The Luka Doncic Thread - 2018-19

The-Power · Post #21 » by **The-Power** » Sun Nov 18, 2018 9:57 am

Watch on YouTube

Just impressive.

mitrandil20 · Post #22 » by **mitrandil20** » Sun Nov 18, 2018 2:44 pm

This guy is the tits.

Pg81 · Post #23 » by **Pg81** » Sun Nov 18, 2018 3:07 pm

A joy watching him play, unlike Dirk in his first season which was depressingly painful.

Ryoga Hibiki · Post #24 » by **Ryoga Hibiki** » Sun Nov 18, 2018 3:13 pm

Pg81 wrote:A joy watching him play, unlike Dirk in his first season which was depressingly painful.

Dirk was showing crazy potential already in his first season, though.
Doncic is much readier, but there was more excitement than depression at the time.

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Pg81 · Post #25 » by **Pg81** » Sun Nov 18, 2018 3:31 pm

Ryoga Hibiki wrote:
Pg81 wrote:A joy watching him play, unlike Dirk in his first season which was depressingly painful.
Dirk was showing crazy potential already in his first season, though.
Doncic is much readier, but there was more excitement than depression at the time.

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Dirk admitted in an interview that he was considering quitting the NBA after his first season. Thankfully Holger came over from Germany and helped him out.

Ryoga Hibiki · Post #26 » by **Ryoga Hibiki** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 8:45 am

Pg81 wrote:
Ryoga Hibiki wrote:
Pg81 wrote:A joy watching him play, unlike Dirk in his first season which was depressingly painful.
Dirk was showing crazy potential already in his first season, though.
Doncic is much readier, but there was more excitement than depression at the time.

Sent from my Nokia 3210 using RealGM mobile app

Dirk admitted in an interview that he was considering quitting the NBA after his first season. Thankfully Holger came over from Germany and helped him out.

I know, all I'm saying is that the potential was super visible and I remember the excitement of Dallas fans (it was usent at the time, RealGM was not existng yet)

GSP · Post #27 » by **GSP** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 8:59 am

Ryoga Hibiki wrote:
Pg81 wrote:
Ryoga Hibiki wrote:Dirk was showing crazy potential already in his first season, though.
Doncic is much readier, but there was more excitement than depression at the time.

Sent from my Nokia 3210 using RealGM mobile app

Dirk admitted in an interview that he was considering quitting the NBA after his first season. Thankfully Holger came over from Germany and helped him out.

I know, all I'm saying is that the potential was super visible and I remember the excitement of Dallas fans (it was usent at the time, RealGM was not existng yet)

I think youre remembering his sophomore year here. In his rookie year he couldnt deal with the athleticism or physicality at all like Luka already can. Most were saying he was gonna be a bust after his rookie year and he was getting called Irk Nowitzki by alot

Pg81 · Post #28 » by **Pg81** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 12:27 pm

Ryoga Hibiki wrote:
Pg81 wrote:
Ryoga Hibiki wrote:Dirk was showing crazy potential already in his first season, though.
Doncic is much readier, but there was more excitement than depression at the time.

Sent from my Nokia 3210 using RealGM mobile app

Dirk admitted in an interview that he was considering quitting the NBA after his first season. Thankfully Holger came over from Germany and helped him out.

I know, all I'm saying is that the potential was super visible and I remember the excitement of Dallas fans (it was usent at the time, RealGM was not existng yet)

Pretty sure that most were afraid that Dirk would turn out a bust. Jump shooting 7-footer at that time was almost unthinkable for most fans.

Post #29 » by **Texas Chuck** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 5:13 pm

GSP wrote:
Ryoga Hibiki wrote:
Pg81 wrote:
Dirk admitted in an interview that he was considering quitting the NBA after his first season. Thankfully Holger came over from Germany and helped him out.

I know, all I'm saying is that the potential was super visible and I remember the excitement of Dallas fans (it was usent at the time, RealGM was not existng yet)

I think youre remembering his sophomore year here. In his rookie year he couldnt deal with the athleticism or physicality at all like Luka already can. Most were saying he was gonna be a bust after his rookie year and he was getting called Irk Nowitzki by alot

Oh Dirk was largely terrible as a rookie, but trust me you could see potential greatness already. It only flashed on rare occasions but it definitely flashed. And Mavs fans in real-time loved and embraced Dirk because of it. That's another thing Dirk talks about a lot in addition to that he thought about quitting--was how much the love he felt in Dallas helped him decide to stay.

Luka obviously is miles ahead of where Dirk was. Now if only he could approach Dirk's trajectory in years 2,3,4, etc.....

The High Cyde · Post #30 » by **The High Cyde** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 5:53 pm

I'm amazed at how controlled and poised he looks as a rookie. A great indicator of this is how rookies look when they're in the paint surrounded by veterans and giants and usually the nerves or the presence of other players get to them and they make mistakes. Luka looks like the paint is his second home. Super impressed.

TheBonzaiEffect · Post #31 » by **TheBonzaiEffect** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 10:35 pm

I love Luka and he's been fantastic. My only fear is his ceiling. How much better can he get? Obviously he can cut down on the turnovers, higher assist totals, more FTs (refs have treated him like ****), which will improve his scoring and efficiency. That's an all-star right there. But can he elevate beyond that, to superstar?

lavta · Post #32 » by **lavta** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 11:11 pm

TheBonzaiEffect wrote:I love Luka and he's been fantastic. My only fear is his ceiling. How much better can he get? Obviously he can cut down on the turnovers, higher assist totals, more FTs (refs have treated him like ****), which will improve his scoring and efficiency. That's an all-star right there. But can he elevate beyond that, to superstar?

That's a lot of things he can improve/better utilized at that you mentioned, on top of those his best defensive season still remains to be 2016-17 and his transition offense, which is one of his biggest attributes offensively isn't utilized at all. Mavs still use him more as a secondary PnR creator rather than a primary one even though it is more balanced now compared to the beginning of the season. Carlisle's offense still doesn't utilize him as well as Laso's did in different roles or even arguably Kokoskov's in those 9 games. He's basically used as a 3/4 scoring forward hybrid.

In terms of things that he can realistically improve but he hasn't shown in any part of his career yet: high-low dribble transition, better close-out technique, better conditioning so he can merge his defense in 2016-17 with his offense from 2017-18.

Adding these to the things you mentioned, that's a lot of areas for realistic improvement/better utilization.

Bob8 · Post #33 » by **Bob8** » Mon Nov 19, 2018 11:50 pm

TheBonzaiEffect wrote:I love Luka and he's been fantastic. My only fear is his ceiling. How much better can he get? Obviously he can cut down on the turnovers, higher assist totals, more FTs (refs have treated him like ****), which will improve his scoring and efficiency. That's an all-star right there. But can he elevate beyond that, to superstar?

He can be better in everything, but the biggest room for improvement is in how he’s utilized and what team can they build around him. I believe even RC was surprised how good Luka already is. Make him primary creator and he will look better overnight. Surround him with good shooters, defensive guard and decent rim protector and role man and you have 25/8/8 guy in a playoff team very soon.

toodles23 · Post #34 » by **toodles23** » Thu Nov 29, 2018 3:22 am

Mavs had a 145 ORTG at one point midway through the 4th quarter tonight when garbage time commenced. I know the Rockets are terrible defensively but still absurd.

Doncic made a bunch of highlight reel plays tonight too, the kid is a beast.

JulesWinnfield · Post #35 » by **JulesWinnfield** » Thu Nov 29, 2018 7:19 pm

I know hes been playing pro for years now and that has been well documented, but we shouldnt let that in any way stop us from being incredibly impressed by the fact that he is still a teenager and will be for the majority of this season. Its really amazing

clyde21 · Post #36 » by **clyde21** » Thu Nov 29, 2018 8:50 pm

19/6.5/4 on 16 PER and 58 TS%.

This guy is going to be a star.

frica · Post #37 » by **frica** » Fri Nov 30, 2018 4:13 pm

TheBonzaiEffect wrote:I love Luka and he's been fantastic. My only fear is his ceiling. How much better can he get? Obviously he can cut down on the turnovers, higher assist totals, more FTs (refs have treated him like ****), which will improve his scoring and efficiency. That's an all-star right there. But can he elevate beyond that, to superstar?

His athleticism is damn fine for a 19 year old, he can still improve massively on a physical level.
Even if he's an early peaker.

Post #38 » by **Texas Chuck** » Fri Nov 30, 2018 6:52 pm

frica wrote:
TheBonzaiEffect wrote:I love Luka and he's been fantastic. My only fear is his ceiling. How much better can he get? Obviously he can cut down on the turnovers, higher assist totals, more FTs (refs have treated him like ****), which will improve his scoring and efficiency. That's an all-star right there. But can he elevate beyond that, to superstar?

His athleticism is damn fine for a 19 year old, he can still improve massively on a physical level.
Even if he's an early peaker.

I think we just have to accept a different kind of athleticism. The traditional, run fast jump high, no he doesn't have great NBA athleticism and is never going to. But his body control and change of speed are already elite. All that matters is whether or not he's athletic enough to survive defensively and early returns suggest he is. Probably never be an elite defender what with the offensive responsibilities he's going to always have,but he just needs to not be a liability other teams can target. And so far at least, he cares enough to give effort at that end very consistently.

bledredwine · Post #39 » by **bledredwine** » Fri Nov 30, 2018 7:49 pm

I have nothing special to add to this thread... I just wanted to say that this guy's talent excites me.

I love watching him play - he's smart, makes bizarre shots, and he's improving his entire team rookie season.
The Mavs are lucky. They transitioned from one hell of a European player to another. Why can't the Bulls do this?

Missing Rings · Post #40 » by **Missing Rings** » Fri Nov 30, 2018 7:52 pm

bledredwine wrote:I have nothing special to add to this thread... I just wanted to say that this guy's talent excites me.

I love watching him play - he's smart, makes bizarre shots, and he's improving his entire team rookie season.
The Mavs are lucky. They transitioned from one hell of a European player to another. Why can't the Bulls do this?

Because they never had a good European to start with. It is hard to transition to a second European star when you never had a first.

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