I feel like I havent seen him post someone up in a long time. He has such nasty footwork down low that I feel like I havent seen him use since the beginning of last season. Its all in the video but Im thinking of when he used to bully Cam Johnson in the 22 Suns series or when he made Precious Achiuwa dance last year. Im guessing its because it slows down the pace of the game and is more work on him and less opportunities for his teammates- still, it would be cool to see more post fades and anklebreakers. It was a huge reason why I became such a fan in the first place. Seems like he mostly does stepback threes or driving through contact now. If it works it works though
by 4ps22
@Dallas Mavericks
13 Comments
Wish he’d do more of this and limit the step back threes to 2 a game
Likely has something to do with the injuries he’s been sustaining to his legs. Also probably goes hand in hand with the direction he’s taking with his body and shedding bulk.
I was very worried when his nagging injuries stuck around this summer, but they seem to be addressing it with tactical changes & situationally appropriate conditioning.
Pretty sure he does those all the time, only now they double him after the first bump and he passes out
He still does it occasionally. But it is nearly impossible for him to back anyone up these days without a team immediately throwing a double team his way.
It is shocking seeing this clip and seeing teams used to leave an undersized defender all alone with him.
Injuries? His ankle was giving him problems a lot
He does it all the time? It’s just they double team him almost immediately
Cuz he gets doubled every time he attempts it lol, suns let him go 1 v 1 in this game and he absolutely cooked em
We’ll probably see it more when/if the Mavs get to the playoffs where the game becomes a little more physical.
In the regular season, it’s probably a good idea for him to continue to shoot 3s (as long as he’s shooting at a good clip) just to avoid some wear and tear.
“Get to the paint” minded Luka is definitely his most unstoppable version. Just saw it last night and it was beautiful
He’s averaging 0.4 less post ups per 48. It’s not that significant.
Double team
He’s getting doubled as soon as he gets past the halfcourt
I think now Luka’s favorite post move is to back the defender down into the paint, get him off balance with a bump, and then simply shoot a short floater/bank shot over the guy. It’s probably more efficient and easier to execute for Luka than the other moves, so why bother with fancy footwork or work to get even deeper under the basket where you have to deal with a shot blocker? He still goes for the turnaround fade in important moments when he wants to get a high-percentage look against a stout defense.
Overall, Luka’s inevitably going to gravitate towards whatever is easiest/most efficient, especially in stretches when he is overworked.