Luka Dončić Discussion - Year 7

Bob8 · Post #281 » by **Bob8** » Tue Jul 2, 2024 7:22 pm

Archx wrote:This is the most pathetic Slovenian team i've seen in a long time. That goes for coach aswell.

Coach is pathetic more or less from beginning. Roster is just bad, no shooters and no defenders + players coming from long term injuries.

BliscoSantos · Post #282 » by **BliscoSantos** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 12:30 am

Luka needs to lose weight...now he's injured ,he played ok...he was good amongst the bad....he really needs to take time to heal his injuries and then after a little break go work on his conditioning and loss of weight... he's too heavy,needs to slim down and then he'll be better on D and unstopable on O

arkuo · Post #283 » by **arkuo** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 12:47 am

Slovenia's not winning anything. Luka's better off playing video games at home and resting that knee.

Post #284 » by **Mavrelous** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 5:18 am

I went for a jog after the 1st half, didn't watch the 2nd half, but it's basically the same roster they had for what? 7 years?
They are very small, very slow, and they couldn't shoot yesterday, I expected them to lose to Croatia, but I expected much more competitive game, Luka will be resting in a week...

BliscoSantos · Post #285 » by **BliscoSantos** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 6:26 am

Mavrelous wrote:I went for a jog after the 1st half, didn't watch the 2nd half, but it's basically the same roster they had for what? 7 years?
They are very small, very slow, and they couldn't shoot yesterday, I expected them to lose to Croatia, but I expected much more competitive game, Luka will be resting in a week...

Yeah, he'll be resting but I'm not sure that's a good thing.... it's good that he'll be able to recover from the injuries that are bugging him but we all know he gains weight easily because he lacks the discipline to live the Life of a profesional athlete...hope he's not like his dad(he didn't Live the Life of a profesional athlete too)

The Mavs organization and National team have been babying him for too long...someone needs to put the foot down and tell him to start behaving like a pro(eat right,workout,take care of his body/conditioning)

Bob8 · Post #286 » by **Bob8** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 8:54 am

It would be the best if this tragedy ends on Thursday. Slovenia gets new coaching staff, Luka vacation and everyone avoid humiliation against Greece.

BliscoSantos · Post #287 » by **BliscoSantos** » Wed Jul 3, 2024 2:46 pm

There are rumors circling/spreading for a couple of years now that Luka isn't living the Life of an professional athlete...there were some issues in the National team past years, that's why Dragić wanted to quit when he came out of retirement(he regreted returning to National team)...it was reported that People in the National team and the Mavs organization tried to get thru to him,but so far no one has....I think he's surrounded by too many people who cuddle him,say others are just haters...the problem is that as Long as he delivers,is one of the Best,he probably won't change anything...he thinks he is a good defender,even though most of the time he doesn't even try,Just waits for help from others...if he doesn't change Players could end up getting sick of him and not help out

styLesdavis · Post #288 » by **styLesdavis** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 5:58 am

New Zealand won against Croatia 90:86. Slovenia would need to win by at least 10 points against New Zealand today to make it to the semi finals (most probably against Greece with Giannis). This will be a very short national team summer for Luka.

41Dirk41 · Post #289 » by **41Dirk41** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:11 am

Darren · Post #290 » by **Darren** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:18 am

I think Luka has to focus on defense development this offseason, whether it's athletical training or watching films. And Luka has to be healthy on top of most. I know Luka want to play. Both it's equally important to stay fresh and ready for the season. Now that OKC is the team to beat. And Luka, Kyrie and KT is going to play a lot together. Then, the trio needs to held their own instead of relying heavily on help defense. OKC now spaces the floor. With the roster set up, OKC is better than Boston. They're less experienced, though. Strategic-wise, the same way doesn't work. And Kidd is poor in substitution. This is the biggest barrier the Mavs has to overcome.

Darren · Post #291 » by **Darren** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:19 am

It's way more easier to build around two-wayed superstars. But to stick with Luka. Then, the defense has to be decent to say the least. In 2011, Dirk actually plays good defense despite all limitations.

Darren · Post #292 » by **Darren** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:21 am

Maybe you force a switch for Chet guarding KT and do all kind of damages in paint. But still, with Caruso, Dort, SGA and Hartenstein. It would be ultra difficult to get pass Thunder. And SAS is coming as well in a season or two. Lively has to be ready for the challenges.

Bob8 · Post #293 » by **Bob8** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 7:26 am

Darren wrote:Maybe you force a switch for Chet guarding KT and do all kind of damages in paint. But still, with Caruso, Dort, SGA and Hartenstein. It would be ultra difficult to get pass Thunder. And SAS is coming as well in a season or two. Lively has to be ready for the challenges.

Problem with OKC is not how they look now, but how they will look after trade line or next year with all the picks they have. They for example can easily afford to trade for Markkanen. Good luck of beating Shai/Dort/J-Will/Markannen/Chet + good bench. That's really Celtics on steroids. My only hope is that they wait too long and they won't be able to afford having team that expensive, they should go all in this year already.

Dirk2Doncic · Post #294 » by **Dirk2Doncic** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 2:33 pm

I've been saying this to friends the past couple years about Luka...

I don't want him to lead the league in scoring in the 1st quarter. I want him to lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter.

As smart as he is on individual possessions.... there are still things Luka needs to learn about championship level play in the NBA.

Dirk > Luka. Luka's story is still being written.

What Dirk did in the 4th quarters for the Mavericks in their post season championship run > Luka's stat stuffing with no ring.

And I've been saying this to friends about Luka for years...

It remains to be seen if he has a career like Russell Westbrook.

Hopefully next year Luka gets a ring and then I'll be wondering how far this can go! (meaning how many rings can he collect and how far can he climb in NBA history rankings)

Bob8 · Post #295 » by **Bob8** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 5:33 pm

Dirk2Doncic wrote:I've been saying this to friends the past couple years about Luka...

I don't want him to lead the league in scoring in the 1st quarter. I want him to lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter.

As smart as he is on individual possessions.... there are still things Luka needs to learn about championship level play in the NBA.

Dirk > Luka. Luka's story is still being written.

What Dirk did in the 4th quarters for the Mavericks in their post season championship run > Luka's stat stuffing with no ring.

And I've been saying this to friends about Luka for years...

It remains to be seen if he has a career like Russell Westbrook.

Hopefully next year Luka gets a ring and then I'll be wondering how far this can go! (meaning how many rings can he collect and how far can he climb in NBA history rankings)

The most important Qs in Nba are 1st. Winning Q1 is statistically the most important for the win. Luka normally plays around 6 minutes in Q4, so it's kinda impossible to dominate, if you're not playing half of the Q.

What has Dirk won with 25 years? The same question goes for MJ, LeBron...

Luka can of course play better, but he honestly never had a roster capable of winning the ring, so it's kinda strange to bring that against him.

Archx · Post #296 » by **Archx** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 5:39 pm

Dirk2Doncic wrote:I've been saying this to friends the past couple years about Luka...

I don't want him to lead the league in scoring in the 1st quarter. I want him to lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter.

As smart as he is on individual possessions.... there are still things Luka needs to learn about championship level play in the NBA.

Dirk > Luka. Luka's story is still being written.

What Dirk did in the 4th quarters for the Mavericks in their post season championship run > Luka's stat stuffing with no ring.

And I've been saying this to friends about Luka for years...

It remains to be seen if he has a career like Russell Westbrook.

Hopefully next year Luka gets a ring and then I'll be wondering how far this can go! (meaning how many rings can he collect and how far can he climb in NBA history rankings)

And if Mavs as a unit weren't so horrible on offense in the finals, this post wouldn't even exist. I guess you missed the part where Mavs played better defense vs Celtics than any other team in the league. But congrats on writing this.

41Dirk41 · Post #297 » by **41Dirk41** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:04 pm

Few superstars won the Finals in the first appearence... Luka is not Jordan.

41Dirk41 · Post #298 » by **41Dirk41** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 6:13 pm

However 36+11+10 and W

Dirk2Doncic · Post #299 » by **Dirk2Doncic** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 10:18 pm

Bob8 wrote:
Dirk2Doncic wrote:I've been saying this to friends the past couple years about Luka...

I don't want him to lead the league in scoring in the 1st quarter. I want him to lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter.

As smart as he is on individual possessions.... there are still things Luka needs to learn about championship level play in the NBA.

Dirk > Luka. Luka's story is still being written.

What Dirk did in the 4th quarters for the Mavericks in their post season championship run > Luka's stat stuffing with no ring.

And I've been saying this to friends about Luka for years...

It remains to be seen if he has a career like Russell Westbrook.

Hopefully next year Luka gets a ring and then I'll be wondering how far this can go! (meaning how many rings can he collect and how far can he climb in NBA history rankings)

The most important Qs in Nba are 1st. Winning Q1 is statistically the most important for the win. Luka normally plays around 6 minutes in Q4, so it's kinda impossible to dominate, if you're not playing half of the Q.

What has Dirk won with 25 years? The same question goes for MJ, LeBron...

Luka can of course play better, but he honestly never had a roster capable of winning the ring, so it's kinda strange to bring that against him.

Numbers often don't tell the real story. We can agree to disagree.

I'm not down on Luka. He's an amazing player. He still has room for improvement which is right where he should be at this point in his career.

Amazing we went from Dirk to Luka. I'm ecstatic we have Luka and hopeful we will see championships with him.

Luka can continue to improve his shooting a little (overall efficiency including shot selection at times), improve his team defense, improve in keeping his head in the game (this affected his play and therefore his team in a couple games in the finals which can never happen on that stage), and improve his decision making even if only a little.

Being a master at reading the variables for individual possessions is not equal to being a master at reading the the overall game. There is a difference. Magic Johnson was a master of both. Sometimes Magic knew he needed to get someone going vs simply reading the variables for a particular possession. I'm not saying Luka never does this. I'm saying there is still room for growth, IMO.

There is a big difference between looking to get yourself going and looking to get your teammates going. We were incredibly fortunate with Kyrie and now with slowed down Clay (I'm fearful we might find out what the Warriors might know). I do think there is truth to the idea that some guys would get tired of standing around watching.

"Don't try to win the game in the 1st quarter" - Greg Popovich

Mavs were the best last 5 minutes in the 4th quarter team in the league in 2011. We had the best closer on the planet that post season and we were the best as a team at closing games. Dirk was at his absolute closing peak and he had worked hard to become a good team defender. All part of why we were champions.

Generally speaking...

Getting others involved early and dominating the 4th > taking a ton of shots in the 1st putting up 1st quarter numbers but fading in the 4th.

Having said all that... I'll take a championship any way we can get it.

Another thought...

Boston uses KP the way I wanted the Mavs to use him. When KP is guarded by a small(ish) player, they feed him the ball in the mid range and he shoots over them like a chair. I suspect this was driven by Mavs "analytics" and for some odd reason Carlisle bought into it. (KP is probably a little physically stronger since the time we had him... but still... )

Final thought...

This post season was a GREAT ride. It was a total blast until the finals. Luka was a monster until the finals. As great as he is and even with all the numbers, there is another level he can get to and I'm hopeful that he gets there.

Bob8 · Post #300 » by **Bob8** » Thu Jul 4, 2024 10:42 pm

Dirk2Doncic wrote:
Bob8 wrote:
Dirk2Doncic wrote:I've been saying this to friends the past couple years about Luka...

I don't want him to lead the league in scoring in the 1st quarter. I want him to lead the league in scoring in the 4th quarter.

As smart as he is on individual possessions.... there are still things Luka needs to learn about championship level play in the NBA.

Dirk > Luka. Luka's story is still being written.

What Dirk did in the 4th quarters for the Mavericks in their post season championship run > Luka's stat stuffing with no ring.

And I've been saying this to friends about Luka for years...

It remains to be seen if he has a career like Russell Westbrook.

Hopefully next year Luka gets a ring and then I'll be wondering how far this can go! (meaning how many rings can he collect and how far can he climb in NBA history rankings)

The most important Qs in Nba are 1st. Winning Q1 is statistically the most important for the win. Luka normally plays around 6 minutes in Q4, so it's kinda impossible to dominate, if you're not playing half of the Q.

What has Dirk won with 25 years? The same question goes for MJ, LeBron...

Luka can of course play better, but he honestly never had a roster capable of winning the ring, so it's kinda strange to bring that against him.

Numbers often don't tell the real story. We can agree to disagree.

I'm not down on Luka. He's an amazing player. He still has room for improvement which is right where he should be at this point in his career.

Amazing we went from Dirk to Luka. I'm ecstatic we have Luka and hopeful we will see championships with him.

Luka can continue to improve his shooting a little (overall efficiency including shot selection at times), improve his team defense, improve in keeping his head in the game (this affected his play and therefore his team in a couple games in the finals which can never happen on that stage), and improve his decision making even if only a little.

Being a master at reading the variables for individual possessions is not equal to being a master at reading the the overall game. There is a difference. Magic Johnson was a master of both. Sometimes Magic knew he needed to get someone going vs simply reading the variables for a particular possession. I'm not saying Luka never does this. I'm saying there is still room for growth, IMO.

There is a big difference between looking to get yourself going and looking to get your teammates going. We were incredibly fortunate with Kyrie and now with slowed down Clay (I'm fearful we might find out what the Warriors might know). I do think there is truth to the idea that some guys would get tired of standing around watching.

"Don't try to win the game in the 1st quarter" - Greg Popovich

Mavs were the best last 5 minutes in the 4th quarter team in the league in 2011. We had the best closer on the planet that post season and we were the best as a team at closing games. Dirk was at his absolute closing peak and he had worked hard to become a good team defender. All part of why we were champions.

Generally speaking...

Getting others involved early and dominating the 4th > taking a ton of shots in the 1st putting up 1st quarter numbers but fading in the 4th.

Having said all that... I'll taking a championship any way we can get it.

Another thought...

Boston uses KP the way I wanted the Mavs to use him. When KP is guarded by a small(ish) player, they feed him the ball in the mid range and he shoots over them like a chair. I suspect this was driven by Mavs "analytics" and for some odd reason Carlisle bought into it. (KP is probably a little physically stronger since the time we had him... but still... )

Final thought...

This post season was a GREAT ride. It was a total blast until the finals. Luka was a monster until the finals. As great as he is and even with all the numbers, there is another level he can get to and I'm hopeful that he gets there.

Q1 is enormously important. Easy to understand why good start gives you better chances of winning. Winning Q1 gives you better chances to win than winning any other Q. That's the fact not some guessing.

Luka's playing time normally goes like, he plays more or less entire Q1 and Q3 and half of Q2 and Q4. It's obvious that he and Kyrie have roles divided by them. Mavs were the best clutch team in the league, so I guess they were doing something right.

Magic was drafted in a great team. That's not normal situation. He had more or less entire career top roster on disposal. Difficult to say that for Luka's Mavs. I would say that's easier to get Jabbar going than Dwight Powell.

Yes he can do some things better, but basketball is a team sport. That's why MJ, who was much better and more complete player than Luka, needed the right teammates and has won his first ring being 28 years old. Mavs had no business being in Finals this year and unfortunately that showed, Celtics being far better team.