MAVS NEWS: Luka Is Hurt, But is Trudging On | DLive's Mom Passes Away| Maxi OUT

[DanSchwartzgan]

https://www.theringer.com/nba/2024/2/6/2...le-players

That was really good (and long).  Gives you a sense of the plan (or Rob's interpretation of the plan).  Long, athletic, good citizen.  Doesn't have to be the star, but capable of scoring on nights a star is out.  I liked this section where he quotes Josh.  I've long thought someone who can do what he does when needed and just be a connector when he's not is extremely valuable.  I personally like him starting as it gets him away from shot-hunting Hardaway.  To me, Exum's game is more suited next to THJ (assuming THJ is still here after Thursday afternoon).  

You get the impression Jones is valued, but maybe in a role where his offensive weaknesses aren't so exposed.  Bringing in a 4/3 on a team that already has Jones, GWill and Maxi willl cause a log-jam unless one of them is outgoing. Bringing in a scorer/creator like Kuzma (mentioned in the article) causes even fewer shots for the non-stars if Hardaway is still around.  To me, GWill and THJ are the logical outgoing players in such a deal.  I feel kind of bad for them having to play this week while dealing with that.




And because of the way Doncic searches for and seizes advantages, the supporting Mavs never really know how involved they’ll be. “Some games, you’ll get 10 shots,” Green says. “Other games, you get two.” Not everyone is built for that, and some NBA players lose their bearings after long stretches without touching the ball. Operating on the periphery is a test of focus, but more than that, it requires a player to generate their own energy, because the momentum of play won’t always be there to carry them.


It’s not a coincidence that so many of the bright spots of this Mavericks season are self-starters. Lively chases down rebounds well out of his zone. Exum is one of the most active and intuitive cutters Doncic has ever played with. Jones can go from standing in place on the wing to soaring for a tip dunk in an instant. “There’s a lot of amazing scorers in the league and they need the ball in their hands,” Harrison says. “But they’re not better than Luka. So now we need guys that can complement that. If you watch Luka, he’s gonna give you shots that are so wide open that you almost don’t know what to do. You have so much time. So we need guys that can actually feed off that.”