Almost teary eyed.....

[JayBirdHawk]

All I'll say is 'You never miss the water until the well runs dry'

@LongTimeFan can provide the meaning,  .

 

[Packfill]

10 hours ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

Trae also had key pieces of his team hurt, including the big man in the middle.

Trae is so great, Miami deployed their version of the Jordan Rules against him. They sent double, sometimes triple teams at that dude.  I watch Ja on a nightly basis, and Ja isn't seeing the defenses that Trae is.

Luka and Ja isn't seeing guys blitz them with triple teams, trying to stop him.  Teams actually want Luka to shoot  the ball, because if anybody believes in his "hero ball" the most, it's Luka.  As for Ja, teams are terrified of his athleticism, so they let him take outside shots as well.

With Trae, teams fear the pick and roll AND the deep 3.

And don't talk about Luka until he wins a game in the WC Finals.  Ja too, for that manner.  The Hawks were a referee getting in Trae's way away from reaching the NBA Finals, or at the very least pushing the Bucks to a game 7.

You so-called Hawks fans can keep sleeping on Trae if you want, thinking someone else is greater.  Tell them to lead their teams within the brink of reaching the NBA Finals.

With respect to Luk, that Mavs team is absolute trash outside of him. Murray is better than Dinwiddie, Cap is better than Woods, Hunter is better than Finney-Smith, etc.

Put it this way, if Atlanta wanted to trade its entire roster excluding Trae to the Mavs in exchange for the Mavs entire roster other than Luka, how many first round picks would Dallas need to throw in for Atlanta to do the deal?  A lot, and even then Atlanta does not do the deal.  

[Wretch]

We have one of the most amazing players in the league and are witnessing the legacy of a Hawks legend.  Maybe...if we can get the right team around him.  The day that they plug this man into the right system...it's gonna be a whole lot of people acting like they didn't say half of the preposterous things they're saying now.

Ya'll can argue about who's numbers are better, who's more impactful, or who's the better player.  Trae is at the top of this generation's talent.  Period.  You'll understand when you see him used properly.

[Guest]

37 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

All I'll say is 'You never miss the water until the well runs dry'

@LongTimeFan can provide the meaning,  .

 

It's an ancient Mesopotamian proverb describing what happens to men over 65 years of age.

[JayBirdHawk]

25 minutes ago, LongTimeFan said:

It's an ancient Mesopotamian proverb describing what happens to men over 65 years of age.

[Alf]

Trae is one of the best guards in the league and nothing he has done or not done if you will, has changed that for me. Is he perfect? Well no, no player in the league is. I know this is not in essence a 'Can we do better' thread(Or maybe it is) but I hope he is here for  long time yet.

Just needs one more complementary piece around him and he will be even better.

[Final_quest]

3 hours ago, AHF said:

I don't think anyone disagrees with that.  He is struggling hard and needs to pick it up to where his scoring efficiency has been the last 3 seasons.

Pretty amazing.  Trying to think of what is causing the dip.  One thing that is different apart from DJM, Trae is playing 1/3 of his minutes with a bench lineup versus always playing with starters.  

[AHF]

1 minute ago, Final_quest said:

Pretty amazing.  Trying to think of what is causing the dip.  One thing that is different apart from DJM, Trae is playing 1/3 of his minutes with a bench lineup versus always playing with starters.  

He is also a traditionally slow starter.  October, November, and December are by far his lowest TS% numbers for his career.  He usually gets in a groove as the season progresses.  (These are career splits)

[Final_quest]

1 hour ago, Wretch said:

Ya'll can argue about who's numbers are better, who's more impactful, or who's the better player.  Trae is at the top of this generation's talent.  Period.  You'll understand when you see him used properly.

The fact is they only talk about Ja and Luka because they are the only possible superior guys compared to Trae since he was drafted.  Maybe we should have drafted Luka, but at least we got a guy that can lead the league in scoring and assists.  I'm content.    

[HawkItus]

Luka and Trae are very similar. Eliminate the size difference and they are the same guy. 

CF participants, 2nd coach. Luka couldn't make it work with Porzingas, Trae and Collins probably need a divorce. Streaky shooters. Suspect defense. Ball dominant. 

[StonedDogs]

9 hours ago, macdaddy said:

Huh?

How about : Trae got to the ECF to lose to champs 

I mean if you're handing out credit for losing let's be complete.  And Ja won 1 game and lost 2 against the champs.  Grizz w/o Ja won 1 game and lost 2 also.   Wow he really gave them all they could handle?

Come on guys.  Are Ja and Luka better than Trae?  Maybe.  Luka probably is.  Does that mean they have or will win more and have a better career.  No. 

Yes Ja played the hell out the games he played. No one is taking the ECF away from Trae. 

And All around game Ja is better than Trae. All around game. Luka is more skilled. He played overseas pro. Trae had one year of college. Competition is not even close

[Wretch]

As for the better player debate...

I don't like direct comparisons.  The only way you can really do that is by position and tier. Like you shouldn't compare Kobe and Duncan directly. Maybe you can look at advanced metrics and whatnot to determine their worth to wins, but talking about which of them is better individually  is a pointless conversation. Apples to oranges. Kobe to Iverson to TMac is a valid discussion.

Trae and Luka are different kinds of players. Luka is a G/F that can make passes. Trae is a floor general and compares more directly to Ja.  Luka is bigger and taller, so he is better at taking contact and rebounding.  Ja is more athletic.  I don't watch enough of Ja/Luka to say who has better court vision...but Trae rates better than at least 95% of the field there. All three of these dudes can score at will.

Trae is in the conversation and that's all that really matters to me. Stats don't tell the whole story about teammates, chemistry, coaching, matchups, offensive schemes, etc. Luka and Ja are better than Kemba Walker "and it's not even close."

Unless you're talking about athleticism or rebounding, that gap does not exist between Ja, Luka, and Trae.

[terrell]

9 hours ago, bleachkit said:

I dont care about the Luka, Ja comparisons. But we need Trae to be more efficient. Even a die hard Trae stan such as yourself has to admit 40% from the field and 31% from three is not winning basketball.

Thats what he shot in 2021 playoffs and they said he was ELITE..

[deester11]

8 hours ago, Diesel said:

No... i said at this moment.   I truly believe that Trae is better than both of those guys and Head and shoulders better than Ja.  However, right now, call it early season slump, call it getting used to new teammates, the eye test is failing with Trae, but by the end of the season, I expect him to be in his rightful place.

 

I can agree on all of that.

[Atlantaholic]

6 hours ago, Final_quest said:

Pretty amazing.  Trying to think of what is causing the dip.  One thing that is different apart from DJM, Trae is playing 1/3 of his minutes with a bench lineup versus always playing with starters.  

We don't have the floor spacers around him like we did last year, and he has missed some shots he usually makes. I think his efficiency will end up improving as the season goes along, still so much season left. 

[AHF]

1 hour ago, terrell said:

Thats what he shot in 2021 playoffs and they said he was ELITE..

He was elite.  There is a reason every NBA analyst gave him his due that postseason and it isn’t because Kevin Huerter was carrying him.  His scoring was effective, his passing and ball handling was the best if anyone in the playoffs, and his defense was probably the best he has been.  Until he got hurt.  His game when he returned hurt dropped all his shooting stats by roughly 2% for the playoffs.  Probably shouldn’t ignore that.  
 

He finished the playoffs #5 in points; #3 in assists; and #10 in steals.

[Wretch]

6 minutes ago, Atlantaholic said:

We don't have the floor spacers around him like we did last year, and he has missed some shots he usually makes. I think his efficiency will end up improving as the season goes along, still so much season left. 

I don't think the part in bold is being talked about enough.  It's why I have maintained since the offseason that getting a legit sniper in the starting lineup is the key to unlocking "championship Trae."  The same reason why you need shooters around LeBron is the same reason why you need them around Trae.

[terrell]

8 hours ago, Packfill said:

With respect to Luk, that Mavs team is absolute trash outside of him. Murray is better than Dinwiddie, Cap is better than Woods, Hunter is better than Finney-Smith, etc.

Put it this way, if Atlanta wanted to trade its entire roster excluding Trae to the Mavs in exchange for the Mavs entire roster other than Luka, how many first round picks would Dallas need to throw in for Atlanta to do the deal?  A lot, and even then Atlanta does not do the deal.  

Schlenk has had 3 top 10 picks and 2 top 20 picks since drafting Trae

Mavs have had 1 1st rd pick since drafting Luka.. Josh Green.

Edited November 30, 2022 by terrell

[Diesel]

2 hours ago, StonedDogs said:

Yes Ja played the hell out the games he played. No one is taking the ECF away from Trae. 

And All around game Ja is better than Trae. All around game. Luka is more skilled. He played overseas pro. Trae had one year of college. Competition is not even close

[skimaskway23]

The amount of disrespect in this thread.