(11-03-2021, 10:50 PM)KillerLeft Wrote: Agree with everything above, but you left out what I think might have been the biggest reason: the organization (Cuban) insisting that KP is salvageable. We might not all agree that this is #1, but it should at least be listed amongst the other good points you've made.
I might be oblivious (and probably am), but I never really thought there was a divide between Rick and KP. I always assumed the divide was with Luka since he couldn't run an offense they way he wanted with Luka being so ball dominate. I get KP's frustration with Luka and to a lesser extent, vice versa. I can see KP being frustrated with the coaching staff ("2 point shots aren't valuable in today's NBA"). I just never read into Rick being frustrated with KP.
I'm not denying Luka's talent but I've often said here that he isn't an easy player to be a teammate with, especially for a co-star. I think you can extend that to coaching him as well. And when you have a personality like Rick, who isn't easy himself, that's just a bad combo. If I had to guess, I don't think Rick really ever felt empowered to coach him how he saw fit.
(11-03-2021, 10:57 PM)dirkfansince1998 Wrote: Rick was already all in on spacing, 4-out or 5-out spread pick and roll before Luka joined the Mavs. He also loved to run horns sets or spain pick and roll. Basically all the things that Luka excels at. I think the main adjustment that RC made was to give up the leash and let him make mistakes. Luka isn´t the conservative decision maker that RC used to prefer. He is more creative but also high risk.
Very true. I guess I was talking more about usage rate and those high risk passes and "bad" shots that he is fond of.