06-21-2022, 01:41 AM
(06-21-2022, 01:06 AM)KillerLeft Wrote: It's a decent point, but it doesn't change the calculus, for me.I hope you don't think me disingenuous...
Yes, Looney hurt the Mavs. I personally didn't think he bullied them, I think they moved the ball really, really, REALLY freaking well and he was the guy whose defender had to leave him at the end of those possessions. He made them pay by presenting himself intelligently as a target in the paint after the ball had pinballed around enough to break the defense.
And, it's worth noting that he was on the floor specifically because he was able to hang in there early in the series when the Dallas ball-handlers (including Luka) tried to attack him on switches. He did so better than Gobert, better than Ayton. Kudos to him, and hopefully the Mavs can find some modern bigs like that. Hopefully Wood is one, honestly.
But, it's disingenuous to suggest that GS simply decided to stay big at the 5. They had a good one who was ready to D up on the perimeter. That's rare.
Looney is a physical presence out there. It would have been nice to have had some better rebounding/rim protection to throw out there to defend the paint a bit better. An option to go to. The Mavs had nothing to turn to, other than Bobi - which would have been worse. I am sure Wood will help, but he is not physical and is not considered even an avg defender. It is like the Nash era Suns out there with Wood as Amare. He is going to do well on offense, but it is hard to be elite when you can't defend the paint. It just breaks down your defense and opens up the 3 even more. It's like running the ball in football. It isn't as important in the "modern game" until someone can't stop it. Then it's fatal.
Even the W's will be better next season when they have Wiseman as an option to go to for bigger matchups. They could go big or small. Options. Matchups. That's all I'm getting at here.