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I had been saving up my Scouting Points assuming I'd use them on the Combine, but now I'm beginning to question that strategy. Looking for some advice from some of you Vets....

Scouting Combine: Seems like the biggest benefit would be that it lets you know which players you DON'T want to draft because they're the wrong height if you want to train them, e.g. a 6'9" PG. OTOH, a 6'9" PG might be a candidate to train into a decent SF because they might have good secondary skills to start off with.(??) As far as age goes, I would have assumed that all draftees would be 18 or 19--is this not true? If it is true, does that one year age difference really make a big deal? How many "pops" can one reasonably expect to get over the course of a season assuming (a) one-position and (b) two-position training?

Group Demonstration: Do you really find any decent players coming out of the 1-ball and 2-ball category? Is the preliminary ranking that unreliable? At first glance, it would seem like the Demo is just blowing points on prospects that have no chance of being decent. Has anyone used the Demo before and found decent players?

Thanks guys!

All I can help with here is that I can say, Group Demonstration definitely helps. You can really find some gems down there, but if you're looking for a specific position then I reckon you shouldn't bother with the Group Demonstration, go for the Scouting Combine to see their heights and age does make a BIGGGGGG difference (there are only 18-19 year olds).

Think about it this way, if you were to get 10 pops a season on a guard, if you were to draft a 19 year old, that's 10 pops wasted, if you were to draft an 18 year old, he might be slightly worse or even better and you can add the same 10 pops that would make him surpass the 19 yr old EASILY!

Yeah, that's my opinion thus far.

The grey ball ratings are pretty much useless and you can certainly find good players doing the group demo (well they need to be scouted as well to see whether they have potential)

A players 18th year is his best for training so that one year certainly makes a difference.

I think you're on the right track here, assuming that you have at least 30-40 scouting points.

As far as I'm concerned, the Group Demo is a waste. It only shows you 40% of the draft class and half of those are likely 19 year olds which are almost always useless prospects with very few exceptions. Other than that, you're potentially missing out on all the studs in your draft class. It's no better than playing roulette.

I think money is far better spent with the Scouting combine, it shows you the entire class and after that you can focus in on all the 18 year olds with 4 or 5 balls and spend the rest of your money to find out which of those are studs and which are duds. If you're going to have a high pick or you're in the league full of BOTS, this is definitely the method that is going to insure that you pinpoint the top player(s).

Basically, if I only had 10 points to spend, I'd do the group. If I have 30+, I'd avoid the group and do the combine + additional scouting on the best looking players.

Last edited by Beener not Beanerz at 9/12/2012 12:22:49 PM

I agree completely with Beener above me. I'd add another one to his post:

- if you are looking for 18y olds and you discover at least 11 18y olds between 1 and 2 grey balls, then you definitely use Group combine, as this will take 10 points. By clicking "Scout" on each of 18y olds with 1 or 2 grey balls, you will spend 11 points or more.

If it is true, does that one year age difference really make a big deal?

Very big deal.

How many "pops" can one reasonably expect to get over the course of a season assuming (a) one-position and (b) two-position training?

Well that depends on training...if you are doing just PA and OD for whole seasons, you'd get something like 8-9 pops (HA and DR would pop once).

But for argument's sake, I'll consider you are doing 1 on 1 for 1/3 of season and one (a) or two (b) position training aftewards.

(a) 11-13 pops
(b) 8-11 pops

I've never used Demo but the 2 best players of last year's draft in my league were 1-2 ball prospects for me. I scouted them and was able to get one.

I've never used Demo but the 2 best players of last year's draft in my league were 1-2 ball prospects for me. I scouted them and was able to get one.

I wouldn't put any stock in this for future drafts since players are placed in spots completely randomly. In fact, you should forget that this even happened. ;)

lol

well the Demo isn't completly a waste, but it isn't a benefit either, though I never did a demo nor combine, I do know that managers say Combine>Demo. The combine gives more info, etc. etc.

If I you get a stud draftee and in a low division it's probably better to sell for long term since the draftee's going to blow up on you. then in the future when you do have the cash you can spend that cash on a stud draftee.

If I you get a stud draftee and in a low division it's probably better to sell for long term since the draftee's going to blow up on you. then in the future when you do have the cash you can spend that cash on a stud draftee.

In one thread you were complaining about the drafts being poor and that buying trainees wasn't a good alternative because you be losing out on the merchandise bump you get from drafting your own players. Point taken yet here now you're advising people in low division to sell a stud draftee? You do realize that you're contridicting yourself?

Last edited by Beener not Beanerz at 9/13/2012 12:37:26 PM

The group demo is definitely less useful than the combine, but it's far from worthless as well. It really depends on what you're trying to get out of the draft - if all you care about is the high value super trainee (for training or sale purposes) then the odds are that it'll end up being a little less than 10 guys who are 18 and in the 1-2 ball range, and even less if you're specifically targeting trainees of specific heights. Likewise, if you're open to training a 19 year old if his starting skills and potential are good enough, the demo might help identify a target there.