Pre-Season Discussion (W/W/L)

[HMFFL]

I like Hinton's game. Similar to Marcus Smart actually. This Dallas team will be in the playoffs if the bench continues to show up until KP is healthy.

And hopefully Luka will stop complaining with the refs.

The complaining to the refs is annoying, but keep in mind the true superstars of the game, which isn't many, do it.

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[Absinthe]

Mavs look decent for first game, still no D., but we couldn’t expect big improvement over night. They will have to do something with Luka though, no way he survives 72 games looking and moving like that. He’s the only one in the court looking totally out of shape. He cannot even rebound. He has at least 10 pounds more than last year.

To be more specific, the Mavs has no rim protection until both Maxi and WCS check-in. Powell is the problem. So is DFS at 4. It didn't work last season. RC is too stubborn to stick with both. But the more problematic part is on offensive end. The Mavs struggles at the rim blutantly. How many blocked and missed layups are there the whole game? That's a whole lots I can tell. Luka is not in very good game sharpe as well. Hardaway has no clue about the new role. The rookies are committing rookie mistakes without the decisiveness and basketball smart. Newcomers like J-Rich and JJ 3.0 are more ready than expected. I think the starting lineup has to be either:

Big lineup 3 SFs without DFS at 4.
C - KP or Maxi
PF - Doncic
SF - DFS
SG - TH
PG - J-Rich

or

C - KP or Maxi
PF - JJ 3.0
SF - Doncic
SG - TH
PG - J-Rich

Small lineup with two bigs and a combo guard at 1.
C - KP or Maxi
PF - Powell or WCS
SF - Doncic
SG - J-Rich / TH
PG - Burke

In today’s NBA, the last line up would be best. KP stretches the defense and is the rim protector, Powell is your rim runner, Doncic is the primary ball handler, J Rich is there for perimeter defense and for spacing, and Burke is the secondary playmaker to Luka.

Maxi, DFS, THJ, and Stein is a damn good bench and I’m sure Terry will be in the mix too.

[leolozon]

I still don’t understand who’s out of the 10 men rotation once KP is back. Green? I actually like what I see and I want him to develop, but is there anyway that RC sits Powell or WCS who aren’t really in the long term plans?

[Dirk]

I still don’t understand who’s out of the 10 men rotation once KP is back. Green? I actually like what I see and I want him to develop, but is there anyway that RC sits Powell or WCS who aren’t really in the long term plans?

How did you feel about your boy Luka?

[leolozon]

I still don’t understand who’s out of the 10 men rotation once KP is back. Green? I actually like what I see and I want him to develop, but is there anyway that RC sits Powell or WCS who aren’t really in the long term plans?

How did you feel about your boy Luka?

It’s hard to have an opinion considering that he mainly worked on his shot and we’ll need a bigger sample size to see if it paid dividends. His 3-point shot did look smoother to me.

Like a lot of people, I think that he took some weight during the break and I’m slightly disappointed about it. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue because of his age, but it could become one eventually. I just hope he doesn’t slow down in the 2nd half.

[boogiezen]

Powell playing Center is a disaster.

[Dirk]

I still don’t understand who’s out of the 10 men rotation once KP is back. Green? I actually like what I see and I want him to develop, but is there anyway that RC sits Powell or WCS who aren’t really in the long term plans?

How did you feel about your boy Luka?

It’s hard to have an opinion considering that he mainly worked on his shot and we’ll need a bigger sample size to see if it paid dividends. His 3-point shot did look smoother to me.

Like a lot of people, I think that he took some weight during the break and I’m slightly disappointed about it. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue because of his age, but it could become one eventually. I just hope he doesn’t slow down in the 2nd half.

It is very concerning. We've seen this film every year now.

Bucks fan

Spoiler:

def agree that Luka looks more out of shape this year, he looked unathletic as **** tonight and was bordering on a double chin. He doesn't look like he works on his body at all and if he does then he must be a natural 300lber or something

[mabundo_nagumbe]

How did you feel about your boy Luka?

It’s hard to have an opinion considering that he mainly worked on his shot and we’ll need a bigger sample size to see if it paid dividends. His 3-point shot did look smoother to me.

Like a lot of people, I think that he took some weight during the break and I’m slightly disappointed about it. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue because of his age, but it could become one eventually. I just hope he doesn’t slow down in the 2nd half.

It is very concerning. We've seen this film every year now.

Bucks fan

Spoiler:

def agree that Luka looks more out of shape this year, he looked unathletic as **** tonight and was bordering on a double chin. He doesn't look like he works on his body at all and if he does then he must be a natural 300lber or something

If Jokic could get in shape, so can Luka. I hope he has it in his mind, I wonder what's Carlisle's take on Luka's babyfat

[JD45]

Luka trying to play himself into shape is going to be a bit of a problem with the shortened pre-season. And with KP out at the beginning of the year, it could put the team in a hole. I was suspicious about all the clothes he was wearing in the workout videos. I hope he was doing that to conceal his conditioning and not thinking that's the way to lose weight. But his 3 pt shot seemed disciplined and very smooth.

On the positive side, Josh Richardson looked good, and a seamless fit with the team. The depth looked terrific. There was production from all different levels. Maxi had a great game, and seemed like he was clearly one of the teams top 5 players. Powell looked healthy. Trey Burke looked like a terrific bench scorer and great value for his contract (which I thought was a mistake at the time).

Josh Green seemed mobile and active. He had several moments of trying to make a good play, but just coming up a bit short, but I think experience could cure that. His on the ball defense has some moments. Tyler Bey had some moments. And Nate Hinton looked like he should have been a lottery pick. Terry's 3 pt shot looked good. His height seems good and his frame looks like it can add more weight. But he lacked quickness and explosion and I thought was struggling with the overall athleticism of the game. But he did take a charge, which was significant. Overall, I thought all 4 looked like they could stick in the NBA.

Wes Iwundu looked like a summer league roster filler. He made a few plays late, but not a great start for his level of experience.

Overall, the team passed well. The unselfishness throughout the roster was impressive. They seemed to be jumping passing lanes more than in the past.

[Bob8]

It’s hard to have an opinion considering that he mainly worked on his shot and we’ll need a bigger sample size to see if it paid dividends. His 3-point shot did look smoother to me.

Like a lot of people, I think that he took some weight during the break and I’m slightly disappointed about it. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue because of his age, but it could become one eventually. I just hope he doesn’t slow down in the 2nd half.

It is very concerning. We've seen this film every year now.

Bucks fan

Spoiler:

def agree that Luka looks more out of shape this year, he looked unathletic as **** tonight and was bordering on a double chin. He doesn't look like he works on his body at all and if he does then he must be a natural 300lber or something

If Jokic could get in shape, so can Luka. I hope he has it in his mind, I wonder what's Carlisle's take on Luka's babyfat

There’s something rotten in NBA. Stars are threatened to nice. If you give 200 mio to a player, you should expect at least professional behaviour. Being minimally prepared for a season should be a must. If Luka would have pulled something like that in Real, he wouldn’t have seen a court until he would have gotten in normal shape. This is disgraceful behaviour to the team, teammates and to the fans. Now someone will say his 21 and similar nonsense. He’s professional athlete, paid very well to do his job. If he cannot, he can find a job in McDonalds and nobody will say anything about his shape. Journalists and fans should demand answer for his conditioning. And one more thing, it’s not that he’s only totally out of shape, it’s obvious he didn’t do much in preseason, because it’s impossible to be that fat, if you’re training twice a day.

[Mr B]

Haven’t seen any of you mention Nate Hinton. To me it seemed like he was the most ready to play out of the rookies. 8pts/8rbs/4asst in 15 minutes is pretty freaking good!


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[wolfram]

It is very concerning. We've seen this film every year now.

Bucks fan

Spoiler:

If Jokic could get in shape, so can Luka. I hope he has it in his mind, I wonder what's Carlisle's take on Luka's babyfat

There’s something rotten in NBA. Stars are threatened to nice. If you give 200 mio to a player, you should expect at least professional behaviour. Being minimally prepared for a season should be a must. If Luka would have pulled something like that in Real, he wouldn’t have seen a court until he would have gotten in normal shape. This is disgraceful behaviour to the team, teammates and to the fans. Now someone will say his 21 and similar nonsense. He’s professional athlete, paid very well to do his job. If he cannot, he can find a job in McDonalds and nobody will say anything about his shape. Journalists and fans should demand answer for his conditioning. And one more thing, it’s not that he’s only totally out of shape, it’s obvious he didn’t do much in preseason, because it’s impossible to be that fat, if you’re training twice a day.

Wow, let us revisit this post after first 5 games and then judge if Luka deserves such bashing.

[Bob8]

If Jokic could get in shape, so can Luka. I hope he has it in his mind, I wonder what's Carlisle's take on Luka's babyfat

There’s something rotten in NBA. Stars are threatened to nice. If you give 200 mio to a player, you should expect at least professional behaviour. Being minimally prepared for a season should be a must. If Luka would have pulled something like that in Real, he wouldn’t have seen a court until he would have gotten in normal shape. This is disgraceful behaviour to the team, teammates and to the fans. Now someone will say his 21 and similar nonsense. He’s professional athlete, paid very well to do his job. If he cannot, he can find a job in McDonalds and nobody will say anything about his shape. Journalists and fans should demand answer for his conditioning. And one more thing, it’s not that he’s only totally out of shape, it’s obvious he didn’t do much in preseason, because it’s impossible to be that fat, if you’re training twice a day.

Wow, let us revisit this post after first 5 games and then judge if Luka deserves such bashing.

It really doesn't matter how he plays in 1 month time. He should be prepared from the first day. Why is he the only one looking out of shape? Is it really that difficult to be in solid shape 10 days before start of the season. And what about injuries? Don't you believe that being overweighted is problematic for Pg with incredible usage in 4.5 months, 72 games season? I believe Luka is top5 player in NBA, but I expect from him to behave like that. Body conditioning is for sure one of the important foundations for that. Luka had always problems in second part of the seasons, it's not difficult to guess the reason for that.

It's absurd that we cannot talk about that. Everyone should addressed this question, media and coaching staff. Or you believe it's better that we pretend how everything is great?

[leolozon]

There’s something rotten in NBA. Stars are threatened to nice. If you give 200 mio to a player, you should expect at least professional behaviour. Being minimally prepared for a season should be a must. If Luka would have pulled something like that in Real, he wouldn’t have seen a court until he would have gotten in normal shape. This is disgraceful behaviour to the team, teammates and to the fans. Now someone will say his 21 and similar nonsense. He’s professional athlete, paid very well to do his job. If he cannot, he can find a job in McDonalds and nobody will say anything about his shape. Journalists and fans should demand answer for his conditioning. And one more thing, it’s not that he’s only totally out of shape, it’s obvious he didn’t do much in preseason, because it’s impossible to be that fat, if you’re training twice a day.

Wow, let us revisit this post after first 5 games and then judge if Luka deserves such bashing.

It really doesn't matter how he plays in 1 month time. He should be prepared from the first day. Why is he the only one looking out of shape? Is it really that difficult to be in solid shape 10 days before start of the season. And what about injuries? Don't you believe that being overweighted is problematic for Pg with incredible usage in 4.5 months, 72 games season? I believe Luka is top5 player in NBA, but I expect from him to behave like that. Body conditioning is for sure one of the important foundations for that. Luka had always problems in second part of the seasons, it's not difficult to guess the reason for that.

It's absurd that we cannot talk about that. Everyone should addressed this question, media and coaching staff. Or you believe it's better that we pretend how everything is great?

Not only that, but it's impossible to know how Luka would be if he was in better shape. I don't think that anyone thinks that he's going to be bad, just that he's not at his optimal potential. In the past 2 years, he did slow down as the season progressed, plus he was bad in the clutch last year and some of it certainly has to do with not being in optimal shape (the break before the bubble helped him for sure).

[Bob8]

Wow, let us revisit this post after first 5 games and then judge if Luka deserves such bashing.

It really doesn't matter how he plays in 1 month time. He should be prepared from the first day. Why is he the only one looking out of shape? Is it really that difficult to be in solid shape 10 days before start of the season. And what about injuries? Don't you believe that being overweighted is problematic for Pg with incredible usage in 4.5 months, 72 games season? I believe Luka is top5 player in NBA, but I expect from him to behave like that. Body conditioning is for sure one of the important foundations for that. Luka had always problems in second part of the seasons, it's not difficult to guess the reason for that.

It's absurd that we cannot talk about that. Everyone should addressed this question, media and coaching staff. Or you believe it's better that we pretend how everything is great?

Not only that, but it's impossible to know how Luka would be if he was in better shape. I don't think that anyone thinks that he's going to be bad, just that he's not at his optimal potential. In the past 2 years, he did slow down as the season progressed, plus he was bad in the clutch last year and some of it certainly has to do with not being in optimal shape (the break before the bubble helped him for sure).

Yes, people are forgetting he came in very solid shape last year and then break before bubble helped him a lot. This year he looks more like in his rookie year and the season will be the most demanding.

[BlueSan]

I feel like Luka played on 45% speed in the 1st Q and at about 75% in the 2nd. He was still fast when he wanted to be but wasn't really trying. And i love the fact that he still doesn't miss when he does the scissor kick shot.

Bench looks even better than last season and that's huge for this team. Just need to make shots and make stops here and there. Hopefully Burke stays in Iverson mode entire season because i don't want to watch Brunson dribble for 20 seconds.

So I’m the only one seeing Luka being slow and overweighted? Interesting.

Nah, quite a few people saying he gained weight. I have no clue what to think to be honest. In some pictures he looks chubby but in other pictures you can actually see muscles on his arms now.

It's hard to evaluate him because he is always so dressed up lol. I personally think he was just playing slow on purpose, you could see he picked up his handles in the 2nd Q quite a bit. We'll see in the next game how he progresses.

Ripped people usually like to show it, plumpy people usually like to hide it...

[Absinthe]

There’s no excusing Luka’s physique. This guy has access to some of the best trainers, gyms, and nutritionists in the world. Dwight Powell, for example, looks better than he did before his injury and he had an awful injury. Luka is playing with fire here. Extra weight on his knees and ankles will increase injury risks. The only consolation is at least he’s not Zion level out of shape.

[Mr B]

Are you guys expecting Luka to look like Josh Richardson or something?


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[JJP]

Are you guys expecting Luka to look like Josh Richardson or something?


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I agree. This thread is starting to get a little twisted. We can leave his conditioning to his doctors. The new players and the actual games are more interesting.

[BlueSan]

That is the thing.

If someone would ask him/them those questions directly and we would get an honest answer-back. People wouldn't ask...but because people don't and we get zero info, people will worry, and rightfully so.

No matter how good you are it is 100% that being unfit is limiting you and endangering you and as a team riding it all on Luka, you have to be extremely worried or at least address it asap.

Plus some transparency would be good.