2024-25 Team Developments: Trades / Free Agents / News / Rumors / Ideas

Lebron was one of the best defenders i have ever seen in his prime. It's not just the iconic block but only a few guys like Rodman and Artest could guard a prime Derrick Rose in one series and a center like Al Horford in another

You can even see it now no one hunts Lebron ever even if he's half a** on that end for most of the game

That's something that Lakers will need to adjust for in terms of team building and Luka defense is likely going to get worse with age

 

…. that gif

 

The Mavericks did it and made the Finals with Luka despite his defensive limitations and made another deep playoff run in 2022. No reason the Lakers can’t do it.

 

yeah, i didn't feel like chiming in earlier, but people are really being prisoners of the moment re: luka. up until this injury, he probably had the best start to a career by maybe anyone ever? he's been a legitimate mvp candidate since his second year in the league at age 19. i get that he hasn't looked great this year, but that's a small amount of data compared to the overwhelming amount we have from the past several years.

i'll also repeat that his supposedly terrible defense has translated to better defensive metrics than lots of guys who people believe are great on that end (e.g., jaylen brown). and that picking on him defensively has only been successful since he got hurt. prior to that, it wasn't an effective strategy.

 

There are levels of being bad defensively. The absolute worst guys are the ones who don't put in the effort and don't have the instincts, but also are at a physical disadvantage. The Trae Youngs or DLos of the world who are already too small/unathletic and on top of that don't care at all. Then there are guys like Luka, who often don't care but do have some instincts and some physical advantages. Just about everyone in the league can score on Trae one-on-one, whether it be a small guard blowing by him or bigger guards/forwards/bigs just overpowering him. Luka will get blown by, but he's so big that there are certain matchups where he holds up. He switched onto Mark Williams a few times on Wednesday and didn't a decent enough job holding his ground and contesting enough that Williams (who's pretty good finishing around the rim) missed a few of them.

When Luka is actually healthy, he also more than makes up for it on the other end. Sure, you can try switch hunting him every possession. But that slows things down to a halfcourt pace, and he's better at matchup hunting and halfcourt creation than you will be.

 

Dear Lord. 2 picks lol. And no Luka now.
Yet again, we won't hear it from the guys who were constantly beating the drum to get it done.

You're a constant source of sanity in this forum. May God bless you

 

in fairness, i don't think anyone on this forum was in favor of two picks for grant. but there were definitely people out there who used the inability to get grant as a mark against pelinka when several of us questioned whether grant was even a real upgrade over say, rui. well, apparently not this year (they're both slight negatives on both ends, fwiw).

i'm just glad rob wasn't under pressure from ownership to trade for the sake of trading like a lot of fans and media were demanding. those weren't legitimate criticisms, and we're much better off because the gm didn't take them to heart.

i think i wanted to move russ for terry rozier way back, and i'm glad we didn't do that, either.

only when i'm not berating slick about something.

 

It doesn't matter what style of play he has.
Most players, even the great ones, have either started to, or already in decline by 35 years old. I don't think Luka will be any different. With his conditioning history, he'll probably hit that wall sooner.

Hell... winning 3 friggin rings isn't some kind of, I Think Luka sucks post.

 

Grant fell of a cliff this season..now I want Ayton



Back to Luka..Meh..
He can't guard a tombstone and you know it. Jokic either FWIW, the majority of the European guys, are great on offense, and mediocre defensively.




He is a hell of an offensive force though!....just like Jokic.

Fans in general...love paying all this lip service to "Defense ", but in reality, most of the guys deemed to be "stars", and "Super stars", are done so, based on their offensive output.

 

they literally invented a stat that has to be predicated on a likely biased observation, right?

and they all happen during a year in which he took a team to the finals, during the run in which he had them all strapped to his back.

anyway, your overarching point (that if you're good enough on offense, it doesn't matter) is true.

but both luka and jokic are fine defensively due to their size and iq. just like your boy...

anyway, defense isn't just about who's fast; thank you for coming to my ted talk.

 

Who is my boy? Tinkerbell?
Yeah...great offense over great defense..I concur.

All the Eastern European guys, are pretty weak defensively..it is what it is. They have great footwork, and are good to outstanding, offensive players though.

Put it this way...game on the line, and you need a defensive stop. I'm absolutely not trotting Luka or Jokic out there as the primary defender. Flip it to offense, hell yeah...I want those two taking that shot.

 

Vuc lol

How do you take DLo in that context? Dear lord

 

Because Tinkerbell at one time, was my boy Einstein. You probably didn't read enough, to catch that along the way, with all my Tinkerbell bashing. I still like Vucevic for Rui this summer too btw. I think Luka would prefer Ayton though.

 

With Rui's growth that would insane IMO. Luka and AR with Vuc behind them? That team is giving up a 150 a night

 

They would score 155 tho. All in on offense?

Like I said above, I think Luka would prefer Ayton, he's still a lob threat,and can rebound at a good clip. Capela if he will take the MLE isn't a bad option.
Luka is one of the best lob throwers in the game. He might just be the best. CP3 used to be.

 

Mike D would be proud

 

Overjoyed..perfect illustration of his vision. 5 starters all capable of hitting 3's at a decent clip.

 

That's not my quote

 

That’s not true style of play absolutely matters that’s why guys like Steph Curry, KD, LeBron, Dirk, Duncan, and you can throw Kobe before the Achilles injury. These guys didn’t rely on their athleticism and were able to remain elite players well into their late 30’s.

Also Luke is just turning 26 so to be even discussing his decline is absurd even if he starts to decline when he’s 35 years old that’s not for another decade. He still has a decade of elite level play at least left in him.

 

High level offense, is a form of defense. Especially late in games. If you have the ability to get buckets down the stretch, it puts mental pressure on the other team, to match you. Guys get tight and start missing shots they normally make, even open looks. Ie The Lakers continual collapse against Denver late in games. It wasn't their defense.