2019-20 Boston Celtics Season

Isn't Doncic D a bigger hole?

www.theringer.com/nba/2019/11/1/20942869/luka-doncic-dallas-mavericks-kristaps-porzingis

Go to the bottom and read about his D and watch that last video. Teams are targeting him and his teammates are talking about having to pick the right players for him to match up against. They have to try and hide him. He likes the bigger and slower guys. Which is funny, those guys are going extinct in the NBA.

It's what I've seen watching him, currently a below average defender. It's only going to get worse in the playoffs as teams game plan more. He makes up for his lack of athleticism with his crazy skill level on offense, but skill only goes so far on D.

ESPN real plus minus hasn't come out yet so this years numbers, should be soon. Yet he was negative last year.

He's currently brilliant on offense, but he does have a big hole in his game.

He's a below average defender, but he's not unplayable. The criticism I see about him on defense is pretty much the same I used to see about Harden, even the limited athleticism thing. Now you don't hear that much about Harden on defense, because he's adequate and that's all it takes. Like RJP said, Doncic is still pretty young, he's going to get better on defense and he only needs to be average out there. Guys who are this good on offense and aren't a complete lost cause on defense don't become an issue. Even the article you linked states "everyone in Dallas believes his combination of size, strength, and intelligence should allow him to at least hold his own." And that's true. He's a big guy that won't get pushed around, he can read plays and he's aware enough to not miss many assignments.

I think the questions about his defense are far less relevant than the questions about Giannis shooting. Giannis is shooting 60 from the line.

They have Doncic, the Porzingod and a lot of solid role players. They're one extra legit option away from being up there with the Lakers and Clippers. If they get someone like Bradley Beal, they could chip.

RJP - I think you realized this (based on your response) but for others, BRobb (BSJ) had the details on what Boston can and can't send out in a trade.

Basically, if they send out less than 6.5M in trade, then they can received 175% + 100K. If they send out between 6.5 and 19.6, they can take back $5M more than they send out.

I think Fox had something big to do with it, they don't mix that well. Both Bagley and Fox were out for both games we played also.

Saying a 20 year old doesn’t lack experience is pretty disingenuous.

I'm not worried about his FT percentage, I just think it's a flaw. He's a bad shooter. He shot over 70% in previous seasons but not by much and he's a terrible 3 point shooter. Doncic is a bad defender, Giannis is a bad shooter. Both are flawed players, I think Doncic is more correctable than Giannis. He doesn't need to be elite, he needs to be solid out there. There are plenty of athletic players who aren't great defenders, just as there are plenty of middling athletes who are passable. Luka isn't like IT where it was obvious there was no way he wouldn't get targeted. Luka just needs to be like Curry or Harden on defense, just hang around.

You're overrating Luka's lack of athleticism. He wouldn't get separation to get shots off if he wasn't a legit NBA athlete, he wouldn't be able to run the offense and guys would just maul him. You don't see that happening and part of that is because he's incredibly skilled, but it's also because he belongs in the gym. Don't be a hater man, we have all been wrong before. I thought Lamar Jackson was a very stupid pick, look where we are now.

Sure he's an NBA athlete, just a below average one. That's not hating, it's the truth.

You can believe whatever you want, we'll see come playoff time. For me he's clearly the weak link and that is exactly what teams focus on come playoff time. That's not to say he can't be the top player on a title team, you'll just need the right mix of players. Curry played with a bunch of elite defenders, same with Harden who has yet to win and I think they are both better defenders by a large amount right now.

Giannis is a career 73.3% FT shooter in seven seasons, including this years numbers. He's a PF, like why does he need to be able to shoot? He's currently unstoppable without being able to shoot. If he could shoot, he'd be the best player I've ever seen. Scores 31.1 points effective FG % of 59.8, Doncic 30.6 points on 57.4% effective FG%.

Yeah...LOL.... I will let umass make my arguments for me. 

In all honesty he is right, Doncic has been playing against men in a real league for a while. Their is a difference and it shows in his game, obviously. He actually really legitimizes the euro league with his play, for me anyway. It could also be a bit of an indictment of the isolation one on one, look at my dunks, game that many of the young prospects in America have been playing for the past 30 years.

Doncic is a pretty bad defender and not a great shooter. I would never take him over Giannis.

He’s not a great 3 point shooter today... no doubting that, but again he’s 20 and he’s shootings 83% from the line and was 80% in euro league. The stroke and form is there. It’s a strong bet to make that within a couple years his 3 point percentage will be at least league average. He’s basically 33% now on a very high volume. Free throw percentage doesn’t always translate... see Westbrook earlier in his career but i don’t think anyone would confuse the two watching mechanics.