Never been in one of those, but would venture to guess it isn't going to be as easy as advertised when running mmj. You could also take that money & stake yourself in solid base equipment that can be scaled up as needed, if needed.

Just about the simplest method is to top feed, drain to waste, in pots. The biggest issue you will have is feeding, which the complexity will depend upon soil/medium choice. This is just my opinion, as there will be a 100 others, but if it were my buddy & he wanted a simpler style grow for the first time, I would put him into coco coir cut with perlite under the system stated above. You will need to pH & tds your starting solution; this will be the most complicated thing, but no other real hydro nor soil concerns. Best of both, imho, & easy though there are other routes you can go.

Hope this helps as with the best of intentions. GL!