Brunson's success could not be worse news for Luka's rep

[90sgoat]

Brunson is on his way to the next round with a less than stellar NYC team.

Luka is at home getting fat.

This calls into doubt how much of that playoff success was Luka and how much was Brunson.

Obviously Luka is a much better player in almost all areas, but Brunson is infinitely better as a leader and floor general.

We're talking prime Jason Kidd level of floor general leadership.

They're about the same age. Luka is a petulent child, Brunson is a grown man taking responsibility.

Luka must be embarrassed imo.

[tontoz]

The guy who really looks bad is Cuban for getting cheap and letting brunson walk for nothing. That was a crippling blow.

[90sgoat]

The guy who really looks bad is Cuban for getting cheap and letting brunson walk for nothing. That was a crippling blow.

I am not sure he was cheap, he is just a horrible judge of talent.

Cuban had no chance at signing Brunson after last season. He would have to have done it before that, but Cuban has this inferiority complex, where he always tries to get these big names that don't want to be there and then overspends on role players as a compensation.

[Axe]

The guy who really looks bad is Cuban for getting cheap and letting brunson walk for nothing. That was a crippling blow.
If things don't work out for that creep, it wouldn't be surprising in case he suddenly plans to sell the franchise due to more botched decisions.

[90sgoat]

If things don't work out for that creep, it wouldn't be surprising in case he suddenly plans to sell the franchise due to more botched decisions.

The Mavs are his claim to fame tho.

Has he done anything else since the dotcom boom?

[ImKobe]

Look at what Brunson has in NY and what Luka had in Dallas this year lol. Also, he was never going to have the same impact on the Mavs as there's only 1 ball & Luka's by far the better player with it, but Brunson held his own weight in the non-Luka minutes. They got into a 0 - 2 hole vs. Suns because Brunson was a no-show. He earned my respect in the last 5 games of that series though.

I don't think he was going to stay in Dallas, even if they matched or offered a little bit more after that PO run. Cuban definitely ****ed up by not extending him before all that happened though.

[Kblaze8855]

I don’t know if it reflects poorly on Luka or just the league in general because teams, coaches and fans all seem content to let teams play through superstars and give the impression they have no help. Wood was a 21/10 player(granted on the joke rockets but still playing nba teams) and Brunson is clearly good. Why not just spread the ball around and not have Luka dribble 18 seconds? They did better than most felt they should but it wasn’t likely to really win a title.

The league is so wide open defense and pace wise it feels like every team has role players who are just a green light from being 22ppg players. There’s probably no reason for anyone to play the so called heliocentric ball anymore.

[Axe]

Speaking of future help, tanking for wemby isn't a guarantee too. They may end up drafting him but there's no assurance yet what that guy will turn out to be once he actually starts playing in the league. Just a hyped prospect for now. Hopefully, he doesn't end up being injury prone like zion or sidelined in his first season like holmgren.

[ImKobe]

I don’t know if it reflects poorly on Luka or just the league in general because teams, coaches and fans all seem content to let teams play through superstars and give the impression they have no help. Wood was a 21/10 player(granted on the joke rockets but still playing nba teams) and Brunson is clearly good. Why not just spread the ball around and not have Luka dribble 18 seconds? They did better than most felt they should but it wasn’t likely to really win a title.

The league is so wide open defense and pace wise it feels like every team has role players who are just a green light from being 22ppg players. There’s probably no reason for anyone to play the so called heliocentric ball anymore.

Not enough of those guys can handle the ball to run an offense like the Warriors or Celtics do. Offense wasn't the issue anyway, they had the 6th best ORTG (15th the previous year with Brunson) but the defense was a problem all year, even before the Irving trade. Wood can get buckets but he's such a negative on D next to Luka & Kyrie so he just didn't fit that team, and there's a reason why he's been on a different team damn near every year of his career.

[Full Court]

You can be an extremely good player but not do will leading a team to success.

So far, Luka falls in that category. Unless he makes some changes, he's never winning anything.

[DMAVS41]

You can be an extremely good player but not do will leading a team to success.

So far, Luka falls in that category. Unless he makes some changes, he's never winning anything.

What year were you expecting Luka to do more in the playoffs in terms of team success?

[tontoz]

The recent struggles of Luka and Trae highlight the fact that it is important to be able to play well off the ball. Sure being skilled with the ball is a good thing but if you aren't effective without it that is a big hole in your game.

[DMAVS41]

I don’t know if it reflects poorly on Luka or just the league in general because teams, coaches and fans all seem content to let teams play through superstars and give the impression they have no help. Wood was a 21/10 player(granted on the joke rockets but still playing nba teams) and Brunson is clearly good. Why not just spread the ball around and not have Luka dribble 18 seconds? They did better than most felt they should but it wasn’t likely to really win a title.

The league is so wide open defense and pace wise it feels like every team has role players who are just a green light from being 22ppg players. There’s probably no reason for anyone to play the so called heliocentric ball anymore.

I definitely agree with the sentiment, but I think it is important to distinguish between "no help" and "not championship level help"...

To argue Luka had "no help" last year would be silly...however, I think it is perfectly reasonable to say that he did not have "championship level help"

I also think the Mavs play through Luka too often, but I don't see how it reflects poorly on Luka that Brunson is doing this. Brunson was great in Dallas last year and the team overachieved and made the conference finals with him. It wasn't like last year was a struggle in Dallas. It had the makings of a really good core...just needed to add a few pieces (mainly better rim protection) around the core and it would have likely been years of contending. But none of it mattered because Cuban didn't extend Brunson the previous year...

[Kblaze8855]

I don’t think it reflects poorly on him. I suspect he(like Harden) doesn’t even like it. Dantoni didn’t like it either but they look at it from a strictly analytical pov. If good things happen when _____ has the ball give him the ball all the time. It ignores a lot of the intangible aspect of playing winning ball in the playoffs though it has shown an ability to make a team play over its head in the regular season.

[DMAVS41]

I don’t think it reflects poorly on him. I suspect he(like Harden) doesn’t even like it. Dantoni didn’t like it either but they look at it from a strictly analytical pov. If good things happen when _____ has the ball give him the ball all the time. It ignores a lot of the intangible aspect of playing winning ball in the playoffs though it has shown an ability to make a team play over its head in the regular season.

Agree with that.

Luka has his flaws imo, but I'll worry about him when he gets true championship level help and can't do anything with it. Hard to knock him much because in the playoffs he and his teams have been better than expected to date.

Probably won't have to worry long-term at all because I think he's going to ask out in 1.5 years. Hope I'm wrong, but definitely headed down that path.

[90sgoat]

You can be an extremely good player but not do will leading a team to success.

So far, Luka falls in that category. Unless he makes some changes, he's never winning anything.

He is very emotionally immature and he's going on 25.

He legits gets jealous if anyone but him plays well on the ball.

[90sgoat]

I don’t think it reflects poorly on him. I suspect he(like Harden) doesn’t even like it. Dantoni didn’t like it either but they look at it from a strictly analytical pov. If good things happen when _____ has the ball give him the ball all the time. It ignores a lot of the intangible aspect of playing winning ball in the playoffs though it has shown an ability to make a team play over its head in the regular season.

I can't help but compare it to poker and the difference between the online grinders and their analytics game and the real life sharks that go on reads and intuition.

Guess who usually wins the big shows.

One great moment I remember from poker was Gus Hansen making this call with 10-8 against a pair of 7 push:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6gPR10NqnM

People couldn't believe it, but actually it wasn't that bad of a call, if he put his opponent at a low pair, but what they were really missing was the big picture. This was a televised event. Every poker player in the world would watch Gus be a lunatic. And THAT was thinking ahead. That was giving himself fold equity in all future poker games he'd play.

Playing the long game to win, not just grinding out small mathematical advantages. Poker players call this the "meta game". I know you know, that you know, I know.

That's what I see with these analydids teams. They don't understand that the regular season is grinding online with 8 tables open, just running on statistics against bored and unmotivated bad players. The playoffs is like Gus here.

Teams will play matchups, they'll get into your head, they'll ruthlessly exploit weaknesses, over and over, until you adjust, and then when you adjust, where's your numbers now smart guy?

Honestly, the rise of analytics has made almost anything, from sports to movies, far less enjoyable.

[Mask the Embiid]

OP is finally starting to get it… I’ve been saying these things for years….but when I say it imma “racist”. I use to call him jumbo Westbrook but he’s more of a white Carmelo Anthony (impact wise/ same ceiling if he’s your star). So for now on imma just call him “white melo”

Melo also had great success with a pure point guard (billups))and underwhelmed with a scoring combo guard as his pg (iverson,Lin ect). The ball needs to be out of White Melo’s hands to maximize winning.

never compare him to bird. Bird was a high iq player.he allowed his bigs to rebound and do their job. He allowed the pg to initiate the offense and be point guards. He didn’t try to hoard all the stats and do everyone else’s job like jumbo westbrook to get all the credit….he will always be a loser in the nba….white melo…..

[DMAVS41]

OP is finally starting to get it… I’ve been saying these things for years….but when I say it imma “racist”. I use to call him jumbo Westbrook but he’s more of a white Carmelo Anthony (impact wise/ same ceiling if he’s your star). So for now on imma just call him “white melo”

Melo also had great success with a pure point guard (billups))and underwhelmed with a scoring combo guard as his pg (iverson,Lin ect). The ball needs to be out of White Melo’s hands to maximize winning.

never compare him to bird. Bird was a high iq player.he allowed his bigs to rebound and do their job. He allowed the pg to initiate the offense and be point guards. He didn’t try to hoard all the stats and do everyone else’s job like jumbo westbrook to get all the credit….he will always be a loser in the nba….white melo…..

The Mavs made the WCF last year. You guys act like the Mavs struggled with Brunson or something last year. I'd get the narrative if the Mavs were bad, but they lost to the champs in the conference finals.

There are plenty of great players that have never even made the conference finals...including the guy you rep.

[Full Court]

What year were you expecting Luka to do more in the playoffs in terms of team success?

For starters, he should have been able to lead his team to the playoffs this year.

[DMAVS41]

For starters, he should have been able to lead his team to the playoffs this year.

So...one year in which his team saw a big overhaul in the summer and mid season...while dealing with injuries....is what you are focusing on rather than what he's done in his career to date?

Cool...tell me more.

And, it isn't "for starters"...as there is nothing else for you to say. That's it...

[90sgoat]

If Luka had played even with average defensive intensity, then they would have made the playoffs.

[90sgoat]

OP is finally starting to get it… I’ve been saying these things for years….but when I say it imma “racist”. I use to call him jumbo Westbrook but he’s more of a white Carmelo Anthony (impact wise/ same ceiling if he’s your star). So for now on imma just call him “white melo”

Melo also had great success with a pure point guard (billups))and underwhelmed with a scoring combo guard as his pg (iverson,Lin ect). The ball needs to be out of White Melo’s hands to maximize winning.

never compare him to bird. Bird was a high iq player.he allowed his bigs to rebound and do their job. He allowed the pg to initiate the offense and be point guards. He didn’t try to hoard all the stats and do everyone else’s job like jumbo westbrook to get all the credit….he will always be a loser in the nba….white melo…..

Brunson is a scoring guard though, but he is very similar to Billup in their role.

Melo actually had his best playoff success with Kidd too.

[Full Court]

So...one year in which his team saw a big overhaul in the summer and mid season...while dealing with injuries....is what you are focusing on rather than what he's done in his career to date?

Cool...tell me more.

And, it isn't "for starters"...as there is nothing else for you to say. That's it...

Ok, so let's focus on what he's done in his career to date then.

What has he done in his career to date?

[imdaman99]

The recent struggles of Luka and Trae highlight the fact that it is important to be able to play well off the ball. Sure being skilled with the ball is a good thing but if you aren't effective without it that is a big hole in your game.

This is what makes curry infinitely better than dame. Curry makes everyone better with his off ball play while Dame not so much.

I don't think brunson plays off ball much either for the record, but others can eat with him as the 1st option.

[tontoz]

This is what makes curry infinitely better than dame. Curry makes everyone better with his off ball play while Dame not so much.

I don't think brunson plays off ball much either for the record, but others can eat with him as the 1st option.


Preaching to the choir :rockon:

[DMAVS41]

Ok, so let's focus on what he's done in his career to date then.

What has he done in his career to date?

He's played extremely well in the playoffs and has led a team to the conference finals that was not expected to do so.

Again, what are you expecting him to do? And also, what other player in the league would have likely beaten the Warriors last year with this Mavs squad or likely had more success in years past?

I'm just trying to gauge what the expectations are for a player aged 19-23 while playing with nothing of note in terms of help.

[DMAVS41]

The recent struggles of Luka and Trae highlight the fact that it is important to be able to play well off the ball. Sure being skilled with the ball is a good thing but if you aren't effective without it that is a big hole in your game.

What are the recent struggles on offense? I mean, the Mavs ended the year with the 6th best offense iirc. What is your expectation for that team? With Luka on the floor, they had a 119.8 offensive rating...which would have been the best in the league.

This isn't a gotcha response, I'm just genuinely curious as to what you guys are talking about and seeing.

Do you not agree that the defense was the main problem in Dallas all year?

[Axe]

Preaching to the choir :rockon:
Uncle always leaping whenever someone praises chef. :D

[tontoz]

What are the recent struggles on offense? I mean, the Mavs ended the year with the 6th best offense iirc. What is your expectation for that team? With Luka on the floor, they had a 119.8 offensive rating...which would have been the best in the league.

This isn't a gotcha response, I'm just genuinely curious as to what you guys are talking about and seeing.

Do you not agree that the defense was the main problem in Dallas all year?


True, Luka is still a beast on offense. However I think it is a valid issue that guys might not want to play with someone who is so ball dominant. It is much easier to fit a team around a guy who is capable of being effective off the ball as well.

I don't know for sure if that factored in to Brunson's decision to leave but I think it is reasonable to assume it played a role. It certainly did with porzingis who played very well for us.

Guys in Atlanta have definitely complained about Trae dominating the ball so much.

Of course Luka's main issues arent on the offensive end. Defense, conditioning and whining to the refs are bigger issues.

I have been a fan for years but every time I watch him he does make me cringe at times. Forcing up long jumpers early in the clock, complaining to the refs instead of getting back on D, just standing around on offense when he doesn't have the ball are the norm for him.

Obviously Cubans mistakes are a much bigger problem and might not be fixable.

[tontoz]

Uncle always leaping whenever someone praises chef. :D


And you are always there to troll him even in threads that have nothing to do with him.

[Axe]

And you are always there to troll him even in threads that have nothing to do with him.
:oldlol:

I don't even recall bringing him up in every thread i engage in lmao.

[DMAVS41]

True, Luka is still a beast on offense. However I think it is a valid issue that guys might not want to play with someone who is so ball dominant. It is much easier to fit a team around a guy who is capable of being effective off the ball as well.

I don't know for sure if that factored in to Brunson's decision to leave but I think it is reasonable to assume it played a role. It certainly did with porzingis who played very well for us.

Guys in Atlanta have definitely complained about Trae dominating the ball so much.

Of course Luka's main issues arent on the offensive end. Defense, conditioning and whining to the refs are bigger issues.

I have been a fan for years but every time I watch him he does make me cringe at times. Forcing up long jumpers early in the clock, complaining to the refs instead of getting back on D, just standing around on offense when he doesn't have the ball are the norm for him.

Obviously Cubans mistakes are a much bigger problem and might not be fixable.

Yea, Luka is really actually starting to annoy even hardcore Mavs fans like myself with his antics.

I also agree that Luka being so ball dominant isn't really a style certain guys would want to play with and I think that, in part, is why Brunson left, but obviously Brunson would have signed the extension the year before and that was clearly the driving force behind what happened. Cuban ****ed up in multiple ways and he's even admitted that.

Having said all that, Luka is clearly a great player and has performed better than expected in the biggest games of his career to date. I also kind of think people overreact to the ball dominance at times. Everyone used to say the same thing about Harden...then Harden gets Chris Paul...and they pretty much destroyed the league when healthy...and should have beaten the Durant Warriors if not for the Paul injury...hell, they still had a great chance if they didn't go ice cold.

Point being...a lot of times the main issue with a guy like Luka is not having a solid defensive team built around him...and then everyone acts like it was an offensive issue when they lose. I'm not even sure it is really any harder to build around Luka than Joel or Giannis. It's easier to get Brook/Holiday/Middleton than it is to get Brook/Brunson/DFS? I don't know...I don't think so...and if the Mavs last year had Brook Lopez...I think they would have had a 50/50 shot or better to win it all....he's pretty much exactly what they needed.

I'm actually not as high on Luka as a lot of people are, but so far there really isn't much overall, beyond nitpicking, to argue with. Like I said before, I have some concerns, but they aren't well founded until we see him get the type of help that guys like Giannis, Curry, Durant....or even what Jokic/Joel have....and fail.

Just seems like we always forget how hard it is to build great teams...even with guys that are supposedly easy to build around. Joel has never even been out of the 2nd round. Dude has played with Jimmy Butler...and they couldn't make it work. It's just hard for everyone...even the guys that play the right way or are supposed to be much easier to win with.

[baudkarma]

The guy who really looks bad is Cuban for getting cheap and letting brunson walk for nothing. That was a crippling blow.

I agree that Cuban has to take most of the blame, but aren't Jason Kidd and Nico Harrison at least partly at fault? They're the head coach and GM after all. They've been with the team since 2021 and I can think of a single good personnel move the team has made in that time. Brunson was allowed to walk, the drafts have been mediocre at best, and if Kyrie doesn't return to the team then that deal will turn out to have been a bust as well

[bdonovan]

LUKA NEEDS MOAR HELP!

The usual suspects will remain in denial.

Doncic can play with Kyrie Irving, Jalen Brunson, Christian Wood, still not win anything. Giannis' best teammate is freaking Khris Middleton.

To understand why certain stars win and others don't, you can look at two things: do they make their teammates better? And: do they commit on both sides of the floor? They set the tempo for the team.

[DMAVS41]

I know you are trolling, but I'll respond anyway...

When Luka had Jalen Brunson and a nothing of note supporting cast last year historically...he made the conference finals. You act like that is nothing. He made the final 4 and exceeded expectations.

Christian Wood, I have no idea why you list him, he is a nothing burger of a player...he's a 7th man on a title contending team that would be unplayable for large portions of series against elite competition.

Kyrie is obviously a great player, but I'm not sure he fits in great ultimately with Luka and certainly he doesn't make sense on a team that has no quality defenders around him.

Giannis has one of the best, if not the best, supporting casts in the league. Jrue/Middleton/Lopez is absolutely fantastic. They have a winning record when Giannis doesn't play. They have a positive scoring differential when Giannis isn't on the court. They beat the Heat this year without Giannis in a game in the playoffs. They won 2 conference finals games in 21 without Giannis to make the finals.

To argue that Giannis hasn't had way more help than Luka is beyond ignorant.

[Charlie Sheen]

I know you are trolling, but I'll respond anyway...

When Luka had Jalen Brunson and a nothing of note supporting cast last year historically...he made the conference finals. You act like that is nothing. He made the final 4 and exceeded expectations.

Christian Wood, I have no idea why you list him, he is a nothing burger of a player...he's a 7th man on a title contending team that would be unplayable for large portions of series against elite competition.

Kyrie is obviously a great player, but I'm not sure he fits in great ultimately with Luka and certainly he doesn't make sense on a team that has no quality defenders around him.

Giannis has one of the best, if not the best, supporting casts in the league. Jrue/Middleton/Lopez is absolutely fantastic. They have a winning record when Giannis doesn't play. They have a positive scoring differential when Giannis isn't on the court. They beat the Heat this year without Giannis in a game in the playoffs. They won 2 conference finals games in 21 without Giannis to make the finals.

To argue that Giannis hasn't had way more help than Luka is beyond ignorant.

Maybe over a whole season, but that is not an accurate description of those players during the 2022 playoffs. Bullock, DFS, Kleber, Dinwiddie delivered. Powell was offering good minutes as well with his versatility on the defensive end and action. Bertans and Kleber played a key role in disrupting the Suns defensive gameplan. Say what you want about your confidence in those players to maintain that level long term, but it is simply not true that they were nothing of note during last year's playoff run. They made those shots. Luka didn't advance in spite of them. Luka had help in the playoffs last year.

Saying that... I agree with you that last year's run was impressive. It wasn't nothing.

Don't fall into that trap replying to a troll :cheers:

[DMAVS41]

Maybe over a whole season, but that is not an accurate description of those players during the 2022 playoffs. Bullock, DFS, Kleber, Dinwiddie delivered. Powell was offering good minutes as well with his versatility on the defensive end and action. Bertans and Kleber played a key role in disrupting the Suns defensive gameplan. Say what you want about your confidence in those players to maintain that level long term, but it is simply not true that they were nothing of note during last year's playoff run. They made those shots. Luka didn't advance in spite of them. Luka had help in the playoffs last year.

Saying that... I agree with you that last year's run was impressive. It wasn't nothing.

Don't fall into that trap replying to a troll :cheers:

It actually is true...nothing of note does not mean bad. There was nothing noteworthy about that supporting cast. Literally every year multiple stars have teams as good or better than that team and don't make it to the conference finals and lose to teams worse than the Suns.

And, yes, my overall point is that I'd understand if last year the Mavs lost in round 1 and couldn't do anything...but Luka got good help and made the conference finals with a rather large upset of the Suns in the process.

I'm not sure how the hell that reflects poorly on him.

Like I said earlier, maybe in this thread or another, if you just added Brook Lopez to the Mavs last year...I think they would have won the title. Not a lock or anything, but I actually would favor them to win it all...and that would have been definitely a below average title winning supporting cast...probably in the bottom 10% or so....nothing of note.

[Charlie Sheen]

It actually is true...nothing of note does not mean bad. There was nothing noteworthy about that supporting cast. Literally every year multiple stars have teams as good or better than that team and don't make it to the conference finals and lose to teams worse than the Suns.

And, yes, my overall point is that I'd understand if last year the Mavs lost in round 1 and couldn't do anything...but Luka got good help and made the conference finals with a rather large upset of the Suns in the process.

I'm not sure how the hell that reflects poorly on him.

If you freeze time and look at a snapshot of those mavs during their playoff run... those were notable players.

The same thing could be said about this year's heat. The version of Duncan
Robinson that played in that 1st round series was notable help for Jimmy... and that does not make Jimmy any less great.

[DMAVS41]

If you freeze time and look at a snapshot of those mavs during their playoff run... those were notable players.

The same thing could be said about this year's heat. The version of Duncan
Robinson that played in that 1st round series was notable help for Jimmy... and that does not make Jimmy any less great.

I disagree.

You are conflating nothing of note historically, with bad. Not arguing they were bad at all...just that they weren't noteworthy....which they weren't in any way beyond just a standard supporting cast on a non contending team expected to lose in round 1 or round 2.

You are talking about Bertans making some shots...like, what do you think...it is noteworthy any time a player makes a shot?

[Charlie Sheen]

I disagree.

You are conflating nothing of note historically, with bad. Not arguing they were bad at all...just that they weren't noteworthy....which they weren't.

You are talking about Bertans making some shots...like, what do you think...it is noteworthy any time a player makes a shot?

Over the course of a seven game series...yes. It is noteworthy when player discussions are reduced to whether a superstar does or does not have help.

[DMAVS41]

Over the course of a seven game series...yes. It is noteworthy when player discussions are reduced to whether a superstar does or does not have help.

Strawman.

When did I say Luka did not have help?

For some reason, you just don't like the fact that loads of playoff teams every year get similar production.

If the Mavs last year were noteworthy...how the hell do you describe the Bucks this year? They won a game without their star, the only game of the series, Jrue/Khris/Brook were productive and Jrue/Brook are elite defenders as well.

How do we describe them?

Flip it and look at the Heat. That is not a noteworthy supporting cast. It isn't bad, but it certainly isn't something special historically.

This isn't some zero sum or black/white statement. You need to stop reading it as such or at least take the time to look at NBA history before you start talking about Bertans making some shots as something that should be noted differently than basically any playoff team ever.

[Charlie Sheen]

Strawman.

When did I say Luka did not have help?

You are stuck on "nothing of note does not equal bad"

All I am saying here is... it is probably more accurate to view that mavs team in the context of how they played during those playoffs not their overall resume. Sure those players are forgettable in the bigger picture... when the discussion is contained to just that mavs 2022 playoffs run the mavs had notable players after brunson on that squad. Their contributions are worth mentioning. It does not take anything away from Luka to say he benefited from a collective high level of play from his "help" because that is the story of every great player to ever play in the nba playoffs.

I did not think this was an attack against you. I drew a comparison to what i felt was a similar situation with this year's Heat. :confusedshrug:

[DMAVS41]

You are stuck on "nothing of note does not equal bad"

All I am saying here is... it is probably more accurate to view that mavs team in the context of how they played during those playoffs not their overall resume. Sure those players are forgettable in the bigger picture... when the discussion is contained to just that mavs 2022 playoffs run the mavs had notable players after brunson on that squad. Their contributions are worth mentioning. It does not take anything away from Luka to say he benefited from a collective high level of play from his "help" because that is the story of every great player to ever play in the nba playoffs.

I did not think this was an attack against you. I drew a comparison to what i felt was a similar situation with this year's Heat. :confusedshrug:

I am viewing them in the context of how they played. It was not noteworthy in any sense.

I have no idea what your point is. Brunson was a good, but nothing special as a 2nd scorer. Believe he was around 21 ppg on average efficiency. Nobody else averaged over 15 ppg...iirc. There are some decent defenders, but nobody significant in any real way. I love DFS...and he's a really good role player...but playoff teams always have guys like that.

What was noteworthy?

Yea, and the Heat are not noteworthy either...:confusedshrug:

[ArbitraryWater]

LUKA NEEDS MOAR HELP!

The usual suspects will remain in denial.

Doncic can play with Kyrie Irving, Jalen Brunson, Christian Wood, still not win anything. Giannis' best teammate is freaking Khris Middleton.

To understand why certain stars win and others don't, you can look at two things: do they make their teammates better? And: do they commit on both sides of the floor? They set the tempo for the team.


he has iteray ony payed with 1 of those at a time.

Youre a major idiot.

[Nb1]

Luka started this year and everyone was claiming MVP. Not entirely his fault what happened after.

And he's a team player deep down. He won the Euroleague being a team player (put 99% of the NBA players in his shoes on that Madrid team and they'd be terrible) and doing what the team needed most. Put a decent team that fits around him and you'll see him doing great. But that Dallas team? Put anyone in there and they'd fail.