And make your *******ed free throws.

mavsfan4ever said:

---

AG@RICE said:

---

I know KP is considered a "star", but he pretty much sucks in every situation. Luka makes him look like a useful NBA player, but if he played without a gifted play-maker he would be permanent hot garbage. I just don't see anyone on the Mavs roster that is good enough to consistently take the pressure off Luka.

---

I'm not putting all the blame on Carlisle. I agree the players and front office deserve some too.

But I don't see how you can say the above if you watched KP play in NY. He didn't have a gifted playmaker and did very well on his own. Definitely wasn't hot garbage. That's why I think Carlisle deserves some blame for not using KP well. Maybe KP has regressed to much less of a player since he was in NY but that would be odd for someone who should now be in his prime. But I admit it's possible bc he looks very bad.

And I agree that Luka is forced to run the show bc we have very few playmakers on the roster. That's why I get irritated when Carlisle doesn't play Jalen big minutes. He's by far our best non-Luka playmaker.

---

He was incredible in New York, no doubt:


I just don't think he is the same guy. I didn't watch him consistently all year, but I just don't see the same level of bouncy athleticism he showcased in that video. In the video he takes off outside the restricted zone and finishes well above the rim (and over defenders). These days he jumps from inside the restricted zone and basically finishes just at the rim. I'm not sure he can take a quality big man off the dribble and finish over him anymore. He is still long and can shoot, but he can't out jump or out quick players like he did with the Knicks.

At the beginning of the video Reggie Miller makes a comment that the rookie still needed to put more weight on him. I actually think this was his down fall. He is about 10lbs heavier than when he was drafted and he just doesn't move like a "Unicorn" any more.

mavsfan4ever said:

---

M.C. Swag said:

---

Rick didn't trade for a 7'3 slender man or for JRich. The roster sucks. 2 of our starters were UNDRAFTED, meaning that Rick developed them. You want to blame someone? Blame the FO for wasting draft picks or money on players that are too scared to rebound or play D.

KP is a freaking joke.

---

Agree that KP is awful. But I put some (or maybe a lot) of that blame on Rick. He has no clue how to use him. He wasn't a joke in NY when they ran plays for him and put him in positions to succeed. We never do that. How is he supposed to succeed on offense with the positions Rick puts him in? But I admit that doesn't excuse how poor he is lately at rebounding and protecting the rim.

And how would we know how the FO is at drafting? Rick never plays rookies to give them a chance. Green looks like he has promise but we will never know. If we had drafted Bane, I doubt he'd be seeing the floor and we'd never know how good he is. He's great and everyone on this board wanted us to draft him. But he wouldn't be getting minutes.

Hell he barely played Jalen last night and everyone knows he's great. (4-5 of his minutes were garbage time, so he played 14-15 minutes before that).

---

How is KP floating in no mans land on D, Ricks fault? KP got the ball in the 3rd qtr 1 foot outside the restricted zone, took 2 dribbles, couldn't post up Marcus Morris and then passed back out. Like, the KP that was in NY doesn't exist anymore. He has no fluidity, no bounce, and no power. His only move is a turnaround fade away. How is Rick supposed to use a big that refuses to roll to the rim or is unable to post up a guy a 6 inches shorter than him?

And I know we're not drafting well because none of the players we take do anything in the league. I don't see Shane Larkin, AJ Hammond, Justin Anderson, or DSJ, lighting it up in the league.

I saw Doe Doe get beat on 1 dribble moves REPEATEDLY. Maxi got bullied by Reggie freaking Jackson. JRich is playing like a 3rd guard. And Brunson absolutely refuses to pass the ball. He's an iso ball hog.

I wish Rick would play Green more, but anything else is a result of the roster this FO constructed. Seth Curry can't be the best FA you sign in 3 off seasons.

KP just makes the team weird. Some players just don't blend in regardless of their super talent or physical abilities.

Shawn Bradley, Brian Westbrook, Carmelo Anthony, KP.

Just get rid of KP and let's get some bruisers in there.

Cuban was on the Ticket some months back, and said that this is the first offseason in some time that they'll have real cap space to play with. We better use it effectively.

Not much out there on the free agent market. If the Mavs do anything substantial it's going to be by moving KP.

With a couple notable exceptions, 7'0 or 7'1" seems to be the maximum effective height. Above that, the truly great players are few and far between.

They will likely spend a chunk of it to resign Hardaway

AG@RICE said:

---

mavsfan4ever said:

---

AG@RICE said:

---

I know KP is considered a "star", but he pretty much sucks in every situation. Luka makes him look like a useful NBA player, but if he played without a gifted play-maker he would be permanent hot garbage. I just don't see anyone on the Mavs roster that is good enough to consistently take the pressure off Luka.

---

I'm not putting all the blame on Carlisle. I agree the players and front office deserve some too.

But I don't see how you can say the above if you watched KP play in NY. He didn't have a gifted playmaker and did very well on his own. Definitely wasn't hot garbage. That's why I think Carlisle deserves some blame for not using KP well. Maybe KP has regressed to much less of a player since he was in NY but that would be odd for someone who should now be in his prime. But I admit it's possible bc he looks very bad.

And I agree that Luka is forced to run the show bc we have very few playmakers on the roster. That's why I get irritated when Carlisle doesn't play Jalen big minutes. He's by far our best non-Luka playmaker.

---

He was incredible in New York, no doubt:


I just don't think he is the same guy. I didn't watch him consistently all year, but I just don't see the same level of bouncy athleticism he showcased in that video. In the video he takes off outside the restricted zone and finishes well above the rim (and over defenders). These days he jumps from inside the restricted zone and basically finishes just at the rim. I'm not sure he can take a quality big man off the dribble and finish over him anymore. He is still long and can shoot, but he can't out jump or out quick players like he did with the Knicks.

At the beginning of the video Reggie Miller makes a comment that the rookie still needed to put more weight on him. I actually think this was his down fall. He is about 10lbs heavier than when he was drafted and he just doesn't move like a "Unicorn" any more.

---

Agree that he doesn't seem like the same guy this year. But he's been very good at times. For instance, he straight up dominated in the bubble last year. He also dominated when Luka was out a few games last year. That's why this year is so frustrating and confusing.

He's 7'4 and plays like he's 6'5. So frustrating.

He plays basketball like a girl!

/Sandlot/

chances of signing jimmy butler as a #2? too disruptive?

beal isnt going anywhere. Not sure who else is out there a a legit #2..

we also need to add real shooters. jj reddick trade didnt work. JJ hasn't wanted to be here since day 1

Hard to judge Reddick since he's been hurt.

Ol Jock 99 said:

---

Hard to judge Reddick since he's been hurt.

---

We'll never see him in a Mavs uni again

Yeah, Redick was more interested in collecting his paycheck and getting back home to NY ASAP. He may not be seen in any uniform ever again

At what point does Dallas move to a 2-3 zone against this team like they did against Miami in 2011?

The one positive of blowing this series (if we do) is that the front office will be forced to make some moves.

I was fearful that a series win against the clips could've resulted in some complacency in the offseason.

Cuban is so ridiculously full of crap. They had loads of cap space last offseason

With KP's devolution this year, we are pretty much relying on the combo of Kleber, Finney-Smith, and Hardaway to replace what you would expect from your 2nd all star, as well as your 3rd best player.

It's still very possible, and I think Carlisle is having to decide if he wants to potentially permanently taint KP for the Mavs by benching him. We can't play a lineup with Kleber and KP in it when they go small. They arent able to defend it at all. So if KP isnt scoring OR really a defensive force, then somethings gotta give.

fightinags2013 said:

---

Cuban is so ridiculously full of crap. They had loads of cap space last offseason

---

I thought Dallas had like $8 Million in cap space last year.

8 last year, like 27 or so the year before, but that was eaten up by KP, Delon Wright, and Seth Curry.

MW03 said:

---

fightinags2013 said:

---

Cuban is so ridiculously full of crap. They had loads of cap space last offseason

---

I thought Dallas had like $8 Million in cap space last year.

---

Yea 2019 was the blunder year. We had $$ and a MASSIVE trade exception from the Barnes trade that we just let expire. We could have absorbed basically any buyout player without having to give any salary back like the Celtics did when they acquired Fournier. Instead we signed Wright, Curry, Boban and extended Powell.

If I could be Rick for one game, I'd rock this tonight.

Starters:
Luka
Tim
DFS
KP
Dwight (for offensive rebounding chances and athleticism)

We would sit in a zone 60+% of the game. Being in a zone mitigates the need for Kleber to start and guard the robot. If they shoot 55% from three, you live with it. What you don't live with is Kawhi getting 20+ from midrange, or letting any of the slew of guys that are killing you around the basket get to the rim. Sink the defense in, get rebounds, don't give near as many shots from within 18 feet.

On offense, you park Tim and DFS around the three point line, have dwight roaming short corner to short corner opposite the ball, and you run P&R with Luka/Kris over and over until you get a clean luka look to shoot or drive, a clean KP roll or pop. If luka gets the drive and the D collapses you look for the oop to Dwight or kick to whichever of Tim and DFS are open for a three ball look. Like in remember the titans "It's like novacaine, give it time and it will work"

When Luka comes out, you switch the P&R person to dwight or Maxi, and tell KP to stay within 6 feet of the basket posting up with everything he has. If it's not there, you stay in the same P&R setup you were in before.


The thing killing the offense more than anything isn't missed open shots by KP or the other guys. It's guys like DFS, Tim, Richardson, and Brunson trying to do too much. Yes, each of these guys can get to the rim and score, but too often they are trying to do what Luka does and throw up some terrible off the dribble jumper or drive into a crowd of guys without finding the open guy. Run the simple P&R offense until a look opens up. If it's not there let Luka do the crazy stuff, or if he's out, dump it inside to KP. If both are out, weather the storm, keep running the same stuff and don't try to be the hero.

What's the story with Powell?



Over April/May, he was averaging nearly 24 mins per game. A lot of that was because KP was out with injury, but still. The guy is averaging just a shade over 4 mins per game in the playoffs, and nearly all of it is at the end of the 4th when the game has largely been decided.

You can't tell me he's a worse defender than whatever they've trotted out there the last 2 games.

Probably looked at Carlisle wrong.

THJ and Richardson have a look about them when they touch the ball at times that you know they are going to shoot. It doesn't matter what the defense or the shot looks like. You can see the frenetic action and know that, no matter what, a shot's about to be hoisted. It frustrates the hell out of me.

That being said, there has to be some balance between the entire team waiting and deferring to Luka on every possession, and being smart with the ball.

Honestly, I'd consider starting Brunson with Luka at SG. Otherwise Luka is going to be fighting traps and pressure up the court all night from the tip.

I remember reading some articles before the playoffs started, that KP and Dwight in the lineup together was basically our worst defensive combination.

He is actually a worse defender and rebounder than Kleber, KP, Cauley-Stein, and he is extremely limited in what he can do offensively.

I think I'd still try giving him some run with Kleber tonight.

**updated this post to reflect more recent status**

MW03 said:

---

THJ and Richardson have a look about them when they touch the ball at times that you know they are going to shoot. It doesn't matter what the defense or the shot looks like. You can see the frenetic action and know that, no matter what, a shot's about to be hoisted. It frustrates the hell out of me.

That being said, there has to be some balance between the entire team waiting and deferring to Luka on every possession, and being smart with the ball.

Honestly, I'd consider starting Brunson with Luka at SG. Otherwise Luka is going to be fighting traps and pressure up the court all night from the tip.

---

We've already been having Hardaway bring the ball up a lot, and getting the ball to Luka already set up in the half court.

The Shank Ag said:

---

If I could be Rick for one game, I'd rock this tonight.

Starters:
Luka
Tim
DFS
KP
Dwight (for offensive rebounding chances and athleticism)

We would sit in a zone 60+% of the game. Being in a zone mitigates the need for Kleber to start and guard the robot. If they shoot 55% from three, you live with it. What you don't live with is Kawhi getting 20+ from midrange, or letting any of the slew of guys that are killing you around the basket get to the rim. Sink the defense in, get rebounds, don't give near as many shots from within 18 feet.

On offense, you park Tim and DFS around the three point line, have dwight roaming short corner to short corner opposite the ball, and you run P&R with Luka/Kris over and over until you get a clean luka look to shoot or drive, a clean KP roll or pop. If luka gets the drive and the D collapses you look for the oop to Dwight or kick to whichever of Tim and DFS are open for a three ball look. Like in remember the titans "It's like novacaine, give it time and it will work"

When Luka comes out, you switch the P&R person to dwight or Maxi, and tell KP to stay within 6 feet of the basket posting up with everything he has. If it's not there, you stay in the same P&R setup you were in before.


The thing killing the offense more than anything isn't missed open shots by KP or the other guys. It's guys like DFS, Tim, Richardson, and Brunson trying to do too much. Yes, each of these guys can get to the rim and score, but too often they are trying to do what Luka does and throw up some terrible off the dribble jumper or drive into a crowd of guys without finding the open guy. Run the simple P&R offense until a look opens up. If it's not there let Luka do the crazy stuff, or if he's out, dump it inside to KP. If both are out, weather the storm, keep running the same stuff and don't try to be the hero.

---

What team are you watching where you think posting up KP, and dumping it in to KP, are things that can/should happen?

fightinags2013 said:

---

Any Ag Tags want to buy a pair of tickets from me? 306 Row E. I'd sell them for $140 each if you'd meet me anywhere between Denton and Carrolton to do the exchange. After row E you get a section split and are much higher rows F and up. They are digital tickets so you'd need to have the Ticketmaster app.

---

I'm not down for tonight, but wouldn't you be able to digitally transfer them and take a Venmo payment instead of meeting?

Edit: I guess you mean Game 6, but same question.

So true

This is going to be really painful when Atlanta wins its first playoff series with Young and we get ushered out rudely for the 2nd year in a row by a Clippers team that's going absolutely nowhere.

Yeah game 6 friday night.

I just sent you a DM.

South Platte said:

---

This is going to be really painful when Atlanta wins its first playoff series with Young and we get ushered out rudely for the 2nd year in a row by a Clippers team that's going absolutely nowhere.

---

eastern conference