Archx wrote:ozwizard8 wrote:No one is claiming Maxi should be a starting C.
No one is saying MAxi should get 35 mpg.
No one is thinking Maxi is our next German lord and savior #41.
THJ is supposed to score efficiently to worth it on the floor, while Maxi's contribution isn't limited to PPG, but being able to defend adequately for 15mpg while opening up the spacing.
People bashing Maxi where he put up a +27 as if he messed up last night is simply wrong. This is a casual basketball fan mindset.
Maxi is a role player. His role is not scoring 20 points. His role is not being volume shooter. Mavs FO expects him to play some C minutes and some PF minutes. As a stretch-5, his success rate is not evaluated by shooting 6 3s. If Maxi plays in a game and improve offense while not giving up too much defense/rebounding, then its a success. That is a tool for Mavs to use sometimes 0 minutes, sometimes 20 minutes based on matchup. Maxi is not guarded like he's prime Klay Thompson, but he is not sagged off like Powell, Giddey, Gobert at the 3pt line.
Lively-Gafford >> Maxi
I am ecstatic to see those two centers in the playoffs. Its also good to have a stretch-5 in our pocket. There is a role of stretch-5. Against Denver, it might be 0 minutes, and against Wolves maybe its 15 minutes. In the last playoffs Maxi played great as a role player. I dont like his current shooting percentage but I am optimistic our long time Mavs player to ramp up again in playoffs. I dont expect him to play 35mpg and try six 3pt shots each game. Play 10 minutes shoot 2-3 times and that's fine. Important part is him to keep up in defense.
No one is bashing Maxi, you just chose to take it that way. We're saying a stretch 5 without taking open shots is not a stretch 5 but is simply a traditional center, which Maxi is bad at. He's a natural PF who can guard some of SF's and that is a nice luxury to have. But Kidd forcing small lineups with THj and Maxi at 5 is a recipe for disaster. I lost count how many leads Mavs lost because of that.
People were bashing Maxi. They think his contribution depends on the number of shots he takes.
This is not true. A stretch-5 who plays 10-20mpg doesn't need to take too many shots. C.Wood was taking too many shots, he didn't help winning at all.
* Be a decent 3-pt threat.
* Do not drop the defense too much.
Against Spurs Maxi was +27, which indicates he didn't **** up the defense, and he got some respect to his shot.
THJ lineups **** the Mavs most of the time.
Mavs made WCF without THJ.
THJ is defensive liability, if you add Maxi to this formula it sucks. I have written many times that Kidd shouldn't go Kyrie-Luka-THJ lineup + stretch-5. With Kyrie-Luka, I like 3 plus defenders. For 10-15mpg you can use Maxi to shake things up. But we should not use THJ+Maxi alongside the Luka-Kyrie.
