Sit Luka GM 1 or no?

[LukaMVP]

Nobody (including probably Dirk) liked when Dirk sat out that series which the Mavs eventually lost to Spurs but in hindsight it was the best thing for his career.  

Sometimes there needs to be adults in the room to tell Luka this is the best thing for him. 

Moreover, who said anything about dropping game 1?  The Mavs have proven that they can compete with OKC, even with Luka out.  In the regular season with Kyrie playing they barely lost to OKC in a highly competitive game.

I don't see why they couldn't steal one game or so by resting Luka.  The Mavs won't be intimidated playing on the road.

hate to say it but sitting luka is equal to tanking the game in terms of the result. the last game in regular season @ OKC was an obvious tank job and we certainly can't tank a game in playoffs in that manner. we can selectively tank a game in a manner similar to that game you mentioned. luka and Kyrie may play less minutes but the defensive pressure should remain high as we did in the first round. we need to teach OKC about the natural roughness of the playoffs every night we play them, regardless of the results. some of our bench players can contribute and their contributions are much needed in a potentially long playoff journey. you can not rely on the same 8-9 guys all the way expecting them to stay 100% fit and bring the trophy, which is especially true considering kleber's injury. 

speaking of luka's career i think skipping some  international games would make more sense, so he would have a full summer resting and recovering from fatigue and injuries.