Two things about this version of Team USA: We are really missing Coach K. Pop sucks at this. We are really missing that one Ultimate Alpha leadership influence. No Kobe, no LeBron. Durant aint it.
That's not going to work, Pop. Can't run it like they're the Spurs. Maybe call Coach K and pick his brain a bit.
how about no more larry brown/disciples coaching team USA? brown was the worst possible fit for the 04 team, and now pop is sucking it up i think not having the NBA refs around to call those BS ticky tack fouls is playing a big role in team USA's struggles. these guys aren't used to the international game
that post spin with the one-handed finish at just before the minute mark was insane. this guy isn't real.
What's crazy is he looks like he is going half speed the entire time. Not breaking a sweat. He's not even in shape. If he had Kobe's work ethic he would probably average 50.
i think he's a better athlete than it looks, but i also think he's proof that you can be absolutely dominant without being a terrific athlete (relatively speaking). i read some of the quotes from the argentinians, and it's like they saw god or something. when he absolutely shredded whomever the clippers threw at him in the playoffs, i was even more impressed than i was before, tbh. if leonard and george can do nothing to you as a wing on offense, then nobody can.
Larry Bird convinced me a long time ago that it was possible to dominate at the highest levels without being a freak athlete. Luka is taking that to another level.
Being "more in shape" would improve his stamina I guess . He looked tired and less efficient in 4th quarters against the tenants but maybe nobody could have kept this level of play for 4o minutes+ with his crazy USG rate
^ second part of your post is 100% correct. Even a 6'1/buck 60 guy would be "dead" by the end of these games/series.
may be worse now that they cleaned house, tbh. donnie nelson was an nba lifer, same with carlisle. i feel like those two kept cuban from doing some dumb stuff over time (but weren't always successful, like when donnie told him to draft giannis instead of moving down to save cash to offer dwight howard). now, he's the longest-tenured guy in the organization, and his ideas won't get challenged in the same way. i think luka will be out of there sooner than folks think, and the lakers really need to be locking and loading for that day at all times.
Luka is the best player in the world right now. Literally noone i would take over him to start a team or to join a team. Incredible.
he's a savant. you can't devise a defense he can't beat, imo. he can win with very little offensive support. and he's smart enough and big enough and cares enough that he can't really be exploited defensively enough to offset it. only injuries can stop him, imo.
Like I said in another thread, fairly sure RW’s and LBJ’s contract expires the same year Luka is a potential UFA.