Game 63: Miami Heat (35-26) vs. Dallas Mavericks (34-28)

[KillerLeft]

It was Lively plus Kleber to close it. PJ was off the court. I think we could’ve used any of those 6 guys. They were all playing good team defense

Not in literally the last 1:30 or so, after the last MIA timeout. Lively did play down the stretch, it’s true, but the technical “closing” lineup was PJ and Kleber.

[Chicagojk]

Not in literally the last 1:30 or so, after the last MIA timeout. Lively did play down the stretch, it’s true, but the technical “closing” lineup was PJ and Kleber.

I believe Lively went out because he got hurt on that Bam foul

[KillerLeft]

I believe Lively went out because he got hurt on that Bam foul

You might be right about that. Still, Kleber closed the game out with great 1-on-1 defense against Adabayo. 

I hope the injury isn’t anything serious.

[The Jom]

Feels like we have a hole at SF.  Exum probably can’t be counted on for a ton of minutes but he needs to play.  We probably need a shooter and scorer but Hardaway has been so bad that he is not the answer now.  Green may be done for a while.  I hope not but it looks like he may be in his head again. I just don’t think Jones is the answer because with him and PJ we won’t have the shooting.  Tough choices

Interesting take. From my seat, I’d say our SF position is led by a guy averaging roughly a 35-point triple double in 40 minutes of game time. So there’s only about 8 minutes left to fill. 

On the other hand, I do wish he’d play defense.

[SwisherPrice]

I don’t know if I would go as far as to say that Luka can’t play point guard, but… and I don’t want to stir up any negativity tonight, of all nights, but I think he might care about his stats a little bit more than maybe he should.

I will definitely go that far...after 6 seasons of watching Luka, this is the biggest realization I've made about him as a player. Luka just isn't a PG and that's fine. He is more in the mold of a Bird/Jordan/Kobe/Kawhi type of player. You can still be a high-usage scorer and a great playmaker but that doesn't mean you have to be doing it all as the PG.

Luka already has to do way too much while playing big minutes so playing with a real PG (and eventually under a better offensive system with a new coach) would allow him to focus and specialize on what he does best offensively while also not exhausting him as much.

[KillerLeft]

I will definitely go that far...after 6 seasons of watching Luka, this is the biggest realization I've made about him as a player. Luka just isn't a PG and that's fine. He is more in the mold of a Bird/Jordan/Kobe/Kawhi type of player. You can still be a high-usage scorer and a great playmaker but that doesn't mean you have to be doing it all as the PG.

Luka already has to do way too much while playing big minutes so playing with a real PG (and eventually under a better offensive system with a new coach) would allow him to focus and specialize on what he does best offensively while also not exhausting him as much.

Again, I’m not disagreeing with you, I just don’t quite agree with the solution. He’s obviously not going to give the ball up, so the solution is to hope like hell that he CAN play point guard. Because he is GOING to be the point guard. They will never, ever, ever take him off the ball.

Again, my retort is that I think he can, it’s just that he has bought into the MVP race and his numbers a little bit too much. I think Donnie Nelson had it right a few years ago when he did that radio interview claiming that Luka needed to improve at getting other players involved in the offense. He got eviscerated for that by local fans and media, but I think he was right. And, I think that was the logic behind hiring Jason Kidd – hoping that he could teach Luka how to do that.

Hasn’t worked so far, but if you have decided he’ll never be able to do it, you might as well switch teams right now, because there is a 0% chance they’re ever going to take the ball away from him while he is here. Literally, 0%.

[KillerLeft]

Again, I’m not disagreeing with you, I just don’t quite agree with the solution. He’s obviously not going to give the ball up, so the solution is to hope like hell that he CAN play point guard. Because he is GOING to be the point guard. They will never, ever, ever take him off the ball.

Again, my retort is that I think he can, it’s just that he has bought into the MVP race and his numbers a little bit too much. I think Donnie Nelson had it right a few years ago when he did that radio interview claiming that Luka needed to improve at getting other players involved in the offense. He got eviscerated for that by local fans and media, but I think he was right. And, I think that was the logic behind hiring Jason Kidd – hoping that he could teach Luka how to do that.

Hasn’t worked so far, but if you have decided he’ll never be able to do it, you might as well switch teams right now, because there is a 0% chance they’re ever going to take the ball away from him while he is here. Literally, 0%.

For perspective on this, I’m pretty sure Luka is still younger than Kobe Bryant was when he figured out how to make his teammates better, or than Jordan was when he figured it out.

There is still a lot of growth and figuring things out ahead of him in his career. We have to remember and believe that. That’s why it’s so frustrating (to me) that they didn’t hire a real coach.

[GATA]

Imagine saying that a guy that averages 10 assists a game, and would lead the league by far if not playing with some absolute scrubs, is not getting his team involved?

The problem with this team is Irving. Never should have traded for him. He’s a Trae Young-level bad defender, and is a highly overrated offensive player

[KillerLeft]

Imagine saying that a guy that averages 10 assists a game, and would lead the league by far if not playing with some absolute scrubs, is not getting his team involved? 

And yet there are several of us who have been studying the game for decades saying that.

if you really want to learn, start by throwing out the assumption that assists are the only way to get people involved, because that is what’s holding Luka back. Sometimes, he literally won’t release the ball unless he thinks he’s going to get an assist out of it.

Often, it’s the pass before the assist pass that really opens up the offense. Someone as genius as Luka knows that, which leads me to believe that he plays a little bit selfishly, sometimes. if he would give up the ball earlier in possessions, other players would touch the ball more often, and would find it easier to play in rhythm, rather than having to just wait until two seconds left on the clock and hit last minute shots that Luka creates for them. This style makes it more difficult for players to get in rhythm than we realize, and all you have to do is listen to players talk about this to get that. 

One of the better developments of this season is that Kidd was able to convince Luka to give up the ball earlier in transition. That has helped in numerous ways, but I still feel like the half court offense is sludge city.

[Jason Terry]

Not in literally the last 1:30 or so, after the last MIA timeout. Lively did play down the stretch, it’s true, but the technical “closing” lineup was PJ and Kleber.

True. You are right.

[KillerLeft]

True. You are right.

Yes, but to your point, Chicago reminded me that quite possibly the only reason Lively went out was because he got dinged up a little bit. The plan was definitely for him to play center down the stretch, which is a departure from what has been working for them recently, and was a good call. so, your point was a good one.

[Jason Terry]

For perspective on this, I’m pretty sure Luka is still younger than Kobe Bryant was when he figured out how to make his teammates better, or than Jordan was when he figured it out.

There is still a lot of growth and figuring things out ahead of him in his career. We have to remember and believe that. That’s why it’s so frustrating (to me) that they didn’t hire a real coach.

Does he want to be Kobe or Harden when he grows up though? I don’t know

[soog]

And yet there are several of us who have been studying the game for decades saying that.

if you really want to learn, start by throwing out the assumption that assists are the only way to get people involved, because that is what’s holding Luka back. Sometimes, he literally won’t release the ball unless he thinks he’s going to get an assist out of it.

Often, it’s the pass before the assist pass that really opens up the offense. Someone as genius as Luka knows that, which leads me to believe that he plays a little bit selfishly, sometimes. if he would give up the ball earlier in possessions, other players would touch the ball more often, and would find it easier to play in rhythm, rather than having to just wait until two seconds left on the clock and hit last minute shots that Luka creates for them. This style makes it more difficult for players to get in rhythm than we realize, and all you have to do is listen to players talk about this to get that. 

One of the better developments of this season is that Kidd was able to convince Luka to give up the ball earlier in transition. That has helped in numerous ways, but I still feel like the half court offense is sludge city.

Couldn’t have said it better myself. Reducing all of your teammates to spot up shooters gets you assists but doesn’t get them involved in the game. The team looks completely different when Luka is off the floor and Kyrie is the primary ball handler. It’s a breath of fresh air. Unfortunately, I think this aspect of Luka’s game puts a ceiling on this team. If he can figure this out though, the sky is the limit.

[GATA]

Nothing about the offense with Kyrie looks good. He’s not a great passer by a means. Much rather role with Exum than Irving if he can stay healthy

[ThisIStheYear]

I actually don’t know where the Mavs stand on this -will have to look it up- but my metric for Luka getting people involved isn’t his assists but the total number of team assists.

[ballsrchr]

I'll put my dog in the hunt for point guard.

I think Exum is the best pure point guard we have right now.

I also think that if Luka can grow up, become a team leader, and realize what it takes to involve the entire team...he can be the best there ever was, or is. This will take the right mentors and coaches. Right now the chances of that happening are slim. But--I'm an optimistic MAVS homer. There is a chance. A chance.

[omahen]

Not a good game at all, but Mavs got the win they desperately needed. Defense didn't seem much better than in previous games, especially in the game start, but that was a lot on Luka who started really bad. They were still killed in PnR and gave up way too many good looks from three. The start was especially bad with offense not humming and defense as bad as ever (miami hitting everything also didn't help). The turning point were a couple of minutes in the second quarter, where Miami started to suddenly double Luka resulting in ball starting to move for the Mavs. I think that got them going.

I hope Mavs will not start to think they did something here and come with even more urgency into next game. Chicago is far from a walkover. With the defense Mavs are playing lately, they will easily score 130 points.

[Chicagojk]

First, I didn't know you could find links like this.  So thanks for whoever showed them a game or two ago.  I hope these work.

https://www.nba.com/stats/events?CFID=&CFPARAMS=&GameEventID=504&GameID=0022300904&Season=2023-24&flag=1&title=Jaquez%20Jr.%203PT%20Jump%20Shot%20(11%20PTS)%20(Rozier%209%20AST)

watching this play live, I was wondering what Kyrie is doing.  It doesn't show the whole play though.  But why is he getting stuck under the rim when Gafford is already in the paint.  It just feels like the players are either confused or their communication sucks.  They have way to many miscommunications or free lancing. 


https://www.nba.com/stats/events?CFID=&CFPARAMS=&GameEventID=531&GameID=0022300904&Season=2023-24&flag=1&title=Rozier%2024%27%203PT%20Jump%20Shot%20(22%20PTS)%20(Bryant%201%20AST)

This one really bothered me.  Can anyone explain if this has been their strategy all year long?  It is another play where they are playing hard but a miscommunication or confusion allows a late shot clock wide open corner three off one pass.

[Chicagojk]

I am not sure what I think about the starting lineup changes. I just don't think Jones shoots it well enough. With PJ struggling shooting, it really clogs things up to start the games. He is a better defender than Josh though, but not sure Josh is ideal as a long term starter either. I would lean more towards the guy who has the longer contract in Josh because you invested in him. Josh needs to play better though.

Not sure what I think about center either. I am in favor of letting Lively start because he is the future. The minutes of Lively/Gafford last night met my expectations though. Lively, Like the game against SA where he came off the bench, was very active when he was in the game. Gafford was part of the rough defense to start the game, but I am not sure how much of the blame was his. He did get several easy baskets and helped on rebounding.

[omahen]

First, I didn't know you could find links like this.  So thanks for whoever showed them a game or two ago.  I hope these work.

https://www.nba.com/stats/events?CFID=&CFPARAMS=&GameEventID=504&GameID=0022300904&Season=2023-24&flag=1&title=Jaquez%20Jr.%203PT%20Jump%20Shot%20(11%20PTS)%20(Rozier%209%20AST)

watching this play live, I was wondering what Kyrie is doing.  It doesn't show the whole play though.  But why is he getting stuck under the rim when Gafford is already in the paint.  It just feels like the players are either confused or their communication sucks.  They have way to many miscommunications or free lancing. 


https://www.nba.com/stats/events?CFID=&CFPARAMS=&GameEventID=531&GameID=0022300904&Season=2023-24&flag=1&title=Rozier%2024%27%203PT%20Jump%20Shot%20(22%20PTS)%20(Bryant%201%20AST)

This one really bothered me.  Can anyone explain if this has been their strategy all year long?  It is another play where they are playing hard but a miscommunication or confusion allows a late shot clock wide open corner three off one pass.

Players look very confused on defense, not knowing what to do. Lack of communication also seems to be a big problem. So many similar defensive breakdowns each game.