02-02-2021, 08:54 PM
(02-02-2021, 08:05 PM)mavsluvr Wrote: Think the Mavs have made moves that made sense at the time, but which they might well do differently if they had had the benefit of hindsight. Tim thinks the Mavs, in retrospect, did Luka a real disservice by hyping him as the team leader and turning the keys over to him on and off the court when he wasn't really ready for that. Not his fault, he's only 21.
Part of Mavs problem is that there isn't a real team leader. Luka is too young. Johnson is trying to fill in the gap, but there's a limit, since he's (a) just a guy, and (b) just passing through. None of the role players has enough gravitas to assume that responsibility. Barea was Luka's Yoda, exercising "ferocious" leadership in the locker room, and mentoring Luka in particular. Looking back on it, would probably have been better to keep JJ another season.
Thanks for sharing this and compiling the notes.
This is exactly been my theory for the last month plus. I have been beating the "leadership" drum for awhile as maybe the most central issue on the team and that Luka hasn't been able to fill that void as the Mavs and as RC have been asking.
Here are my previous thoughts to add to this conversation:
From Dec 29...
Quote:1) Luka is not yet the leader he should be.
2) I think the Mavs purposely moved on from JJB to create a leadership vacuum that they are challenging Luka to fill.
Luka is going to have some growing pains as he learns to lead, but he is going to learn by doing it. I think the Mavs are purposely saying, "This is your team. Lead. Step up. It has to be you."
From Jan 23...
Quote:RC is actually giving Luka a ton of freedom to grow into the leader and on-court coach for this team. I think he wants Luka to be what Kidd was for the championship team. I think Luka is not ready for that yet, or maybe it is better to say Luka is struggling in taking on that burden so far. I don't think Luka is the leader he needs to be yet for this team, and my read is that for better or worse RC is choosing to step aside and give him the room to work that out for himself (I think JJB moving on was purposeful by the Mavs to create a leadership vacuum that Luka HAD to fill).
In this game I would like to have seen Luka step up his own energy and get in the faces of his guys when the Rockets players came out much hungrier than them. Luka spends too much time talking to the refs when he should be encouraging and getting his own guys to step up with more energy. Luka cannot control the refs, but he can control his response to them, his energy on the court, and his encouragement and leadership of his team. That needs to be his on-court focus, ignore those blind fools in stripes.
Long story, short, I think the Mavs have a team leadership issue. RC is creating the space and environment for Luka to be that and Luka is still young and immature and not performing well at his leadership role yet. I am confident he will grow and get there in the coming years, but I think his failure to be the leader he needs to be is the overall issue with this team (greater than the talent holes IMO) from my humble and limited perspective.