02-06-2025, 07:56 PM
(02-06-2025, 07:33 PM)Dahlsim Wrote: First, to even discuss this I have to put aside the shady way this deal was done, the lopsided return, and the crooked way the NBA appears to conspire to make their marquee teams great. Lakers/Boston/Knicks all revived just in time to save the ratings.
But, purely on basketball:
I think a weak but plausible excuse can be made for this trade creating a better Mavs team in the short and near term just as you state above.
There is a legitimate question as to whether this Mavs team that made to the finals and got dominated by Boston would have been good enough to get to the finals this year given the ascendance of the teams you cite above and the general state of the West. The record this year didn't indicate the Mavs were anywhere near favored to make it back to the finals. They were going to need the return of a healthy and motivated Luka + several other players and all had to catch fire at the right time to have a real chance.
I think you have to consider that Luka on the Lakers now maybe has a better chance to win and get pass OKC and the Western powers than Luka on this Mavericks iteration would have.
Luka is almost certainly going to be more motivated on the Lakers now that he's been insulted by Nico and the Mavs franchise. I think he'll be motivated to improve his conditioning and body. He was not at his physical best in Dallas. Was he going to get there if they kept the team as is? Maybe, but he hadn't shown he would.
Was he fantastic offensively anyway? Yes! But was he also starting to be injury prone and a high risk to be less than 100% when the playoffs and finals came around? I think yes, he was banged up by the time they faced Boston last year.
So now you have the same hold your breath for health concern with AD but I don't think AD has come in quite as flaccid looking as Luka had started to do. Hey I love the guy but he was starting look like he was approaching middle age at times even though he's 25! I love him, but I didn't like what he looked like recently. Unfortunately now I think he'll get himself together physically but he'll be doing it for the enemy. (Why I would have traded him to anyone but the Lakers).
On the rest so far, their depth pieces are competitive. It will be interesting to see how well the trade filler youngster Max Christie continues to develop.
- Kyrie Irving
- Klay Thompson
- P.J. Washington
- Anthony Davis
- Derek Lively / Daniel Gafford
The starting 5 and overall roster could compete with any team, including OKC, SA for the next 3 years if healthy and maintained around the margins.
Offensively they lack star power and clutch creation in the backcourt to compliment Kyrie but Klay can still look splash brotherish at times. I think Spencer D. and if he gets back to form Dante Exum was pretty capable last season but they no longer have that 2 headed offensive creation monster that was Luka/Kyrie.
Offensively AD is a 2-way all star who can have big games scoring too so J. Kidd on paper, when healthy has talent to work with. They have to recreate the offense now without Luka but they also have get the teams morale back to championship level and that also could be challenging.
Wild disagree on the Lakers having a better chance with Luka than the Mavs would have. The Mavs current record is a reflection of massive injury and illness. The day Luka got traded the Mavs had the exact same record that they did last year at this time. A lot of things would have to go right for a repeat, but its still more likely than the Lakers right now, and that's after they sent out their last assets to get a center specifically for Luka (the kind of decision the Mavs could have made instead of this insanity).
I don't believe that starting lineup is contender worthy. They don't have a true point guard and I don't think two center lineups are effective in the playoffs as the defense is likely to get torched on the perimeter. I don't see any chance this team can handle a team like OKC in a 7 game series.