Mavs 24

[TheMarathonContinues]

You'd have hated Michael Jordan.

Luka isn’t Mj.

 

[T-RO]

There’s the workout tape of him shooting 3s. Not sure if I want him out there though he seems to be a big threat in the paint.

The Mavs don't have any good pick and pop big men. They have guys who can hit the corner three but that's not as valuable as a big who can add that third dimension to the pick-and-roll game up at the top

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

The Mavs don't have any good pick and pop big men. They have guys who can hit the corner three but that's not as valuable as a big who can add that third dimension to the pick-and-roll game up at the top

I’m not sure if you need a pick and pop big man….snd if I did I’d go trade for one I don’t want Lively with that role personally.

 

[T-RO]

I’m not sure if you need a pick and pop big man….snd if I did I’d go trade for one I don’t want Lively with that role personally.

Maybe...perhaps probably Likely can't provide that as early as next season. Or ever.

But they need someone who can.

In any case: I'd push hard for Lively to expand his role offensively. He has the physical tools and showed some nifty Euro-stepping skillz. Its vital for the Mavs for him to advance his game offensively.

 

[jterrell]

I disagree. I think Minnesota and Thunder are better teams with higher upsides. West will be wide open again and Mavs have to be careful in not staying with the same team just because they made the finals.

Look at the Nuggets went from winning it all to losing to Minnie l.

Not sure what you qualify as slander. He’s not immune to criticism that’s for sure. If Lebron and MJ can be criticized at 25 certainly he can.

Dallas beat Minny 4-1 and that series was not even in the same universe. Dallas is significantly better and younger.
Minny is not that good going forward as-is.
They found a way last year to max out as a big team, but KAT is still soft as charmin; and Gobert has zero offense to offer.
They are not young by any means. ((and the Jimmy Butler slander applied to them still stands)).
The starting lineup has a 36, 31, 28.
1 dude is young, Ant. He will improve and get 3 level scoring going and build his stamina.
Naz Reid as 6MOY deserves a shout here and he should be starting next year.

OKC is younger with more upside for sure.

The West is tough and any team can die on a vine across the wear and tear of a season, but Dallas had as hard a run this season as reasonably exists.
They had injuries to Lively/Maxi to fight through and Luka was injured before the playoffs even began but just played through it.
They were also the road team every series.
And they played the foul you to death Clips round 1.

So the road for them should be MUCH easier next year.
And they have only 1 top 8 rotation guy to resign: DJJ.

The 3rd best player is 19 years old. The 8 deep features one guy over 27 and 7 of them are signed for at least 2 more years.

As you look forward Dallas is right behind OKC in "power rankings".
And OKC has some playoff personnel and style challenges to overcome. --but has already started with Caruso and have 100000 picks to trade.

DEN was tired and ran into a team built specifically to beat them in Minny.
They can tweak the roster and be really good next year again because Jokic/Murray is always good.


People that criticized LeBron or Jordan at 25 were certifiably stupid. Same goes for those doing it with Luka.
It isn't these guys job to be perfect. Just be great. And they were all great at 25.

 

[jterrell]

Luka isn’t Mj.

My dude you made the reference not me.

Luka is currently 2nd all-time on per game playoff scoring behind ... MJ.
Luka leads the league is creating wide open shots and as a mediocre defender finished top 10 in the regular season in steals then led that category in the playoffs.

He's 25 and a top 3 player in the NBA.
He can still get better in many ways including his emotional outburst with refs, but any production criticism is hollow.
Largely feckless whining by dudes who hate that the best players in the league are Euros.

Luka has averaged 30.9 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.0 assists in 50 career playoff games. He has been to the NBA Finals and to the NBA WC Finals already and he is only 25.

Every team in the league would trade ALL their assets for him.

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

My dude you made the reference not me.

Luka is currently 2nd all-time on per game playoff scoring behind ... MJ.
Luka leads the league is creating wide open shots and as a mediocre defender finished top 10 in the regular season in steals then led that category in the playoffs.

He's 25 and a top 3 player in the NBA.
He can still get better in many ways including his emotional outburst with refs, but any production criticism is hollow.
Largely feckless whining by dudes who hate that the best players in the league are Euros.

Luka has averaged 30.9 points, 9.4 rebounds and 8.0 assists in 50 career playoff games. He has been to the NBA Finals and to the NBA WC Finals already and he is only 25.

Every team in the league would trade ALL their assets for him.

I did not make that reference lol.

All I said was Luka ain’t MJ and never will be. He will never play defense at the level MJ did.

 

[jterrell]

Adding Klay was a large win for Dallas.
They needed that 3rd scorer and have found it.
Instead of a 35-year-old Klay having to run for 10 minutes on offense to get open in that GSW motion set he will be able to spot up and come off screens.
Definitely a more offense oriented starting lineup but with really good defensive depth in Grimes/Marshall.

I'd look for Dallas to have a much easier regular season then try to find another defender at the trade deadline.

Nico has done really good work. --the Grant signing aside.

 

[jterrell]

I did not make that reference lol.

All I said was Luka ain’t MJ and never will be. He will never play defense at the level MJ did.

ROFL. You ain't gotta lie to kick it.

YOU:: Not sure what you qualify as slander. He’s not immune to criticism that’s for sure. If Lebron and MJ can be criticized at 25 certainly he can.

--the first mention of MJ in this entire thread.

MJ was and might still be a pretty terrible person. But he is undoubtedly the GOAT. Clutching pearls over a player cursing on the court or arguing with fans who have heckled him all game is weak sauce on a level that is hard to explain.
Luka slander is stupid and will only look more stupid every season for many years to come.

 

[TheMarathonContinues]

ROFL. You ain't gotta lie to kick it.

YOU:: Not sure what you qualify as slander. He’s not immune to criticism that’s for sure. If Lebron and MJ can be criticized at 25 certainly he can.

--the first mention of MJ in this entire thread.

MJ was and might still be a pretty terrible person. But he is undoubtedly the GOAT. Clutching pearls over a player cursing on the court or arguing with fans who have heckled him all game is weak sauce on a level that is hard to explain.
Luka slander is stupid and will only look more stupid every season for many years to come.

I did say that you’re right. I was just saying if the greatest of all time got criticized at 25 why wouldn’t Luka?

And what Luka slander are you talking about?

 

[jterrell]

Locked on Mavs is the best Mavs podcast out there.

Folks should def check them out though it can get less interesting in the off-season there are some real gems of episodes mixed in there.

youtube link here but can find it on any podcast provider as well.
https://www.youtube.com/@LockedOnMavericks


This particular episode about Klay and his fit is a must listen as a Mavs fan IMO.

 

[jterrell]

Kyrie having a broken hand is umm not ideal. But for a guy his age playing lower minutes early is a good thing IMO.

All that said it is a good time to note that the regular season and playoffs are very different beasts.
Dallas will need Kyrie to claim a high seed but can certainly handle his absence far better with Klay brought aboard than without him.

Grimes and Marshall getting more minutes is probably a good thing because otherwise it might not be until the playoffs that it occurred much as it did with DJJ.
I'd currently rate this team 2nd best roster (after OKC) in the WC.

 

[Cebrin]

I like the additions made, but I'm not sold that it's made us better yet. Time will tell. It depends on how much gas is left in the tanks of Kyrie and Klay. We really need these younger players to step up, and give rest to the starting 5.

I was really impressed with Hardy late in the season and thru playoffs. I think he may emerge as a great 6th man this year with a little more nuance under his belt. His consistency greatly improved, as well as his ability to drive in traffic and make either a tough shot or great pass. You can see the culture starting to sink into him. He's got potential to be a very good player for the Mavs.

Boston showed just how important depth is. They have an incredible roster with good continuity. Hopefully being in the finals will give these guys some of that needed experience to make it more of a possibility to put up a good fight.