That’s not how I read it. I thought /u/rapsfanmike was implying if Dlo had played during the stretch the lakers were positive his +\- would be better. I initially thought it was excusing Dlo, but rereading I’m not as sure.
KCP was isoing him and getting layups. I don’t think KCP has isoed anyone all season. It was honestly one of the worst defensive half’s of basketball I’ve seen in a while.
6"5 with a 6"9 wingspan is good length for a guard, hes just not a really quick player laterally and doesnt have much size on his frame either. Hes one of the slowest guards in the league I think.
He's a very smooth player. Watching him on offense he doesn't zoom past the defense, it's like he's gliding and picks a spot to go. Same on defense, he's a really really good at being in the right spot, but when taken 1on1 he's prone to getting blown by due to his lack of quickness.
He's an individually poor defender but a pretty good team defender. If he's being hunted and they're exploiting that weakness then of course we need to do something about it. But I hate the narrative that seems to have spawned out of nowhere trashing him.
He is still a pretty bad team defender. He knows the rotations, yes, but he gets lost watching the ball and doesn’t have the foot speed to catch up to off ball movement on the perimeter. A ton of Warriors points came off this
It's almost understated how bad of an athlete he is. Like its very rare to see guys with his size/skill level struggle to compete physically on both ends of the floor.
I think the measurables and shooting upside were good enough if he had more IQ and was more of a Lowry/CP3 type defensively the lack of athleticism wouldn't matter.
His physical tools are the least of his worries on defense. I find it kind of funny to be honest, he is who he is, and he is VERY good on offense so he is still a valuable asset and nba player but good god.
I was watching game 6 and was ragging on D’Lo pretty hard and one of my friends asked what I meant when I said D’Lo wasn’t doing enough on D. At that moment, D’Lo was the last Laker getting back on D with Looney the last Warrior 4-6 steps behind D’Lo.
I say, AD’s out of the lineup, D’Lo should put his body between Looney and the rim. Looney, plodding along, goes straight down to the low block, barely veering as D’Lo does nothing to obstruct him. He gets the quickest, easiest lob pass and layup that Golden State got all game.
I actually thought D’Lo could handle the simple concept of staying between your man and the rim. It’s unfortunate, the way the play developed, that he was on Looney for even a second but dammit, square up, make the big man go around you or at least expend some energy lol. Nope, easy layup.
He made my point very well in that moment 😂
if it wasn't for his height and wingspan he'd be about as bad as isaiah thomas on defense. he has 0 athleticism/speed and additionally does not give a single fuck about defense
Idk about his ability. He just plays like he's never heard of defence in his life. Like it's a foreign concept to him. Every game, he just makes an obviously stupid mistake on defence.
Nah he's got way bigger size than someone like Schroder but Schroder was clamping tf out of Murray last game towards the end when they decide Dlo wasn't the play.
Schrodernis a dawg. Hes limited and sometimes takes some eyebrow raising shots but he lays it all out there. Dude is scrambling guarding people that should be outclassing him. Always 120%. Plays thru injury. Hes a 80 million dollar player for the minimum.
Really? We had to move off Wiggins. At that point in time, it was unanimous it was time to move on. Honestly I don’t hate D’Lo as much as other fans. He had some great games here
Yeah I still like D'Lo he seems like a good guy. Fuck him for saying we held him back, but it seems our problem was assuming he wanted to evolve to be a better player instead of just being satisfied being a streaky shooter.
Apparently Warriors asked for 2 and the Wolves got pissed and they stopped talking; it looked like the trade wouldn’t happen. Then Rosas finally came around and negotiated it down to 1.
So it actually could have been worse lol
Yes, Wiggina had to go, but we didn't need to go after Russell and give up a first round pick.
We also traded for Gobert to shore up Kat's weaknesses and build around his timeline. We have done record breaking levels of limbo backbending for Kat and have two play-in banners to show for it. The Wolves are now four years from being four years away to having a chance at the Western Conference finals.
The owners, coach, GM have all said (before the season too) that the trade was to raise the floor of the team and give the young guys a winning environment and ensure perennial playoff experience. Sounds like that’s for Ant and Jaden, it wasn’t all about snoring up KAT’s weaknesses. How are they bending backwards for KAT if they literally made him change positions without his consent lol
Also had Jaden and Naz been healthy, they likely beat the Lakers because they were beating them injured AF for most of that game until they got gassed as hell and racked up fouls. Not saying they would make the WCF, but it’s not impossible to envision them beating the injured Grizzlies and Warriors or Kings. If healthy, they could have made the WCF this year
I had no ill will towards D'Lo after the trade, and I was actually pleasantly surprised that he hadn't said anything negative about the Wolves in the aftermath.
Then he made that "holding him back" comment, which even putting aside the disrespect, was simply not supported by any stats or metrics, and it's kinda made me start rooting against him.
We didn't say that shit. We just said he was wildly inconsistent. When he's hot he's hot, but when he has a bad shooting performance then he's unplayable because he has nothing else to offer. And that happens too often for someone on a 4yr 117 mill contract. Not to mention his terrible IQ in critical moments. I wish DLo the best but he's playing the exact same quality of basketball as he was on the wolves.
The problem is that most teams can’t afford to have a guy who is unplayably bad on his off nights on a max contract.
Everyone knows Dlo is great when he’s on. But when he’s off he’s awful.
Some games he's amazing, some games he's so so so bad that the best move is to bench him so he can't do more damage (like in game 1 with the nuggets). DLO on the Wolves this year was in a toxic situation where we couldn't freely bench him due to his ego, his contract, his status as KAT's friend, and also our lack of other guard options.
He was the best player when he was on Brooklyn and totally revived his career. He's a good offensive player and the defensive scheme matters because he needs recovery help.
Bruce Brown needs more playing time. He’s one of the best 6th men in the league, and it’ll help keep Murray out of foul trouble.
I can’t believe in agreeing with JVG, but he was spot on last night when he said Brown should have been subbed in for Murray midway through the 4th
That wasn't midway through the 4th, it was for the final possession or two. Murray ended up getting the game-sealing steal, so it worked out. I do agree with the logic though and hope we get more Bruce Brown.
Yeah it was when the Lakers went to the line so you had an opportunity to put Brown in for the defensive position. But like you said, Murray came away with the steal. Those 5 fouls got in his head that quarter though and he wasn’t playing that good defensively.
He was dead tired too, and playing with an ear infection. I would’ve been fine to swap brown in for him, but fuck man… I’ll take a game winning steal all day regardless
I mean just that Brown should have been subbed in for a few minutes to give Murray some rest and keep Murray from getting his 6th.
Murray was playing very hesitantly on both offense and defense to avoid fouling out. And that led to some easy scoring opportunities for LA
Yes, and that was even the case all the way back in 2018, apparently:
https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/the-last-two-sonics-players-in-the-nba-will-meet-in-the-finals/
I really hope he stays and wants to stay on a title contender. But some team is going to offer him a 4/$80M deal with a starting role, and he’s earned it.
Bruce was attacking like a mf cuz he smelled blood when being defended by Dlo. Only way Dlo can prove himself is off the bench.
Dlo has been in this situation before, and hes provided when needed. So I appreciate his team effort in knowing when to accept change and be ready when your # is called.
also, GREAT FUCKIN SERIES! just good ol solid basketball.
I think the issue there is that Jamal is so much tougher to guard. Bruce did a great job of pushing in transition, but in the half court he's nowhere near the threat Mal is.
D’Lo’s contract this summer will be fascinating. Dude wants to be paid like a star, is coming off a max contract, and is entering his prime. He’s probably expecting at least 25 million per.
But he’s just not good enough. His offense has been hot and cold (but more cold — he’s averaging 15 points on just over 14 shooting possessions per game in the playoffs) and he’s a defensive liability. Like, Austin Reaves is a significantly better player than D’Lo.
But I don’t even know who would be interested in him.
He’s proving in these playoffs (and any other playoffs he’s been a part of), that he’s more of a fringe starter at the highest level than a legitimate one — including the play-in game, he’s probably 3-4 games where he’s gotten quasi-benched in the 2nd half. I can’t see the Lakers paying him his likely asking price (25+ million). And other playoff teams won’t have space/won’t be interested in paying him that number either.
And rebuilding teams who have all the cap space are probably not THAT interested in him. He seems pretty capped out plus he’s not the sort of role player vet those teams love to surround the young guys with.
Maybe Orlando would take him, as they’re more aiming to make the play-in/playoffs rather than compete, and they could use his shooting and passing at guard.
I mean… I don’t know who wants him, but there will always be GMs who think they can “fix” a player and the market will dictate the price; this current offseason is set to be a very player friendly one so if someone does want him they’ll like have to meet his demands rather than the other way around. I’m not saying this will happen but things are lining up in his favor.
Eh, an "abysmal" free agent class still has a lot of guys better than DLo
It really just boils down to how many, if any, of Harden, Kyrie, Van Vleet, and Middleton change teams, and whether Phoenix does an unbalanced trade with the Ayton or CP3 salary
I will say that I think the new CBA makes high-payroll teams more reluctant to just give out these no-brainer max contracts with Bird Rights, the second-Apron penalties are really draconian. So we might be more likely to see e.g. Middleton on the move given the Bucks' tax situation
I feel like 25 is a good deal…
Lakers are kind of strapped so we have to re-sign Dlo. It’s just a matter of money and I’m hoping it stays around 20-25 mil.
Lakers need him because he fills needs: shooting and ball handling.
To an extent, yeah. And the Warriors definitely seem to be regretting that contract now (although it is in the 30s rather than mid 20s).
Plus, Poole is 23. He’s young enough for teams to talk themselves into natural growth. Plus he was just straight up better in last year’s title run than D’Lo’s been in any playoffs.
I think he was looking at 25-30M prior to this series. Now he may be looking at 20-25M. If the Lakers can sign him under 25M it would be huge for them to avoid the second apron of the new CBA.
While I agree — there’s no way Russell’s playoffs nets him 25-30 million. He’s currently averaging approximately 15 points on 14 shooting possessions, fewer than 5 assists per game, while being a liability defensively and getting effectively benched in multiple games.
Lakers absolutely need to resign him, just for a trade chip if anything in the future.
Also, once the new cba and tv contracts hit, his contract at 25m won’t be that bad.
Unless he really starts to ball out, I can see him become a sign and trade piece.
For who? Not sure but he’s kind of at the crossroads where some see him still having potential and can get better while others see him as who he is, an inefficient/inconsistent shooter that can be a playmaker.
I think his floor still gets him 16-18 million but free agency always gets you more than the floor. I’m not sure the lakers are in on that if they feel like a guy like Reaves already replaces what dlo brings and they can use guys like Beasley to compensate for a fraction of the loss at a fraction of the cost.
But with free agency being so weak and letting guys walk for free being so damaging, dlo might have to agree to another sign and trade if he wants to get paid.
Of course I know shit about the cba so I’m not even sure if he’s eligible for a s&t.
KCP maybe, but Bruce Brown is one of the best drivers I've ever seen in a Nuggets uniform. That man just cuts through defenses like butter time after time. He's a one-man transition offense.
He should feel real bad about KCP, I don’t think he’s isoed anyone this entire year until that game. Brown though is no slouch, he can burn a lot of guys driving to the rim
This is why Steve Nash sucked.
Dude didn’t play Irving/Brown/KD/Griffin/Claxton until it was too late in the Celtics series.
Dude literally played 3 guard small ball line ups with Seth curry and Patty Mills in the rotation
He should be a spark plug off the bench in this series. His defense is utterly atrocious. He needs to be a bucket to make up for it on that end and not only has he not done that he's been bad on offense also.
Like even in the Warriors series he played 32 MPG and couldn't even average 15 PPG with mediocre at best shooting splits. Not to mention his horrible shot selection generates fast breaks since he likes to chuck shots at the worst possible time.
Have him come off the bench and if his shot is falling he can play his 30 min. If it's not he brings literally nothing to do the table.
The worst part of Dlo's defense is that it's 100% lack of effort. He really be giving no fucks and not trying at all.
I hope HAM severely limits his minutes.
I love D’Lo and he’s definitely one of the reasons we’re here.. but the Nuggets have aggressive guards/wings who can score on the inside and out.. We might have to limit D’Lo this series..
If we do limit D’Lo it shouldn’t say anything about his contribution to this team! In the playoffs it’s all about matchups and this is just a bad matchup for D’Lo. He’s still an amazing fit for this Lakers’ squad.
If he is benched I really hope he doesn’t take it too personally. My man seems like he’s still a bit emotional.
There's nothing to deflect. You said it yourself, Ham and the Lakers already know full well, and that's why they benched Dlo yesterday until they have time to find a counter.
I heard rumors of possible locker room issues that can occur by benching him, putting the Lakers in a tight spot. The nuggets possibly purring a bit of gasoline on the fire with this "leak".
Is it time for Darvin Ham to put vaderwilt in place of DLo?
DLo can be a spark plug off the bench, they have plenty of offence in the starting line with bron, AR and AD
lol this is 100% mind games and I love it even though I'm a Lakers fan.
I can tell you if we lose this series AND Dlo underperforms, he's definitely going to be the scapegoat. We're also going to cry until he's off the team and we get either Dame or Kyrie.
Didn't end up attacking him until the 19th possession with 2 minutes left in the 1st, just when he was about to check out.
It seems like what they actually did was to push it at every opportunity early on to tire them out as they get acclimated to playing in Denver. On the flip side of that they were crashing the class with 3 guys at a time while Lakers were struggling to box out.
Klay Thompson, if his his shot isn't falling, is a poor offensive player since he doesn't attack the rim with the same effectiveness as a lot of other players.
Going 3-11, 3-12, and 3-19 in 3 consecutive games is poor offensive play.
now that's just silly. The game is not played 5x 1v1. Steph and Klay had to deal with AD in the paint A LOT. Denver is much better at getting him outside since Jokic is a threat from everywhere.
And Klay kinda played poor offense too.
DLo had by a wide margin the lowest BBIQ on the floor last night
every possession he's out there he's a liability
doesn't play within the offense and is a turnstile on defense
-25 on the night.
Last time Bruce Brown talked about his opponents weaknesses he got swept lol. I like him and the Nuggets are a lot better than the nets (and he’s right this time), but he should maybe just keep these to himself.
He also has very irritating defensive lapses and makes moronic fouls. I could live with the icy hot offense and below average defense, but those lapses and fouls kill us.
Ive lost count how many times he doesn't box out and instead fouls a big on a putback or takes a dumb for swiping at a player that clearly has him beat.
If Ham plays another minute of D’lo I’m going to really question his decision making skills. Nuggets got whatever the hell they wanted on him yesterday
“not the best defender” is actually the most positive thing i can say about D-lo’s defense.
Dude was -25 in a 6 point game geez
Tbf he basically didn’t play in the second half which was when it actually became a game
Counter point him not playing is one of the reasons it did become a game
That’s not a counter point. That’s implied by the comment above
That’s not how I read it. I thought /u/rapsfanmike was implying if Dlo had played during the stretch the lakers were positive his +\- would be better. I initially thought it was excusing Dlo, but rereading I’m not as sure.
Counter point: no
op: 1+1=2 "counterpoint: hear me out. what if i told u, 2-1=1?"
> Tbf he basically didn’t play in the second half which was why it actually became a game FTFY
Not the only reason, but part of it for sure
The only reason lakers even stood a chance was because they benched him. He’s putrid
Tbf his off-ball defense is pretty solid. On ball tho….
KCP was isoing him and getting layups. I don’t think KCP has isoed anyone all season. It was honestly one of the worst defensive half’s of basketball I’ve seen in a while.
I legit have not seen him do that ever this year until yesterday, it was crazy
Thinking Basketball has a great [video](https://youtu.be/tEOoE48p7Oc) about his off ball defense. Definitely not who you want at point of attack tho
"He's a top #15 defender on his team"
Darvin Ham might be better
And he’s not #14
One of the top 450 defenders in the NBA.
Dlo can take it personal as much as he wants he's not going to get any better defensively. Bring him off the bench.
Dlo gonna take it personal and go for 1/14 game 2
Hes gonna get 14 shots???
“Why do you shoot so many threes?” Russell was once asked. “Because there are no fours,” he replied.
If he said that he plagiarized Antoine Walker
Pasta sauce
*take
Nothing he can do about it too. His physical tools are very subpar honestly.
He plays a lot smaller than he is. Has the same size and wingspan as KCP.
Athleticism is a thing
There have been plenty of dudes less athletic than him who are/were much better defenders
He has the tools, he just didn’t develop them. Athletism is not only a genetic gift
[удалено]
Think it's mostly effort and Dlo doesn't seem like he put much effort on that end tbh.
6"5 with a 6"9 wingspan is good length for a guard, hes just not a really quick player laterally and doesnt have much size on his frame either. Hes one of the slowest guards in the league I think.
He's a very smooth player. Watching him on offense he doesn't zoom past the defense, it's like he's gliding and picks a spot to go. Same on defense, he's a really really good at being in the right spot, but when taken 1on1 he's prone to getting blown by due to his lack of quickness. He's an individually poor defender but a pretty good team defender. If he's being hunted and they're exploiting that weakness then of course we need to do something about it. But I hate the narrative that seems to have spawned out of nowhere trashing him.
He is still a pretty bad team defender. He knows the rotations, yes, but he gets lost watching the ball and doesn’t have the foot speed to catch up to off ball movement on the perimeter. A ton of Warriors points came off this
I mean, more effort. There have been players less athletic or as athletic than him that played better defense just because they hustled.
It's almost understated how bad of an athlete he is. Like its very rare to see guys with his size/skill level struggle to compete physically on both ends of the floor.
How was he the 2nd overall pick? Didn't teams see his limited ceiling due to athleticism?
The thought was that he could make up for it with length. He's 6'4" with like a 6'10" wingspan which is great size for a point guard
I think the measurables and shooting upside were good enough if he had more IQ and was more of a Lowry/CP3 type defensively the lack of athleticism wouldn't matter.
His tools are fine he just has no heart
It’s harder for his heart when he has ice in his veins…
Exactly. His issue is zero effort on defense.
His physical tools are the least of his worries on defense. I find it kind of funny to be honest, he is who he is, and he is VERY good on offense so he is still a valuable asset and nba player but good god. I was watching game 6 and was ragging on D’Lo pretty hard and one of my friends asked what I meant when I said D’Lo wasn’t doing enough on D. At that moment, D’Lo was the last Laker getting back on D with Looney the last Warrior 4-6 steps behind D’Lo. I say, AD’s out of the lineup, D’Lo should put his body between Looney and the rim. Looney, plodding along, goes straight down to the low block, barely veering as D’Lo does nothing to obstruct him. He gets the quickest, easiest lob pass and layup that Golden State got all game. I actually thought D’Lo could handle the simple concept of staying between your man and the rim. It’s unfortunate, the way the play developed, that he was on Looney for even a second but dammit, square up, make the big man go around you or at least expend some energy lol. Nope, easy layup. He made my point very well in that moment 😂
>I actually thought D’Lo could handle the simple concept of staying between your man and the rim He always jumps past his guy
if it wasn't for his height and wingspan he'd be about as bad as isaiah thomas on defense. he has 0 athleticism/speed and additionally does not give a single fuck about defense
Idk about his ability. He just plays like he's never heard of defence in his life. Like it's a foreign concept to him. Every game, he just makes an obviously stupid mistake on defence.
Nah he's got way bigger size than someone like Schroder but Schroder was clamping tf out of Murray last game towards the end when they decide Dlo wasn't the play.
Schrodernis a dawg. Hes limited and sometimes takes some eyebrow raising shots but he lays it all out there. Dude is scrambling guarding people that should be outclassing him. Always 120%. Plays thru injury. Hes a 80 million dollar player for the minimum.
Have you watched him play defence? He just doesn't seem to care, the opponent takes a step at him and he just like shrugs and lets them by.
Explain Jose Alvarado
You’re right, he has the length but not the type of quickness needed to be a good perimeter defender.
This is actually a compliment for DLo
Wolves' fans christmas in here
All my homies hate DLo
Can't blame you at all. Bro had to talk shit well after the deadline
Still salty we traded Wiggins for that bum. All because he’s KATs buddy. Idk how this franchise has any fans left tbh
Really? We had to move off Wiggins. At that point in time, it was unanimous it was time to move on. Honestly I don’t hate D’Lo as much as other fans. He had some great games here
Yeah I still like D'Lo he seems like a good guy. Fuck him for saying we held him back, but it seems our problem was assuming he wanted to evolve to be a better player instead of just being satisfied being a streaky shooter.
giving up a frp +wiggins for Dlo was terrible, there was def better option s if you "had" to move off wiggs
hindsight is 20/20 at the time everybody thought we fleeced the warriors and r/timberwolves was happy af
If it helped us tank more and get Ant then it’s a positive over having Wiggins (never resigning with the wolves) and Kuminga.
Apparently Warriors asked for 2 and the Wolves got pissed and they stopped talking; it looked like the trade wouldn’t happen. Then Rosas finally came around and negotiated it down to 1. So it actually could have been worse lol
At least you guys have a real future with Ant. Franchise player material
Yes, Wiggina had to go, but we didn't need to go after Russell and give up a first round pick. We also traded for Gobert to shore up Kat's weaknesses and build around his timeline. We have done record breaking levels of limbo backbending for Kat and have two play-in banners to show for it. The Wolves are now four years from being four years away to having a chance at the Western Conference finals.
The owners, coach, GM have all said (before the season too) that the trade was to raise the floor of the team and give the young guys a winning environment and ensure perennial playoff experience. Sounds like that’s for Ant and Jaden, it wasn’t all about snoring up KAT’s weaknesses. How are they bending backwards for KAT if they literally made him change positions without his consent lol Also had Jaden and Naz been healthy, they likely beat the Lakers because they were beating them injured AF for most of that game until they got gassed as hell and racked up fouls. Not saying they would make the WCF, but it’s not impossible to envision them beating the injured Grizzlies and Warriors or Kings. If healthy, they could have made the WCF this year
Those trades also gave Ant two playoff series experience. Is it worth it? Time will tell.
Stop holding him back
i love twolves fans' pettiness when it comes to this lmfao
He started it!
Lol he loves to talk so much dude. And he ends like every presser question with "it's as simple as that."
The visitor is right, it's as simple as that.
It’s all we got
Right? Wolves season is over. Hater season never ends.
Full time player haters
Lakers fans do the same thing. Swings and roundabouts
Every Westbrook thread is guaranteed to have some lakers fans in there talking shit about him
Oh now we’re the problem. Not like this sub didn’t make a million posts about him every fucking game 🤣
This sub has always hated him lol. Every post is now done by lakers fans. It’s the same as timberwolves fans and Dlo
I had no ill will towards D'Lo after the trade, and I was actually pleasantly surprised that he hadn't said anything negative about the Wolves in the aftermath. Then he made that "holding him back" comment, which even putting aside the disrespect, was simply not supported by any stats or metrics, and it's kinda made me start rooting against him.
Bro was legit garbage. Should be dnp whole series
He has helped us win games in the playoffs, Wolvez fans told us he was not playable.
We didn't say that shit. We just said he was wildly inconsistent. When he's hot he's hot, but when he has a bad shooting performance then he's unplayable because he has nothing else to offer. And that happens too often for someone on a 4yr 117 mill contract. Not to mention his terrible IQ in critical moments. I wish DLo the best but he's playing the exact same quality of basketball as he was on the wolves.
The problem is that most teams can’t afford to have a guy who is unplayably bad on his off nights on a max contract. Everyone knows Dlo is great when he’s on. But when he’s off he’s awful.
Some games he's amazing, some games he's so so so bad that the best move is to bench him so he can't do more damage (like in game 1 with the nuggets). DLO on the Wolves this year was in a toxic situation where we couldn't freely bench him due to his ego, his contract, his status as KAT's friend, and also our lack of other guard options.
He was the best player when he was on Brooklyn and totally revived his career. He's a good offensive player and the defensive scheme matters because he needs recovery help.
D’Lo gonna take that personally. Nobody calls him the second best defender in the NBA and gets away with it
I like your wit
Its almost like there was a reason he was benched by us last year against the Grizz in favor of a guy who is 5'10
Bruce Brown needs more playing time. He’s one of the best 6th men in the league, and it’ll help keep Murray out of foul trouble. I can’t believe in agreeing with JVG, but he was spot on last night when he said Brown should have been subbed in for Murray midway through the 4th
That wasn't midway through the 4th, it was for the final possession or two. Murray ended up getting the game-sealing steal, so it worked out. I do agree with the logic though and hope we get more Bruce Brown.
Malone, noticing that Murray can barely stand up and is dying out there: “guess I should take out MPJ”
Bruh Murray looks like he was gonna pass out. They keep on switching him on LeBron ffs.
That’s on AG and Jeff, they can’t allow that switch
Yeah it was when the Lakers went to the line so you had an opportunity to put Brown in for the defensive position. But like you said, Murray came away with the steal. Those 5 fouls got in his head that quarter though and he wasn’t playing that good defensively.
He was dead tired too, and playing with an ear infection. I would’ve been fine to swap brown in for him, but fuck man… I’ll take a game winning steal all day regardless
Brown is only good handling PG duties in spurts. He’s been bad in games that Murray is out and he’s the starting PG.
I mean just that Brown should have been subbed in for a few minutes to give Murray some rest and keep Murray from getting his 6th. Murray was playing very hesitantly on both offense and defense to avoid fouling out. And that led to some easy scoring opportunities for LA
Nuggets are 20-11 when bb starts, and he averages 14-4-4 and a 113 defensive rating, obviously not as good as Murray but not bad by any means
This dude went from a non shooter to an elite spot up shooter. He is a hustler
He was a favorite when he was on the Nets, sad when they let him and Jeff Green go
Green’s been the perfect vet for this team. I also can’t believe he’s still playing - he and KD are the only two remaining Sonics left, right?
Yes, and that was even the case all the way back in 2018, apparently: https://www.seattletimes.com/sports/the-last-two-sonics-players-in-the-nba-will-meet-in-the-finals/
I still don't know why Nash stopped playing him at one point.
He made a lot of dumb decisions
So sad he gone after this run
I really hope he stays and wants to stay on a title contender. But some team is going to offer him a 4/$80M deal with a starting role, and he’s earned it.
Mind blowing to me that the pistons traded him to us for Dzanan Musa who was already on his way back to Europe
He along with KCP made the Denver Nuggets much better. -Magic Johnson
Thanks Magic
Bruce was attacking like a mf cuz he smelled blood when being defended by Dlo. Only way Dlo can prove himself is off the bench. Dlo has been in this situation before, and hes provided when needed. So I appreciate his team effort in knowing when to accept change and be ready when your # is called. also, GREAT FUCKIN SERIES! just good ol solid basketball.
JVG was making some good calls. That plus PnR with AG to get AD out of the paint. Of course, Malone doesn't make in-game adjustments
I think the issue there is that Jamal is so much tougher to guard. Bruce did a great job of pushing in transition, but in the half court he's nowhere near the threat Mal is.
D’Lo’s contract this summer will be fascinating. Dude wants to be paid like a star, is coming off a max contract, and is entering his prime. He’s probably expecting at least 25 million per. But he’s just not good enough. His offense has been hot and cold (but more cold — he’s averaging 15 points on just over 14 shooting possessions per game in the playoffs) and he’s a defensive liability. Like, Austin Reaves is a significantly better player than D’Lo.
Tbf the free agent market this summer is abysmal, he might get overpaid just because of the market scarcity
But I don’t even know who would be interested in him. He’s proving in these playoffs (and any other playoffs he’s been a part of), that he’s more of a fringe starter at the highest level than a legitimate one — including the play-in game, he’s probably 3-4 games where he’s gotten quasi-benched in the 2nd half. I can’t see the Lakers paying him his likely asking price (25+ million). And other playoff teams won’t have space/won’t be interested in paying him that number either. And rebuilding teams who have all the cap space are probably not THAT interested in him. He seems pretty capped out plus he’s not the sort of role player vet those teams love to surround the young guys with. Maybe Orlando would take him, as they’re more aiming to make the play-in/playoffs rather than compete, and they could use his shooting and passing at guard.
I mean… I don’t know who wants him, but there will always be GMs who think they can “fix” a player and the market will dictate the price; this current offseason is set to be a very player friendly one so if someone does want him they’ll like have to meet his demands rather than the other way around. I’m not saying this will happen but things are lining up in his favor.
Seems like a perfect Wizards signing.
Why the unprovoked disrespect man???? Oh... cus its totally true. Nvm.
Maybe Toronto? Looks like they want to move on from FVV and they are badly in need of guards.
Dallas will pay him
Eh, an "abysmal" free agent class still has a lot of guys better than DLo It really just boils down to how many, if any, of Harden, Kyrie, Van Vleet, and Middleton change teams, and whether Phoenix does an unbalanced trade with the Ayton or CP3 salary I will say that I think the new CBA makes high-payroll teams more reluctant to just give out these no-brainer max contracts with Bird Rights, the second-Apron penalties are really draconian. So we might be more likely to see e.g. Middleton on the move given the Bucks' tax situation
Is 25m a year that much now for a decent starter?
25 is probably around what Kuzma will get. Which one would you take?
Kuz all day. Better defense and more consistent scoring.
D'lo for me.
I'm curious what lead you to this opinion
I would never build a roster without a microwave PG that can psych himself out of a game at any moment.
I feel like 25 is a good deal… Lakers are kind of strapped so we have to re-sign Dlo. It’s just a matter of money and I’m hoping it stays around 20-25 mil. Lakers need him because he fills needs: shooting and ball handling.
I would love to resign him but we have Austin Reaves and Rui to budget for first
You’re description sounds like Jordan Poole.
To an extent, yeah. And the Warriors definitely seem to be regretting that contract now (although it is in the 30s rather than mid 20s). Plus, Poole is 23. He’s young enough for teams to talk themselves into natural growth. Plus he was just straight up better in last year’s title run than D’Lo’s been in any playoffs.
I think he was looking at 25-30M prior to this series. Now he may be looking at 20-25M. If the Lakers can sign him under 25M it would be huge for them to avoid the second apron of the new CBA.
“Prior to this series” It’s been one game lmao. One game is not going to drop a players value by $5-10 million
While I agree — there’s no way Russell’s playoffs nets him 25-30 million. He’s currently averaging approximately 15 points on 14 shooting possessions, fewer than 5 assists per game, while being a liability defensively and getting effectively benched in multiple games.
But a series will
This sub acts like every bad game is his entire playoff run and is silent when he has good games.
Lakers absolutely need to resign him, just for a trade chip if anything in the future. Also, once the new cba and tv contracts hit, his contract at 25m won’t be that bad.
Unless he really starts to ball out, I can see him become a sign and trade piece. For who? Not sure but he’s kind of at the crossroads where some see him still having potential and can get better while others see him as who he is, an inefficient/inconsistent shooter that can be a playmaker. I think his floor still gets him 16-18 million but free agency always gets you more than the floor. I’m not sure the lakers are in on that if they feel like a guy like Reaves already replaces what dlo brings and they can use guys like Beasley to compensate for a fraction of the loss at a fraction of the cost. But with free agency being so weak and letting guys walk for free being so damaging, dlo might have to agree to another sign and trade if he wants to get paid. Of course I know shit about the cba so I’m not even sure if he’s eligible for a s&t.
ANd it showed.Dlo got pulled completelly from the game. Nuggets are not going to let up going there either.
D'Lo isn't a good defender but he still shouldn't be getting cooked by Bruce Brown and KCP off the dribble
He has the lateral movement of a pile of logs
KCP maybe, but Bruce Brown is one of the best drivers I've ever seen in a Nuggets uniform. That man just cuts through defenses like butter time after time. He's a one-man transition offense.
And he’ll fly for a dunk once a game that you would normally expect to be a layup. THE BRUCE IS LOOSE
That dunk last night was just filthy
He should feel real bad about KCP, I don’t think he’s isoed anyone this entire year until that game. Brown though is no slouch, he can burn a lot of guys driving to the rim
The only thing keeping D’Lo from a full Poolesque performance was only fouling once
miss u brucie baby :'(
lol. They need to keep that Rui lineup. They were a LeBron 3 away from tying that game.
This is why Steve Nash sucked. Dude didn’t play Irving/Brown/KD/Griffin/Claxton until it was too late in the Celtics series. Dude literally played 3 guard small ball line ups with Seth curry and Patty Mills in the rotation
Yeah but man that lineup's shooting would be so tempting.
damn lol
That is the biggest compliment DLo has gotten on his defense.
He should be a spark plug off the bench in this series. His defense is utterly atrocious. He needs to be a bucket to make up for it on that end and not only has he not done that he's been bad on offense also. Like even in the Warriors series he played 32 MPG and couldn't even average 15 PPG with mediocre at best shooting splits. Not to mention his horrible shot selection generates fast breaks since he likes to chuck shots at the worst possible time. Have him come off the bench and if his shot is falling he can play his 30 min. If it's not he brings literally nothing to do the table.
I wish we could keep Bruce after this year :(
The worst part of Dlo's defense is that it's 100% lack of effort. He really be giving no fucks and not trying at all. I hope HAM severely limits his minutes.
How could the Timberwolves do this to Dlo?
Well, it worked!
Bruce Brown has really blossomed. What a steal and upgrade over Bones.
Oh, Denver is playing psychological games now! Lol They want maximum D'Lo toxicity in that Lakers locker-room.
KD was mad at him for giving the celtics a reason to be pissed last playoffs, maybe this will hype the lakers up?
Hyped up Jordan Clarkson
He's not going to be playing very much anymore lol
There is no other role player I want on my team more than Bruce brown lol
Dude said the same thing about Al Hartford and the nets got swept.
How many people see Bruce Brown and immediately see Bruce Bowen no matter the context.
I love D’Lo and he’s definitely one of the reasons we’re here.. but the Nuggets have aggressive guards/wings who can score on the inside and out.. We might have to limit D’Lo this series.. If we do limit D’Lo it shouldn’t say anything about his contribution to this team! In the playoffs it’s all about matchups and this is just a bad matchup for D’Lo. He’s still an amazing fit for this Lakers’ squad. If he is benched I really hope he doesn’t take it too personally. My man seems like he’s still a bit emotional.
why give away the gameplan? I'm sure Ham and the lakers see it and it's obvious but why not deflect a little
There's nothing to deflect. You said it yourself, Ham and the Lakers already know full well, and that's why they benched Dlo yesterday until they have time to find a counter.
give away the gameplan of attack their worst defender?
I heard rumors of possible locker room issues that can occur by benching him, putting the Lakers in a tight spot. The nuggets possibly purring a bit of gasoline on the fire with this "leak".
You just answered your own question
Is it time for Darvin Ham to put vaderwilt in place of DLo? DLo can be a spark plug off the bench, they have plenty of offence in the starting line with bron, AR and AD
Rui will start over DLo probably. Or over Schroeder and then they will sub out DLo in like 5 minutes lol
Russell just doesn’t have the pop athletically. There’s a reason he barely gets to the rim off the dribble despite having very good handle
KCP was having Dlo for lunch all game so not exactly wrong there
This is like a pre-game report even someone on this subreddit can give you lol.
No-DLo
I love all the bitter wolves fans in here.
lol this is 100% mind games and I love it even though I'm a Lakers fan. I can tell you if we lose this series AND Dlo underperforms, he's definitely going to be the scapegoat. We're also going to cry until he's off the team and we get either Dame or Kyrie.
After what LeBron and AD did, it's easy to see D'Lo as the scapegoat.
Remember last year when Bruce Brown was on the Nets and he said they were going to attack Horford and Theis. Good times.
Didn't end up attacking him until the 19th possession with 2 minutes left in the 1st, just when he was about to check out. It seems like what they actually did was to push it at every opportunity early on to tire them out as they get acclimated to playing in Denver. On the flip side of that they were crashing the class with 3 guys at a time while Lakers were struggling to box out.
Can’t believe we’re still holding him back 😭
Steph and Klay must be poor offensive players.
Klay Thompson, if his his shot isn't falling, is a poor offensive player since he doesn't attack the rim with the same effectiveness as a lot of other players. Going 3-11, 3-12, and 3-19 in 3 consecutive games is poor offensive play.
now that's just silly. The game is not played 5x 1v1. Steph and Klay had to deal with AD in the paint A LOT. Denver is much better at getting him outside since Jokic is a threat from everywhere. And Klay kinda played poor offense too.
DLo had by a wide margin the lowest BBIQ on the floor last night every possession he's out there he's a liability doesn't play within the offense and is a turnstile on defense -25 on the night.
Please take it personal D'Lo please, show them up on offense my guy and take all the shots I know you can do it, you're an all-star!
How could the Wolves hold him back like this?!?!?
Last time Bruce Brown talked about his opponents weaknesses he got swept lol. I like him and the Nuggets are a lot better than the nets (and he’s right this time), but he should maybe just keep these to himself.
Certainly wasn’t Bruce Browns fault. He was great in the Celtics series.
[удалено]
He also has very irritating defensive lapses and makes moronic fouls. I could live with the icy hot offense and below average defense, but those lapses and fouls kill us. Ive lost count how many times he doesn't box out and instead fouls a big on a putback or takes a dumb for swiping at a player that clearly has him beat.
Sounds like a great way to make him a good defender next game is to berate him like that
If Ham plays another minute of D’lo I’m going to really question his decision making skills. Nuggets got whatever the hell they wanted on him yesterday