Monday Tip-Off: Franchise Mode Free Agency Follies
We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Join me as I begin the week here at the NLSC with my opinions and commentary on basketball gaming topics, as well as tales of the fun I’ve been having on the virtual hardwood. This week, I’m tipping things off with some thoughts on the free agency follies I’ve experienced while playing Franchise and Dynasty mode.
Part of being a diehard NBA fan is taking a keen interest in what happens when there’s no basketball being played. You’ll find some fans that describe the offseason as their favourite part of the year, or at least consider it as exciting as the Playoffs. It makes sense. There’s optimism as teams are making moves to gear up for a new season, and drama when the biggest names change their jerseys. Of course, most of that drama is over within the first couple of weeks. These days, teams are in a bigger rush to get deals done, so we don’t see many situations like Michael Redd in 2002.
Since franchise modes emulate the key aspects of the NBA offseason, we’re able to experience virtual free agency. For those of us who like to play (or simulate) multiple seasons in franchise modes, the offseason and free agency reflects the anticipation and enthusiasm of the real event. There’s the added fun of being in control, and signing the players that we wish our favourite team would, or could. To that point though, virtual free agency can likewise end up being a disappointment. We might also discover that even if we make desirable moves, being a successful NBA GM is easier said than done. I know that I’ve had a few franchise mode free agency follies over the years.
Successful virtual free agency requires preparation and foresight. Just like a real GM, you need to be keenly aware of your team’s cap situation. Will you have enough to spend on a top tier free agent in the coming offseason? Does that hinge on letting half of the team walk, or re-signing key players at their current salary (or less)? There have been a couple of occasions where I’ve misjudged the cap room I’ll have available in the upcoming offseason. Sometimes it’s just been by a couple of million, falling just short of what a star free agent is demanding. Other times, I’ve not accounted for back-loaded contracts, incoming rookies, or re-signing one or two of my current players.
Of course, this is where the design of the virtual offseason in franchise modes can make the task much tougher. Traditionally, offseasons in video games progress in stages, in which you deal with one aspect of team management at a time. Re-signing your own players and signing other free agents are generally split into two separate phases, with the opportunity to re-sign players coming first. This is where you can end up losing cap space that you anticipated having, or risk letting your own free agents hit the open market while you court other players. If you choose the latter, you may end up not only missing out on a big name free agent, but losing your players, too.
With that prospect in mind of course, dealing with your own free agents first is a logical way to structure offseason tasks. Back in 1996, there was controversy when the Miami Heat attempted to sign Juwan Howard to a $100 million contract. The league insisted that the Heat had miscalculated their available cap space, owing to a new deal that they’d reached with Alonzo Mourning first. It went to arbitration, but Howard ultimately returned to Washington. Franchise modes try to avoid messiness like that with their separate phases and simplifications. Still, if you don’t budget properly, you can really lose out by trying to be a major player in virtual free agency.
In fact, with the way that the virtual offseasons in franchise modes can turn out to be quite underwhelming when the big names stay put, trying to make a major move in free agency is often a fruitless endeavour. That’s not so bad if you manage to at least keep your own players, but on top of the disappointment of missing out on making a huge signing, you may have sacrificed depth by letting some seemingly expendable players walk. Depending on how much cap space you have, replacing them can be difficult. If you do acquire a top free agent, you can weather that loss of depth. If all you can sign are journeymen and undrafted rookies, then the risk hasn’t paid off.
This was my folly in free agency heading into the third year of my NBA Live 06 PC Dynasty with the Chicago Bulls. Sure, I was in a good spot as the two-time defending champions, with Ben Gordon emerging as a superstar in that reality. I still had my sights set on making a splash in free agency, however. Since the game didn’t reflect restricted free agency, I’d have an opportunity to make a run at a class of free agents that included LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Bosh. In the end, they all decided to re-sign, and my best move was to retain Kirk Hinrich. With very little cap room to work with, I had to replace bench players with rookies and journeymen.
It could’ve been worse. I could’ve overpaid for a player that was a poor fit, as the real Bulls did with Ben Wallace in 2006. I know, I know, it’s been over sixteen years, but it’s my go-to example for Bulls front office blunders! With that being said, it’s easy for us to make similar mistakes when we don our virtual GM suits as well. If you have cap space to burn and there’s a high-rated free agent available, it’s definitely tempting to pick them up. Making a move – any move – feels more satisfying then sitting on your hands, and there’s always the prospect that you can flip them for a better player down the road. This line of thinking generally works out much better in video games!
Even if there are no high-profile free agents to sign, if there are one or two players with decent ratings that you can pick up, you’re likely going to take a chance on them. Unless your rotation is already set and you’re not in a position to be a player in the market, you’re not going to enter the offseason with absolutely no interest in making a move. In the best case scenario, you’ll add a player or two that will both strengthen your lineup, and you enjoy playing with. Worst case, they’ll turn out to be a poor fit. Since they weren’t your first choice, or maybe even on your radar beforehand, it’s either going to be a case of serendipity, or a move that was doomed from the start.
Once again, that’s something that I experienced in my NBA Live 06 Dynasty. I had enough cap room to seriously consider a major free agent signing at the end of the first season, though it meant letting a couple of key rotation players walk. I didn’t want to sign Ben Wallace, so I ended up inking Chris Wilcox and Mike Dunleavy Jr. – who coincidentally did go to Chicago many years later – to replace my outgoing free agents. Considering one of those players was an aging but still effective Latrell Sprewell, I probably should’ve just kept him for another year. Wilcox did have his moments, but Dunleavy was inconsistent for me, and I ended up trading them both.
That flurry of moves I made in the second year of my Bulls Dynasty came very close to ruining the whole game for me. I ended up with a bench that was too stacked, and it wasn’t fun hoarding all of that talent. Fortunately I was able to correct course and craft a roster that was far more enjoyable to play with, but my follies had begun with those moves in free agency. At the time, those signings seemed like a good idea. I wasn’t able to snag a bigger name, and Wilcox and Dunleavy were solid role players that I saw as a good fit. Compared to putting all of my eggs in one basket and then depleting my bench – as I would do the following offseason – they were solid moves on paper.
Mind you, such follies are a realistic aspect to free agency in franchise modes. In real life, plenty of NBA teams make moves that look good on paper, but just don’t pan out, even if everyone remains healthy. Even the Bulls’ signing of Ben Wallace had some logic to it: he was an All-Star with championship experience, still in his prime, and a defensive force. He was overpaid for a player who didn’t bring much to the table offensively, but it was a big move for a young team that was in need of some veteran leadership. The front office had managed to create cap space, and there was obviously pressure to use it on someone. We absolutely get a taste of that in franchise modes.
That’s what ultimately makes them such great basketball gaming experiences. It’s not just about being put in control of a team, with the ability to make all of the moves we’d like to see. It’s also about the ups and downs, the risks and rewards of different team building strategies. If you go all in on free agency, you might come up empty, without a viable Plan B. If you play it too safe, you might miss out on making a huge signing that changes the course of your franchise game. Players that seem like great additions won’t pan out, while a low-key signing might surprise you. Attempts to correct course may result in triumph, or somehow make the situation even worse.
Needless to say, we do have it much easier than real NBA GMs! We’re not dealing with real people, and we can also re-load from an earlier save point. If you save your game before the offseason and don’t overwrite it, you can take a mulligan on free agency, the Draft, and everything else. I won’t say that I’ve never done that, but I generally prefer not to, unless I feel particularly screwed over by the simulation and player signing logic. It’s a video game at the end of the day, but I do feel like I’m cheating myself out of the intended experience if I just refuse to accept any and all undesirable results. Again, the risk/reward factor is all part of the off-court game.
Franchise mode free agency follies are frustrating, but they’re frequently authentic. Some of the risk that was there in older games due to limitations in functionality and representation of the salary cap rules has been alleviated, but you can still run into plenty of roadblocks and potholes while trying to navigate free agency. To me, that’s how it should be. If you want to assemble a super team without restrictions, you can just customise the roster before beginning your game. There’s no harm in that if that’s what you want, and let no one police how you play. If you do want that authentic GM experience though, success must come at the risk of failure, and free agency follies.
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