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Orlando City select first picks in Expansion Draft, MLS SuperDraft after winning blind draw

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By RYAN TOLMICH

In what was essentially a draft of drafts, Orlando City emerged as the runaway winner while Jason Kreis made his first mistake as New York City FC head coach.

The Lions won the blind draw determining who would receive the first choice in the Expansion Priority Draft and manager Adrian Heath promptly selected the first choice in the MLS Expansion Draft that will be held on Dec. 10. Kreis responded by snagging the first spot in the Allocation Ranking, allowing Heath and Orlando City to pick up the first spot in January’s MLS SuperDraft.

Kreis then selected the rights to the second-to-last spot in the Discovery Rankings, which are used to sign a new player that is wanted by multiple teams. The NYC FC head coach immediately admitted that he had made a mistake, but a league official ruled that the selection could not be reversed.

Heath responded by taking Kreis’ intended pick, the USL Pro/NASL Priority Ranking, before the former Real Salt Lake boss took the top spot in the Waiver/Re-Entry rankings. Heath and Kreis then finished up the proceedings by choosing the Lottery Ranking and Designated Player Ranking, respectively.

What do you make of the results of the Expansion Priority Draft? How do you see both teams using their new choices?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. this is really embarrassing for the league.

    Makes me not want to watch this league at all. I know I know…it should just be about soccer. But this stuff is just Mickey Mouse and had absolutely no place in any sports league.

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  2. Why don’t they just let the teams with the most money buy whoever they want? Like the rest of the soccer world. That way MLS can have 2 or 3 teams take turns winning titles for decades- most successful model ever….

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  3. Wow. Kreis is an idiot. OCSC is going to be stacked next year. Good thing NYCFC has Man City money, scouting, and players to fall back on.

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  4. Seriously?

    Kreis then selected the rights to the second-to-last spot in the Discovery Rankings, which are used to sign a new player that is wanted by multiple teams. The NYC FC head coach immediately admitted that he had made a mistake, but a league official ruled that the selection could not be reversed.

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    • Major, inexcusable mistake by Kreis. We can joke about how unusual the mechanics of player acquisition are in MLS, but Kreis had a long time to figure this out precisely.
      If this draft was the beginning of a game of FIFA 15 on franchise mode, Kreis might be tempted to hit delete and start over. Maybe JK was expecting an “Are you sure?” Prompt from MLS officials.

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      • When you say “we”, do you have a split personality or have you already consulted others and are posting on their behalf?
        As an NYCFC fan, I disapprove of the error. It is a major mistake because Kreis is getting paid a lot of money to get this right and had plenty of time to do so.

    • I noticed when they listed the available tools that some got you top of the order and others merely got you ahead of the other guy at the end of the line. If I saw it as a fan, it’s a bit of a blunder for the team not to see it as their livelihood.

      But a massive blunder? It was always going to be either last or next to last.

      In terms of OC being stacked, all they have so far is the iffy Kaka, and then first in the expansion draft. the college draft, the minor league draft, and the higher DP ranking. Except for the last (and perhaps the college draft depending on your luck) those tools often result in mediocre filler.

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  5. “Orlando City select first picks in Expansion Draft, MLS SuperDraft after winning blind draw.”

    Does that even make sense as a sentence?????

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  6. not sure I understood a word of that. The reporting was great. But the process of the MLS Draft(s) demands you have some
    kind of advances mathematical PHd. I don’t.

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    • The different mechanisms are somewhat byzantine when you see them all at once but there is an individual explanation for each. This is how you pick college players. This is how you sign returning American stars. etc.

      I definitely don’t think it’s complicated in tactics: Kreis repeatedly favored veteran acquisition tools while Orlando lined up a bunch of entry draft/ minor league access tools. I think NYC has also done better on its veteran signings to date, where OC has signed the faltering Kaka and a bunch of its minor leaguers. NYC is taking the Montreal Impact route of trying to buy success with veteran signings, OC is doing a slower build.

      Chivas did the slow build route and the team stunk year one and never got better than the Bradley years. TFC stripped down to the frame and still hasn’t gotten anywhere. Maybe it’s that I’m watching years of Houston Astros misery but I think trying to build within is awful strategy because the end goal is to have the quality veterans that every other team signs outright (a short cut). A productive farm system or youth acquisition process can reduce the holes to fill but can’t supply you 11 major league quality people to start. So I prefer starting with the key cogs in place over signing kids first. You can still sign youth players you just aren’t as dependent on developmental efficiency.

      Reply

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