thread of luka doncic

which prob factored into the suns pick too

then theres atl who had luka fall into their lap and traded him, tho trae is looking pretty great too

The odd thing about the Suns is a big reason not to take Luka would seemingly be that they already had a good sf but then they handed him to the pacers inexplicably

mightve been worried abt the fit w booker in that theyre both ball dominant, which is silly imo but bad teams stay bad for a reason

Rubio and Doncic would have been a questionable fit so they’ve got that going for them. But unfortunately Ayton is Rony Seikaly without the style

well they probably wouldn't have signed rubio if they had doncic. at least a sane team wouldn't do something like that.

rubio and doncic would be kinda fascinating

this is fn insane considering he doesnt actually get all the way to the rim that often

Best FG% off drives so far this year (min 10 drives per game):
Luka Doncic - 68.6% (!)
Gordon Hayward - 63.4%
Russ Westbrook - 63.0%
Dame Lillard - 60.2%
Pascal Siakam - 58.2%
Brandon Ingram - 57.9%
James Harden - 57.8%
Derrick Rose - 57.1%
Jaylen Brown - 56.7%

— Michael Gallagher (@MikeSGallagher) November 13, 2019

gotta think thats gonna cool off but still

I’d love to see like the points per possession on drives, he’s deadly in the paint, gets fouled a ton in there, and finds guys all the time

Through games on Nov. 12, which #NBA sophomores have done the most (or least) with their minutes during the 2019-20 season? pic.twitter.com/KfLkEyiMnT

— NBA Math (@NBA_Math) November 13, 2019

i am seeing some outliers

this is getting pretty ridiculous. career high 42-11-12 tonight

This kid was the MVP of the all-European championship tournament at age 18, or maybe 19, so you'd expect it would take him a good year of seasoning in the NBA before he was ready to show is true mettle. Last year was just him getting acquainted.

just luka things

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

idk how helpful that framework really is, I mean his production at age 20 is completely without precedent. he’s basically mike trout.

to your question tho guys like...kyrie, AD, maybe? I mean isn’t there always a guy who’s the best

AD didn’t blow up until his senior year of high school

Rubio was the best from 14-18 probably

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, November 19, 2019 2:08 PM (thirty-four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

if it was unquestioned he wouldnt have gone 3rd, i mean the ppl questioning it were obvs wrong but still they questioned it

w bron no one questioned it except like 2 contrarian sportswriters

I remember a few iconoclasts who were all about darko >> bron

might as well go all the way w it

I think I said it before itt but has there been another player since Lebron who was the unquestioned best guy in his age group from 17-21?

― Matt Armstrong, Tuesday, November 19, 2019 2:08 PM (thirty-four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

if it was unquestioned he wouldnt have gone 3rd, i mean the ppl questioning it were obvs wrong but still they questioned it

Even this offseason people did the same upside argument but he continues to be the best player his age

oh ok I understand your question better now, you’re asking about guys who were the best every year over those years?

Yeah

What makes the Lebron story so amazing is that he was number 1 at age 16 and he just checked the box every year and continues to do so

the goat

has vince carter been the best 37-42 year old player for all those years? that’s impressive too

of all time i doubt it, he hasn't been that effective for the past few years

no I just mean during those years

Yeah Vince outlasted his whole generation

same draft as dirk and pierce

Btw taking a look back at it the second best nba player from Anthony Davis’ recruiting class, by a considerable margin, is Malcolm Brogdon. Was barely a top 100 recruit.

yeah, vince is the last remaining guy who played in the '90s, i think.

would kd count as a best in his class, 17-21 guy? assuming that people didn't *actually* think oden was better.

a lot of ppl thought oden was better

yeah, it's kind of iffy

btw, looking for kd's nbadraft.net page, i just noticed that they totally redesigned, r.i.p. website that had looked exactly the same for the last ~18 years.

oden was never that good tho

lol circles i had the same experience & thought like a week ago

xp it was still an era when being a big center was a premium thing

xpost stuff's mostly still there, just harder to find. i know this is a thread about the greatest slovenian baller of all time, but:

Strengths: His upside is out of this world … This kid is not even begining to scratch the surface of his potential … Looking at him you see his frame is going to fill out in 3-4 years … Very fluid athlete with explosiveness … He plays hard and is still learning the game … Provided he works hard, Durant is going to be a special player in the league who will be able to do many different things on the court … Not aggressive enough to be like Kevin Garnett, but skilled enough down the road to contribute like a Andrei Kirilenko or a Grant Hill … Developing inside outside game … Can shoot the 3 and flush in transition … It is scary to think of what he could be like if he puts on 15 lbs of muscle and developed a handle, a 2010 version of KG!

Weaknesses: His (lack of) stength is his major weakness, and he really needs to put on weight or he won’t be able to do much in the NBA except shoot deep 3s or score in transition like Darius Miles of 4 years ago … Needs to become more aggresive, develop more nastiness … Still developing a game off the dribble Defensively he needs to move his feet better and keep his hands active on the ball … Oak Hill Academy is giving him the work ethic he will need in the long run, since he most likely won’t be going to college
Aran Smith – 12/27/2004

vs.

Aran Smith – 7/9/2005
Strenths: Incredibly fluid athlete for a 7 footer Tremendous speed in the open court A center with his agility and talent comes along roughly every 8-10 years Extremely quick and explosive Enormous potential His game has improved significantly from his sophomore to junior seasons Starting to understand how to use his body and how dominant he can be Big defensive presence, and a terrific shot blocker with great length, timing and instincts Excellent rebounder Soft touch around the basket Has developed a decent turnaround hook with his right hand Very good passer with nice court vision (averaged 3.7 assists per game as a junior) Quality kid with a great attitude Very coachable, listens and wants to improve Team player with a winners mentality Improving on a daily basis Decent free throw shooter at 64% but needs to and should improve upon it (improved considerably from 51% as a sophomore)

Weaknesses: Soft spoken. Very humble personality, which is a positive and a negative in that some would like to see him develop more of a swagger of confidence, but Tim Duncan and David Robinson were/are both silent (humble) assassins Needs to add more nastiness on the floor to dominate Still raw in terms of post moves, they are developing, but still have a ways to go He is so dominant on the high school level he hasn’t needed to develop any range or post skills Doesn’t have the ability to create offense for himself as he can overwhelm anyone he faces with his size and athleticism Still scores mostly on ally oops and put backs Has nice touch, but needs to develop a consistent mid range shot ( la David Robinson) Strength wont be an issue for him ultimately, but right now he needs to add muscle to his upper body and legs Almost too unselfish

Outlook: The top candidate for the number 1 pick in the 2007 draft, one year removed from high school A year of college should give him a great stepping stone for the NBA.

Ah he needs to develop a mid range shot, like David Robinson

say you were a GM (and for the sake of exercise ignore contextual things like team need etc) and you had to rank the players whose next three seasons you’d most want to have. how many players are ahead of luka? I’m thinking zero

still picking giannis

yeah giannis, then brow vs luka

props to trae young for playing well enough that that trade doesn't look like a total joke though

yeah giannis is really the only one that gave me pause

i'd take kawhi if it weren't for his medical issues

cool luka fact is that he has done one dunk so far this season