AROUND the NBA:

[mvossman]

I didn't watch the game, but I checked the box score and what stood out to me was that in shape or not, it reads just like one of the old Luka-ball Mavs box scores. You can tell he had the ball in his hands the whole time, and that's probably why they lost. 2/10 from 3 (how many of those were step backs to end possessions where nobody else touched the ball, I wonder).

Don't sleep on the idea that there are a lot of Lakers players slowly realizing it's not going to be fun to play with him. I know ahead of time I'll get flamed for bringing that up, and I'm sure they'll say all the right things during interviews (just like the Mavs players used to) but common sense tells me it's a problem.

The point total looks great, and I bet the highlights do, too. I bet there were some sweet passes and moments of dominance - he's a great, great player. But, if he's not making his TEAM better in year 7, 8 or whatever this is...there's just something missing with him, imho.

This seems harsh.  I'm sure some players struggled to play next to Luka due to his style, but others thrived.  Kyrie did not seem to have any issues playing with him.  Three and D guys and rim runners played better next to Luka.  I have a hard time with the statement that he didn't make the team better when he dragged a limited talent team to the WCS and a collection of role players (plus Kyrie) to the finals.