2020-2021 ROSTER TALK: Archived

[KillerLeft]

With the consensus being that the ideal guard next to Luka is someone who can defend the point of attack and take playmaking duties off of Luka when needed whether it be when Luka is doubled or with the second unit, I'm very surprised that Lonzo isn't talked about much here.

The guy shot like a percentage point less than Hardaway on one more attempt per game from 3, plays elite defense in the backcourt and can actually, like....dribble which was a glaring issue for our roster in general this series.

Can't argue with any of this logic. It makes a lot of sense. I just can't imagine that having that family connected with this team would be a good thing. Maybe I'm making too much of that, but I actually am one of the people around here who believes in the Mavs' culture stuff. I think it's one of the few things they've done mostly right over the past 20 years. 

And, while I'm with you about the player description you laid out seeming like the perfect fit next to Luka, we somehow need to reconcile the fact that the Mavs tried two players like that during the last two years - first, Delon Wright, then Josh Richardson. In both cases, it eventually became clear that the team was better off with Hardaway, a pure shooter, in that spot instead. How do we make sense of that? Are Wright and Richardson not good enough examples of that type? I mean, it would be GREAT if Hardaway was also a lockdown defender and not just an adequate one, but THAT guy would be a MAX player - a STAR.

I think this is a difficult thing to figure out, especially given how many people's biggest criticism is the offense. It's almost as if the Mavs need TWO starting guards next to Luka, and Luka needs to be the 3, in name and practice both. I know @"omahen" tends to look at things from that angle, and he might be right.