Suns @ Mavericks Sunday game thread 3-5-2023

[AzStevenCal]

I agree that it is good for the league. I don’t want to see guys fist fighting and getting suspended for dirty fouls (like Robert horry trying to hurt Steve nash and then gets rewarded with another championship) but short of that what we see with Luka and Booker is just trash talk. There is nothing wrong with that. It makes us all care more. Today mavs fans dislike Booker a little more and suns fans dislike Luka a little more.

For most of us here, the bolded part might not be accurate. But speaking solely for myself, even granting his incredible basketball skills, I can't stand Luka and I'm not sure he's capable of making me dislike him any more than I already do.

I don't blame him for making us look stupid for drafting Ayton, that's on us. But his next level push-offs, the frequent flopping, his constant whining/acting plus his referee manipulation is the worst thing for this league that I've seen in my hundred years as a basketball fan. Or maybe it's just the worst thing since Lebron started doing much the same. But seriously I'd rather they dump the shot clock and legalized the 4 corner offense than have to watch Luka and Lebron continue to abuse the game the way they do.

 

[Mainstreet]

Haha. For the record no I am not fat, not that it would matter either way if I was. But my comment was more of an attempt at a cheeky remark about Luka’s weight, given all of the talk about it. For a guy his size he is very good in open space. so most of the league try to shadow him up and down the court which makes him work harder and also makes for a lot of contact by both the offensive and defensive players.

Luka may not have a stereotypical physique for a basketball player, but he has to be in great shape.

I think he gets a lot of unfair criticism for perhaps not looking the part. Not every player has the same body type or can jump out of the gym to be a great athlete.

 

[Lorenzo]

For most of us here, the bolded part might not be accurate. But speaking solely for myself, even granting his incredible basketball skills, I can't stand Luka and I'm not sure he's capable of making me dislike him any more than I already do.

I don't blame him for making us look stupid for drafting Ayton, that's on us. But his next level push-offs, the frequent flopping, his constant whining/acting plus his referee manipulation is the worst thing for this league that I've seen in my hundred years as a basketball fan. Or maybe it's just the worst thing since Lebron started doing much the same. But seriously I'd rather they dump the shot clock and legalized the 4 corner offense than have to watch Luka and Lebron continue to abuse the game the way they do.

I respect that. And as a mavs fan I don’t dislike Booker. If Booker played for the mavs I would love rooting for him. I think he is a great player and is a passionate guy as is chris paul. I think we are long past the days of ref manipulation. I’m not going to try to defend doncic there. IMO the game is not as physical as it used to be and a player like doncic uses his physicality and pace to his advantage. As a defense, if you don’t body him and give him space, he will do whatever he wants with the skill that he has to both score and pass. Every since the clippers started to defend luka that way in the playoffs a couple of years back, most teams defend Luka in a very physical manner which in my opinion puts the referees in a difficult position. Of corse Luka rarely lets it go unnoticed and that doesn’t help the refs either.

 

[BirdGangThing]

Luka 6′ 7″ weighs 230 lbs, Barkley is 6' 6" and weighed around 250 in his day, both low post games insane (Barkley also played defense tho) I think Luka will be just fine and will likely be HoF

 

[Mainstreet]

I missed a lot of the game, but at the end I did hear H. Brown talking about the refs so I do believe that there were offensive fouls not given. I did see the play at the end where Luka missed the floater. I thought the defender was trying to draw a foul, but it could have been called an offensive foul. It would have been harsh in my opinion. And I think that was one of those situations where Booker was citing instant justice and luka got butt hurt.

What I am talking about is almost laughable. Earlier in the game, Christian Wood kept ramming his shoulder into the defender over and over again in the lane to get to the basket and the referees swallowed their whistle. It was clearly an offensive foul.

I think I remarked somewhere in the game thread he must have been getting the Luka treatment because the referees allowed him to get away with it.

 

[Raindog]

Luka may not have a stereotypical physique for a basketball player, but he has to be in great shape.

I think he gets a lot of unfair criticism for perhaps not looking the part. Not every player has the same body type or can jump out of the gym to be a great athlete.

Luka is probably in good shape compared to the average regular person, but not really for the average NBA athlete. He has had issues with conditioning and stamina since he came into the league, and hasn't been trending in the direction of getting into better shape.

He may have came into the league at 230 lbs, but I guarantee he is well above that now. And with the favoritism he gets from the referees (and the league), there's not a lot of incentive for him to keep himself in tip top shape. I would wager he is going to start having weight and injury issues by the second half of his twenties.

 

[Superbone]

What I am talking about is almost laughable. Earlier in the game, Christian Wood kept ramming his shoulder into the defender over and over again in the lane to get to the basket and the referees swallowed their whistle. It was clearly an offensive foul.

I think I remarked somewhere in the game thread he must have been getting the Luka treatment because the referees allowed him to get away with it.

It's ridiculous that players have to do this but if he would have fallen backwards on one of the three consecutive hits, I think a foul would have been called. You get penalized for being able to take the hits.

 

[Carolinacacti]

It's ridiculous that players have to do this but if he would have fallen backwards on one of the three consecutive hits, I think a foul would have been called. You get penalized for being able to take the hits.

Okogie didn't get that call at the end

 

[Superbone]

Okogie didn't get that call at the end

End of game calls are always officiated differently.

 

[Carolinacacti]

Geez the Media took that "fight" and ran.
It was nothing, a tickle fight.

Its like a soap opera sometimes. A big show with the players in on it. WWF

 

[Superbone]

I'm sure you guys have noticed but ever since Durant got here, we have become a big media talking point. Every little thing will now be exposed.

 

[Lorenzo]

Luka may not have a stereotypical physique for a basketball player, but he has to be in great shape.

I think he gets a lot of unfair criticism for perhaps not looking the part. Not every player has the same body type or can jump out of the gym to be a great athlete.

Yes I think you are spot on. Dwight Powell is or at least was a great jumper for a tall guy. That doesn’t necessarily make him known for being an elite athlete. the words are subjective. For me the notion that an elite pro, who is averaging 33/8/8 is not athletic, is a bit strange. He’s not lebron, but that doesn’t mean he’s not athletic. It used to get under my skin when commentators would say that Steve nash was not athletic enough when he played for Dallas(largely because Dallas would lose to the top teams in the 4th quarter). They could not have been more wrong in my opinion.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Luka 6′ 7″ weighs 230 lbs, Barkley is 6' 6" and weighed around 250 in his day, both low post games insane (Barkley also played defense tho) I think Luka will be just fine and will likely be HoF

Lol… agree. Every single year, there are people here who maintain Luka’s reached his ceiling… starring as a rookie. And all he’s done is get better. Gotten more annoying too, but better as well, which makes him infinitely more annoying.

 

[Mainstreet]

Yes I think you are spot on. Dwight Powell is or at least a great jumper for a tall guy. That doesn’t necessarily make him known for being an elite athlete. the words are subjective. For me the notion that an elite pro, who is averaging 33/8/8 is not athletic, is a bit strange. He’s not lebron, but that doesn’t mean he’s not athletic. It used to get under my skin when commentators would say that Steve nash was not athletic enough when he played for Dallas. They could not have been more wrong in my opinion.

Steve Nash is a good example. He would not blow anyone out of the gym with his athleticism but when it came to game conditions he was an elite player on the offensive end.

Also like Nash, Luka comes with a bag of tricks and knows how to change speeds which is very deceptive. He is much faster than meets the eye.

Basketball is not always about how high you jump or how fast you run.

 

[95pro]

Luka may not have a stereotypical physique for a basketball player, but he has to be in great shape.

I think he gets a lot of unfair criticism for perhaps not looking the part. Not every player has the same body type or can jump out of the gym to be a great athlete.

There were a few clips of him trying and struggling to run back on defense. He saves all his energy for the offensive end. Look who was open for the suns and who was guarding him.

 

[Mainstreet]

There were a few clips of him trying and struggling to run back on defense. He saves all his energy for the offensive end. Look who was open for the suns and who was guarding him.

At times, Luka carries the Mavericks, so it does not surprise me when he picks and chooses where he expends his energy.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Luka 6′ 7″ weighs 230 lbs, Barkley is 6' 6" and weighed around 250 in his day, both low post games insane (Barkley also played defense tho) I think Luka will be just fine and will likely be HoF

I'm surprised you said "likely". No one is in the Hall of Fame until they are but Luka would probably need to cross some major criminal line to stay out of the HOF. Something along the lines of strangling his flat earth teammate. And let's face it, the odds are probably 6 to 1 against him doing that.

 

[Lorenzo]

Steve Nash is a good example. He would not blow anyone out of the gym with his athleticism but when it came to game conditions he was an elite player on the offensive end.

Also like Nash, Luka comes with a bag of tricks and knows how to change speeds which is very deceptive. He is much faster than meets the eye.

Basketball is not always about how high you jump or how fast you run.

Nash was a 40-50-90 guy. He was a better shooter than dirk and dirk was a great shooter, just had the height advantage to get his shot off more. Nash could really score a lot more than he often had to because of the other great offensive players that he not only played with but enhanced their scoring numbers. Dirk had to figure a lot out in a short time when Nash left. As much as it hurt to see him leave Dallas, I think Phoenix was a great move for nash and he really got to showcase his ability while proving his doubters wrong, including Cuban who I will never forgive for it.

 

[Lorenzo]

I'm surprised you said "likely". No one is in the Hall of Fame until they are but Luka would probably need to cross some major criminal line to stay out of the HOF. Something along the lines of strangling his flat earth teammate. And let's face it, the odds are probably 6 to 1 against him doing that.

That would be quite a turn of events of luka strangled Kyrie Irving. I guess that would DQ him from the hall of fame. Michael Irvin almost killed a teammate (allegedly) and he got in the nfl hof.

 

[Mainstreet]

Nash was a 40-50-90 guy. He was a better shooter than dirk and dirk was a great shooter, just had the height advantage to get his shot off more. Nash could really score a lot more than he often had to because of the other great offensive players that he not only played with but enhanced their scoring numbers. Dirk had to figure a lot out in a short time when Nash left. As much as it hurt to see him leave Dallas, I think Phoenix was a great move for nash and he really got to showcase his ability while proving his doubters wrong, including Cuban who I will never forgive for it.

I'm glad the Suns got Steve Nash back but it's almost criminal Dirk and Steve didn't finish their career together.

What great teammates and friends.

 

[Lorenzo]

I'm glad the Suns got Steve Nash back but it's almost criminal Dirk and Steve didn't finish their career together.

What great teammates and friends.

Yeah and that is Cuban’s ego that decided that. Cuban is lucky that dirk is a pro and didn’t bail on him. Most players in today’s nba would have dipped for less….I think

 

[BirdGangThing]

Lol… agree. Every single year, there are people here who maintain Luka’s reached his ceiling… starring as a rookie. And all he’s done is get better. Gotten more annoying too, but better as well, which makes him infinitely more annoying.

Wow Luka has a career free-throw percentage of 73.6% - Sir Charles @ 73.5%

 

[Phrazbit]

Luka is certainly on the fast track to the hall of fame, but he is nothing like Chuck. Barkley was more like Zion or something, that guy was strong as hell and he could fly, especially before he hit the bad side of 30.

 

[Chris_Sanders]

Yeah and that is Cuban’s ego that decided that. Cuban is lucky that dirk is a pro and didn’t bail on him. Most players in today’s nba would have dipped for less….I think

I can't say enough how you are my favorite opposing fan perspective on this board. You are never anything other than objective, informative, and tolerant

 

[Lorenzo]

I can't say enough how you are my favorite opposing fan perspective on this board. You are never anything other than objective, informative, and tolerant

I appreciate that! This is my home to talk sports and so much more. I love ASFN. I feel less Texan now than I did when I first became a member in the mid 2000’s lol, but I’ll always support my DFW teams. With that said I love that the Phoenix Suns/Dallas Mavs rivalry is back given the history and similarities of the two franchises. I am a big fan of the KD trade and really hope it works out for Phoenix lifting the trophy if the mavs aren’t able to do so.