Luka Doncic hints that he might stay in Europe next season

[Pachinko_]

Man a lot of people will get very angry when Doncic gets the #1 pick

This batch of players comes at a time when big name centers are glaringly absent from the conference finals, for some years straight. Teams will naturally be hesitant to pin their best hopes on a big.

But a switchy wing that can make plays and do multiple things at both ends? It's impossible to have too many of those.

[valrond1]

I don't really understand why people are creating these weird reasons not to pick Doncic.

it's going to be harder for him to succeed than these guys because the weight of expectation? he's a 19 year old who's won every competition he's played in as a key member, he just won MVP for his team winning the euroleague. crumbling under pressure wouldn't be the first conclusion I'd draw from that.

Doncic doesn't project to be a star in the NBA, and so a problem with a lot of these overhyped Euro prospects is that don't want to work hard and prove themselves. They think what they did in their **** league overseas means something in the NBA and come in with a diva attitude.

So if there's any inkling of Doncic even thinking about staying for another year that's a huge reg flag to me. Add in his poor shot selection, lack of defined position, mediocre athleticism, poor defense, & a bad attitude all making me think someones going to waste a high pick on him.

Wow, someone still living in the 1980s?

[UcanUwill]

I don't really understand why people are creating these weird reasons not to pick Doncic.

it's going to be harder for him to succeed than these guys because the weight of expectation? he's a 19 year old who's won every competition he's played in as a key member, he just won MVP for his team winning the euroleague. crumbling under pressure wouldn't be the first conclusion I'd draw from that.

Doncic doesn't project to be a star in the NBA, and so a problem with a lot of these overhyped Euro prospects is that don't want to work hard and prove themselves. They think what they did in their **** league overseas means something in the NBA and come in with a diva attitude.

So if there's any inkling of Doncic even thinking about staying for another year that's a huge reg flag to me. Add in his poor shot selection, lack of defined position, mediocre athleticism, poor defense, & a bad attitude all making me think someones going to waste a high pick on him.

Wow, someone still living in the 1980s?

The only player that fits his description is probably Spanoulis

[LuDux1]

Doncic doesn't project to be a star in the NBA, and so a problem with a lot of these overhyped Euro prospects is that don't want to work hard and prove themselves. They think what they did in their **** league overseas means something in the NBA and come in with a diva attitude.

So if there's any inkling of Doncic even thinking about staying for another year that's a huge reg flag to me. Add in his poor shot selection, lack of defined position, mediocre athleticism, poor defense, & a bad attitude all making me think someones going to waste a high pick on him.

Wow, someone still living in the 1980s?

The only player that fits his description is probably Spanoulis

[JHFVF07]

I cant understand the logic of some of you, guys.
You see a 18 year kid playing against grown men, some well stabilished NBA players, on Eurocup, and this kid makes the first team pf the tournament, while helping his team to win his first title. Then he comes to a wasteland(injures) and lead his team to an improbable title while earning the MVP and FMVP, this playing against grown men. Then you see this 19 year guy and treat him as a finished product and bust, cause he is "too slow".
But then you see another guy, a 19 year old, who couldnt get past the first round of a tournament full of kids, were 90% of his competition wont win a single dolar/euro as a basketball player, on a disappearing act, by the way. And this sercond guy, who hadnt show the only trait present on ALL atg from his position (defense), will be a world beater and surefure superstar, because he can will get better?
Doncic already is a good player, capable of contribute on any team he plays, from day 1, and if he get a little better as shooter, ballhander and penetrator (even already being good on all of them), he will be a surefire allstar and help any team he plays to win. Ayton? He will have to become another player, cause a guy who projects as a worst defensive center than KAT did when played on college, hardly will lead his team to sucess (maybe if becomes as good as Shaq).

[Wagonband]

I watched the game between Real Madrid and CSKA Moscow, and parts of the championship game against Fenerbahce. Quite frankly Doncic did not look like a star. He looked like an intelligent, well-coached complementary player. I've been as high on him as anyone, but I will not be surprised if he slips out of the top 5 in the 2018 draft. I had to keep reminding myself that I wasn't watching Danilo Gallinari.

Yes, as the season has gone on, he has clearly been dropping, because it is clear he is exhausted. He has been playing 18 months straight, the only time he got time off was a few weeks when he tweaked an ankle... And yet he has played well enough to still be both Finals and Regular Season MVP...

Next year once he has a proper summer to rest and work out he will be a beast imo.

[har13]

I just don't know much about Ayton but i saw his team lost in the first round and he scored just14 points, i also believe if his team play against Real they will lose by 30 points so with your logic Ayton will be a bust.
(Sorry for my english)

[useless]

Yes, as the season has gone on, he has clearly been dropping, because it is clear he is exhausted. He has been playing 18 months straight, the only time he got time off was a few weeks when he tweaked an ankle... And yet he has played well enough to still be both Finals and Regular Season MVP...

Next year once he has a proper summer to rest and work out he will be a beast imo.

Well I feel that he became finals MVP not because he was playing like MVP but because he is Doncic... I saw two players on Real team who impacted game more then Doncic... At least in the finals.
He plays solid, savvy, intelligent game and do not look like 18 years old player but you have to wonder about his upside. What he can improve? His one vs. one game does not look spectacular, he had troubles in offense against 5'11 player. Ok he can improve this aspect but it is clear that he will not be ISO monster. His shooting seems to be good at best, ok, once again we can agree that he can improve it but he will not be great shooter (ala L. Bird, S.Curry, etc.). Passing, bleh, he can pass, but his court vision is nothing special. Defense seems to be limited because of average athleticism.
IMO it seems that teams figured out his limitations and now are exploiting them. His BBIQ still allows for him to effective in Europe but you have to wonder what is the upside for him...

[Gordon]

He has been playing poorly for the past couple of months, i feel this is mostly due to fatigue. The guy has been playing non-stop for the past 12 months, he was with Slovenian National team last summer. Also he is 19 years old, his body may yet not be a the point where it can take so much workload.

His floor is very high, while his ceiling may be not as high as some other prospects (Ayton). Still, if you think he will struggle with the speed of the NBA game, just look at how successfull Saric and Gallinari were with even less athleticism and skill.

[Lauri_Legend]

He has been playing poorly for the past couple of months, i feel this is mostly due to fatigue. The guy has been playing non-stop for the past 12 months, he was with Slovenian National team last summer. Also he is 19 years old, his body may yet not be a the point where it can take so much workload.

His floor is very high, while his ceiling may be not as high as some other prospects (Ayton). Still, if you think he will struggle with the speed of the NBA game, just look at how successfull Saric and Gallinari were with even less athleticism and skill.

If is floor is Saric and he slips outside the Top 3, whoever drafts him is a lucky team.

[UcanUwill]

Yes, as the season has gone on, he has clearly been dropping, because it is clear he is exhausted. He has been playing 18 months straight, the only time he got time off was a few weeks when he tweaked an ankle... And yet he has played well enough to still be both Finals and Regular Season MVP...

Next year once he has a proper summer to rest and work out he will be a beast imo.

Well I feel that he became finals MVP not because he was playing like MVP but because he is Doncic... I saw two players on Real team who impacted game more then Doncic... At least in the finals.
He plays solid, savvy, intelligent game and do not look like 18 years old player but you have to wonder about his upside. What he can improve? His one vs. one game does not look spectacular, he had troubles in offense against 5'11 player. Ok he can improve this aspect but it is clear that he will not be ISO monster. His shooting seems to be good at best, ok, once again we can agree that he can improve it but he will not be great shooter (ala L. Bird, S.Curry, etc.). Passing, bleh, he can pass, but his court vision is nothing special. Defense seems to be limited because of average athleticism.
IMO it seems that teams figured out his limitations and now are exploiting them. His BBIQ still allows for him to effective in Europe but you have to wonder what is the upside for him...

He wont be Curry at shooting, but he can be harden at shooting, especially out of that step back that he has. as of now, he is very good at creating space with step back and hesitation dribbles, but his shot out of those is not very efficient. He can easily improve that, and if he does, how can you stop it, you cant really contest that step back even when you know its coming, its very effective. That might be enough to be very effective ISO player.

[UcanUwill]

He has been playing poorly for the past couple of months, i feel this is mostly due to fatigue. The guy has been playing non-stop for the past 12 months, he was with Slovenian National team last summer. Also he is 19 years old, his body may yet not be a the point where it can take so much workload.

His floor is very high, while his ceiling may be not as high as some other prospects (Ayton). Still, if you think he will struggle with the speed of the NBA game, just look at how successfull Saric and Gallinari were with even less athleticism and skill.

to be fair, a lot of players who play at that level, played for their national teams so they all play high caliber basketball non stop. Thats why I dont really like fatigue excuse, maybe he just isnt that good? He started the season at Euroleague GOAT level, but finished it at Euroleague OK level. But those first few months were enough to create a massive hype and expectations that is carried away till this day/

Bill Simmons said he hopes Doncic doesn't go to Kings, since Boston owns Sacramento draft pick next year. He said he believes Doncic could instantly improve that team by 12 wins. Ok, if you get late 2017 Doncic, that might be true, but if you get current Doncic, you are for a big disappointment if you think he can swing a team by 12 wins.

[Driguez]

He has been playing poorly for the past couple of months, i feel this is mostly due to fatigue. The guy has been playing non-stop for the past 12 months, he was with Slovenian National team last summer. Also he is 19 years old, his body may yet not be a the point where it can take so much workload.

His floor is very high, while his ceiling may be not as high as some other prospects (Ayton). Still, if you think he will struggle with the speed of the NBA game, just look at how successfull Saric and Gallinari were with even less athleticism and skill.

to be fair, a lot of players who play at that level, played for their national teams so they all play high caliber basketball non stop. Thats why I dont really like fatigue excuse, maybe he just isnt that good? He started the season at Euroleague GOAT level, but finished it at Euroleague OK level. But those first few months were enough to create a massive hype and expectations that is carried away till this day/

Bill Simmons said he hopes Doncic doesn't go to Kings, since Boston owns Sacramento draft pick next year. He said he believes Doncic could instantly improve that team by 12 wins. Ok, if you get late 2017 Doncic, that might be true, but if you get current Doncic, you are for a big disappointment if you think he can swing a team by 12 wins.

You do realize were talking about a 19 year old, saying if a team gets 18 yo Doncic will improve but not 19 yo Doncic? I mean. A guy, at 19 with his resume is a finished product? Jeezuz. But hey, I hope he falls all the way to 6

[UcanUwill]

You do realize were talking about a 19 year old, saying if a team gets 18 yo Doncic will improve but not 19 yo Doncic? I mean. A guy, at 19 with his resume is a finished product? Jeezuz. But hey, I hope he falls all the way to 6

Not saying he is finished product, but I am not sold those first few months of the season wasn't a fluke. If he maintained that level of play all year, he is easily a number 1 pick. But he dropped off quite a bit, and thats being lost in all of the discussions I feel.
I debating both Doncic believers and his skeptics, mainly because I feel skeptics are pretty much ignorant about Euro basketball all together, while his believers just can't stop talking how amazing and unprecedented he is. And he is, overall - wonderful season, never been done before by a young player. But it wasnt sustained.

[Driguez]

You do realize were talking about a 19 year old, saying if a team gets 18 yo Doncic will improve but not 19 yo Doncic? I mean. A guy, at 19 with his resume is a finished product? Jeezuz. But hey, I hope he falls all the way to 6

Not saying he is finished product, but I am not sold those first few months of the season wasn't a fluke. If he maintained that level of play all year, he is easily a number 1 pick. But he dropped off quite a bit, and thats being lost in all of the discussions I feel.
I debating both Doncic believers and his skeptics, mainly because I feel skeptics are pretty much ignorant about Euro basketball all together, while his believers just can't stop talking how amazing and unprecedented he is. And he is, overall - wonderful season, never been done before by a young player. But it wasnt sustained.

I appreciate the fact you didn't reply back as a keyboard warrior. I get why you might feel like that, but to be quite honest, everyone else has question marks. I feel he is the most complete player on the draft and worth a #1 pick, again I understand why some people would feel the way they feel but t call him a bust, based on their feelings and for him being Euro is ridiculous. He is a player and he would be my #1 pick had we been picking at 1. But we're picking at 6 so I wouldn't be too upset of he falls.

[walk with me]

Vote and discuss....

[walk with me]

I voted perennial all star regardless of position ranking.... I’d be personally shocked if he achieved that much. Anything below that would be a bust imo.

[Boarder Patrol]

I voted perennial all star regardless of position ranking.... I’d be personally shocked if he achieved that much. Anything below that would be a bust imo.

Aren't these two sentences incongruous? I always thought of a bust as not meeting expectations but you don't seem to expect much.

I'll say career starter. If a guys making valuable contributions as a starter I find it hard to consider him a 'bust.' MKG comes to mind, he's never turned into the star some expected but makes a good contribution.

[UcanUwill]

You do realize were talking about a 19 year old, saying if a team gets 18 yo Doncic will improve but not 19 yo Doncic? I mean. A guy, at 19 with his resume is a finished product? Jeezuz. But hey, I hope he falls all the way to 6

Not saying he is finished product, but I am not sold those first few months of the season wasn't a fluke. If he maintained that level of play all year, he is easily a number 1 pick. But he dropped off quite a bit, and thats being lost in all of the discussions I feel.
I debating both Doncic believers and his skeptics, mainly because I feel skeptics are pretty much ignorant about Euro basketball all together, while his believers just can't stop talking how amazing and unprecedented he is. And he is, overall - wonderful season, never been done before by a young player. But it wasnt sustained.

I appreciate the fact you didn't reply back as a keyboard warrior. I get why you might feel like that, but to be quite honest, everyone else has question marks. I feel he is the most complete player on the draft and worth a #1 pick, again I understand why some people would feel the way they feel but t call him a bust, based on their feelings and for him being Euro is ridiculous. He is a player and he would be my #1 pick had we been picking at 1. But we're picking at 6 so I wouldn't be too upset of he falls.

I complete agree that every single top tier guy in this draft has significant red flags. I am not a big fan of Ayton, he looked great in college, but just looking at him, it would be more strange if the guy with those tools didn't dominate college kids. I didn't find his play to be all that impressive. Add to the fact he is not a good rim protector at all, I am not sure you can win with him.
This draft lacks Anthony Davis type of player, were everyone can agree he is great.

[Driguez]

Not saying he is finished product, but I am not sold those first few months of the season wasn't a fluke. If he maintained that level of play all year, he is easily a number 1 pick. But he dropped off quite a bit, and thats being lost in all of the discussions I feel.
I debating both Doncic believers and his skeptics, mainly because I feel skeptics are pretty much ignorant about Euro basketball all together, while his believers just can't stop talking how amazing and unprecedented he is. And he is, overall - wonderful season, never been done before by a young player. But it wasnt sustained.

I appreciate the fact you didn't reply back as a keyboard warrior. I get why you might feel like that, but to be quite honest, everyone else has question marks. I feel he is the most complete player on the draft and worth a #1 pick, again I understand why some people would feel the way they feel but t call him a bust, based on their feelings and for him being Euro is ridiculous. He is a player and he would be my #1 pick had we been picking at 1. But we're picking at 6 so I wouldn't be too upset of he falls.

I complete agree that every single top tier guy in this draft has significant red flags. I am not a big fan of Ayton, he looked great in college, but just looking at him, it would be more strange if the guy with those tools didn't dominate college kids. I didn't find his play to be all that impressive. Add to the fact he is not a good rim protector at all, I am not sure you can win with him.
This draft lacks Anthony Davis type of player, were everyone can agree he is great.

Agreed. That's the main reason I'm looking at Doncic. None of the bigs does it for me, and today's NBA is doing away without dominant bigs and making G and wings a more important piece of the puzzle than bigs. Out of the 4 teams left only one has a consistent big and that is Horford, but even then he's not someone who will win a series for you. You do have KD but he plays more like a wing than a big.