Luka traded to the Lakers

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

I thought my pun was spot on!



I do appreciate the office GIF. Best show ever.

[rhigh2390]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

I thought my pun was spot on!



I do appreciate the office GIF. Best show ever.

No, the pun wasn't spot on. Why do people act like Luka hasn't done anything since he came into the league? Multiple times and with an inferior team around him, he has upset teams in the playoffs with crazy performances, including a Finals run just 11 months ago. He was out a month and a half due to injury and had his life uprooted out of nowhere and thrown into Lebron's mess. Yes, he was out of gas by the end of games, but you know who else was? Your king. He shot something like 39% in the 2nd half of the games this series, including 2 4th quarter no shows with no points or assists in games 3 and 4 while both were one possession games in the last couple mins. And stop using the excuse everyone else is of "he's 40, he's 40, he's 40." All we've heard since his Mickey Mouse ring is "he's old. You can't expect anything at all out of him." Lakers need to do the same thing the Mavs did, which is get some shooters and defenders/lob threats, tell Lebron to hang it up, and let Luka do his thing. He's a generational player whether people want to admit it or not. A lot of people that are upset at him are just Lebron guys mad that he couldn't carry him to ring #5 after playing 28 games with LA this year.


And no, Seinfeld is the best show ever

[BlueXtreme]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

No, the pun wasn't spot on. Why do people act like Luka hasn't done anything since he came into the league? Multiple times and with an inferior team around him, he has upset teams in the playoffs with crazy performances, including a Finals run just 11 months ago. He was out a month and a half due to injury and had his life uprooted out of nowhere and thrown into Lebron's mess. Yes, he was out of gas by the end of games, but you know who else was? Your king. He shot something like 39% in the 2nd half of the games this series, including 2 4th quarter no shows with no points or assists in games 3 and 4 while both were one possession games in the last couple mins. And stop using the excuse everyone else is of "he's 40, he's 40, he's 40." All we've heard since his Mickey Mouse ring is "he's old. You can't expect anything at all out of him." Lakers need to do the same thing the Mavs did, which is get some shooters and defenders/lob threats, tell Lebron to hang it up, and let Luka do his thing. He's a generational player whether people want to admit it or not. A lot of people that are upset at him are just Lebron guys mad that he couldn't carry him to ring #5 after playing 28 games with LA this year.


And no, Seinfeld is the best show ever

Nothing is more disgusting to me than watching people gaslight FACTUAL things like someone is 40. And then watching them flip that into an attack of “you’re making an excuse”. It’s gross behavior, anything else that isn’t factual. Fine. He IS 40. Is not an excuse. He is also coming off an injury as well. Not just Luka. And Luka’s defensive intensity was not near the older LeBron’s. I’m not sure how you gloat about Luka while simultaneously putting Bron down about being “smoked”. Luka got cooked routinely on defense. They were in the same series. On the same team.

Just please stop saying factual things are excuses. That’s not something that can be argued. He’s 40.

[rhigh2390]

Originally Posted by BlueXtreme

Nothing is more disgusting to me than watching people gaslight that saying FACTUALLY someone is 40. And then watching people flipping that into an attack of “you’re making an excuse”. It’s gross behavior, anything else that isn’t factual. Fine. He IS 40. Is not an excuse. He is also coming off an injury as well. Not just Luka. And Luka’s defensive intensity was not near the older LeBron’s. I’m not sure how you gloat about Luka while simultaneously putting Bron down about being “smoked”. Luka got cooked routinely on defense. They were in the same series. On the same team.

Just please stop saying factual things are excuses. That’s not something that can be argued. He’s 40.

Then also admit that it's factual that he didn't show up in the 4th quarters of this series...

[BlueXtreme]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

Then also admit that it's factual that he didn't show up in the 4th quarters of this series...

100%. They were all disappointing. But what did we expect? I personally don’t think he’s looked right since the injury. Not blaming that. He could be done. May be done tbh. Time is undefeated. It comes for us all

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

No, the pun wasn't spot on. Why do people act like Luka hasn't done anything since he came into the league? Multiple times and with an inferior team around him, he has upset teams in the playoffs with crazy performances, including a Finals run just 11 months ago. He was out a month and a half due to injury and had his life uprooted out of nowhere and thrown into Lebron's mess. Yes, he was out of gas by the end of games, but you know who else was? Your king. He shot something like 39% in the 2nd half of the games this series, including 2 4th quarter no shows with no points or assists in games 3 and 4 while both were one possession games in the last couple mins. And stop using the excuse everyone else is of "he's 40, he's 40, he's 40." All we've heard since his Mickey Mouse ring is "he's old. You can't expect anything at all out of him." Lakers need to do the same thing the Mavs did, which is get some shooters and defenders/lob threats, tell Lebron to hang it up, and let Luka do his thing. He's a generational player whether people want to admit it or not. A lot of people that are upset at him are just Lebron guys mad that he couldn't carry him to ring #5 after playing 28 games with LA this year.


And no, Seinfeld is the best show ever

That's what boggles my mind as well. People act like he's putting up empty stats in some Tracy McGrady star where he's never been past the 1st round. I don't get at all. All of a sudden he sucks and is not good enough to lead a team to a title. How can you come to that conclusion so far? He's a 5 time 1st team all nba for a reason. It's all just weird to me but it's just how things are these days. Everyone's on the Ant Train again (like last year) but if he fails to get to the next round..he'll prolly get crapped on too (again, just like last year)

[SandStoneSports]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

Jokic is an absolute beast. MASSIVE difference between him and luka.

Very true one is seven feet tall and the other isnt. Other than height there is not a MASSIVE difference in ability. Complete hyperbole.

[blackvodka]

Nico traded Luka out of anger and he'll have to pay the price for it.

I do understand the concerns though. This season has put real question marks on Lukas future for me. There's a real concern about his conditioning and how long his body is going to hold up. He won't even make it to 34 if no changes are made. I actually think he's gained a little weight since being traded to the Lakers. will he actually be at full health next season? I'm not so sure he will.

That real desire to win and take his game to the next level is a real question mark for him right now. He doesn't need to be Gary Payton on the defensive side, but there needs to be at least small improvements on that side. Even on offense he can improve. When he doesn't have the ball he doesn't do much. The constantly trying to get the refs on his side might not change though.

We'll see what the Lakers do this off-season. If he gets a big who can rebound/play defense and be someone Luka can throw a few easy dunks to that's a start. He'll need a low level all-star big eventually(maybe not right away). Kobe needed Pau Gasol. The truth is the Lakers might not get this right. Everyone always thinks there's gonna be more time and that window to seize greatness is much shorter than people realize. There's a chance LeBron throws a wrench into things as well. The Lakers front office hitting a home run in the off-season isn't set it stone.

5 all first team is nothing to scoff at. Having no MVPs is something I personally hold against him. He just hasn't had that one season where it was his to claim (yet). He's had some playoff success, but sadly if he is unable to add playoff success going forward, the small post-season success he's had won't really be remembered in a real positive light. You can dissect any "magical" playoff run and make it appear not as special. People's memories can be cruel.

Sent from my motorola razr 2024 using Tapatalk

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by blackvodka

Nico traded Luka out of anger and he'll have to pay the price for it.

I do understand the concerns though. This season has put real question marks on Lukas future for me. There's a real concern about his conditioning and how long his body is going to hold up. He won't even make it to 34 if no changes are made. I actually think he's gained a little weight since being traded to the Lakers. will he actually be at full health next season? I'm not so sure he will.

That real desire to win and take his game to the next level is a real question mark for him right now. He doesn't need to be Gary Payton on the defensive side, but there needs to be at least small improvements on that side. Even on offense he can improve. When he doesn't have the ball he doesn't do much. The constantly trying to get the refs on his side might not change though.

We'll see what the Lakers do this off-season. If he gets a big who can rebound/play defense and be someone Luka can throw a few easy dunks to that's a start. He'll need a low level all-star big eventually(maybe not right away). Kobe needed Pau Gasol. The truth is the Lakers might not get this right. Everyone always thinks there's gonna be more time and that window to seize greatness is much shorter than people realize. There's a chance LeBron throws a wrench into things as well. The Lakers front office hitting a home run in the off-season isn't set it stone.

5 all first team is nothing to scoff at. Having no MVPs is something I personally hold against him. He just hasn't had that one season where it was his to claim (yet). He's had some playoff success, but sadly if he is unable to add playoff success going forward, the small post-season success he's had won't really be remembered in a real positive light. You can dissect any "magical" playoff run and make it appear not as special. People's memories can be cruel.

Sent from my motorola razr 2024 using Tapatalk

That's exactly what's going on here on BO..people are acting like Luka hasn't done anything period

[Nomad]

Originally Posted by blackvodka

Nico traded Luka out of anger and he'll have to pay the price for it.

Haven't followed this narrative at all. What's the story?

[Delta5]

Originally Posted by blackvodka

Nico traded Luka out of anger and he'll have to pay the price for it.

I do understand the concerns though. This season has put real question marks on Lukas future for me. There's a real concern about his conditioning and how long his body is going to hold up. He won't even make it to 34 if no changes are made. I actually think he's gained a little weight since being traded to the Lakers. will he actually be at full health next season? I'm not so sure he will.

That real desire to win and take his game to the next level is a real question mark for him right now. He doesn't need to be Gary Payton on the defensive side, but there needs to be at least small improvements on that side. Even on offense he can improve. When he doesn't have the ball he doesn't do much. The constantly trying to get the refs on his side might not change though.

We'll see what the Lakers do this off-season. If he gets a big who can rebound/play defense and be someone Luka can throw a few easy dunks to that's a start. He'll need a low level all-star big eventually(maybe not right away). Kobe needed Pau Gasol. The truth is the Lakers might not get this right. Everyone always thinks there's gonna be more time and that window to seize greatness is much shorter than people realize. There's a chance LeBron throws a wrench into things as well. The Lakers front office hitting a home run in the off-season isn't set it stone.

5 all first team is nothing to scoff at. Having no MVPs is something I personally hold against him. He just hasn't had that one season where it was his to claim (yet). He's had some playoff success, but sadly if he is unable to add playoff success going forward, the small post-season success he's had won't really be remembered in a real positive light. You can dissect any "magical" playoff run and make it appear not as special. People's memories can be cruel.

Sent from my motorola razr 2024 using Tapatalk

People only cares about winners and rings. So far, 8th years in Luka has 0. And judging by his conditioning, we probably only have 5 more years of his "prime"

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by SandStoneSports

Very true one is seven feet tall and the other isnt. Other than height there is not a MASSIVE difference in ability. Complete hyperbole.

There is however a MASSIVE difference in stats:

Jokic in 2025: PTS 29.5 REB 12.7 AST 10.2
Luka in 2025: PTS 28.2 REB 8.2 AST 7.7


Jokic might have a dad bod, but I've never seen anyone question his dedication.

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by blackvodka

Nico traded Luka out of anger and he'll have to pay the price for it.

I do understand the concerns though. This season has put real question marks on Lukas future for me. There's a real concern about his conditioning and how long his body is going to hold up. He won't even make it to 34 if no changes are made. I actually think he's gained a little weight since being traded to the Lakers. will he actually be at full health next season? I'm not so sure he will.

That real desire to win and take his game to the next level is a real question mark for him right now. He doesn't need to be Gary Payton on the defensive side, but there needs to be at least small improvements on that side. Even on offense he can improve. When he doesn't have the ball he doesn't do much. The constantly trying to get the refs on his side might not change though.

We'll see what the Lakers do this off-season. If he gets a big who can rebound/play defense and be someone Luka can throw a few easy dunks to that's a start. He'll need a low level all-star big eventually(maybe not right away). Kobe needed Pau Gasol. The truth is the Lakers might not get this right. Everyone always thinks there's gonna be more time and that window to seize greatness is much shorter than people realize. There's a chance LeBron throws a wrench into things as well. The Lakers front office hitting a home run in the off-season isn't set it stone.

5 all first team is nothing to scoff at. Having no MVPs is something I personally hold against him. He just hasn't had that one season where it was his to claim (yet). He's had some playoff success, but sadly if he is unable to add playoff success going forward, the small post-season success he's had won't really be remembered in a real positive light. You can dissect any "magical" playoff run and make it appear not as special. People's memories can be cruel.

Sent from my motorola razr 2024 using Tapatalk

100% agree.

[rhigh2390]

Originally Posted by Chris P

So getting to the Finals with a 5th seeded squad means absolutely nothing? You act like Luka's a perennial 1st round exit. In my opinion, getting to a conference finals an NBA Finals does mean something, especially when your team isn't supposed to be there. That Suns team they beat was a Finals favorite. They then lost to eventual champion Warriors. They went through the Clippers, OKC, and Minnesota to get to the Finals. That's not a big deal? It's damn hard to win a title. That's why even the greatest player in the world like Jokic has 1 title and that's not a knock on him, it's hard to win a title. And yeah the Celtics smoked them because the Celtics were a damn good team last year. Did anyone else from the Mavs show up? I don't remember Kyrie being that great either particularly. And 3rd in MVP voting means wasted talent because he's losing to likes of Jokic? I'm not excusing or dismissing the defense, but I'm not going to sit here and act like Luka hasn't done anything and for some reason isn't a "winner" just because he hasn't won it all yet

Some of the takes on here are laughable. Like I said before, most of the crazy takes are from lebron guys that are upset he couldn't carry him to a quick title this year. He was just as good or better than Lebron this series and was the best guy on the team after the trade, except the first couple games. Let them think what they want. Luka is generational.

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

Some of the takes on here are laughable. Like I said before, most of the crazy takes are from lebron guys that are upset he couldn't carry him to a quick title this year. He was just as good or better than Lebron this series and was the best guy on the team after the trade, except the first couple games. Let them think what they want. Luka is generational.

Yeah..I get the frustration with the defense and the whining but to just ignore belittle what he's done so far in his career (and also just go ahead and declare his career over bc ya know..he's 26 and only been to 1 finals and lost so he sucks and isn't a winner) is something else.

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by Chris P

So getting to the Finals with a 5th seeded squad means absolutely nothing? You act like Luka's a perennial 1st round exit. In my opinion, getting to a conference finals an NBA Finals does mean something, especially when your team isn't supposed to be there. That Suns team they beat was a Finals favorite. They then lost to eventual champion Warriors. They went through the Clippers, OKC, and Minnesota to get to the Finals. That's not a big deal? It's damn hard to win a title. That's why even the greatest player in the world like Jokic has 1 title and that's not a knock on him, it's hard to win a title. And yeah the Celtics smoked them because the Celtics were a damn good team last year. Did anyone else from the Mavs show up? I don't remember Kyrie being that great either particularly. And 3rd in MVP voting means wasted talent because he's losing to likes of Jokic? I'm not excusing or dismissing the defense, but I'm not going to sit here and act like Luka hasn't done anything and for some reason isn't a "winner" just because he hasn't won it all yet

Luka has been in the league since 2018 and has gone to the finals once (and was cooked)

No MVP's--best showing has been third.

Has organizations questioning his conditioning.

Admits himself he parties "too much" and has come into the season out of shape.


I will say it again, I like Luka, I collect Luka---With just a little more dedication he could probably be in the MVP race EVERY year. But for unknown reasons, he seems to lack the dedication.

And he needs to stop whining like a little bit$h after bad calls. He was already bad in Dallas, he's terrible with Lebron in LA.




I'm seriously wondering if he will ever win a chip at this point. I hope he does, because I have plenty of 2018 unopened BSKB. At least I have Shai to fall back on.

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

Luka has been in the league since 2018 and has gone to the finals once (and was cooked)

No MVP's--best showing has been third.

Has organizations questioning his conditioning.

Admits himself he parties "too much" and has come into the season out of shape.


I will say it again, I like Luka, I collect Luka---With just a Little more dedication he could probably be in the MVP race EVERY year. But for unknown reasons, he seems to lack the dedication.

So Luka should've been leading these Mavs squads to Finals since what his 2nd year? He got one and a half season with Kyrie after the Mavs fumbled away the Brunson situation and then got traded away. And again...we just ignore 5 1st team All NBA..you know nevermind...it is what it is..if that's how you feel I'm not gonna change your mind.

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by rhigh2390

Some of the takes on here are honest. Like I said before, most of the crazy takes are from lebron guys that are upset he couldn't carry him to a quick title this year. He was just as good or better than Lebron this series and was the best guy on the team after the trade, except the first couple games. Let them think what they want. Luka is generational.

fixed for you.


I don't kiss Luka's nut sack. When he's great, I praise him, when he sucks, I call him on it.

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by Chris P

So Luka should've been leading these Mavs squads to Finals since what his 2nd year? He got one and a half season with Kyrie after the Mavs fumbled away the Brunson situation and then got traded away. And again...we just ignore 5 1st team All NBA..you know nevermind...it is what it is..if that's how you feel I'm not gonna change your mind.

Honest question for you.

How many MVP's will Luka win in his career?

How many chips?


You act like I'm picking on your brother. I LIKE LUKA. But I will call him out when he doesn't play up to his standards. He could be an absolute monster if he put in more effort.

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

Honest question for you.

How many MVP's will Luka win in his career?

How many chips?


You act like I'm picking on your brother. I LIKE LUKA. But I will call him out when he doesn't play up to his standards. He could be an absolute monster if he put in more effort.

Could've fooled me that you like him. You've dismissed everything he's done. I don't know how many MVP's or Championships he's gonna win maybe zero and if he doesn't than yeah we go bac
k and call him a disappointment, but up to this point he hasn't shown me that he can't lead a team to a title when he literally led a team to the Finals last year. You can say he got smoked (while averaging 30 8 and 7 or something close to that) but that doesn't count for anything bc of his defense, but he got there and the Celtics would've smoked a ton of teams last year. You can give up on him..thats fine. I just don't agree with your assessment of his career up to this point.

[blackbears86]

Originally Posted by Chris P

Could've fooled me that you like him. You've dismissed everything he's done. I don't know how many MVP's or Championships he's gonna win maybe zero and if he doesn't than yeah we go bac
k and call him a disappointment, but up to this point he hasn't shown me that he can't lead a team to a title when he literally led a team to the Finals last year. You can say he got smoked (while averaging 30 8 and 7 or something close to that) but that doesn't count for anything bc of his defense, but he got there and the Celtics would've smoked a ton of teams last year. You can give up on him..thats fine. I just don't agree with your assessment of his career up to this point.

You and I have differing opinions on what defines success when it comes to Luka. At this point in my eyes, he has underachieved thus far in his career.

to be continued............

[SandStoneSports]

I am convinced most of the Luka haters on this board havent watched more than 3-5 games he's played in.

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

You and I have differing opinions on what defines success when it comes to Luka. At this point in my eyes, he has underachieved thus far in his career.

to be continued............

It just feels like you think it's so easy to make an NBA Finals. I believe Jokic and Giannis are better than Luka as of right now..and Jokic is considered the best in the world..yet he's been to 1 NBA Finals. Giannis has been to 1 NBA Finals. I understand that they dominated and won and Luka hasn't done that yet which is why I have them over him, but my point is even the current best players in the world have been to two finals combined despite winning 5 MVP's between them. Because it's not just about them. Look at who Jokic is playing is with right now..and Giannis..even with Dame..that team was terrible. Expecting an 18, 19 year old Luka to lead the Mavs to the Finals on a roster that had Dirk on his last legs and had literally been in lottery team..yeah that's asking a lot. Free agents don't go to Dallas so Dallas had to build their team from scratch around Luka and it took time. When it looked like they FINALLY had a running mate with Luka, they fumbled it and let Brunson walk and got nothing in return. They got lucky to get Kyrie at his all time low value and again it took a couple moves to build that team. He got all of one year and a half with Kyrie before he got traded away and they made a finals. Now he starts over again. I just don't realistically see how you think he should've been able to lead those other Mavs teams to Finals year after year. But like I said, I'll never change your mind about it so if you think he's a disappointment so be it

[rhigh2390]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

fixed for you.


I don't kiss Luka's nut sack. When he's great, I praise him, when he sucks, I call him on it.

Wish you could do the same with your king

[drobfan8]

Originally Posted by blackbears86

Honest question for you.

How many MVP's will Luka win in his career?

How many chips?


You act like I'm picking on your brother. I LIKE LUKA. But I will call him out when he doesn't play up to his standards. He could be an absolute monster if he put in more effort.

I'll say it again, MVPs are overrated.

Shaq has 1
Kobe 1
TD 2

Luka needs a decent 2nd guy to join him in LA, they have a bunch of solid role players already.

After that it's can they match up with Boston. The West he's already beaten them all except Joker.