Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
I wouldn’t count Lebron out but without AD, this roster is as bad as any team Lebron has been on since his first Cleveland stint.
NBA Playoffs, Round One
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SacTownKid
Hall of Famer
Walton couldn't get a clear pairing of shooter Buddy and pick and roll Bogdan to work together. Him getting Haliburton and Bogdan to fit would likely have been even more disastrous. I mean he literally took Buddy and turned him into a pick and roll guard yet he rarely used Bogdan to those strengths which he's showing in Atlanta and instead tried to turn him into a pure SG. This was some of the most egregious player misuse we've seen out of the police line up of Kings coaches in a decade and a half.
SacTownKid
Hall of Famer
Have to factor in LeBron as a franchise guy too. He can raise a bad team up farther than a Jordan or Kobe but he doesn't have their killer instinct. He tends to take a year of here and there if he isn't feeling it. If the Lakers win a ring this year it's undeserved. It never felt like they were taking the season seriously at any point and yeah, they have that "we can turn it on at any moment" vibe too.
sactowndog
All-Star
I think this statement is incorrect.
The best part of Bogi’s game is shooting catch and shoot 3’s from the weak side. His percentage is one of the best in the league at catch and shoot 3’s. Part of the Kings problem is Fox is an elite iso player but an average at best distributor. He rarely if ever passed the ball to Bogi standing alone on the weak side. Fox was a big part of the problem which is why I said I would have liked to see Bogi and Hali.
Except for maybe Fox no player in the Kings back court is better than Bogi currently.
sactowndog
All-Star
Perhaps
This year Bogi shot 46.4% on 5.9 attempts for catch and shoot 3’s. With Hali/Holmes running the pick and Bogi on the weak side, I suspect a Bogi/Hali pairing would have worked extremely well.
Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
I want to root for the Mavs but their entire basketball operations staff from ownership on down to the coaching staff makes that incredibly hard to do. Also feels like Carlisle gets far too much credit for Andrew Bynum imploding the Lakers the year the Mavs won the championship and has pretty much been riding the mediocre coach train since then.
fansinceday1
Starter
Man Doncic is hurt. Props for keeping on but how long can the mavs coaching staff let him go on obviously hurt?
Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
Feels like the same thing happened last year.
Mavs seriously in need of another ball handler/ good player who isn’t Porzingis. Probably should’ve pulled the trigger on that rumored Lowry trade in March.
SLAB
Hall of Famer
Luka being hurt is exactly why you don’t take your foot off the pedal in Game 3. You leave Luka in when he’s balling out of his mind, you push that 20 point lead to 30 and finish them right there. Now it’s going to be 2-2, and with Luka hobbled and all of the momentum on LA’s bench, this one is over.
SLAB
Hall of Famer
Time to put Willie in!!!
Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
All these “Get Luka some help” pleas are fine and dandy until you realize that this is the only offseason they’ll have cap room because Luka’s eligible for his supermax this summer and they’re paying Zaps max money and have no draft assets thanks to the Zinger trade.
kingsboi
Hall of Famer
isn't Hardaway Jr. a free agent?
Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
Right but this isn’t exactly the worlds best free agent class thanks to all the extensions signed last year. The only two major players who fit a younger timeline to play along side Luka and Zinger are John Collins and Lonzo who both present their own concerns as players. I guess they could present big money offers to Lowry or Conley and try to really win now but I’m not sure they really put the Mavs over the top at this point in their careers.
Tetsujin
The Game Thread Dude
Banished to the Jabari zone.
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