Tips to a Successful DC/Strat

Depth Charts

#1. Buy the game: I'm not saying this as like, you pay to win or anything like that. But the game allows you to do something that is really essential to being a contending team: the submatrix. The submatrix allows you to set up exactly when players get subbed in and out. You control every 2 minutes of every quarter, and can do things that the AI can't do. Only have 3 big men who can really play? You can get a rotation with just those 3 in the submatrix, whereas the game can't. Want a different lineup finishing the game than the ones that started it? Can only do that with the submatrix. You have a world of tinkering here... but only with the game.

#2. Know how to utilize your bench: A really popular lineup move these days is the scoring guard off the bench. Easiest way to ensure your 6th man gets a good amount of minutes? Set your starter who you want to sub with the 6th man to 95 subout. Set the bench player to 85. Your starter will still probably play a few more minutes than your 6th man, but it will be close. Also, the positions eligible (what positions you allow each player to play) is huge. The more versatile your bench is, the better your AI coach can handle things like foul trouble and injuries in game.

#3. Don't set anyone under 75 in the DC: You're just asking for ineffective play/injuries at that point. If you set your starters subout to below 75, then you are asking your players to play at 75% effectiveness. I highly doubt your bench players are worse than your starters at 75%.

#4. Don't screw with your DC too often!: Roster stability actually plays a role in this engine. If you are constantly switching players roles and minutes, it will have a negative effect on your team's chemistry as a whole. Sure, sometimes a matchup against a certain team dictates some changes, or as usual, your team just needs a shakeup. That's fine. But switching players between the bench and the starting lineup, or inactive and the bench, every other sim? That's gonna really mess with your chemistry.

#5. Keep your DC and strategies aligned: This one should be obvious, but if you have your strategy set to play a high defensive intensity or a full court press, make sure you actually are playing your good defensive players with high discipline. Don't set them to contradict each other, that won't get the most out of your team.

#6. Remember to set your submatrix after setting your DC: Setting your DC is only half the battle. If you don't reset your submatrix or at least hit "AI Suggest," the changes you made won't really be input unless you took a player out of your DC altogether, and even then, it may not be the changes you want. Use the submatrix!

#7. Utilize the player instructions: Every player has preferences as to whether to post up, shoot jumpers, or shoot 3s, as well as how often he wants to drive vs. shoot the ball. If your player is inefficient because he's taking shots from the wrong area, for instance, your post up threat is taking 3s or your diminutive point guard is posting up too much, use the instructions to make them more efficient and take shots from where YOU want them to.

Strategy

Player Rotation - Doesn't really need to be messed with since you are manually handling the DC (and possibly the submatrix).

Player Preference - Same, as again, you are the one calling the shots here.

Offensive Pace - This one is fairly self-explanatory, but it's impact is far reaching. I'll break it down.

Faster offensive pace means - more possessions which means more shots for both teams, as well as tiring players faster and making them more foul/injury prone. It also will mean more shots for the guards, and usually more 3s, as they are just taking the first good shot possible. Faster pace requires good shooters higher IQ.

Slower offensive pace means - less possessions which means less shots for both teams. Players can play longer. The offense will look to dump in the post a whole lot more, so teams with big men will want to slow the pace down. Requires good ball handling and passing, as the ball will be moved around more to find the best possible shot.

Full Court Defense - The more you press, the more turnovers you force, but also the quicker your team tires out, and if you have a poor defensive/stealing team, you'll give up more easy buckets as your press will get shredded. The less you press, the less turnovers you force, but it preserves your team's energy.

Defensive Intensity - A more intense defense will cause more turnovers, contest shots at a higher rate, and generally play tougher on D. The downsides? Increased fatigue and foul rate. A low intensity defense will not force many turnovers and allow opponents to shoot over the top, but by sagging off it will help stop a few more drives, keep the foul rate low, and save energy. The best measure for this is DI. The higher your players' DI, the more intense you can afford your defense to be.

Zone Defense - A high usage of the zone defense will cause fewer shots at the basket, fewer turnovers forced, fewer fouls committed, and more defensive rebounds. It will also give the opponent wide open 3 after 3 after 3. A low zone defense will do literally the exact opposite of everything above. Zone defenses can also help hide poor defenders, but it will marginalize the effectiveness of great defenders. The opposite holds true for man-to-man defense, which is what you get if you put your zone preference at a low rating.

Offense Crash Boards - If you have a team particularly poor at shooting the ball or with great offensive rebounders, you'll want to set this rating high. The drawback is it's possible you give up some buckets in transition you wouldn't otherwise, but offensive rebounds are very valuable. Then again, if you are a great shooting team or don't have great rebounders, don't bother.

Defense Crash Boards - Teams that like to get out and run the fastbreak will want to set this low, but in order to deny the opposing team second chance points, set this high. Fairly simple.