He deserves to be on the team, but really hope they don't extend him. Maybe being forced to bet on himself will light a much-needed fire under Lonnie (though I'm not sure even with fire he'll be much of a defender).
Any time that someone mentioned Luka it was always with "he shows flashes" or " he has lots of potential" . Apparently the potential flashes just weren't enough. Much rather have a player like KBD or Eubanks who give lots of effort despite their athletic limitations.
I'm sure Luka had a little chip on his shoulder that he was drafted at 19 and stuck in the G-League while Keldon moved up. I remember that kind of being a thing in the bubble. I don't think they gave him a real shot in the games, but it's fair they didn't play him in games if he sucked in practice.
Again, we would get excited if he hit a three like it was this great thing. Meanwhile guys like Vassel and Walker are hitting threes and we are not making a big deal of it. It's like anything that Luka did that was even marginally good, we were singing praises. I think we the fans wanted it to happen more than Luka the player. But until he gets some nastiness, he will not make it in this league regardless of being 6'11 player that can handle the ball and shoot threes.
Well, the only good I can see of this is perhaps we can shut down the 'Ben Simmons thread' now...
If at ude is the problem (and when a rookie has played in 36 games over two years for a non playoff team...), then a player who thinks they should be the #1 guy and holds his team to ransom should hold little sway here.
My recollection was last year he played really good perimeter defense for his size, which allowed us to imagine a 6'11 guy who would be switchable up and down the line. I don't want to defend Luka but Covid and a broken hand this offseason, really messed with any sustained development opportunities he might have had.
That said, I trust in Pop who saw him every practice. If they bailed after all his potential, there was likely a good reason.
I really felt all of KBD, Lyles and Luka played well after Q gave half the team COVID but Pop benched all of them soon after to go back to four guard lineups.
Forbes being resigned makes the back end of the roster so awkward. Hopefully like someone said KBD can just be waived and signed to a two way with the understanding he would get more minutes than Aminu. This team is already too tiny. Or Young gets moved, who knows.
Luka is just too frustrating. The physical tools are all there, it's just . . . and yes I saw that Reddit post as well.
Par for the course for this franchise tbh
Par for the course for this franchise tbhWe thought he was “Doncic.”
Tbh, this Luka-got-waived-cuz-he-quit-on-that-play has turned into a weird meme. Anyone who has watched Samanic play knows he's not one to hustle. I've watched his Europe, summer league and G League tape and the number of times he has hustled back in transition can be counted on one hand. That aloofness and lack of compe ive fire has always been what has kept him from being a highly regarded prospect. We're talking about a guy who can easily dunk from the free throw line, effortlessly shoot threes, move his feet out on the perimeter on defense against guards, rebound well and pass well.
Put most succinctly, Samanic's make or break attribute was whether he'd ever care enough. He lacked hustle, grit and basketball IQ -- and most of that was fixable if he ever decided to completely dedicate himself to the game. Apparently that never happened. Again, that shouldn't be surprising because every Europe scout knew that Samanic was a reluctant basketball player from the very beginning. His dad played basketball but Luka tried his best not to play until his size and athleticism forced his hand. IIRC, he has even admitted that his true passion is skateboarding
But, yeah, nothing Samanic did last night impacted the decision. The writing was on the wall ever since KBD was signed. Giving KBD a guaranteed contract only to waive him a couple months later made no sense. It's clear now that the Spurs have been expecting this result for months.
Do I think he was a bad pick? Yeah, I mean, I was never too enthused with the selection. I labeled him as a two-year prospect right away. Here we are two years later and the Spurs didn't see enough advancement to even justify going any further.
Good luck to Samanic, tbh. He has all the tools you'd want as a basketball player -- we'll see if he ever decides to GAF.
Tell me why he deserves to be on his team ?
All his hard work and listening to coaches has not developed into a constant force for spurs
His d has not improved
Since he refuses to celebrate 4 of July does that make him he can do no wrong ?
Sheer offensive potential on an offensively challenged team merits a spot for him for now, but my post was not a positive one. I said I don't think he should be extended and don't think he'll ever be a defender. I'm hoping he'll show enough offense this year we can trade Lonnie for something of value. He's a good guy and I want him to succeed, but not seen any real evidence he will.
My bet is that the Mavericks will pick him up!
He certainly has the physical talent, it's just his head isn't commited enough.
#ceperez
Maybe gettin' cut will motivate him like early-career Danny Green.
But probably not.
Don’t even waste your time giving a thoughtful, intelligent response to ducks, my friend.
Can't wait to see his interview in some Croatian paper and a few weeks where he s on SA and blames everything on Pop
I don’t know who said it but back when he was drafted, someone said he pulled a Nephew on his old team before he was drafted. Tbh the red flags were there from the start. Dude just always seemed like an asshole, tbh.
Considering an 18 year old is getting minutes and KJ got minutes...
With the Spurs he seemed disengaged. I think or it seems that he fell out with Pop and just kind of quit.
It will be interesting if he makes something of himself elsewhere
KJ showed with an at ude that doesn't quit that you could get minutes. Both are the same age and I don't know why Samanic did not get the memo.
Thanks for sharing, since I didn’t watch this game… I saw the referenced play in social media, but the one that followed was just as abominable. That’s too bad. Young guy but he had absolutely no compe ive desire.
The 2019 draft was pretty ty, to be honest. Good players here or there, but a lot of truly bad players. Whiffing sucks, but it happened a lot that year. Getting Keldon was the main thing.
He got waived so quickly during training camp given that he was a first pick and the Spurs have invested in him that I wonder if it was just that he had the wrong at ude. Kind of reminds me how Jimmer was in the Spurs training camp, played like two games, and then he was gone. You would think these guys would be final cuts, but there must be some reason why they don't even get to play out the rest of the preseason games.
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