General playoff thread

[timtonymanu]

lol it doesn't mean any of that except to people who want to invent or believe in made-up narratives and read into things that don't exist

I personally would have given them one more minute to see if something happened, but it wasn't nearly as big of a deal as you are making it out to be

It's also ironic coming from our fanbase when Popovich is the most conservative coach in the NBA when it comes to minutes, including playoff blowouts.

[Mr. Body]

It's also ironic coming from our fanbase when Popovich is the most conservative coach in the NBA when it comes to minutes, including playoff blowouts.

It was only a 21 point lead with nearly five minutes to go. No self respecting coach gives up at that point. How ing bizarre to defend this garbage. You see if you can get some stops, make some baskets. You could cut ten points in two minutes easily. If it doesn't work, fine, but at least make Phoenix fight for it.

I don't understand giving up on your players like that, saying you don't believe in them.

[Ice009]

I don’t trade Ja for Doncic tbh. jar’s leadership and mental toughness is great, stuff that makes eventual league MVP and HOF and I do think he’ll be an NBA champion. Doncic is talented. Better shooter, smarter, a ###### player, doesn’t need to be explosive but he’s not mentally tough and hasn’t been a good leader.

I just can't get an accurate read on whether or not Donic is tough in the clutch. I think we really do need to see him with some better teammates to truly be able to see how he does with the games on the line in the playoffs. His playoff numbers are phenomenal, and there is a questions on whether or not he hogs the ball too much (I remember thinking this myself in the series against the Clippers a couple of years ago), but the point is, he's never had a really good team around him. Does he hog the ball because he's overly selfish out for his own numbers, or does it do it because he doesn't trust his teammates, or does he do it out of necessity? I don't know the reason, but I think he does do it.

Ja is looking good/great (I hope he keeps it up and they beat the Warriors), but IMO he definitely does have better teammates around him which would take some of the pressure off him. Right now, ALL the pressure and load is on Luka. That's gotta fatigue you by the time the 4th quarter rolls around.

lol it doesn't mean any of that except to people who want to invent or believe in made-up narratives and read into things that don't exist

I personally would have given them one more minute to see if something happened, but it wasn't nearly as big of a deal as you are making it out to be

I've seen big comebacks before, maybe not a lot of them at the end of the 4th quarter of a playoff game, but I've seen teams erase 20 point deficits at the start of the 3rd quarter/end of the 3rd/start of the 4th etc., so yeah, I wouldn't have pulled the plug that early. I would have at least given them half the time remaining. You really shouldn't throw away a playoff game until it's too far out of reach time/score wise.

[SAGirl]

I knew it wasn't just me but Chuck just mentioned on TNT that Doncic indeed hogs the ing ball way too much, or dominates the ball as he put it. The Mavs were actually playing better without him. Brunson with two straight subpar games. It's almost as if Luka is just trying to get his stats while also tanking the games to get out of of Dallas. Luka is a superstar, but he seems like a little selfish diva who would rather be on a team like the Lakers.

I get the same impression. The only thing I am not sure of is that he’s doing it on purpose to get out of Dallas. It might just be his game. He will either grow out of it and develop as a leader or indeed want to form the next superfriends team in a big market like you say.

I don’t watch the Mavs regularly, so I don’t know. I may be overreacting, but his leadership and intangibles aren’t good. The Mavs put together a good team (not a great one, but good for a young player) for him coming into the league, while generally top lotto picks get drafted into very bad situations with a lot of youngsters in the roster, in a position to continue being bad, like Detroit and Orlando for example.

He proceeded to start quarreling with Porzinguis, Carlisle and only made it out of the first round this time because he was injured 3 games and the team played better without him! His intangibles aren’t good. It’s a small sample and I may be wrong, but the impression isn’t good.

[SAGirl]

Argument can be made that you switch Ja and Doncic from teams and the Grizzlies look like scrubs tbh. Think about it.

[Dex]

The moments I've watched, Green has been a big problem. He can knock heads and win some possessions, but not consistently, and Poole is still a negative defender. On offense, playing with Draymond Green is playing with four players.

That is why I hate it when people compare Draymond to Boris Diaw. Yes, Green is a good passer for his size and position, but Diaw was better AND Bobo was actually an offensive threat himself. He could post up, he could get to the rim and finish, and he could shoot all the way out to the three point line.

Draymond basically just stands at the elbow and tries to play quarterback, and if he does get baited into shooting a three then that's basically a win for the defense.

[exstatic]

It's the ing playoffs. You don't pull starters at 4:30 because of possible injuries. There's still a chance for a run. How pathetic. It even sends a message to your team and the other team that you're begging for mercy and have no fight.

Joel Embiid. It’s not conceptual.

[XDT76]

Some stats on GSW.

Not surprising with Thompson a s of himself, there is no decent defender in the line-up

[JamStone]

Luka has a certain way of playing, and he also has trust issues. I think it’s fair to criticize him to a point where he should modify his game a little going forward. But the criticism on Luka should go only so far. If certain guys play like , first and foremost, it’s on them, not Luka, not their other teammates, not their coaches. First and foremost. On the totem pole of blame, playing like starts with that player.

Can Luka relinquish a little more of the ball handling responsibility, decision making in halfcourt sets? Yes. And he should a little bit. LeBron had to learn that as well. And he was able to modify his game when he had teammates he had more trust and confidence in. One thing Luka probably should do is stop walking the ball up the court. By the time they initiate a halfcourt set, half the shot clock has wound down already. Get into sets earlier, let the ball move, so when it gets back to Luka it’s not 3 seconds left, but maybe 8-10 seconds left on the shot clock. Luka does tend to over dribble early in halfcourt sets. And their offense would become much smoother and much more diversified if they start actions earlier and don’t over dribble so much. Now that you can put a lot on Jason Kidd.

I think Luka has to look at the careers of LeBron and Chris Paul and how they evolved from extreme ball dominance to finding a balance when to dominate the ball while also keeping teammates involved. Jokic has already mastered it for the most part. Those three guys have a great blueprint offensively on how to find that balance.

[CGD]

NBA should split up the game combinations. BOS/MIL and GSW/MEM on the same night is super compelling, but the other night is dog .

[Neo.]

I get the same impression. The only thing I am not sure of is that he’s doing it on purpose to get out of Dallas. It might just be his game. He will either grow out of it and develop as a leader or indeed want to form the next superfriends team in a big market like you say.

I don’t watch the Mavs regularly, so I don’t know. I may be overreacting, but his leadership and intangibles aren’t good. The Mavs put together a good team (not a great one, but good for a young player) for him coming into the league, while generally top lotto picks get drafted into very bad situations with a lot of youngsters in the roster, in a position to continue being bad, like Detroit and Orlando for example.

He proceeded to start quarreling with Porzinguis, Carlisle and only made it out of the first round this time because he was injured 3 games and the team played better without him! His intangibles aren’t good. It’s a small sample and I may be wrong, but the impression isn’t good.

yes you obviously don't watch them because almost everything you are saying couldn't be further from the truth. people who watch them regularly know what's really been going on there.

and if you are going to say stupid stuff like "the Mavs were better without Luka in small sample sizes durhrhrhrhr" but then proceed to talk about how great ja is compared to Luka, you might wanna look at the grizz record without ja compared to the Mavs record without Luka

[Neo.]

Luka has a certain way of playing, and he also has trust issues. I think it’s fair to criticize him to a point where he should modify his game a little going forward. But the criticism on Luka should go only so far. If certain guys play like , first and foremost, it’s on them, not Luka, not their other teammates, not their coaches. First and foremost. On the totem pole of blame, playing like starts with that player.

Can Luka relinquish a little more of the ball handling responsibility, decision making in halfcourt sets? Yes. And he should a little bit. LeBron had to learn that as well. And he was able to modify his game when he had teammates he had more trust and confidence in. One thing Luka probably should do is stop walking the ball up the court. By the time they initiate a halfcourt set, half the shot clock has wound down already. Get into sets earlier, let the ball move, so when it gets back to Luka it’s not 3 seconds left, but maybe 8-10 seconds left on the shot clock. Luka does tend to over dribble early in halfcourt sets. And their offense would become much smoother and much more diversified if they start actions earlier and don’t over dribble so much. Now that you can put a lot on Jason Kidd.

I think Luka has to look at the careers of LeBron and Chris Paul and how they evolved from extreme ball dominance to finding a balance when to dominate the ball while also keeping teammates involved. Jokic has already mastered it for the most part. Those three guys have a great blueprint offensively on how to find that balance.

yep pretty much all this, along with losing 15-20 lbs of fat will help cover basically all of Lukas weaknesses

[Pero]

Argument can be made that you switch Ja and Doncic from teams and the Grizzlies look like scrubs tbh. Think about it.

Uh, the Grizzlies without Morant looked like the best team in the NBA... The Mavs without Luka might be a lottery team.

[SAGirl]

Luka has a certain way of playing, and he also has trust issues. I think it’s fair to criticize him to a point where he should modify his game a little going forward. But the criticism on Luka should go only so far. If certain guys play like , first and foremost, it’s on them, not Luka, not their other teammates, not their coaches. First and foremost. On the totem pole of blame, playing like starts with that player.

Can Luka relinquish a little more of the ball handling responsibility, decision making in halfcourt sets? Yes. And he should a little bit. LeBron had to learn that as well. And he was able to modify his game when he had teammates he had more trust and confidence in. One thing Luka probably should do is stop walking the ball up the court. By the time they initiate a halfcourt set, half the shot clock has wound down already. Get into sets earlier, let the ball move, so when it gets back to Luka it’s not 3 seconds left, but maybe 8-10 seconds left on the shot clock. Luka does tend to over dribble early in halfcourt sets. And their offense would become much smoother and much more diversified if they start actions earlier and don’t over dribble so much. Now that you can put a lot on Jason Kidd.

I think Luka has to look at the careers of LeBron and Chris Paul and how they evolved from extreme ball dominance to finding a balance when to dominate the ball while also keeping teammates involved. Jokic has already mastered it for the most part. Those three guys have a great blueprint offensively on how to find that balance.

Someone pointed out in another forum that all that walking the ball and standing straight up on D is bad conditioning and that by the 4th he’s simply gassed. That may very well be the case. In that case the only way to raise his game further in the playoffs is to commit to a rigorous training. I don’t know if he wasn’t motivated b4, but it’s on him to improve the 4th Q meltdown.

[SAGirl]

Uh, the Grizzlies without Morant looked like the best team in the NBA... The Mavs without Luka might be a lottery team.

Talking playoffs here.

[SAGirl]

yes you obviously don't watch them because almost everything you are saying couldn't be further from the truth. people who watch them regularly know what's really been going on there.

and if you are going to say stupid stuff like "the Mavs were better without Luka in small sample sizes durhrhrhrhr" but then proceed to talk about how great ja is compared to Luka, you might wanna look at the grizz record without ja compared to the Mavs record without Luka

Am talking playoffs. Regular season is not what this thread is about. I already stated I don’t watch them regularly so it’s an impression of his playoff performance.

[Leetonidas]

the Grizzlies supporting cast is miles better than the Mavs. If Luka was in place of Morant, the Grizzlies would be a le favorite this year. Bane/JJJ are better than any player on the Mavs roster outside of Luka. Probably Melton and Brooks too

[SAGirl]

See that’s how leaders elevate rosters. Dillon has been dog these playoffs. Team didn’t need him to win the one game they won against GSW. Melitón was missing the entire first round, JJJ completely unreliable, in foul trouble the majority of all games in the first round etc, and is not a consistent player, unless you count fouling.. etc. tbh How has Luka raised anyones game. Instead his fans blaming teammates for his meltdowns.

[Leetonidas]

You're blaming Luka for his team bricking wide open jumpers when he's getting doubled/tripled?

You don't make any sense...you're talking about Ja "raising" players games yet somehow his team has the best winning percentage ever with him out of the lineup for 1/4 of the season but Luka drags a team full of scrubs to the 2nd round with his best running mate being either Spencer dinwiddie of midget Brunson and you expect him to make them into all-stars somehow?

You said you dont really watch Mavs games so not sure how you can claim that Luka doesnt "elevate" rosters. Was Tim not elevating the Spurs in 2001 or 2002 when we got thrashed by the Lakers? or was the team around him so poor that he couldnt win by himself?

[Neo.]

Am talking playoffs. Regular season is not what this thread is about. I already stated I don’t watch them regularly so it’s an impression of his playoff performance.

so do supporting casts suddenly change when the playoffs begin? it was a clear indicator that memphis has a fantastic supporting cast, while dallas has a bunch of bench quality players forced into starting roles and getting 20+ mil contracts because cuban is a moron who doesnt realize he doesnt know jack about basketball

[Neo.]

the Grizzlies supporting cast is miles better than the Mavs. If Luka was in place of Morant, the Grizzlies would be a le favorite this year. Bane/JJJ are better than any player on the Mavs roster outside of Luka. Probably Melton and Brooks too

its ridiculous how badly cuban has screwed situations up. if you replace ja or trae with luka (two guys constantly compared to him as being the best up-and-coming player to build around), both of those teams have great supporting casts that would make them le favorites. while cuban builds a roster around a transcendent player that people question if they can even beat a team that has imploded and hates each others guts.

[baseline bum]

Philadelphia looks hopeless. Boring series. Harden is washed and Miami is solid but it’s difficult to judge them in comparison to other teams when they faced a bad Atlanta team, and Philly without their MVP. No doubt they are a solid team, but they just haven’t really been tested.

Funniest thing is the Sixers are going to have to throw a four or five year max deal at Harden because WTF are their other options now? Punt two seasons of Embiid's prime to have capspace in the summer of 24?

[Mr. Body]

Joel Embiid. It’s not conceptual.

Yeah, glass jaw Embiid and that team was UP by 30 points. How is that hard for you to understand? You've got seven games to try to win four. Being captain prissy-pants when the game isn't over is absurd. You might as well just give up the fourth quarter to avoid injury. This loser at ude will bleed over into the next games. How ridiculous.

[SAGirl]

Baseline Bum: About Philly - They are in a bad situation but I wouldn't throw a five year max at Harden. He's on pace to be a Russ Westbrook level bad of contract the way he's going. Hopefully he takes less, so that he could be easier to trade in the future... but they asked for him and they got him... it's their funeral.

[tonight...you]

Funniest thing is the Sixers are going to have to throw a four or five year max deal at Harden because WTF are their other options now? Punt two seasons of Embiid's prime to have capspace in the summer of 24?

Nightmare.