Lebron 2.0? Luka has Rick Carlisle, and now KP. He has a spread floor, and a great coach. Who did Lebron have his 2nd season in the league? Old Big Z and a bunch of bums... Lebron in his 2nd season was mesmerizing in his 3rd season he averaged 31, 7, and 7...a 30 point triple double in his 1st ever playoff game...2 game winners in his 1st ever playoff series...41 in his 1st ever road playoff game...31, 8, and 6 in his 1st playoff run Luka is great...when he does something similar is when I’ll think about putting him on Bron’s level Bron in his prime was also DPOY caliber...Luka will never be that Luka could reach MVP Harden levels, and MVP Harden ain’t prime Bron look at what Lebron is doing so far at age 35 in his 17th season...most of his draft class is done, and he’s still out here averaging 26, 8, and 11...he just put 39 and 16 on Luka’s head a few days ago
The league is finally catching up to what we knew for a couple of years now. However, there are still some misconceptions for people who watch only Luka's highlights, mainly his defense. To say he is "infinitely" worse than LeBron on defense shows someone's knowledge (or absence of) about Luka's game on that side. Luka definitely can't guard 1-5 positions like LeBron once could, but he is far from a bad defensive player. He was a slight minus on defense last year when he was out of shape; not so much this season. He is actively trying on defense and although he is often charged with guarding the slowest wing on opponent's team, he doesn't shy away from guarding Kawhis and LeBrons of this league. Because of his effort on defense, I think the comparisons with Harden are not adequate at all. Harden started playing defense two years ago when Chris Paul came into town. Luka is playing defense at 20 years of age. Offensively he is currently better than Harden was at same age; it's probably hard to imagine he will reach Harden's offensive output ceiling, but he can compensate by rebounding better, giving more effort on defense and involving his teammates a bit more. Because of those reasons, I think Luka compares to LeBron more favourably than to Harden. After all, "The King" was idolized by Luka and he kind of modeled his game after him. As he was doing his entire young career, he will keep surprising people each year.
Still fuming Dallas lucked into both Luka & KP. Luka especially because I love his game and that crummy franchise doesn't deserve him.
No kidding. Not to mention, Porzingis is still rusty after the long break from basketball. Once he gets going, Dallas will be even more annoying. That sequence at 3:48...
I feel like it will take a lot of time before Luka and Porzingis develop some kind of chemistry. Not only because Luka is so ball dominant, but also because Carlisle is often staggering their minutes so one of them is on the floor at all times. When both Luka and Porzingis are playing together, Dallas produces negative net rating. When either Luka or KP is playing without the other, Dallas has a positive net rating.
I'm quite certain they will figure it out. They seem to have a nice relationship and both are probably the biggest European talents right now, aside from Jokic.
Don't underestimate Porzingis' ego...maybe I'm a pessimist, but I don't have a great feeling about this.
I think he might want a bigger role on offense, but I also think it's a completely justified wish if he manages to get back to his pre-injury game shape. He was unstoppable at one point. I kinda think that Porzingis should become the leading scorer on that team to maximize the potential of that duo.
I think you need to provide actual evidence for your claims. People disagreeing with you has literally zero correlation with how knowledgeable they are, especially since it’s well known how much you’ve exaggerated Luka’s contribution (even though we all agree he is very good). Luka is currently ranked 280 in defensive rating. That is objectively bad, even when compared to an average player. The next player on the list For comparison is defensive stalwart Kemba Walker (lol). To be frank, by any statistical measurement on defense, Luka is MUCH closer to Harden than he is to Lebron, and his upside in that area is limited because of his lateral speed (improving much beyond his combine test numbers is unlikely). It’s really cute that he’s trying, and there’s a good chance he’ll end up better than Harden, but it’s a virtual lock that Luka’s best defensive season will be FAR below Lebron’s worst defensive season.
@Koperboy here's a good example of why it's not only on Porzingis to make it work. Both need to put in the effort and play smarter.
Nobody is saying he is a bad defensive player people are saying he is infinitely worse defensively than Lebron. Lebron was one of the best defenders in the history of the NBA in his prime he was able to keep up and shut down a healthy DRose is Luka able to do that? Just because he tries doesn't mean Luka is closer to Lebron lmao, I try on defense too does that mean I'm closer to Lebron than James Harden? C'mon. Let us see if Doncic is still a superstar after year 17 and then we'll talk if he close to the King.
