NBA 2019-2020 season thread

[CelticsPoetry]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

[bdm860]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

Am I missing something?  He played in the EuroLeague before.  Sure he won MVP and Final Four MVP there, and while nice, aren't really any indicator of greatness.

Those are honors held by NBA role players and guys who couldn't cut it in the league, like Ekpe Udoh, Athony Parker, Trajan Langdon, Andres Nocioni, Jan Vesely, Nemanja Bjelica, etc.

[GreenFaith1819]

LOL.

Luka's got some doubters - I get it.

Methinks that Luka The Don will open some eyes once he feasts on the post-season.



Let the doubters howl in despair for he WILL perform admirably.

[seancally]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

In 2017 Slovenia with Luka and Goran Dragic won the Eurobasket championship.. tiny Slovenia... for which Luka was a regular player and contributor. That league is full of current NBA players. They beat Spain in the semis with both Gasols, Hernangomez and Rubio. Beat Latvia with Porzingis and Bertans. Beat Serbia in the finals with Bogdan Bodganovic and Boban Marjanovic. If you need a refresher on the strength of European/International basketball, go ahead and reference the last USA FIBA performance.
Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

Am I missing something?  He played in the EuroLeague before.  Sure he won MVP and Final Four MVP there, and while nice, aren't really any indicator of greatness.

Those are honors held by NBA role players and guys who couldn't cut it in the league, like Ekpe Udoh, Athony Parker, Trajan Langdon, Andres Nocioni, Jan Vesely, Nemanja Bjelica, etc.

Luka along with Goran Dragic led tiny Slovenia to the Eurobasket championship. They beat Serbia with Bogdan Bogdanoviv and Boban Marjanovic, the beat Latvia with Porzingis and Davis Bertans, they beat Spain with the Gasols, Hernangomez and Rubio. That was in 2017. Luka was a regular contributor, best player on the floor in some games, and ... a teenager. If you need a refresher on the strength of international basketball, I refer you to the last FIBA tournament.

[GreenFaith1819]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

[CelticsPoetry]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

Am I missing something?  He played in the EuroLeague before.  Sure he won MVP and Final Four MVP there, and while nice, aren't really any indicator of greatness.

Those are honors held by NBA role players and guys who couldn't cut it in the league, like Ekpe Udoh, Athony Parker, Trajan Langdon, Andres Nocioni, Jan Vesely, Nemanja Bjelica, etc.

He led his team to a Euroleague title and he did it at age 19 - the closest to that is Teodosič at 23, others won it at 28, 29 or higher. I know Americans don't respect other leagues, but Euroleague is the second strongest in the world. He also helped Slovenia win the Eurobasket title in 2017 (at 18 years of age). Just as a reminder - Slovenia has only 2 million inhabitants and they beat some true basketball powerhouses. After being doubted heavily for his ''lack'' of athleticism, he went on to put up some impressive numbers in his rookie year (21/8/6) and keeps breaking records in the youngest-to-category. This year he is averaging an absurd 29/10/9 at 20 years old. He has a track record of not only making teams better and putting up gaudy numbers, he actually leads his teams to wins. Simply put, he is a generational talent who dominates the game with his smarts. I think due to his track record the burden of proof is on you. There is nothing to suggest he is a choker or shies away from big moments (cough Lebron cough). Believe me, I see a lot of Eurobasket (not Euroleague) games and they are an absolute bloodbath. Coaches do gameplan for players like him, because it's a win or go home type of competition.

[CelticsPoetry]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

In 2017 Slovenia with Luka and Goran Dragic won the Eurobasket championship.. tiny Slovenia... for which Luka was a regular player and contributor. That league is full of current NBA players. They beat Spain in the semis with both Gasols, Hernangomez and Rubio. Beat Latvia with Porzingis and Bertans. Beat Serbia in the finals with Bogdan Bodganovic and Boban Marjanovic. If you need a refresher on the strength of European/International basketball, go ahead and reference the last USA FIBA performance.
Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

Am I missing something?  He played in the EuroLeague before.  Sure he won MVP and Final Four MVP there, and while nice, aren't really any indicator of greatness.

Those are honors held by NBA role players and guys who couldn't cut it in the league, like Ekpe Udoh, Athony Parker, Trajan Langdon, Andres Nocioni, Jan Vesely, Nemanja Bjelica, etc.

Luka along with Goran Dragic led tiny Slovenia to the Eurobasket championship. They beat Serbia with Bogdan Bogdanoviv and Boban Marjanovic, the beat Latvia with Porzingis and Davis Bertans, they beat Spain with the Gasols, Hernangomez and Rubio. That was in 2017. Luka was a regular contributor, best player on the floor in some games, and ... a teenager. If you need a refresher on the strength of international basketball, I refer you to the last FIBA tournament.

Also what this guy said, TP. Just to list a few international players: Giannis, Dončič, Gobert, Embiid, Simmons, Kyrie, Zinger, Markkanen, Siakam, Jokič, Hield, Tacko Fall. The list goes on and on.

[liam]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

Luka is the real deal. The year he came out in the draft I couldn't believe he slid. He was the clear #1 player and it wasn't close. He's so young and already very strong and an excellent shooter. Barring any health concerns he will be an all time great.

[GreenFaith1819]

Perhaps my "ONLY" knock on Luka Doncic is that he smiles too much.

Larry Bird - whom I "LOVE" to compare Luka to - rarely smiled - if at ALL.

On the OTHER HAND, though - Magic Johnson smiled ALL THE TIME - even when ripping his opponent's hearts out.

Take your pick, lol.

I've also seen Luka do some CRAZY stuff recently...dude actually RIPPED his jersey in frustration...over either a missed FT or he had a bad stretch during a game.

That kind of intensity is KG-LIKE. Dude takes his craft seriously and is NOT lazy.

Eventually, The LeBrons and Durants of the NBA "WILL" retire soon.

The Luka's....maybe even the Zion's...WILL inherit the NBA. Luka will sit right up there with Greek Freak and a couple of others.

[bdm860]

With that being said - do you (or anyone else here) believe DAL would have the same record (or success) with Trae and Luka switching spots?

Change the past and let ATL keep Luka. Let DAL select Trae.

Where do you / Celticsstrong - believe DAL / ATL would be at if these two were selected differently?

Would ATL be better with Luka?

Atlanta would certainly be a lot better and Dallas would certainly be a lot worse. Doncic is a top 2 player in the league this season next to Giannis. Trae Young is a top 25 player.

Huge difference between an MVP candidate and an All-Star. Like the difference between Giannis (the other top 2 player in the league) and Middleton or Harden and Donovan Mitchell. Imagine how much Houston would drop off if those two swapped places. And how much better Utah would become.

Trae is awesome in his own right but Luka is on a whole different level than him.

Luka is not a top 2 player, regular season is just practice let's see him play at an elite level when defenses are trapping him he's getting doubled coaches actually game plan against him...

Playoffs is when u see whose got it and who doesn't.

Please inform yourself on Luka's past achievements and where he played before you spout nonsense like that.

Am I missing something?  He played in the EuroLeague before.  Sure he won MVP and Final Four MVP there, and while nice, aren't really any indicator of greatness.

Those are honors held by NBA role players and guys who couldn't cut it in the league, like Ekpe Udoh, Athony Parker, Trajan Langdon, Andres Nocioni, Jan Vesely, Nemanja Bjelica, etc.

He led his team to a Euroleague title and he did it at age 19 - the closest to that is Teodosič at 23, others won it at 28, 29 or higher. I know Americans don't respect other leagues, but Euroleague is the second strongest in the world. He also helped Slovenia win the Eurobasket title in 2017 (at 18 years of age). Just as a reminder - Slovenia has only 2 million inhabitants and they beat some true basketball powerhouses. After being doubted heavily for his ''lack'' of athleticism, he went on to put up some impressive numbers in his rookie year (21/8/6) and keeps breaking records in the youngest-to-category. This year he is averaging an absurd 29/10/9 at 20 years old. He has a track record of not only making teams better and putting up gaudy numbers, he actually leads his teams to wins. Simply put, he is a generational talent who dominates the game with his smarts. I think due to his track record the burden of proof is on you. There is nothing to suggest he is a choker or shies away from big moments (cough Lebron cough). Believe me, I see a lot of Eurobasket (not Euroleague) games and they are an absolute bloodbath. Coaches do gameplan for players like him, because it's a win or go home type of competition.

The burden of proof should be on me for what?

To show that Luka is not currently the 2nd best player in the NBA?

That we've yet to see him perform in the NBA playoffs (which for the record, I'm excited to see)?

Or that EuroLeague and EuroBasket success doesn't correlate to NBA success?

[tazzmaniac]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

I don't see anyone questioning Luka's talent but claiming he's the #2 player in the NBA like someone did is a considerable overreach at this point.  As others have said, he needs to show it in the playoffs first.  It is interesting to note that Luka is shooting 32.2% from 3 which is the same as Giannis.  Last season, he shot 32.7% from 3.  He also slumped considerably in March (39.0%/22.5%/65.1%).   

[GreenFaith1819]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

I don't see anyone questioning Luka's talent but claiming he's the #2 player in the NBA like someone did is a considerable overreach at this point.  As others have said, he needs to show it in the playoffs first.  It is interesting to note that Luka is shooting 32.2% from 3 which is the same as Giannis.  Last season, he shot 32.7% from 3.  He also slumped considerably in March (39.0%/22.5%/65.1%).

Well....I don't know if it IS an overreach, being that Luka has missed Kristaps for extended periods this season.

Luka has already been the focus of opposing defenses to a large extent.

Luka doesn't have an Anthony Davis (See LeBron)....a Kris Middleton (See Greek Freak).....a Russell Westbrook (see Harden)....

Imagine if he had NY Porzingis for 85 percent of DAL's games this season....imagine IF he had one of the weapons alongside him that I just named above....

Luka is doing THIS without a bonafide number 2...Kristaps SHOULD be that but he isn't quite yet.

Luka DOES need to prove himself in the playoffs, granted but I KNOW he will.

I sincerely hope that Luka gets a Kareem, McHale, Chief or Worthy around him one day soon...a healthy Kristaps could go a LONG way but I'm gunning for the young man.

[gouki88]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

I don't see anyone questioning Luka's talent but claiming he's the #2 player in the NBA like someone did is a considerable overreach at this point.  As others have said, he needs to show it in the playoffs first.  It is interesting to note that Luka is shooting 32.2% from 3 which is the same as Giannis.  Last season, he shot 32.7% from 3.  He also slumped considerably in March (39.0%/22.5%/65.1%).

I think #2 overall is a reach at the moment (I have him 4-7 range), but there’s a definite argument he’s a top 2 offensive talent right now.

[GreenFaith1819]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

I don't see anyone questioning Luka's talent but claiming he's the #2 player in the NBA like someone did is a considerable overreach at this point.  As others have said, he needs to show it in the playoffs first.  It is interesting to note that Luka is shooting 32.2% from 3 which is the same as Giannis.  Last season, he shot 32.7% from 3.  He also slumped considerably in March (39.0%/22.5%/65.1%).

I think #2 overall is a reach at the moment (I have him 4-7 range), but there’s a definite argument he’s a top 2 offensive talent right now.

Fair enough.

[tazzmaniac]

Luka's been blessed with some gifts.

Some things you just can't teach.

I've been here on this earth for a little over 50 years and he's going to have a LONG productive and successful career and win a banner or two.

Opposing coaches WILL throw stuff at Luka. It WILL slow him down - frustrate him some.

He WILL get techs.

This stuff will ONLY fuel him to come at you HARDER. He has "THAT" hunger about him.

Is Luka Doncic unstoppable? Of course not. Will he need DAL to continue to place pieces around him? Of course.

Make NO MISTAKE about it, though - Luka Doncic is the REAL DEAL.

I don't see anyone questioning Luka's talent but claiming he's the #2 player in the NBA like someone did is a considerable overreach at this point.  As others have said, he needs to show it in the playoffs first.  It is interesting to note that Luka is shooting 32.2% from 3 which is the same as Giannis.  Last season, he shot 32.7% from 3.  He also slumped considerably in March (39.0%/22.5%/65.1%).

Well....I don't know if it IS an overreach, being that Luka has missed Kristaps for extended periods this season.

Luka has already been the focus of opposing defenses to a large extent.

Luka doesn't have an Anthony Davis (See LeBron)....a Kris Middleton (See Greek Freak).....a Russell Westbrook (see Harden)....

Imagine if he had NY Porzingis for 85 percent of DAL's games this season....imagine IF he had one of the weapons alongside him that I just named above....

Luka is doing THIS without a bonafide number 2...Kristaps SHOULD be that but he isn't quite yet.

Luka DOES need to prove himself in the playoffs, granted but I KNOW he will.

I sincerely hope that Luka gets a Kareem, McHale, Chief or Worthy around him one day soon...a healthy Kristaps could go a LONG way but I'm gunning for the young man.

You're really overplaying it.  Porzingis has played 33 of 44 games.  AD has played 38 of 45.  I'd put Middleton and KP on the same level.  I wouldn't consider having Westbrook a plus especially paired up with Harden.   

A couple years ago Embiid in his first full season carried the Sixers to 52 wins and the 2nd round in the playoffs with Saric (2nd year), Covington (former D leaguer), Simmons (1st year) and Reddick as the other starters.    KP is much more of a bonafide number 2 than any of them were at the time.  And Embiid had (and has) a lot less basketball experience than Luka does. 

Embiid, AD, Giannis, Kawhi are dominated 2 way players.  Luka's defensive rating is 111. 3 and last season it was 110.6.  Lebron's is 103.1 this season.