STRATEGICALLY SELECTING WHICH SCHEDULES TO DO
Like probably a ton of people I did a few of the 76ers Schedule at first, for no other reason than it's listed first. I decided to start over with the Grizzlies as I thought they'd have one of the weaker All-Time teams. They can field a lineup full of strong players, but no single one of them is an overpowering sort of force. Meanwhile, the 76ers have Dr. J, A.I., Wilt. Actually not that great as an All-Time Franchise, TBH, but there's probably a good number that would be easier.
I feel pretty certain that you're not going to want to have to deal with All-Time versions of the Lakers, Celtics, Warriors, Bulls, Rockets, and Spurs, at least, when you have to play within a 3 Gold cap. At least not right now, early in the game, before we have a lot of Silver and Gold Moments additions to our options.
There's other considerations to selecting the team, other than the strength of its All-Time Roster. One also needs to consider the 3 Gold limitation one will run into, as well as the requirement of playing 6, 7, and then 8 players from the franchise. Once you have to play 7 or 8 players from the franchise, with 3 Gold limitation, you may also want to consider how many and how good the franchise's Silver (and Bronze) players are, in the game.
Number, Quality, and Cost of Franchise's Silver and Bronze
With the Grizzlies, I didn't anticipate, but came to learn the disadvantage of choosing a franchise that only has 3 Silver players in the game. In the final games of the Schedule, one can't play Conley/Gasol or any Historic Grizzlies Emerald/Sapphire/+, because of the 3 Gold limitation.
So then you have to play real minutes with Silvers. Maybe even a Bronze or two. This is the team I had to play when the requirement was 7 Grizzlies, max 3 Gold:
For the final game, with the requirement being 8 Grizzlies, max 3 Gold, I'm either going to have to: A) play a Grizzly Bronze significant minutes off the bench (maybe Troy Daniels at 2, since he can at least shoot), or B) play the Stoudamire/Vince Carter Gold Duo, and split up Carmelo/Porzingis, choosing one of the latter.
Some of the other franchises that have a bunch of Silvers might be better Schedule targets. Especially if they have Silver/Silver or Silver/Gold duos. Especially if they have less strong All-Time teams. And especially if their Silver/Bronze players are not atypically expensive on the AH, due to their Current Collection Ruby Reward.
Quality of the Franchise's Golds, Especially Historic
Pay close attention to the number and quality of the franchise's Historic Golds (and their price). The Grizzlies only have 3 Historic Golds: Old Vince, Bonzi, and Stoudamire. They all suck.
But some franchises actually have some nice options amidst their Gold Historics. It's nice if the franchise has nice Golds and Silvers, as that will give you more leeway in going off-franchise for other Golds or Silvers.
Some Good Potential Schedule Targets
Dallas Mavericks
- Their All-Time lineup doesn't have much in the way of scary offensive threats. Perhaps Dirk, but Dirk is also a defensive liability and I'd rather deal with preventing Pick & Pop looks and tolerating a few cheesy contested post-fades than having to deal with some crazy slasher who will constantly be driving for dunks and at least getting fouled in the process.
- Shawn Bradley might be a shot-blocking machine if you go straight at him in the paint, but at least he presents big liabilities in transition and by being sucked into high P&R.
- They've got 8 Silvers. And also 3 Gold in their Current collection. And Dirk/Curry are a duo, and Gold Barnes has a Silver Duo partner with Silver Thunder Doug McDermott. And they've got 5 Gold in their Historic Collection, though I don't think I'd use a Gold slot on any of them.
- And I'm guessing their Current players are all on the cheaper side, since I doubt anyone really wants Ruby Jason Terry.
Brooklyn Nets
- They've got some nice offensive pieces in their All-Time squad. Dr. J is sure to be a killer. Don't leave Drazen open. Expect Kidd to dice you up. But aside from Dr. J, there's not much in the way of scary forces of nature. And bad rim protection with Lopez as starting 5 and I don't know who plays 5 off the bench...Buck Williams? Kenyon Martin? Darryl Dawkins? Lack of a very good defensive 5 makes cheesing with 1-5 P&R way easier.
- While their Current lineup has 0 Golds, they do have 11 Silvers, which is atypically high. D-Lo and Crabbe have a Silver/Silver duo. Their Historic Collection has 4 Golds, none of them big standouts, but AK-47 and Thad Young are playable. Main point, though, is that they have 11 Silver, so once you get to 8 Players requirement, you can fulfill that entirely with Silvers, who are at least playable off the bench. Then you select 5 off-Franchise, including your 3 Gold.
Okay, I'm too lazy to keep going in detail right now. But other franchises I'm thinking are good early targets would be the Clippers, Raptors, Timberwolves, and Pelicans.