA begins again, enjoy these 301 cards and maybe start your own NBA season.

Atlanta Hawks: (20-47) The Hawks had their struggles as a young squad and losing John Collins to a suspension sure didn't help any. Looking towards the future they acquired center Clint Capella at the trade deadline but he hasn't gotten a chance to play with them yet. Trae Young is a tremendous talent and will be a focal point of the Hawks offense for years to come.

Brooklyn Nets: (30-34) The Nets had an up and down season, as Kyrie Irving missed a lot of time with injuries, and Kevin Durant didn't play at all, don't worry the 2018-2019 version of KD will grace the Nets. Moving forward can they get a new coach to help lead their top talent, and acquire some more talent to balance this lineup.

Boston Celtics: (43-21) The Celtics continue to be a top Eastern Conference team, Jayson Tatum has taken great strides to becoming an elite level player. His card proves it, offense and defense with positional flexibility and some high rolls can bring an scoring explosion.

Charlotte Hornets: (23-42) The Hornets need a ton of help and even though their record doesn't show it, the may be the worst showdown team in the set. Terry Rozier didn't play up to the level that they paid him for this season but Devonte' Graham was quite the surprise. They need to continue to build through youth and hopefully cash in later to get a top tier player that their owner can be proud of.

Chicago Bulls: (22-43) A team that record wise wasn't very good, but Zach Lavine is a lot of fun to watch on the court. I saw him go for 40+ against the Cavs in person this year, adn the Bulls have a chance to become a contender for many years with the depth of young talent they have. If the talent is developed they can become extremely deep over the next 2-3 years.

 Cleveland Cavaliers: (19-46) My team the Cleveland Cavaliers, while they weren't good at all this year, a nice move for Andre Drummond at the trade deadline gets them one of the best pure rebounders and shot blockers in the game. The Cavs have a lot of work to do to get back to the playoffs, and unfortunately home grown superstars don't grow on trees and want to play in their home city very often.

Dallas Mavericks: (40-27) Luka Doncic is going to be a special player, I was also lucky enough to see him play in person this season. The guy commands the attention of the defense and is only in his second year. Can he become a player to win the Euroleague MVP and a NBA MVP over his career?

Denver Nuggets: (43-22) The Nuggets were a quiet success once again, playing themselves into the 3rd best record in the west while no one knows about them. A true deep team with an absolute monster at the center position. He can shoot, pass and rebound, making him a pure threat on the offensive end of the court.

Detroit Pistons: (20-46) Detroit seems to be in rebuilding mode, giving away Andre Drummond for a 2001 Darin Erstad and 2001 Vladimir Guerrero (for those that didn't catch the reference they got nothing of value for him), though Christian Wood made huge strides and could potentially win the NBA Most Improved player award. Blake Griffin sadly can't stay healthy and can't play with the intensity that he used to be able to bring when he was younger.

Golden State Warriors: (15-50) The Cavs and the Warriors are the two worst teams in the league, once fighting for NBA Championships will now face off in the NBA Lottery for number 1. The differnce is the Warriors next season will have a healthy Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, newly acquired Andrew Wiggins and potentially a top draft pick, while the Cavs simply will not. A one year break for the Warriors allowed the work horses some much needed rest, and gave management a chance to check out some of the end of the bench players.

Houston Rockets: (40-24) There is small ball, and then there is Rockets Small ball, who after trading Clint Capela, their tallest player is 6'8. Can the space they are now giving to James Harden and Russell Westbrook push them into the top of the Western Conference down at Mickey's House? James Harden once again was a regular season stud and I can see him ending up on many people's squads in a showdown league to dominate the offensive end of the ball.

Indiana Pacers: (39-26) The hard nosed Pacers are a middle of the pack team in the East but Domantas Sabonis is a fantastic player in the post. Once Victor Oladipo recovers from injury they will have a good 1-2 punch but what can they do with the rest of the roster going forward?

Los Angeles Clippers: (44-20) NBA was shocked when Kawhi Leonard signed with the Clippers and then they immediately traded for Paul George. This team has all the tools to win a championship, can they now bring a title to the other team in LA. Kawhi is on a quest to be the first player in NBA history to win a Finals MVP with three different NBA franchises. Funny enough there is a guy down the hallway trying to do the exact same thing.

Los Angeles Lakers: (49-14) As mentioned with the team above, LeBron James is in battle with Kawhi Leonard to become that first player to win a finals MVP with a third team. Lakers traded for Anthony Davis this off season to try and help LeBron get to the promise land. Lakers brought in a ton of veterans to help balance out their locker room making them need to win now and not for the future.

Memphis Grizzlies: (32-33) Explosive rookie Ja Morant took the Grizzlies to the playoff hunt, good enough to be the 8th seed when the season resume. It wasn't just Ja though, Jaren Jackson made a huge improvement in his game, and the Grizzlies seem to be a playoff team of the future.

Miami Heat: (41-24) I was the first to call out Jimmy Butler for going to Miami instead of staying in Philly, but he proved me wrong, and this team has surprised many, just not Jimmy as he knew what he signed up for. Bam Adebayo is such a dynamic player, with the ability to score at the rim and guard the opposing teams best big men. If the young guys continue to come around and develop Jimmy Butler will look like a genius.

Milwaukee Bucks: (53-12) The best record in the NBA and Giannis was the best player i nthe league this season. He has a true shot at winning the MVP and winning defensive player of the year. Can he add a NBA Championship and Finals MVP to his in season resume? He costs over 1/5 of tema salary but he can do it all, and it will be interesting to see how many would choose to use him knowing what you get from him on the floor.

Minnesota Timberwolves: (19-45) Karl Anthony Towns got his friend D'Angelo Russell in a trade with the Warriors this season. It has felt like the Wolves were on the brink of making the playoffs the last couple years but never got to that point. I think next season is do or die for this team as KAT has been showing how good he can be, but he needs to translate it into winning.

New Orleans Pelicans: (28-36) The Pelicans are on the outside looking in with tons of talent. Rookie Zion Williamson finally made in onto the court and electrified their fans. A full season with him in playing shape and healthy with wing man Brandon Ingram, as well as one of the most underrated defenders in the league, Jrue Holiday.

New York Knicks: (21-45) The New York Knicks promised the fans Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, the delivered with Bobby Portis and Julius Randle. Fans were disgusted, and the on court team wasn't much better. Julius Randle was their best player, and some young up and coming players showed they do have a spot in the league. They need to hit on a couple draft picks, hopefully RJ Barrett will be one of them and the Knicks can return to glory.

Okalahoma City Thunder: (40-24) If the Miami Heat surprised you, the Thunder absolutely shocked you. Trading Paul George and Russell Westbrook netted them a hefty amount of picks, Shea Gilgeous Alexander and Chris Paul. They responded by being in the middle of the West standings, and can take those picks to make improvements for the future.

Orlando Magic: (30-35) The Magic brought back Nikola Vucevic from free agency this summer, and are back in the 8th seed where they were last season. Taking a risk on Markelle Fultz could net them a top 10 draft talent.

Philadelphia 76ers: (39-26) While being a winning team, they are underwhelming as many predicted them to be battling the Bucks as the top team in the Eastern Conference. Health really hurt them as Ben Simmons battled back issues and Joel Embiid always seems to find himself on the injured list.

Phoenix Suns: (26-39) Devin Booker can flat out score the ball. Not having last years #1 pick Deandre Ayton due to suspension hurt them in the standings, but in such a deep western conference it still may have not been enough.

Portland Trailblazers: (29-37) One of the best players in the league, Damian Lillard had an absolutely insane scoring season this year. His card reflects it as he has the potential to go off at any given moment. Defensively the back court hurts the Blazers but the offense makes up for it and then some. Hassan Whiteside had a resurgence once getting in a Blazers uniform this season as well.

Sacramento Kings: (28-36) The Kings are making their push to finally get back to the playoffs. De'Aaron Fox is a legit guard and landing Buddy Heild in the Demarcus Cousins trade gave them the a potential future to look forward to. Sadly Marvis Bagley's injury kept him off the court for a lot of the season and couldn't get a card but he is another building block to look forward to next season.

San Antonio Spurs: (27-36) Greg Popavich knows how to coach, and every year he proves it even though we already knew that. Demar Derozan might be my favorite foil that I made, I love the way the card pops. If only I was a Derozan fan I would use the card, but in showdown terms I don't have to watch him pull up from mid range all game.

Toronto Raptors: (46-18) The defending NBA Champions lose their Star player and role player, yet still are the second best team in the East. If they can continue through the playoffs Nick Nurse will deserve tons of credit for the way he has developed all these young studs the Raptors have.

Utah Jazz: (41-23) The NBA came to a screeching halt thanks to the Jazz and star center Rudy Gobert. Once they get back together can the team overcome the rumored dissension in the locker room to come together and focus on their season goal.

Washington Wizards: (24-40) Bradley Beal had a incredible offensive season but beign stuck on a bad Wizards team wasn't given the recognition that he deserved for it. John Wall missed the whole season due to injury, and if you read my old post know how I feel about Rui Hachimura.

There you have it, the full and FINAL 2019-2020 NBA season. I hope you guys get a chance to play around with this game and build some teams and battle it out on the court. I am looking forward to developing this into more than just one season. Be on the lookout as I want to make a weekly blog post to further discuss other portions of the game. As always any game play questions shoot me a message on twitter and I will do my best to explain it.

Did I miss anything when talking about your favorite teams? I always like learning from fans of NBA teams for the things they don't tell you on ESPN or NBA Radio.

Other NBA Related Posts:
Rules/Introductory Post
Last Dance Bulls