JJ Redick on Luka's constant communication with officials:
"As long as he's not creating a 5-on-4 opportunity for the other team in transition, I don't have a problem with it."
Kenny Smith: “The only mistake he made was taking an ad out in the paper. Nobody reads the paper”
Luka Doncic wanted to give Lakers fans some hope by writing a simple letter to fans & he was mocked for it. If this were Shai or Wembanyama, they would’ve been universally glazed.
Reminder: He beat Golden State so soundly, that he didn’t even need to play the 4th quarter of the game, but they haven’t talked about that — Instead he’s received nothing other personal attacks from the media.
Here’s just a few:
Max Kellerman: “He only complains so he doesn’t have to run back on defense”
Chiney Ogwumike: “Yaxel said the quiet part out loud” (quiet when they talk about it daily lol)
Stephen A. Smith: “Yaxel is saying if you’re so great stop asking the refs for help”
Mike Wilbon: “Take out all the ads that you want. I don’t want to see any letters from someone who doesn’t play defense”
Brian Windhorst: “When you say 'I'm not gonna take a night off' are you going to take possessions off because you're whining to the refs”
Kendrick Perkins: “They gone be a top offense, but they might be a play in team because Luka Doncic & Austin Reaves don’t play defense”
They ignore his greatness on the court & the attacks are always personal. It’s time that we hit back.
Luka was great overall in the opener
That said
Luka shot 38% FG in preseason w/ 5 TOV
hoped he’d clean it up in RS
Opening night - 38% FG, 6 TOV (but solid FT’s)
Too much to ask for a 47%-50% FG Luka game tonight against a bottom west team?
Morgan Freeman was not wrong when he said, "Become a man who can face a breakup. lose a job. deal with debt and still say, ‘God is with me. I’ll figure it out."
this is precisely the reason why shai is glorified. he can have the worst half of his career and still be down 4 bc his team is genuinely stacked with good role players. it’s not shai, it’s okc