Luka Doncic has officially entered the MVP race

[TheBonzaiEffect]

This team is struggling to stay above .500, that's not MVP in any universe, no matter how many points Luka _Oncic puts up on 40 shots a game

His defense has been very good this year. You should try watching a game.

"just watch the games"

yes because players putting up eye-popping stats on offense and allegedly play very good defense can't win more than 50% of their games? When does that ever happen? I know just by their record that can't be true. Lmao even Kawhi when he takes 30 shots a game can't even play very good defense anymore, Luka Fatcic sure isn't

you're probably the type of fan who thinks counting stats like steals means very good D

If you watched the games you might know the Mavs are currently without three of their starters (THJ, JRich, and DFS), and three more rotation players (Kleber, Brunson, and Powell). Missing your 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th best players can often make it arduous to win. If you watched the games, you also might know the Mavs have had one of the toughest schedules in the NBA. You also might know they've only had their second best player, KP, back for two games.

No, I don't put too much stock in steals. But a career best 103 DRtg, 2.1 DBPM are indeed noteworthy. To put it in perspective, KD is at 109 and .6. Because Luka has been a much better defender than him.

[Mavrelous]

Mavs were 6-4 when the thread was opened, and 6-3 with Luka, since then, they lost in Milwaukee by 3 pts missing 3 starters, and yesterday to Chicago, missing 4 out 6 six best players.
Yeah, if you don't see that this guy is winnig, you're really not looking.

[aguiar95]

This team is struggling to stay above .500, that's not MVP in any universe, no matter how many points Luka _Oncic puts up on 40 shots a game

His defense has been very good this year. You should try watching a game.

"just watch the games"

yes because players putting up eye-popping stats on offense and allegedly play very good defense can't win more than 50% of their games? When does that ever happen? I know just by their record that can't be true. Lmao even Kawhi when he takes 30 shots a game can't even play very good defense anymore, Luka Fatcic sure isn't

you're probably the type of fan who thinks counting stats like steals means very good D

Take out 7 of your top 9 players and you probably will struggle to get above .500. By your standarts then, KD, Jokic and Steph also shouldn't be considered for MVP. And yes, Luka has turned himself into a neutral defender (especially on-ball).

[TheBonzaiEffect]

Luka stays the most overrated player in the NBA by far.

All I heard is about how hes a top 5 guy in the league. Meanwhile hes still a terrible 3 point shooter, and looks even worse than last year. And hes clearly out of shape.

Why should he be the favorite for MVP or even in the conversation?

To me its clearly LeBron.

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

[LoneyROY]

Luka stays the most overrated player in the NBA by far.

All I heard is about how hes a top 5 guy in the league. Meanwhile hes still a terrible 3 point shooter, and looks even worse than last year. And hes clearly out of shape.

Why should he be the favorite for MVP or even in the conversation?

To me its clearly LeBron.

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

The best player in the NBA?

Oh lord.

[Hello Brooklyn]

Luka stays the most overrated player in the NBA by far.

All I heard is about how hes a top 5 guy in the league. Meanwhile hes still a terrible 3 point shooter, and looks even worse than last year. And hes clearly out of shape.

Why should he be the favorite for MVP or even in the conversation?

To me its clearly LeBron.

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

Best player in the NBA?



One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

[cupcakesnake]

This team is struggling to stay above .500, that's not MVP in any universe, no matter how many points Luka _Oncic puts up on 40 shots a game

His defense has been very good this year. You should try watching a game.

"just watch the games"

yes because players putting up eye-popping stats on offense and allegedly play very good defense can't win more than 50% of their games? When does that ever happen? I know just by their record that can't be true. Lmao even Kawhi when he takes 30 shots a game can't even play very good defense anymore, Luka Fatcic sure isn't

you're probably the type of fan who thinks counting stats like steals means very good D

Being 6-6 in your first 12 games isn't a great start, and you're right that Luka won't be a big MVP contender if they stay at .500 the whole season. But Dallas played those games without their second best player (Porzingis) and it's a team that is designed to play around 2 all-star level talents. Record aside, they have the net rating of a top 10 team, despite Kristaps being out. Kristaps is back now, but they have 6 rotation players out with health & safety protocols. Dallas has a lot of reasons to be optimistic, so screaming about winning 50% of their games at this point in the season doesn't quite put a nail in their coffin.

I've liked what I've seen from Luka, defensively so far this season. I've never felt he was an awful defender. His focus has never been amazing, and he's not a monster athlete, but he's big, strong and smart. When he doesn't let the energy lag, I see him as potentially a Joe Ingles level defender (slow enough to get punked from time to time, but has the hands, smarts and size to be an obvious plus defender.) Luka has been measurably quite good this year. I've seen 8 Mavs game this year and thought they looked pretty good defensively, Luka included. He has a knack for beating guys to loose balls, playing sneaky good help defense, and being too thicc for most guys to post up. I wouldn't want him chasing Fox or Dame, but I like him just fine in most matchups.

Quick moderator note: drop the "Fatcic" jokes. Just in general, but especially when talking to Mavs fans. It's baiting and trolling Mavs fans, and the nickname is misogynist enough to warrant a strike under General Board Policy. Your account is new, so you get the benfit of the doubt, but kindly review the Genearl Board Policy

[Texas Chuck]

One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

Best player in the world is obviously premature. But worth noting we just did watch him do it over a full season:

28/10/9 leading the league in usage and thus clearly driving the most efficient offense of all-time.



I hate everyone's need to be so extreme in their takes. He's not the best, but he's awfully damn good and has shown that for more than a minute now.

[Pharmcat]

Luka never left the mvp race. He is the best player since Jordan and on track to overtake Jordan career trajectory wise

[Some smartguy]

This team is struggling to stay above .500, that's not MVP in any universe, no matter how many points Luka _Oncic puts up on 40 shots a game

THJ, Kleber, JRich, Brunson, and DFS.
5 of the Mavericks' top 7-8 players, 3 of them starters. All were out last game, and most of them for the previous game as well. Porzingis is the inefficient chucker, I've always thought that he's been a bit overrated(no offence, he's still solid). Luka has been playing above-average defence this year and keeping the Mavs afloat. Yesterday they would have lost by 50 without Luka, not a single player was able to create a shot(other than James Johnson ) and he had one of the best stat lines in history. If the Mavericks could get one more good starter and someone else to run the bench unit, they could be legit title contenders. Even if KP, Maxi and Brunson could just stay healthy they would be. Do you really think the Lakers would still be as good without everyone good except for LeBron? Same for Brooklyn, or Boston, or the Clips. It's not Luka's fault in any way. Sure he wasn't efficient in the second half, but what do you expect? He was a one-man-team in the first.

[TheBonzaiEffect]

Luka stays the most overrated player in the NBA by far.

All I heard is about how hes a top 5 guy in the league. Meanwhile hes still a terrible 3 point shooter, and looks even worse than last year. And hes clearly out of shape.

Why should he be the favorite for MVP or even in the conversation?

To me its clearly LeBron.

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

The best player in the NBA?

Oh lord.

Oh, what a cogent and objective response.

I said he looks like the best player in the game at the moment. Over the last 6:

32/12/12/2/1 on 49/38 shooting, and +49 +/-, with great D. Please objectively show me someone playing better. I'll wait.

[TheBonzaiEffect]

One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

Best player in the world is obviously premature. But worth noting we just did watch him do it over a full season:

28/10/9 leading the league in usage and thus clearly driving the most efficient offense of all-time.



I hate everyone's need to be so extreme in their takes. He's not the best, but he's awfully damn good and has shown that for more than a minute now.

No one called him the best player in the world. But over the past 6, he's looked it.

[TheBonzaiEffect]

Luka stays the most overrated player in the NBA by far.

All I heard is about how hes a top 5 guy in the league. Meanwhile hes still a terrible 3 point shooter, and looks even worse than last year. And hes clearly out of shape.

Why should he be the favorite for MVP or even in the conversation?

To me its clearly LeBron.

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

Best player in the NBA?



One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

I said he looks like the best player in the game at the moment. Over the last 6:

32/12/12/2/1 on 49/38 shooting, and +49 +/-, with great D. Please objectively show me someone playing better. I'll wait.

You said he looks worse than last year. Care to expunge on that?

[Hello Brooklyn]

One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

Best player in the world is obviously premature. But worth noting we just did watch him do it over a full season:

28/10/9 leading the league in usage and thus clearly driving the most efficient offense of all-time.



I hate everyone's need to be so extreme in their takes. He's not the best, but he's awfully damn good and has shown that for more than a minute now.

I mean I was referring specifically to his 3 point shooting if you bothered reading the full post

[Hello Brooklyn]

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

Best player in the NBA?



One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

I said he looks like the best player in the game at the moment. Over the last 6:

32/12/12/2/1 on 49/38 shooting, and +49 +/-, with great D. Please objectively show me someone playing better. I'll wait.

You said he looks worse than last year. Care to expunge on that?

How can you look like the best player in the world over 6 games? What kind of inane theory is that?

A 6 game stretch does not prove anything.

And I said he looked worse in terms of 3 point shooting, which was supposedly going to improve. It hasn't.

[UcanUwill]

This team is struggling to stay above .500, that's not MVP in any universe, no matter how many points Luka _Oncic puts up on 40 shots a game

He plays very good D, but he is white Euro, so thats enough for some people to make their ''scouting conclusions''...

[khufure]

Luka was amazing against the Bulls... I can see why Mavs fans are excited. He's the complete package. I guess Vegas has Luka as the top dawg right now https://www.vegasinsider.com/nba/odds/mvp/ .

[Texas Chuck]

One nice stretch proves nothing. Lets see him do it for a full season.

Or at least see him get out of the first round. You people overrate Luka like hes won 3 Championships.

Best player in the world is obviously premature. But worth noting we just did watch him do it over a full season:

28/10/9 leading the league in usage and thus clearly driving the most efficient offense of all-time.



I hate everyone's need to be so extreme in their takes. He's not the best, but he's awfully damn good and has shown that for more than a minute now.

I mean I was referring specifically to his 3 point shooting if you bothered reading the full post

I did and you didn't. But I appreciate you now clarifying what you meant to say.

And that's an odd thing to focus on since literally nobody is selling Luka Doncic, good 3-pt shooter. It's well established he isn't remotely that.

[LoneyROY]

What in the hell?

He just became the 4th player in NBA history to put up a 35-15-15 game (on 6-11 from three, no less). His last 6 games:

33/16/11
38/9/13/5 steals
20/10/10/2 blocks
34/13/9/2 steals/4 blocks
28/10/13
36/16/15/2 steals

Shooting 38% from 3 over tat stretch.

In what world does he look worse than last year? He looks like the best player in the NBA.

The best player in the NBA?

Oh lord.

Oh, what a cogent and objective response.

I said he looks like the best player in the game at the moment. Over the last 6:

32/12/12/2/1 on 49/38 shooting, and +49 +/-, with great D. Please objectively show me someone playing better. I'll wait.

You don't "look like the best player in the NBA" over a 6-game stretch, it doesn't work like that.

We're currently in one of the most talent-rich eras in NBA history. You have to be BEYOND special to even be mentioned in competition for that kind of billing. It's disrespectful to the players that are clearly better than him to make that statement.

[Hello Brooklyn]

Best player in the world is obviously premature. But worth noting we just did watch him do it over a full season:

28/10/9 leading the league in usage and thus clearly driving the most efficient offense of all-time.



I hate everyone's need to be so extreme in their takes. He's not the best, but he's awfully damn good and has shown that for more than a minute now.

I mean I was referring specifically to his 3 point shooting if you bothered reading the full post

I did and you didn't. But I appreciate you now clarifying what you meant to say.

And that's an odd thing to focus on since literally nobody is selling Luka Doncic, good 3-pt shooter. It's well established he isn't remotely that.

LOL I love how you're telling me what I was referring to. He said Doncic was the best player in the NBA and an elite 38% point shooter for a 6 game stretch.

And I responded by saying lets see him do it for a full season.

I obviously was not talking about his raw numbers overall, which he did just last year. But ok.

Of course I'm going to focus on it, if people are claiming that hes the best player in the NBA and shooting is a premium. You can't be a top 5 player in the NBA today without being a good shooter, possible exception Giannis whos also the DPOY.

Not to mention that Luka is still a bad defender.