FultzNationRISE
02-12-2024, 07:00 PM
People dont remember the actual circumstances and thus revisionist narratives abound, but the truth is the Mavericks originally played KP in the post when he got to Dallas, and Luka fed him the ball plenty. They tried to use him like a traditional big man, like an Embiid or Jokic, and the results were not good. KP did not shoot well in the post. The numbers were very clear. This was not Luka's fault.
So they made him a perimeter shooter, and what people fail to mention when they criticize that old partnership is that offensively they were a record setting offense. Luka and KP were absolutely not a failure offensively, they just couldnt get past the superteam Clippers in the playoffs and KP didnt enjoy his role, so they parted ways. But the idea they somehow werent effective together is fully revisionist. They broke up because KP wanted to do more than spot up, but it was Carlisle's decision to have him do that.
Here's an article from the time:
A different Kristaps Porzingis is leading the Mavericks alongside Luka Doncic
The topic of Kristaps Porzingis' post-ups had just been broached after the Dallas Mavericks' 102-98 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 26, and Carlisle had already heard enough.
"The post-up just isn't a good play anymore," the Mavs' head coach said. "It just isn't a good play. It's not a good play for a 7-foot-3 guy. It's a low-value situation."
But Chris Webber, the color commentator during the game, had spent much of the broadcast imploring Porzingis to go to the low block more. Hall of Famers Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley loudly echoed the point during the halftime show.
"Our numbers are very substantial that when [Porzingis] spaces beyond the 3-point line, we're a historically good offensive team," Carlisle continued. "And when any of our guys go in there, our effectiveness is diminished exponentially. It's counterintuitive, I understand that, but it's a fact.
"We've got to realize," Carlisle said, "that this game has changed."
So has Porzingis' role as he moved to a new franchise. He spent his formative NBA years playing in the Knicks' post-heavy triangle. ("That offense is extinct," Carlisle said. "Look, it went extinct when Phil Jackson retired.")
Then Porzingis posted up even more often after Jackson's exit from the New York front office, when he earned an All-Star appearance despite the Knicks' losing record.
"Let's get off this stuff that KP needs to go in the post," Carlisle said. "He doesn't. He doesn't."
These are the habits the Mavs are working hard to break, part of the reprogramming of Porzingis.
He has been pushed to adapt his game to fit into a system as a sidekick and enhance the skills of a generational talent in 6-foot-7 point guard Luka Doncic, helping produce an offense that ranks as the second-most efficient in NBA history with 114.9 points per 100 possessions, despite his individual struggles.
And he's doing it all with one key development -- Porzingis had to decide he wouldn't allow his pride to get in the way of winning.
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28390018/a-different-kristaps-porzingis-leading-mavericks-alongside-luka-doncic
I know many will continue to spew whatever antiquated programming they've memorized, because people dont like having to adapt their views based on updated information. Nobody likes having to rethink anything. But the ideas that A) Doncic is the one who altered KP's role in Dallas, or B) They were not good together, is actually empirically false. It is an incorrect assertion. It is wrong.
But again, most people dont care and will continue to rely on this falsehood to justify whatever other points they wanna make.
Good job good effort.
So they made him a perimeter shooter, and what people fail to mention when they criticize that old partnership is that offensively they were a record setting offense. Luka and KP were absolutely not a failure offensively, they just couldnt get past the superteam Clippers in the playoffs and KP didnt enjoy his role, so they parted ways. But the idea they somehow werent effective together is fully revisionist. They broke up because KP wanted to do more than spot up, but it was Carlisle's decision to have him do that.
Here's an article from the time:
A different Kristaps Porzingis is leading the Mavericks alongside Luka Doncic
The topic of Kristaps Porzingis' post-ups had just been broached after the Dallas Mavericks' 102-98 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Dec. 26, and Carlisle had already heard enough.
"The post-up just isn't a good play anymore," the Mavs' head coach said. "It just isn't a good play. It's not a good play for a 7-foot-3 guy. It's a low-value situation."
But Chris Webber, the color commentator during the game, had spent much of the broadcast imploring Porzingis to go to the low block more. Hall of Famers Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley loudly echoed the point during the halftime show.
"Our numbers are very substantial that when [Porzingis] spaces beyond the 3-point line, we're a historically good offensive team," Carlisle continued. "And when any of our guys go in there, our effectiveness is diminished exponentially. It's counterintuitive, I understand that, but it's a fact.
"We've got to realize," Carlisle said, "that this game has changed."
So has Porzingis' role as he moved to a new franchise. He spent his formative NBA years playing in the Knicks' post-heavy triangle. ("That offense is extinct," Carlisle said. "Look, it went extinct when Phil Jackson retired.")
Then Porzingis posted up even more often after Jackson's exit from the New York front office, when he earned an All-Star appearance despite the Knicks' losing record.
"Let's get off this stuff that KP needs to go in the post," Carlisle said. "He doesn't. He doesn't."
These are the habits the Mavs are working hard to break, part of the reprogramming of Porzingis.
He has been pushed to adapt his game to fit into a system as a sidekick and enhance the skills of a generational talent in 6-foot-7 point guard Luka Doncic, helping produce an offense that ranks as the second-most efficient in NBA history with 114.9 points per 100 possessions, despite his individual struggles.
And he's doing it all with one key development -- Porzingis had to decide he wouldn't allow his pride to get in the way of winning.
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/28390018/a-different-kristaps-porzingis-leading-mavericks-alongside-luka-doncic
I know many will continue to spew whatever antiquated programming they've memorized, because people dont like having to adapt their views based on updated information. Nobody likes having to rethink anything. But the ideas that A) Doncic is the one who altered KP's role in Dallas, or B) They were not good together, is actually empirically false. It is an incorrect assertion. It is wrong.
But again, most people dont care and will continue to rely on this falsehood to justify whatever other points they wanna make.
Good job good effort.