The NBA’s Health Fraud Squad Theoretical 17-Man NBA Roster (15 Players, Plus 2 Two-Way Players)…and 1 Other Guy

Today, some really shocking news hit the NBA community.  

According to NBC News Correspondent Tom Winter's tweet, 18 former NBA players (which included Tony Allen, Glen Davis, and Darius Miles) were indicted and charged in an alleged fraud case, as they were arrested and charged for defrauding the NBA’s Health and Welfare Benefit Plan out of millions of dollars.  This was shocking, especially since this group also featured former 6-time Defensive team guard Tony Allen and forward Glen Davis, both of whom were on the 2008 Boston Celtics’ championship team, as well as Terrence Williams, who was cited as the ringleader.

Crooked Media, Takeline, and All Caps’ Jason Concepcion had a very interesting take online, and he cited that this team would win 23-26 games.  Okay, so maybe that was a generous take from him.  

This got me thinking.  Who would be their best player, what would their starting lineup be, and who would be on their team?  Since 15 players plus 2 two-way players can make the team, that means one player would unfortunately have to get cut from this roster.  It's never good that anyone was caught in a fraud scheme, but just for fun, I wanted to see what this basketball team would look like.

Of course, you can shape this roster any way possible, since this wasn’t actually an NBA team, but I decided to see what this team would look like in today’s age, in the 2021-22 NBA season.

In trying to figure out what the NBA Health Fraud squad would look like, here is what I came up with after looking up information and doing research via Basketball-Reference:

The NBA Fraud Squad’s Hypothetical Starting Lineup:

C Glen Davis
F Ruben Patterson – the team’s most likely best player
F Jamario Moon
G Tony Allen – the team’s best overall defender
G C.J. Watson

While Tony Allen would be the team’s best defender and most notable name on this list, Ruben Patterson would be the team’s best overall player, and the 2nd best defender on this team.  The NBA’s Fraud Squad would definitely have trouble shooting or scoring points, but they could certainly run, press, and defend to wreak havoc on the defensive end.  Only 3 players averaged 10 or more points in their NBA careers, and Ruben Patterson is one of them (the other two would be Tony Wroten and Darius Miles).

Here are the stats for this starting 5 (the position is next to the name):

Ruben Patterson was a good defensive player that provided toughness, intensity, and energy, as well as some scoring skills on the court.  To the right of him is his former Blazers' teammate Darius Miles, who also was charged with fraud along with Patterson.

(Photo: SB Nation's Blazer's Edge)

G-F Ruben Patterson

NBA Career: 10.7 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 1.8 APG, 24.6 MPG, 55.6 TS%, 17.1 PER, 35.1 WS48
Years in the NBA: 1999-2008

Self-proclaimed as “the Kobe stopper” back in his heyday, Patterson never quite did that, but he was actually much more than just a good defensive player in the NBA.  He was a very athletic, tough multi-positional player that could play and guard numerous positions, and he was very good at attacking the hoop to score on offense.  He couldn’t really shoot threes, but his athleticism, defense, and energy made him a solid role player, especially on the defensive end.

Tony Allen was a tough, gritty hard-nosed defender that was named to six All-Defensive teams throughout his NBA career.
(Photo: Justin Ford/USA Today Sports, via Fansided's Step Back)

G-F Tony Allen

NBA Career: 8.1 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.3 APG, 22.0 MPG, 52.9 TS%, 28.2 3PT%, 14.2 PER, 38.7 WS, .103 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2005-2018

Tony Allen is the most accomplished NBA player that is on this list.  Known affectionately as “the Grindfather” by Memphis Grizzlies fans, Tony Allen was a superb defender that made 6 All-Defensive teams in the NBA.  He was a key role player on the 2008 Boston Celtics’ championship team, and he was a very athletic guard that consistently provided lockdown defense and toughness, as he excelled in his role throughout his years in the league.

Glen Davis was a key role player on the 2008 Boston Celtics' NBA championship team that season.

(Photo: Elsa/Getty Images, via Canoe.Com)

F-C Glen Davis

NBA Career: 8.0 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 0.9 APG, 21.1 MPG, 49.4 TS%, 12.4 WS, .082 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2008-2015

Dubbed affectionately by sports fans as “Big Baby” back in the day, he was a below the rim, energetic low post scorer that would provide his teams with points and rebounds off the bench.  He was a key bench player as a rookie on the 2008 Boston Celtics’ championship team.  He even averaged 15 points per game for the Orlando Magic in the 2012-13 season, and Davis was one of the best finds of the 2007 NBA Draft.

F Jamario Moon

NBA Career: 6.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, 22.6 MPG, 54.1 TS%, 32.9 3PT%, 13.1 PER, 14.3 WS, .106 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2008-2012

Jamario Moon was a tall, very athletic forward that excelled as a scorer in transition, and was a solid defender in this league.  He was a streaky shooter, but he could space the floor well on his best days.  He wasn’t a heavy scorer, but he could be an athletic 3 and D guy in this league.

G C.J. Watson
NBA Career: 7.2 PPG, 2.5 APG, 1.9 RPG, 20.2 MPG, 53.3 TS%, 37.3 3PT%, 13.1 PER, 24.1 WS, .096 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2008-2017

C.J. Watson was a journeyman backup point guard who was best known for being a solid shooter, and for reliably running the point on second units for various teams in the NBA.  He wasn’t the most dynamic player on offense, but he consistently played well enough to be a regular in NBA teams’ rotations for many years in this league.

Filling out the 10-Man Rotation for the Hypothetical Team, the NBA Fraud Squad:

G Shannon Brown, the 6th Man
F Alan Anderson, the 7th Man
F-C Darius Miles, the 8th Man
G Tony Wroten, the 9th Man
F Chris Douglas-Roberts, the 10th Man

G Shannon Brown
NBA Career: 7.6 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 1.1 APG, 18.0 MPG, 50.3 TS%, 33.2 3PT%, 12.4 PER, 9.2 WS, .060 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2007-2015

Brown was a very athletic combo guard that thrived as a shot maker off the bench. He didn’t really fit a traditional position, but he was a key contributor on the 2009 and 2010 Lakers’ championship teams in this league. 

G-F Alan Anderson
NBA Career: 7.3 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.1 APG, 20.6 MPG, 52.6 TS%, 34.4 3PT%, 10.3 PER, 7.4 WS, .052 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2006-2007, 2012-2017

Alan Anderson had spent a couple of seasons on two lowly Charlotte Bobcats’ teams before ending up out of the league, and he bounced around overseas and in the then D-League before re-inventing himself as a 3 and D player.  When he came back, he was a useful role player on various NBA teams.

Darius Miles was one half of the Clippers' popular duo along with Quentin Richardson that did taps on the head in the early 2000s.

(Photo: SB Nation's Clips Nation)

F-C Darius Miles

NBA Career: 10.1 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.1 BPG, 26.3 MPG, 49.8 TS%, 13.9 PER, 9.5 WS, .039 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2001-2006, 2009

Darius Miles, known as “D-Miles” early in his NBA career, was a very athletic, tall forward that was selected 3rd overall in the 2000 NBA Draft.  He had a ton of upside, and he was a gifted scorer on fast breaks, and showed promise as a defender, as he had the potential to guard multiple positions.  

While he showed promise in his early years, unfortunately, he never quite reached his full potential in the NBA.  He never fully developed his offensive game or became the defensive stopper some felt he could have been, but Miles was a tremendously athletic forward whose great speed and rim running abilities would make him an intriguing small-ball center in today’s NBA.

G-F Tony Wroten
NBA Career: 11.1 PPG, 3.0 APG, 2.5 RPG, 21.2 MPG, 48.8 TS%, 21.2 MPG, 12.6 PER, -1.3 WS, -.021 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2013-2016

Tony Wroten was a tall, very athletic combo guard that excelled as an athletic slasher, which enabled him to score quite often in this league, and he also could play numerous positions in this league.  He didn’t have a great outside shot, and he consistently played on some of the worst teams in the league, but his ability to score and facilitate allowed him to have two decent seasons in the NBA.

After CDR's tremendous junior season at Memphis, some of the draft fans and analysts thought he was destined for greatness in the NBA.  Chris Douglas-Roberts played 6 seasons in the NBA, but never averaged 10 or more points in a single season, though he came close once in the 2009-10 season.
(Photo: Pace for News, via NY Daily News)

G-F Chris Douglas-Roberts

NBA Career: 7.1 PPG, 2.2 RPG, 1.1 APG, 19.7 MPG, 52.8 TS%, 32.9 3PT%, 11.5 PER, 5.4 WS, .059 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2009-2011, 2013-2015

Chris Douglas-Roberts, affectionately known to some as “CDR” and referred to in court documents as “Supreme Bey,” was a college star that was known for his strong scoring skills (predominantly on dribble handoff plays) on the 2008 Memphis Tigers’ team that lost in overtime to Kansas in the National Championship game.  Thought to be a likely first round pick, he fell to being selected 40th overall by the New Jersey Nets in the 2008 NBA Draft.

Douglas-Roberts was an athletic, journeyman swingman that provided scoring on various NBA teams in this league.  He wasn’t the most consistent player and he didn’t shoot quite as well as hoped in this league, but he is a player that can provide some solid scoring punch on his best days.  

Rounding Out the Roster part I, Players 11-15 for the Hypothetical Team, the NBA’s Fraud Squad:

Players, 11-15:

F Eddie Robinson, 11th Man
G Will Bynum, 12th Man
C Greg Smith, 13th Man
F Antoine Wright, 14th Man
G Sebastian Telfair, 15th Man

F Eddie Robinson
NBA Career: 7.0 PPG, 2.7 RPG, 0.9 APG, 19.2 MPG, 53.4 TS%, 14 PER, 10.2 WS, .091 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2000-2004

Perhaps I should’ve rated Eddie Robinson higher on this list, but there were a lot of intriguing candidates to help round out the rotation.  Anyways, Eddie Robinson was an athletic, high-motor combo forward that excelled at attacking the hoop to provide scoring off the bench.  While he didn’t have a great outside shot, he was a vital role player that would provide scoring, athleticism, and energy off the bench.

G Will Bynum
NBA Career: 8.1 PPG, 3.3 APG, 1.6 RPG, 18.4 MPG, 51 TS%, 14.6 PER, 7 PER, .051 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2005, 2009-2015

Will Bynum bounced around quite a bit in this league, but he was a serviceable backup point guard that provided tough, feisty defense in his years in the NBA.  While he didn't have a great outside shot, he was a solid backup point guard that could reliably run the point, and he was a tenacious defender in this league.

F-C Greg Smith
NBA Career: 4.0 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 0.3 APG, 12.3 MPG, 62.3 TS%, 13.8 PER, 5.5 WS, .143 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2012-2016

Greg Smith was something of an analytical favorite, but he was also a seldom-used center that only played 1000 minutes or more once in a season during his years in the NBA.  He was an athletic center that could score in the low post and rebound, but he didn’t play very much in this league.

F Antoine Wright
NBA Career: 5.4 PPG, 2.3 RPG, 1.0 APG, 19.2 MPG, 49 TS%, 30.4 3PT%, 7.9 PER, 3.1 WS, .026 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2006-2011

Wright was a very athletic swingman that could score on offense, but he was very inconsistent as a shooter in this league.  On his best day, he could be a solid 3 and D role player when he was out on the floor.

G Sebastian Telfair
NBA Career: 7.4 PPG, 3.5 APG, 1.6 RPG, 21.5 MPG, 47.8 TS%, 31.9 3PT%, 10.8 PER, 5 WS, .020 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2005-2013, 2015

Telfair was known for his high school exploits that enabled him to be a first round pick of the 2004 NBA Draft.  He didn’t quite live up to expectations, but he was able to carve out a career as a journeyman point guard that could provide a little offense and run the team.  He was a solid facilitator, but was an inconsistent shooter that didn’t really offer much defensively in this league.

Rounding Out the Roster part 2, The Two-Way Players for the Hypothetical Team, the NBA’s Fraud Squad:

F Terrence Williams (would be on a Two-Way contract in this scenario)
C Melvin Ely (would be on a Two-Way contract in this scenario)

Terrence Williams was alleged to be the ringleader of the health fraud scam, as a total of 18 players, and one other person were apparently involved in that scheme.

(Photo: Phelan M. Ebenhack/Associated Press, via CBC.ca)

G-F Terrence Williams - the alleged ring leader of their health fraud scam

NBA Career: 7.1 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 2.4 APG, 19.1 MPG, 46.6 TS%, 31.7 3PT%, 11.5 PER, -0.2 WS, -.004 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2010-2013

Williams was a very athletic point forward that had promising skills, and had plenty of talent, but he also was an extremely inconsistent player in games.  His versatility made him intriguing as a player, but he also would show bad shot selection and he also would take bad gambles defensively.  On his best days though, he could provide scoring punch and playmaking skills on an NBA team.

C Melvin Ely

NBA Career: 5.3 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 0.7 APG, 16 MPG. 49.7 TS%, 10.6 PER, 4.0 WS, .032 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2003-2009, 2011, 2014

Ely was a strong, physical center that played for numerous teams in this league, but he was quite inconsistent as a player in the NBA, and he shot the ball really poorly in some of the years in the association.  He provided some shot blocking skills, and he hung around in the NBA for quite a while, but he was pretty shoddy as a scorer or rebounder, and his advanced stats were quite bad for an NBA center pretty much all across the board.  On the other hand, he is a center that would be on a team that has a dearth of true centers on this roster, and Ely also won an NBA championship as a member of the 2007 San Antonio Spurs, which would give him a decent case to be on this team.

The Player that Would (Likely) Get Cut From this Hypothetical Team:

G Milt Palacio
NBA Career: 4.8 PPG, 2.5 APG, 1.8 RPG, 17.9 MPG, 47.7 TS%, 9.9 PER, 3.9 WS, .022 WS48
Years in the NBA: 2000-2006

Unfortunately, NBA rules stipulate that the maximum a team can carry on their roster is 15 players, plus 2 two-way contract players, so one player would get cut from their regular season roster.

G Milt Palacio

Palacio was a journeyman backup point guard that did little more than reliably run the team as a second or third string point guard in this league.  He was never a great shooter or scorer, but he hung around by being a game-managing, pass-first point guard that could capably defend on the other end of the floor.

So, who would be the theoretical head coach?

Well, there is no head coach that was named as part of the NBA Health Fraud Squad, but I feel that former NBA head coach Rick Pitino would be a great fit as the boss for this team.

His run and press scheme would utilize the best aspects of this very defensive squad that featured some of the most underrated defenders in their heyday, and Pitino also was suspended for parts of the 2017-18 NCAA college basketball season for his failures and negligence in an escort sex scandal at Louisville involving recruits, so he would fit right into this team.

So in essence, here would be who would be on this fictional, hypothetical, NBA Health Fraud Squad.

The NBA's Health Fraud Squad (Fictional Team):

The Would-Be Head Coach:
Rick Pitino

The Would-Be Starting Lineup:
C Glen Davis
F Ruben Patterson
F Jamario Moon
G Tony Allen
G C.J. Watson

The Would-Be Bench:

G Shannon Brown
F Alan Anderson
F-C Darius Miles
G Tony Wroten
F Chris Douglas-Roberts
F Eddie Robinson
G Will Bynum
C Greg Smith
F Antoine Wright
G Sebastian Telfair

The Would-Be Two-Way Guys:
F Terrence Williams (would be on a Two-Way contract in this scenario)
C Melvin Ely (would be on a Two-Way contract in this scenario)

Ceiling (Peak Scenario): 30 wins, but miss the playoffs
Floor (Lowest Level Scenario): <15 wins, the worst team in the NBA

Most Likely Theoretical Season Outcome: A 25-57 record, this team would likely miss the playoffs, and be one of the worst teams in the NBA

Overall, if this were the 31st team in the NBA, this team would be an intriguing expansion team, and they could be fun to watch defensively, especially if they were equipped with a coach that would allow them to play fast and utilize a style that enhances their team’s strengths.

On the other hand, this team would really have trouble scoring the basketball, which could be a recipe for disaster in today’s NBA.  All of these players were career role players, and there isn’t one player that is capable of sniffing a chance to make the All-Star team.  

Before doing this research, I thought about building this fictional team around the talents of Chris Douglas-Roberts, but after having done the research and looked up their stats on Basketball-Reference, I developed a greater appreciation for the underrated basketball skills of former Los Angeles Lakers and Portland Trail Blazers' forward, Ruben Patterson.

In any case, this would probably not be a great team in today’s age, but if this were a real team, maybe Ruben Patterson would pick up a Most Improved Player award, and it might actually be a team where Tony Allen would have a legitimate chance to be the team’s best player on an NBA roster.