MAVS 114, WOLVES 102

[luka_skywalker_77]

I agree that KP looks better. He certainl moves better. But the stats are more or less the same. Improvements in some areas. Decline in others.

Scoring
20/21 20.1ppg (23.5 per36)   47.6/37.6/85.5   58.2% TS   
21/22 19.4ppg (23.3 per36)   43.8/28.3/90.0   54.8% TS
 
More efficient in the paint. Still around 40% from midrange. Worse from 3. Higher FTAr.

Slight increase in assists (2.0 in 21/22 vs 1.6 in 20/21). Going along with a slight increase in tovs (1.4 vs 1.2)

Rebounding down. From 8.9 to 7.9.

Big difference comes on the defensive end. Still not close to the shot blocking numbers he used to have in NY but better than last season. 1.6. vs 1.3 blks per game. -10.3 DFG% inside 6ft (-5.7% last season). But on the other hand worse on the perimeter. Overall still worse because the perimeter numbers are worse (+0.5 DFG% vs -0.2 last season). Rim protection improved. Perimeter defense is still a problem.

Looking at the on/off, +/- numbers:

20/21 on court -0.7 on/off -4.9, +2.8 on offense, -7.6 on defense
21/22 on court -2.2 on/off -3.8 -1.7 on offense, -2.2 on defense (small sample size)

The same? I'd argue he's a clear 4% points higher, which is huge statistically speaking and is no small leap. Aside from that, I took a closer look at the lineups and compared Luka only to KP only (can't post it here, since i had to download and pivot the data from nba.com), and it does show the team shoots better in the KP lineups, both from three and from two. They also score more, rebound more and defend better. So KPs affect is not simply his stats--it's much more than that which is why it's critical for there to be a workable solution between both players that limits their collective deficiencies. +- to me is very limited in scope to provide much detail (at least for me).

As far as his numbers being low, that's not certain. I think the teams collective stats are n the tank; not just his. The new ball, new offense, new hot spots and cold spots, etc. who knows, but I think there's more to it than just a year over year comparison. 

The eye test shows, the team moves the ball better when Luks sits; that's evident as of late, especially in the past 5 games. Why? Perhaps because KP is one of the few players on the team that demands a double. Last night, that was clear when Kidd went to Boban early and late to draw help defenders to take the pressure off JB and the others from creating. That added space created easier shot attempts. Every contending team has a guy(s) that can do this--create gravity on the floor to open up the offense, but perhaps we're so used to Luka putting rabbits out of his ass, that we lose that perspective. They play a different brand of basketball when Luka's defensive liabilities and his formulaic offensive approaches are on the bench. And mixing those two styles is very problematic it seems at this juncture, but I have to defer the PG(s) when it comes to working out chemistry related issues.