It's good to see that everyone was able to steer clear from flaming. A breath of fresh air!!
I see both the points of these arguments. From my perspective, I can conclude that it just wouldn't be easy to develop and maintain a game that "should" be close to the real thing, yet still remain an entertaining experience. I speak for myself, but I imagine many others on here are the same, when I also accept that I know so little about managing a real basketball team (or any sports team) or developing a video game. I think improvement suggestions are great but I will always understand my possible lack of knowledge in all relevant areas and, therefore, be lenient on those who run the show.
That being said, there are a few changes that I would love to see. I'm not a fan of the linear progression of skills. Real flesh and bone sportsman (and women) don't do that. Some players enter a league and do great for a couple of seasons then fizzle out very quickly. Some players enter and are just able to hang onto their contracts, then become quite amazing. Some players who are thought to have little potential end up having lots and vice versa (if anyone has followed the NBA for a while, they'll see what I'm talking about). There is a lot of randomness going on and, for managers of these teams, they have to deal with this randomness, taking decisions along the way to stay on top of the pack.
Or perhaps I'm being too hard on the developers...