Tatum VS Luka

[nikster]

The Celtics have proved how important shot creation and playmaking is. Very talented team but their offense completely falls apart when thing slow down since they don't have any ody to have create.

Tatum has the edge defensively, but I can't imagine that makes up for the massive gap as a scorer/offensively

[Mavrelous]

luke can't fit next to ball dominant players. couldnt fit well next to brunson, couldnt adjust his game next to kyrie. dallas is only good when luka ball hogs.

really no excuse for dallas to miss the playoffs. but thats what happens when your star player can't fit next to other stars.

'couldn't fit next to Brunson' to the tune of making the WCF

Read on Twitter

luka ran brunson out of town. ran KP out of town. and will soon run Kyrie out of town. rinse and repeat.

1st of all, Luka didn't run Brunson out of town, Bruson wanted to extend and Cuban didn't agree.
2nd of all, KP injuries ran him out of town and it was RC who reduced him to 3 pt shooter in the PO, not Luka, he even said so himself, he doesn't believe in post ups.
Mavs have plenty of sampme size with both Brunson and KP but w/o Luka, they were acdecent .5 team, that's about it.
Mavs were begging Brunson tonproduce something against the Clippers in the PO, he couldn't.
I know, I know, you hate Luka, here is a sample that will make you happy, Brunson was Mavs best player in Oct/Nov/Dec 2021, he carried the team while Luka sucked, if you want to hate, at least use good arguments.

[Fadeaway_Jumper]

I don’t think this is a good bump.

We found out that Luka had a lot of help from Brunson who is a better player than Jaylen Brown. The Mavs were so bad this year after Brunson left that they decided to tank.

Tatum was about to make the greatest come back until he got hurt, and has been a finals contender since a rookie.

I apparently voted for Luka but that was a mistake

[HMFFL]

Tatum led team is not finishing under .500

He's been fortunate to have a good cast around him, unlike Doncic.

The fans that have responded acting as if it's not the case are amusing. Luka is still 5-4 vs Tatum and Boston. The Mavs have been rebuilding ever since Luka came into the league but some don't seem to realize that.

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[VFX]

I don’t think this is a good bump.

We found out that Luka had a lot of help from Brunson who is a better player than Jaylen Brown. The Mavs were so bad this year after Brunson left that they decided to tank.

Tatum was about to make the greatest come back until he got hurt, and has been a finals contender since a rookie.

I apparently voted for Luka but that was a mistake

There is more to each team than 2 guys. The Mavs have significantly lesser talent than Boston.

[Johnny Tomala]

Luka Doncić by mile. He is better player by a lot.

[Wagonband]

Luka Doncić by mile. He is better player by a lot.

Tatum is really really good, but does anyone really believe that the Celtics with Luka instead of Tatum don't win against the Heat?

[tsherkin]

really no excuse for dallas to miss the playoffs. but thats what happens when your star player can't fit next to other stars.

Kyrie was there for 20 games and had horrible team chemistry, as he always does. Doncic, Dinwiddie and DFS (even factoring in the trade), Wood and Kleber all missed significant time. They had no bench to speak of. You really ought to know more about the team before you crap on Luka that way.

[Forbes]

Tatum will forever be a tier below Luka. He does not have the consistent dog in him. There is no reason a loaded team like Boston keeps failing and are potentially on the verge trying something new.

Luka can only WISH to have the quality of roleplayers that Tatum has. Luka surrounded with than many defenders would be golden.
I love Tatum but I always hate this comparison because he is a top player. He is just not on the Giannis, Jokic, Luka level.

Everyone’s down on Luka for this past season but the team was high in the standings with that weak supporting cast until Luka got injured. Then the Kyrie trade and the little bit of defense they had was gone.

Yea his defense is trash all he needs to the team built properly to mask that.

[3toheadmelo]

really no excuse for dallas to miss the playoffs. but thats what happens when your star player can't fit next to other stars.

Kyrie was there for 20 games and had horrible team chemistry, as he always does. Doncic, Dinwiddie and DFS (even factoring in the trade), Wood and Kleber all missed significant time. They had no bench to speak of. You really ought to know more about the team before you crap on Luka that way.

a bunch of excuses as always.

[CoP]

The Celtics have proved how important shot creation and playmaking is. Very talented team but their offense completely falls apart when thing slow down since they don't have any ody to have create.

Tatum has the edge defensively, but I can't imagine that makes up for the massive gap as a scorer/offensively

Luka's offensive gap is only significant as a passer. Both are three-level scorers with the ability to get to the line. Scoring volume difference is due to FGA/g. DRB the same. TS% about the same. Accounting for Tatum's better defense and playing more games, it comes out about even.

Luka fans were drooling over the prospect of Kyrie coming to town. Many had penciled him in as the MVP favorite when that move happened. Then they fell off the cliff.

Meanwhile, the Mavs dump Brunson and Brunson leads the Knicks to the cusp of the conference finals while having his best season ever. KP goes to WAS and his numbers improve. Wood comes to DAL and his numbers decline.

Maybe it's less that Luka is carrying everyone else and more that Luka's playstyle suffocates others somewhat.

[azcatz11]

I'd rather have Tatum. Once he learns to be more aggressive and not settle for 3's with proper coaching he's going to be unstoppable. I'd honestly consider Brunson over Luka also. Luka just seems like a stat padder and not a winning player to me.

[HMFFL]

really no excuse for dallas to miss the playoffs. but thats what happens when your star player can't fit next to other stars.

Kyrie was there for 20 games and had horrible team chemistry, as he always does. Doncic, Dinwiddie and DFS (even factoring in the trade), Wood and Kleber all missed significant time. They had no bench to speak of. You really ought to know more about the team before you crap on Luka that way.

a bunch of excuses as always.

You actually don't seem to understand at all. As you said in another response, Luka ran Brunson out of town, and Mav fans pointed out that you're wrong. It seems to be consistent with your responses that nobody agrees with you.

Brunson wanted to be a Knick since only he knows how long. @ $27m, no thanks, since he would be the Mavs second option, and the Knicks first option, or second. They won't ever win a championship with Brunson. If it happens call me out but it seems like you're being called out in this thread for your lack of knowledge.

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[3toheadmelo]

Kyrie was there for 20 games and had horrible team chemistry, as he always does. Doncic, Dinwiddie and DFS (even factoring in the trade), Wood and Kleber all missed significant time. They had no bench to speak of. You really ought to know more about the team before you crap on Luka that way.

a bunch of excuses as always.

You actually don't seem to understand at all. As you said in another response, Luka ran Brunson out of town, and Mav fans pointed out that you're wrong. It seems to be consistent with your responses that nobody agrees with you.

Brunson wanted to be a Knick since only he knows how long. @ $27m, no thanks, since he would be the Mavs second option, and the Knicks first option, or second. They won't ever win a championship with Brunson. If it happens call me out but it seems like you're being called out in this thread for your lack of knowledge.

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The only thing consistent here is Mavs fans trying to cope with reality. When Luka runs Kyrie out of town I wonder what next excuse you will run with.

[Fadeaway_Jumper]

I don’t think this is a good bump.

We found out that Luka had a lot of help from Brunson who is a better player than Jaylen Brown. The Mavs were so bad this year after Brunson left that they decided to tank.

Tatum was about to make the greatest come back until he got hurt, and has been a finals contender since a rookie.

I apparently voted for Luka but that was a mistake

There is more to each team than 2 guys. The Mavs have significantly lesser talent than Boston.

I agree with you that Boston has the more talented roster around Tatum. No question

After Harden left Nets, people still considered the KD +Kyrie combo a contender. The next best player was Seth curry maybe or claxton (Simmons was a ghost)

If Luka is that good how are the expectations so low with Kyrie that they can’t even make the play in?

[Upperclass]

Tatums issue is between the ears and will always be. He isnt a low IQ player but he isnt high either and he's polite to a fault. He doesnt always read situations well on the court, he doesn't assert himself consistently so he'll always need someone on his team who does.. usually a PG. He hasnt had that at all in his career and has still gone late in the playoffs numerous times. He's best used as a finisher not as a creator. His arc is top 3 player in the league.

Luka is one of the highest IQ players there has ever been. He knows how to pinpoint and create weaknesses in a game plan and hes relentless. His arc is best player of his era. He likely wont get there because of Jokic but if he was on the Celts since he was drafted, its likely he has a few chips by now.

[VFX]

I don’t think this is a good bump.

We found out that Luka had a lot of help from Brunson who is a better player than Jaylen Brown. The Mavs were so bad this year after Brunson left that they decided to tank.

Tatum was about to make the greatest come back until he got hurt, and has been a finals contender since a rookie.

I apparently voted for Luka but that was a mistake

There is more to each team than 2 guys. The Mavs have significantly lesser talent than Boston.

I agree with you that Boston has the more talented roster around Tatum. No question

After Harden left Nets, people still considered the KD +Kyrie combo a contender. The next best player was Seth curry maybe or claxton (Simmons was a ghost)

If Luka is that good how are the expectations so low with Kyrie that they can’t even make the play in?

We will see what happens with more than 20 games together in the West. Dallas should make some moves this off-season.

[Archx]

I don’t think this is a good bump.

We found out that Luka had a lot of help from Brunson who is a better player than Jaylen Brown. The Mavs were so bad this year after Brunson left that they decided to tank.

Tatum was about to make the greatest come back until he got hurt, and has been a finals contender since a rookie.

I apparently voted for Luka but that was a mistake

There is more to each team than 2 guys. The Mavs have significantly lesser talent than Boston.

If Luka is that good how are the expectations so low with Kyrie that they can’t even make the play in?

Around the trade deadline both got injuried and had their own share of problems. Mavs traded away little depth that they had on the roster. After the trade, they had to insert 3 Gleague players into their main rotations on top of Kidd's horrible coaching.

They were already dead last in rebounding but their rim protection went from bad (24th) to worse (27th). They got worse almost on all fronts.
I can't blame Kyrie for that though, he played as expected. Him and Luka were actually the highest scoring duo in the league, but problem was obviously defense and rebounding plus injuries.

Before the trade, Mavs were consistently hovering around 3rd-5th spot but i guess people forgot that Luka basically had to average 36/9/9 at some point. Given his stamina, it was not realistic to expect from him to endure like that for the entire season.

[Petergrifindor]

Luka by far.

[tsherkin]

The only thing consistent here is Mavs fans trying to cope with reality. When Luka runs Kyrie out of town I wonder what next excuse you will run with.

Do you have any substance to back your claims and to counter the much more evidentiary arguments made by essentially everyone else ITT? Or are you comfortable just trolling?