Diamond Manu Ginobili...Manu in General

[harryl]

I've been on the fence about completing Historic Spurs for Manu. Normally wouldn't think twice about Manu, because of his low defensive ratings and strength. And general lack of athleticism one expects from a Diamond guard.

But he's been on my radar ever since he was made a Duo with Sabonis.

Have played Manu's Current Silver a few times, with his duo partner Current Silver Luis Scola, in Challenges. Silver Manu gets 88 Ball Control but still feels much more responsive than one would imagine, and more explosive than his 76 Acceleration would suggest.

Have had his Handles Emerald version since it was released but think I *never*played him until tonight.

Wow. The Handles has 92 BC but still has 76 Acceleration (86 Speed w/Ball), but feels really crisp and responsive.

He explodes off the dribble, has lightning quick transition between moves. And just generally feels like he's doing what you want more than most players, even quick guards.

I usually find it iffy to try and do stuff like stepback and sidestep jumpers, or pull the stepbacks and sidestep dribble moves, but it's really easy with Manu. Whatever is the tolerance for getting timing of stick/button commands, it's just easier with Manu.

He's good enough that I can beat the CPU off the dribble, one-on-one, without a screen, and from a dead standstill (not at a run, with momentum against a standstill defender).

So now I'm really interested in Diamond Manu. Even if there are better players for less, he's just fun to play.

Anybody have him and have strong impressions, especially in relation to other guards? I think the only other guy I've used who really feels as snappy and quick is Diamond D-Rose.

[anditbeg1ns]

Why not? I don't know about PC prices but I completed this set for only 60k on XB1. I suggest you do it now rather than later when Sabonis becomes more ordinary.

As far as Manu goes, I'm not overly impressed with him. His dribble moves are good, not great. He could dunk but not explosive. I use a lot of euro steps and floaters in transitions and they're quite effective. On defense he could get bullied by stronger guards like Butler or Vince. My biggest gripe though is his low stamina and slow release. His 97 3's does not feel like it. But if you have no issues with his release at lower tier, then this might not be a big deal for you.


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[Scooby Doo]

I personally really enjoy him. He is super fast (buy a speed w ball shoe for 250 MT and it's 98), and his dribbling isn't perfect but I love his speed boost because it doesn't even look like he's dribbling so nobody is ever ready for the sudden burst. His release is cash for me, similar to Gail Goodrich and his defense isn't exceptional but it's not as bad as someone like James Harden. I would get him because he's super cheap!


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[harryl]

Nothing is cheap on PC. Even if you one got all the cards at their cheapest point, Historic Spurs would still probably cost well over 100K. I think 150K is about right for total cost.

Which isn't even that much. Back when MT was dirt cheap, Historic Collections cost many hundreds of thousands, maybe 1M or even more.

Historic Kings, I think, probably costs 200K or more to complete on PC.

My plan is to just get the pieces and leave collection unlocked. The one I really want to finish is Pacers for Diamond Artest, so if I can still complete that, then I'll probably lock in for Manu (and Moncrief, maybe also All-Around Drexler).

[GrimaceZ7]

I completed his set the day the set came out (just needed the Elliott, and I had sold the Rodman when I saw an opportunity to double my MT one night), and I've used him for about five games so far. His defense is better than his ratings would indicate. On offense, I've used him mainly as a spot up shooter. I haven't gotten his release down, so he's been garbage for me from three. I haven't purposely tried to use him on offense though, so take that with a grain of salt.

[harryl]

Quote: Originally Posted by GrimaceZ7

I completed his set the day the set came out (just needed the Elliott, and I had sold the Rodman when I saw an opportunity to double my MT one night), and I've used him for about five games so far. His defense is better than his ratings would indicate. On offense, I've used him mainly as a spot up shooter. I haven't gotten his release down, so he's been garbage for me from three. I haven't purposely tried to use him on offense though, so take that with a grain of salt.

My suggestion would be to try to get very comfortable with dribbling with him. Use him a lot as a secondary ball handler, particularly if you pair him with a point guard who can be a really nice catch & shoot shooter. Heck...play him at point guard if the defensive matchup allows for it.

[GrimaceZ7]

Quote: Originally Posted by harryl

My suggestion would be to try to get very comfortable with dribbling with him. Use him a lot as a secondary ball handler, particularly if you pair him with a point guard who can be a really nice catch & shoot shooter. Heck...play him at point guard if the defensive matchup allows for it.

So far, I've kept him on my second unit with Magic at PG. That unit runs either fast break, or Magic is just wrecking the opposing PG in the paint. If I switched Manu to my first unit, he'd be paired with PD West, and I don't know that I've used a better shooter in this game than West. I'll definitely try that out.

I find it interesting that you're using Emerald Manu and shilling for the Diamond. All along, I used the Emerald Parker and shilled for the Diamond. I like Gail and all, but I think if I had it to do over, I would have taken Tony just because I love using him. He'd be my third string PG, but I would look forward to using him.

So my advice to you is to finish the set for Manu ASAP. I got Sapphire Eddie Jones for my challenge squad and have loved using him so much that he's my 3rd string wing (I have a starting five, a backup five, and then a PG, C and a wing as my last three in case someone needs a rest) on my best squad now. After taking a break from MyTeam, I've come back realizing that it's all about enjoying the guys you're using moreso than using the best cards you have.

[Bubba13laze]

Diamond Manu intrigued me earlier in the year. Before the tbt collection dropped I had all but Sean Elliot and was about to get him. Ended up selling off all the players, got 100k for brickowski and 50k for rodman.

His playmaking looks great my plan was to have him handle the ball a lot because I was running west at the 1 who I found more of a shoot first pg.

Ultimately I decided against it because of his defense. But it's interesting to hear people are saying his D is quite good.