thread of luka doncic

averaging 26.7, 10.3, and 9.5 on .605 true shooting through 6 games

I can think of...maybe 3 players whose next 3 years I would take over luka’s

he‘ll be 21 in 4 months

Who was the last guy who was clearly the best player in his age group from 17-21? Even Anthony Davis was a late bloomer.

the list of players 21 or under who had at least 20% usage and a PER of >25 is jordan, magic, lebron, shaq, KD, anthony davis, KAT, jokic, and luka

the players I’m pretty sure are better than luka doncic right now: lebron, davis, giannis, kawhi, harden, curry

he is v good at basketball. got tix to see him on black friday.

will be proud to say i got to see his first nba game

im intrigued to see how he and zinger work out. watched a few games of theirs and it looks like zinger is way underused in the final minutes of close games. it should be pnr with him and luka but he ends up just spotting up and someone else runs the pick.. then its just luka time. if they can grow/stay together and stay healthy that could be a killer duo for a while.

he looks to be in way better shape this season which is huge. has a crazy array of ways to make shots.

is zinger good? I’m honestly not sure

he's obviously Por

Depends on your definition of good

he just missed a whole season prob wont know for a while

feel like even during that one year when he was good he was a really inefficient scorer, surprisingly so for someone of his size and with his skills. I think he is just bad at offense. he is also a really bad rebounder and doesn’t pass. he can block shots good tho

he's a guy who could have developed out of his bad habits but it's tough to develop when you're always injured

he was the whole offense in NY so he should see an uptick in efficiency. his rebounding is so weak and he is def one of the worst black holes in the league. he could be an amazing 2nd best player on a good team just depends if he wants that role or not.

well he’s not in doncic’s league as a player so he’s gonna have to. and despite this he’s shooting terribly!

I mean his true shooting is .516, how is that even possible

cos his FT% is way down so far. this should all get better he hasnt played in like 21 months

his career ts% is like .534, this is just who he is I think

I think Cad is right. Right when he seemed to have turned a corner a bit he got hurt.

yeah last we heard of him he had an insanely good start to the season then started complaining about being exhausted and blew up his acl

I find Porzingis’ TS% strange because he shoots a healthy 3p% and is generally good on midrange postups. Those are two things that are so high equity and valuable from a 7 footer that I almost don’t care about the ts%

He’s probably the best rim protector in the league as well

anyway if he stays healthy theres no way he wont play better u dont just miss a season and a half and play yr best ball

it’s actually the midrange stuff that’s killing him, he’s taking a career high share of his shots (24%) from 3-10 feet and only shooting .296 from there

wonder if hes having trouble getting to the rim in the pnr or if those are more post ups or what

With his incredible start to the season (26.7pts, 9.1ast, 9.9reb), the question #must be asked: Is Luka Doncic A Top 5 Player In The NBA? https://t.co/dZN2uGhYub

— BBALLBREAKDOWN (@bballbreakdown) November 8, 2019

Top 15 it seems

he's top 5 until he isn't

aron baynes is also a top 10 player currently

yeah i mean the thing is even when a young players is putting up all nba number vs the wizards on a tuesday night we all know it takes years of honing their game before they can dominate vs the real good teams when it really counts (the nba playoffs baby)

i mean like even giannis whos been at this a while longer and has an mvp still kinda got exposed in last years offs

kawhi leonard on the other hand got very not exposed

I really think luka is in that giannis/kawhi class in terms of talent, even if he’s not quite there yet. not sure I’ve felt more sure of a young dude since maybe anthony davis, and lebron before that

only thing i wld say is he doesnt have the defensive or athletic ceiling near any of those guys, hes more like...........harden

but a harden who plays joyfully and unselfishly, sounds pretty great!

i think u cld also compare him to steph or kyrie tho obvs those are smaller guys and so a little different

harden is closest tho, theyre both chuckers

but harden is an efficient chucker something that is apparently possible now

another big game tonite

he is good at basketball

Doncic is probably done for the night. The line he achieved in three quarters -- 24 points, 14 boards, eight assists -- has only been done in nine other regular season since last season's All-Star break. Doncic has now done it three times this week.

— Bobby Karalla (@bobbykaralla) November 10, 2019

on the second night of a back to back, man. I miss being 20

http://bkref.com/tiny/6Rdfq

looks like only the fifth 24-14-8 on a back to back since 83, joining barkley, bird, jeff ruland(!), and...david lee?

luka basically a combo of all those guys (idk who jeff ruland is)

consecutive games of 24-14-8, that is

would be cool if luka was part jeff ruland

hello handsome

https://kronozio.blob.core.windows.net/images/card/6f86d5ae55494a72970c13e5c85b1646_front.jpg

lmao

both guys wearing the same shoes except one is hi top and one is mid

lol that is exactly chicago mike d'antoni from the reg season thread!

lmao IT IS

what is chicago mike d'antoni from the reg season thread

xp with a name like hat he oughta be coachin DA BULLS

― i'm not a government man; i'm a government, man. (m bison), Saturday, November 9, 2019 11:21 PM (four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

wld be a fitting last stop for him

― lag∞n, Saturday, November 9, 2019 10:26 PM (twenty-one minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

he gets fat, grows the mustache out, holding polish sausage and spilling sauerkraut while he yells at the ref, what a fucking life that would be

― i'm not a government man; i'm a government, man. (m bison), Saturday, November 9, 2019 10:27 PM (nineteen minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

jeff ruland looks like this ^^^

but thats not the regular season thread

sir YES IT IS it is the regular degular thread

i feel like you guys arent being clear tbqh

luka basically a combo of all those guys (idk who jeff ruland is)

Just read up on him. Getting an Achilles injury from an arena worker accidentally slamming cart into the back of his foot...

damn

i forgot luka wears 77, definitely an honorary ilxor

exactly he is one of us

luka already does that harden thing on a regular basis where it seems like he didn’t have a great game and then you look at the box score and he had 34 on 21 shots

both him and harden have super elite level ability to read and react to the defense that keeps them a half a step ahead of everyone even tho theyre technically slow, its the opposite of robotic play (tho harden is often scientific)

thinking abt it one thing that will determine how far luka will go is his 3pt shooting, his % have been pretty bad so far ~33%, a lot of that is he just takes really difficult shots, like stepping back five feet and shooting from 30, just adjusting his shot selection which fwiw i have full confidence he can do cld help him level up one level

but the thing that cld cause him to level up like three levels is learning how to hit difficult 3s like james harden, which really is a combo of shot selection and getting better at shooting, like he hit a deep jab step 3 last night that is such a better shot than a stepback, or like doing a small stepback that keeps him on balance is viable

not sure if he has the stuff to be a super elite shooter but if he does it wld go a long way towards making his game true superstar ready, the blueprint he has now with not great outside shooting and lots of flippy stuff in the paint seems like it cld be exploitable by a very good determined playoff defense, tho his great passing offsets that somewhat

the other path is getting good teammates and just shooting less creating more, which if u look at the mavs front office history might be a big lift, also they run the risk of getting stuck in the middle with one great player and a great coach they cld always be sniffing the playoffs even if the rest of the roster is bad

+having bad teammates is causing him to carry too heavy a load especially for a young player, he got tired and a little out of control at the end of the game last night started throwing his body around which is obvs not great

tho the sight of him bleeding from the mouth making very eastern european smiling youve got to be kidding me gestures at the refs was pretty charming, tough guy for sure

he does seem to love getting out there and mixing it up, wld be a fun guy to root for

btw lol at tommy last night “wheres this kid from slovenia we gotta send him back there buy him a plane ticket”

Oh my god you’re still skeptical

This is like when I thought James harden was a sixth man type

feel like my analysis is pretty fawning tbf, no ones game is complete their second year

Already elite at reading the D/seeing the floor. Prime Chris Paul-level of orchestrating things.
Shot looks good tho? Good form, consistent stroke, nice arc. Yeah prob just needs to take better shots + get better at making difficult ones.

he has that quality of being able to make the defense panic and make mistakes too like last night he repeatedly sucked four celtics into the paint and hit wide open shooters (who then missed), when obvs the celtics shdve just played him straight up and let him take his floaters or just sent one man to double team

tho it cldve been just disrespect for the rest of their roster too

anyway i think we can all agree that the bbiomechanics guy should have the last word on lukas jumper re adaptively groove variations in arm swing timing

Although we can adaptively groove variations in arm swing timing relative to 2nd ground contact:
🔺It is substantially earlier than the R foot contact
🔺Energy must be organized w/upper body dominant (swing like motion of arms, late wrist, & slight pause at top)@bballbreakdown pic.twitter.com/vufKF9MmAq

— BBiomechanics (@BBiomechanics) November 12, 2019

I’ve pondered making a parody of that acct

BBiomechanicBs

i think it already is a parody acct

A video of Greg ostertag jumping 3 inches that focuses on contralateral hip flexion

iirc no one gave me a satisfactory answer when i asked why he wasn't the consensus #1 on draft night

cos he didnt play in the ncaa

That’s true but he’s slow so how does he do that and could a 19 year old Luka Doncic maybe get better at it
― Matt Armstrong, Friday, November 2, 2018 2:39 PM (three hours ago) Bookmark

im too lazy to find it now but i remember reading or hearing somewhere that harden is elite elite at deceleration, so he's stopping and then starting back up again before defenders can catch up to him

― J0rdan S., Friday, November 2, 2018 5:52 PM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

this is a cool article on his similarities to harden: https://www.wsj.com/articles/luka-doncic-big-data-nba-11552413548

🖼

iirc no one gave me a satisfactory answer when i asked why he wasn't the consensus #1 on draft night

yeah shit like that happens all the time

chris paul went 4th

after being the consensus best prospect for a few years

A video of Greg ostertag jumping 3 inches that focuses on contralateral hip flexion

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, November 12, 2019 4:11 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol

seems like the guys who end up total consensus #1 picks are usually not only good at basketball but also athletic freaks, and obvs it matters alot who else is in the draft

does luka have the celtics mindtype

oh definitely

i am not convinced he does

Ayton was a really bad pick but you could at least understand the outlines of it, Bagley I just didn’t get at all. What was the best case scenario for him?

My theory is that Ranadive thought Bogdan was better

the ol weve already got a guy like that

which prob factored into the suns pick too

then theres atl who had luka fall into their lap and traded him, tho trae is looking pretty great too

The odd thing about the Suns is a big reason not to take Luka would seemingly be that they already had a good sf but then they handed him to the pacers inexplicably

mightve been worried abt the fit w booker in that theyre both ball dominant, which is silly imo but bad teams stay bad for a reason

Rubio and Doncic would have been a questionable fit so they’ve got that going for them. But unfortunately Ayton is Rony Seikaly without the style

well they probably wouldn't have signed rubio if they had doncic. at least a sane team wouldn't do something like that.

rubio and doncic would be kinda fascinating

this is fn insane considering he doesnt actually get all the way to the rim that often

Best FG% off drives so far this year (min 10 drives per game):
Luka Doncic - 68.6% (!)
Gordon Hayward - 63.4%
Russ Westbrook - 63.0%
Dame Lillard - 60.2%
Pascal Siakam - 58.2%
Brandon Ingram - 57.9%
James Harden - 57.8%
Derrick Rose - 57.1%
Jaylen Brown - 56.7%

— Michael Gallagher (@MikeSGallagher) November 13, 2019

gotta think thats gonna cool off but still

I’d love to see like the points per possession on drives, he’s deadly in the paint, gets fouled a ton in there, and finds guys all the time

Through games on Nov. 12, which #NBA sophomores have done the most (or least) with their minutes during the 2019-20 season? pic.twitter.com/KfLkEyiMnT

— NBA Math (@NBA_Math) November 13, 2019

i am seeing some outliers

this is getting pretty ridiculous. career high 42-11-12 tonight

This kid was the MVP of the all-European championship tournament at age 18, or maybe 19, so you'd expect it would take him a good year of seasoning in the NBA before he was ready to show is true mettle. Last year was just him getting acquainted.

just luka things

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

idk how helpful that framework really is, I mean his production at age 20 is completely without precedent. he’s basically mike trout.

to your question tho guys like...kyrie, AD, maybe? I mean isn’t there always a guy who’s the best

AD didn’t blow up until his senior year of high school

Rubio was the best from 14-18 probably

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, November 19, 2019 2:08 PM (thirty-four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

if it was unquestioned he wouldnt have gone 3rd, i mean the ppl questioning it were obvs wrong but still they questioned it

w bron no one questioned it except like 2 contrarian sportswriters

I remember a few iconoclasts who were all about darko >> bron

might as well go all the way w it

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, November 19, 2019 2:08 PM (thirty-four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

if it was unquestioned he wouldnt have gone 3rd, i mean the ppl questioning it were obvs wrong but still they questioned it

Even this offseason people did the same upside argument but he continues to be the best player his age

oh ok I understand your question better now, you’re asking about guys who were the best every year over those years?

Yeah

What makes the Lebron story so amazing is that he was number 1 at age 16 and he just checked the box every year and continues to do so

the goat

has vince carter been the best 37-42 year old player for all those years? that’s impressive too

of all time i doubt it, he hasn't been that effective for the past few years

no I just mean during those years

Yeah Vince outlasted his whole generation

same draft as dirk and pierce

Btw taking a look back at it the second best nba player from Anthony Davis’ recruiting class, by a considerable margin, is Malcolm Brogdon. Was barely a top 100 recruit.

yeah, vince is the last remaining guy who played in the '90s, i think.

would kd count as a best in his class, 17-21 guy? assuming that people didn't *actually* think oden was better.

a lot of ppl thought oden was better

yeah, it's kind of iffy

btw, looking for kd's nbadraft.net page, i just noticed that they totally redesigned, r.i.p. website that had looked exactly the same for the last ~18 years.

oden was never that good tho

lol circles i had the same experience & thought like a week ago

xp it was still an era when being a big center was a premium thing

xpost stuff's mostly still there, just harder to find. i know this is a thread about the greatest slovenian baller of all time, but:

Strengths: His upside is out of this world … This kid is not even begining to scratch the surface of his potential … Looking at him you see his frame is going to fill out in 3-4 years … Very fluid athlete with explosiveness … He plays hard and is still learning the game … Provided he works hard, Durant is going to be a special player in the league who will be able to do many different things on the court … Not aggressive enough to be like Kevin Garnett, but skilled enough down the road to contribute like a Andrei Kirilenko or a Grant Hill … Developing inside outside game … Can shoot the 3 and flush in transition … It is scary to think of what he could be like if he puts on 15 lbs of muscle and developed a handle, a 2010 version of KG!

Weaknesses: His (lack of) stength is his major weakness, and he really needs to put on weight or he won’t be able to do much in the NBA except shoot deep 3s or score in transition like Darius Miles of 4 years ago … Needs to become more aggresive, develop more nastiness … Still developing a game off the dribble Defensively he needs to move his feet better and keep his hands active on the ball … Oak Hill Academy is giving him the work ethic he will need in the long run, since he most likely won’t be going to college
Aran Smith – 12/27/2004

vs.

Aran Smith – 7/9/2005
Strenths: Incredibly fluid athlete for a 7 footer Tremendous speed in the open court A center with his agility and talent comes along roughly every 8-10 years Extremely quick and explosive Enormous potential His game has improved significantly from his sophomore to junior seasons Starting to understand how to use his body and how dominant he can be Big defensive presence, and a terrific shot blocker with great length, timing and instincts Excellent rebounder Soft touch around the basket Has developed a decent turnaround hook with his right hand Very good passer with nice court vision (averaged 3.7 assists per game as a junior) Quality kid with a great attitude Very coachable, listens and wants to improve Team player with a winners mentality Improving on a daily basis Decent free throw shooter at 64% but needs to and should improve upon it (improved considerably from 51% as a sophomore)

Weaknesses: Soft spoken. Very humble personality, which is a positive and a negative in that some would like to see him develop more of a swagger of confidence, but Tim Duncan and David Robinson were/are both silent (humble) assassins Needs to add more nastiness on the floor to dominate Still raw in terms of post moves, they are developing, but still have a ways to go He is so dominant on the high school level he hasn’t needed to develop any range or post skills Doesn’t have the ability to create offense for himself as he can overwhelm anyone he faces with his size and athleticism Still scores mostly on ally oops and put backs Has nice touch, but needs to develop a consistent mid range shot ( la David Robinson) Strength wont be an issue for him ultimately, but right now he needs to add muscle to his upper body and legs Almost too unselfish

Outlook: The top candidate for the number 1 pick in the 2007 draft, one year removed from high school A year of college should give him a great stepping stone for the NBA.

Ah he needs to develop a mid range shot, like David Robinson

say you were a GM (and for the sake of exercise ignore contextual things like team need etc) and you had to rank the players whose next three seasons you’d most want to have. how many players are ahead of luka? I’m thinking zero

still picking giannis

yeah giannis, then brow vs luka

props to trae young for playing well enough that that trade doesn't look like a total joke though

yeah giannis is really the only one that gave me pause

i'd take kawhi if it weren't for his medical issues

cool luka fact is that he has done one dunk so far this season

giannis has done 44 dunks therefore he is the clear choice

Luka Doncic of the @dallasmavs is the first player in NBA history to have a triple-double, make 6+ threes and shoot at least 60.0 percent from the field in the same game.#MFFL

— Stats By STATS (@StatsBySTATS) November 21, 2019

I looked it up and somehow this is true. I would have guessed it had happened like at least 50 times?

yeah thats weird

like how has harden never done that

Luka is the first player to outscore, outrebound and out-assist a team in a quarter since @alleniverson in 2003 💪

And they’re the only two players to do it in the last 20 seasons. pic.twitter.com/WrPcTe789H

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 21, 2019

just an average game for luka tonight, 30-7-14 in 3 quarters

Pretty crazy what he’s doing. And the thing that sets him apart is that he’s elevating a pretty avg roster to a winning record in the west

they’re blowing teams out!

I know it’s probably annoying that I post this shit after every game but I’m such a fanboy at this point I don’t care

luka’s season stats now
29.9/10.4/9.7/1.3 on .493/.346/.821 shooting. .632 ts%, 35.1% usage, leads the league with 33.2 PER. also 20 years old

he also shoots 62% on 2s

I’m such a fanboy at this point I don’t care

this thread exists for nothing else, so you're using it as intended

little KOC love in this column
https://www.theringer.com/nba/2019/11/20/20973426/luka-doncic-andrew-wiggins-mike-conley

As of today he’s MVP imo

Luka playing the part of the controlled, efficient smart veteran to Harden's bad- decision making, inexperienced, easy-to-fluster noob.

As of today he’s MVP imo

― Matt Armstrong, Sunday, November 24, 2019 5:50 PM (two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

literally just tweeted this. don’t think it’s really close

I'd put Giannis up there cause of his defense (vs Luka's lack of)

Mavs are tied for 3rd in the west, he’s averaging a 30 point triple double, Porzingis hasn’t really been good. It’s his under the circumstances at present

Kangz
https://nba.nbcsports.com/2019/11/24/rumor-kings-passed-on-luka-doncic-in-draft-because-vlade-divac-doesnt-like-docics-dad/

lmao that rules

hahaha

the nba needs a least a couple of deeply dysfunctional franchises at all times

p cool for luka he dodged the suns and kings

yeah that's a really good point

he's shooting 36% on threes over the last 10 games btw, if he can do that over a season I think it's game over

Actually Luka woulda been cool for the suns. I mentioned how good luka has been in convo with a good friend from here (big suns fan) and he shut me down quick “I don’t want to talk about it”

It’s all exasperated cos of aytons suspension and Lukas start but it comes up a TON on local sports radio here

as it should!

Yah for sure.

checked last week on bb-ref's MVP tracker and it was basically a 3-way tie w/ Giannis, Lebron, and Harden. Luka was at 9%

he's since vaulted to the top spot

the two spidermans pointing at each other

Harden is extremely adept at dealing with external forces particularly, anticipating arm position/contact & deceptively engaging his upward shot motion
*This was officiated foul on Luka @bballbreakdown @OfficialNBARefs @NunnBetterRefs pic.twitter.com/LmzyPk0AGy

— BBiomechanics (@BBiomechanics) November 24, 2019

He’s so good at doing that I have no idea how you practice something like that but he has to. But also he doesn’t get that call in the playoffs

maybe he doesnt care about the playoffs has anyone asked him

I guess the new thing is to pretend Luka’s flopping is similar to Harden’s.

feel like harden has dialed the flopping back a lil bit is trying more for actual contact, mb he learned from the playoffs after all

Luka really doesn’t do that much nonsense. Flops a bit on 3 pointers if he thinks he got fouled. It’s like comparing Zaza to Laimbeer.

yeah i havent really noticed anything egregious from him

he is pure

I appreciate how lagoon has toned down the luka skepticism, also he’s done 3 dunks now including 2 in the last week

pfft trying to start shit

hehe

never forget pic.twitter.com/7YZRhU2hZx

— 🇯🇲 Return Of Tingis Pingis (@slicka_333) November 26, 2019

lagoon was out there ghost writing for all these talking heads

luka doncic is an excellent basketball player

Hyped to see him in person Friday

Dude missed every 3 except 1 in warmups. Should retire IMHO.

15-5-5 in 1st quarter sheesh. At least 3 of the assist were oops.

I love oops. oops are sweet hoops!

Just made a pass outta of getting doubled behind 3 point line to guy cutting to hoop that maybe only LeBron would even think of trying. Threaded it between 3 guys.

1 rebound away from a 40+ point triple double

luka had a nice november

32.4 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 10.4 assists in 33.8 minutes per game on .639 true shooting

hmm that does sound better

2018 Draft proposal rumored on Suns’ table: Draft Luka Doncic, go after free agent Clint Capela https://t.co/bzHZI2IYtF

— Kurt Helin (@basketballtalk) November 30, 2019

zoinks

The phx anti luka propaganda was really bizarre before the draft

Doncic will enjoy beating on the Suns for a long time. No prospect got trashed worse than Luka did in Phoenix before the draft. They wanted Ayton so bad they were making up lies. Check out the reaction on their radio station right after they got 1st pick. pic.twitter.com/jxf6H6tKCw

— Matej Sportinfo (@Sportinfosi) November 30, 2019

woww wtf!

He's already exponentially better than their "established, veteran" star lol

Obviously it’s amazing how he draws fouls but Luka’s finishing is pretty unreal. It seems like if he doesn’t get blocked he doesn’t miss

Lmao why #Rondo checking out Luka #lakers 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/qT5fS1GvmT

— OTF FTO (@kobesuperstar) December 1, 2019

didnt know rondo was a ilh poster haha

Obviously it’s amazing how he draws fouls but Luka’s finishing is pretty unreal. It seems like if he doesn’t get blocked he doesn’t miss

― Matt Armstrong, Monday, December 2, 2019 4:32 PM (two hours ago)

he's shooting 63% from 2. considering he has 4 dunks that has to be pretty unheard of. maybe jokic in a good season is similar

http://bkref.com/tiny/ANTnv

this list of non-centers who shot 60% from 2 is not long. and most of these guys dunk a lot

Have only watched 1 game of his but is Oscar Robertson a good comparison for Luka?

It is developing into a good comparison, but it hasn't arrived there, yet. Not enough games under luka's belt.

some info on what how the mavs are playing these days https://www.theringer.com/nba/2019/12/3/20992745/luka-doncic-dallas-mavericks-rick-carlisle

33/18/5 in 28 minutes tonight

Dirk never had a run like this iirc

feel like people get that luka scores a lot but if you take into account the fact that he doesn’t play a lot of minutes and he plays pretty slow, his current season is actually 8th all time in points per possession...
http://bkref.com/tiny/vp7Uo

his current season is only a couple of months old, but it's true his production has been phenomenal

hes doing utterly insane things but also were living in the post truth era of nba stats

I don’t believe the stats

its the end of history (stats)

lies damn lies and nba stats

plus minus is good now

russ really ruined stats. he had a triple double again last night but he was horrible in all aspects of the game.

if he keeps it up he might follow Carmelo as player of the week

haha

Westbrook now has the worst TS% of his career. This experiment not working

Luka had a Bourbon Street hangover game but his bench bailed him out.

even if it was not his best game there was a great dynamic with the dallas crowd where the bench got them back into the game and there was a noticeable anticipation for luka to come in as the hammer.

The Mavs have good vibes

wish they would've held off on the super goofy "city" rebranding till a year when they sucked
https://www.forbes.com/sites/doylerader/2019/11/26/dallas-mavericks-city-edition-jersey-2019-tex-moton-graffiti/#b257f4d77a1b

i was wrong about a lot of teams this year but at least i knew this one was good

26-9-6 on 15 shots in 26 minutes tonight

oops flipped boards and assists there, which is even more impressive

minicopa

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIHUirZkjhI

aw lil luka

Prayers up for luka, really hope he only misses a few games and not like 4-6 weeks.

31/12/13 after three quarters

Sorry, that was 15 assists.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/video/haberstat-luka-doncic-not-your-typical-athlete

I know it sounds like I’m a luka stan or something but he really does get fouled a ton and doesn’t get the call for whatever reason. Very often he beats someone off the dribble and they just slap his chest. I’d hate so see him start flopping on it.

hes getting the curry treatment

"I played very bad," said Doncic, who finished with 25 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists and 6 turnovers. "I felt like I don't know how to play basketball. I've got to get better -- a lot."

lol

I watched 2nd half and he did look bad. Shanked multiple free throws too, felt like he was playing high af. Credit to LA defensive scheme tho mostly.

(2015) Luka Doncic playing against the Celtics at 16-years-old. 😳 pic.twitter.com/7B9ap2qpkb

— Timeless Sports (@timelesssports_) February 28, 2020

his 3% is down below his rookie year now at 31.6% on over 9 attempts per game.

The Knicks, according to NBA sources, have been gathering intel on All Star Chris Paul and could make a run at him this summer. Paul, 34, carries a huge contract but he’s had a resurgent season in OKC & is proven leader. (He was also once represented by...Leon Rose.)

— Frank Isola (@TheFrankIsola) March 5, 2020

I keep checking his 3% to see if it's gone up. Nope. Think we determined it's cause he takes too many step-back contested 3s, a la Harden (who similarly has a shitty % even tho I'd say he's a "good" 3 pt shooter)

Harden has basically hovered at 36% his whole career which is average % wise but for how many he takes its good.

the difference between 31.5 and 36 with three+ more attempts per game is pretty significant

plenty of excitement in the main thread but this needs to be here for the sake of posterity

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvPLMTJd-0U

what a shot

If Luka can do something about those glass ankles, my god...

43-17-13 on a bum ankle in the playoffs

He's just 21 but how far can he be from his ceiling at this point? He definitely needs to get better on his 3s and defense. What else has he got room to improve on?

his ft% is fine but not amazing. he needs to work on composure and not letting the refs derail him. i think he still misses some open passes on pick and roll late in games. conditioning and not getting fatigued. there's plenty to do, which is scary.

yeah its crazy hes kinda still getting by on talent in some phases of the game his ball handling is super technical and his passes are pinpoint but his shooting and game around shooting footwork shot selection just general technique can still be improved a lot, and yes then conditioning

getting in better shape will help with things like ankle injuries too

-Rotation torsion flexion valgus

but theres really no reason he shouldnt have a harden-tatum type three point game, hes already got the handle and feel to do it and hes obvs talent wise a good shooter its just a matter of improving his footwork and tightening up his shot a little

he’s weird in the sense that he’s better at tough 3s than ordinary ones

the ball is always in his hands so I bet theyre the majority of the ones he takes

the iso 3 and the catch and shoot 3 should probably be treated as completely separate skills

He has nice arc but obv isn't super consistent, hence only being a mid 70s FT shooter. Needs Seth Curry to give him a tune up.

pic.twitter.com/gcV16VTjR3

— Out Of Context NBA (@oocnba) August 24, 2020

That’s great. A much more endearing reminder of his youth and humanity than when they used to show Lebron biting his nails on the bench.

Luka is a master manipulator. Toys with the entire defense on this possession. In total control. Incredible player. pic.twitter.com/iCTQfL0KBF

— Jackson Frank (@jackfrank_jjf) January 26, 2021

Sources: Luka Doncic has reported to training camp weighing more than 260 pounds the last two years. "I know I've got to do better," Doncic said about his conditioning. https://t.co/vuk7WSHxI3https://t.co/vuk7WSHxI3

— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) December 8, 2021

lol between him a jokic the balkans are really showing the nba how to live

chunky boy

luka donthicc etc etc

excuse me jokic has been in shape for like 2 years now

yeh he figured it out

hes still got a lil dough, still claiming him as a fellow fattie

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X93GyqpdM3w

jokic will be back hes a husky boy at heart

no doubt, this is the "im trying not to get fined" body, hes gonna have a boris in charlotte moment

he’s a changed man!!

let me say this from firsthand experience as a fat kid who lost a bunch of weight as an adolescent and then gained that shit back in my 30s, no the fuck hes not

Since Jan 1st, Luka is shooting the most pull-up threes per-game in the league (7.4) and he's made 37.8% of them. He's about 15 miles past unguardable when he has it going.

— Paul Don't Lie (@PaulHeadleyNBA) March 21, 2022