06-07-2021, 03:56 PM
(06-07-2021, 12:46 PM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: No. In the first 2-3 games Kawhi was guarding KP. Smart move from Lue because the Mavs don´t want to run pick and roll with the guy that Kawhi is guarding. Would be an easy switch. Obviously would be a different story if KP could set "real" screens or punish the mismatch against smaller guys. But based on everything we know that´s not the case and the Luka/KP pick and roll would result in a switch.Look, this has turned into something I didn’t say. I said the teams that were interested in him before the playoffs won’t be scared off of him after, because they can look at how the gameplan minimized what he did. All season he wasn’t all that good at defense, so if they were interested in him before, and he didn’t do well during, it’s a moot point.
When the Mavs went big in the following games. The Mavs had a better inside option. Boban can do all the things that KP cannot do on offense. Set screens. Establish position inside. Take advantage of smaller defenders. This is the KP-Powell scenario from last season. KP wasn´t happy because the offense was build around the Doncic/Powell pick and roll. Turning the 2nd big into a spot up shooter /cutter.
Maybe KP could have pulled the trigger on some semi open catch and shoot opportunities. Maybe his teammates missed him on a few occasions. In the end it comes down to KP and his level of play (on both ends, haven´t even mentioned the biggest problem...defense). We can try to find excuses for him or question why a 7´3 guy cannot score over guards. Why he cannot set a screen. Why he cannot shoot better percentages from midrange and 3-point range.
He was a 20 ppg scorer from the C spot on his best efficiency in his career. Constantly looking at the bad he did isn’t going to change that.