Fantastic breakdown to give us “mortals” a glimpse into the 15 different things going through Luka’s head every time up the court. Lively will keep developing into a deadly lob threat and combo. In all honesty it’s what DP was before he tore his ACL back in 2019? I excellent PnR and understanding how and when to roll. Tyson is doing wonders with Lively already. Once Kai gets going he can run two man with him and defenses really stand no chance. Luka is locked in for sure

I love what he brings to the court. Playing with Tatum and Brown really helped him slide right into playing with Luka and Kyrie. He brings size and strength to defense which we needed and knows how to get to his spots for his shots. Been nothing but impressed.

I agree that the advanced stats tell a different story. The fact of the matter still goes with team record and seeding. If we are in the middle of March and Mavs are a top 4 seed in the West and he’s putting up these numbers still he HAS to be in the conversation for MVP and a top 3 candidate. He’s perpetually an MVP candidate in October/November/December but then he either gets injured or the Mavs shit the bed for a few weeks. The Mavs should be 0-2 and we are 2-0 because of Luka. That’s mvp caliber play despite all the other metrics, anyone who watched these games know that he is HIM. Comparing team Records from teams 10+ years ago isn’t a valid argument as it wasn’t for comparing LeBron teams and records to the Jordan era. Right now there is 10 teams in each conference that are really solid teams and 10+ years ago one superstar was more than enough for a deep playoff run. Today, two superstars don’t even guarantee you get to the playoffs let alone out of the first round. A play in team went through top seeded teams in the east last season to go to the finals.

It’s certainly frustrating. Kidd did this the last two seasons, he spends 15-20 games “tinkering” with lineups. And by that time there is usually an injury or two which messes with it for another 5+ games. Did I want Lively on the floor, absolutely. And I truly think our closeout lineup will consistently be Luka/Kai/Green/Grant/Lively down the stretch. I’ll take the win though and despite my feelings on Powell, if he plays like that I’ll take the 13 minutes and let Lively get the rest. Maxi I’m having a hard time with so far. Love Maxi but remembering the good old days when he was a 4th quarter killer seemingly are in the rear view. Maxi and THJ are unplayable in the last 6 minutes of games. But I’ll take the W and 2-0. Let’s gooooooo

I’ve never seen someone hit the front of the rim first and it still go in 3 times