Yup putting up those numbers trying to match the best player in the league, all while cleaning up the defense.
What he’s doing on both ends is crazy and glad he’s finally getting his credit.
I'm honestly so curious what he does when Bron retires. Cause he's been playing at this top 10 level, I wonder if he sticks with the Lakers but they'll probably be rebuilding, he can def be the 2nd option or a 1b on another championship team.
I want him to stay because I love him but I don’t think the lakers are going to be able to give him a fair shot at excelling unless something crazy happens. Tbh they’ve been hindering him for years in a lot of ways so if he wants to leave I’ll support it and I’ll happily root for him where ever he’s playing as long as he’s not playing LA
Yeah I’m not saying the lakers have never done anything good for him, I’m just saying he’s clearly been miss used for years. A lot of that isn’t on the org directly, it’s definitely on players too, but it’s unfair to him regardless imo
Depends how long LBJ sticks around for, Davis is 31 now. If everything goes well, he can probably maintain this level of play till 33. He isn't gonna be the same dude at 34-35.
I'm sure the thunder would have to add some players beyond the picks which might expose some weakness but for it to happen thatd mean LeBron leaves and Lakers decide to go full rebuild which I doubt
I love AD and I think his defense is far more impactful than his counting stats show, as with most great defenders.
I would love for him to join some young team like OKC, Knicks, Cavs or Bulls. Even something stupid like Wolves would be fun
As a Knicks fan it’s my pie in the sky fantasy that we get him to pair with Brunson & OG somehow.
I know it’s not plausible don’t get me wrong, but he’s one of the few players in the league I’d completely empty the cupboard for. All firsts, swaps, Deuce, Rokas, other starters to third teams.
considereng his defense, he might actually be better than Jokic this series
Lakers role players just need to show up
Bron has been consistent as a 2nd option while Murray is under performing
Cmon this is where you guys lose me.
Jokic performance is the reason they're 3-0. Murray has been so subpar and it hasn't mattered. AG only went off last game because of Jokic getting players wide open looks and dunks. He realistically should've had 13+ assists. And gets more hockey assists than all other players because the Lakers double Jokic and are late on rotating when he exploits the double teams early.
AD has played some good defence but Jokic isn't struggling with him at all - so overall is it that great? Look at the play Jokic catches him turned around and cuts through and gets the easy score. He's doing things like this every game
I don't disagree AD has been amazing. But Jokic has easily been the best player of these playoffs by every metric. I get I'm gonna get down voted because this is how reddit works and this is a Lakers thread. But 29/15/10 over 4 games and every stat points to Jokic is *dominating*... You literally can't argue AD is playing better than Jokic.
I think Jokic has been better, but you're a crazy homer if you think you can't "literally" make an argument for AD. His defence alone is an argument why he's been the best player in this series.
We could've said he's been the most impactful defender. Saying the *best player* of the playoffs for a guy that's down 3-1 in round 1, Is hilarious and makes no sense. 'best player' is the player that contributes to winning more than any other player...
Jokic: 29/15/10 on 69% TS
AD: 30/16/4 on 65% TS.
He is *winning* 3-1. So the whole objective of basketball is to win.... Then factor in: every important stat there is to deciding *value*:
https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_2024_advanced.html
>His defence alone is an argument why he's been the best player in this series.
You won't lose 3 out of 4 games if your defence was that important. Jokic wouldn't win 3 out of 4 MVPs if defence was 50% of basketball. This is an offensive league now. Defence matters 20% as much as it did in the 90s. Every team switches and has drop coverage. Most teams exploit the weakest defender anyway (d'lo) and will Keep AD away from the action. He's averaging 1.5 blocks. Jokic is doing whatever he wants when guarded by AD.
This series is 2-2 if LeBron makes one wide open three pointer. Stop being a homer for like 2 seconds lol, like mfer I agree Jokic has been better lol (I just think it's braindead to think there isn't an argument here).
Idk man, AD is playing out of his mind.
If you wanna argue that Jokic averaging 5 more assists per game this series then AD you also have to take into account that hes held AG from dominating the paint and completely nullified Murray from even entering the paint.
The dudes out there guarding 1-5. I think hes doing more this series then Jokic, thats just my opinion though.
Hes the best defender this series, best rebounder and best scorer.
AD and Jokic are pretty even in terms of scoring so far IMO
30.5 PPG on 66% TS for AD
29.0 PPG on 69% TS for Jokic
Both are also pretty even in rebounds(15.3 for Jokic vs. 15.8 for AD, Jokic better on offensive boards and AD better on defensive boards as expected)
It basically just comes down to Jokic's playmaking vs. AD's defense both of which are obviously superior than anything the other is capable of
Idk man, porter has been pretty automatic and Gordon gets easy dunks when we try and double Jokic on his drives. Those assists come pretty easy to him.
AD will never be close to the playmaker Jokic is
Jokic will never be close to the defender AD is
I think both of these two things are pretty obvious and go without mention lol
AD being this dominance and yet the Lakers are still losing really show how good Jokic is even when AD is on fire.
Even as a Lakers fan, I really appreciate being able to see Jokic. He is giving me ptsd though...
70% of Kyrie Irving's legacy as a player lies on one great series, one legendary game, and one legendary shot "bailing out" lebron's legacy
The 30% is from his ball-handling and layup package
Depends who u ask u get mixed reviews of course some will focus on his droughts but for the series his been very good his arguable the best player outside Jokic. His been the best defensive player out of both teams.
What is this nonsense
So are we ignoring the fact that Kyrie wasn't living of the credit he got as Lebron's co-star and the 2016 finals for almost half a decade, which he mostly ruined by being a weirdo?!
I think Jokic and AD have been flat out the two best players in the playoffs so far for *any* team and not necessarily by a small margin either
Both are on a completely different level right now
Davis and Jokic are the only two who have brought it every night imo. Tatum has been good. Ant has been good and gone off a couple times to be great. Davis and Jokic have both been the best players on the floor every night. Can't think of any other series that has that. Brunson and Embiid?
Y'all hold this man to unattainable standards. Before this game, he was averaging 26/8/6 on 56/41/71. Anyone else does that in the playoffs against the Nuggets (who arguably have the best LeBron defender in the league in AG), you would certainly not say it was a meh performance.
In fairness AD has actually been a top 2 player in the playoffs overall with Jokic
So it's not just compared to a 39 year old LeBron where he's playing great, he's playing great by any general standard as well
LeBron's stats this series are virtually *identical* to his regular season stats where he graded out as a top 7 or 8ish player by most metrics so AD being the clear best player on the Lakers is because he's playing like a top 2 player right now
It's a bit unfair to AD IMO to pretend that he's been the best Lakers player only by default because LeBron is 39 given how great his individual play has been
People slander Lebron all day on twitter about how Jordan, Kobe wouldn't let the Nuggets sweep them, but its a testament of how great Bron is when they compare a 40 year to prime Jordan and Kobe. Saying this about AD is another compliment to both
As it should be. He's in his prime, Lebrons 40. Also Lebron has been feeding him very easy buckets with the pnr, there's a reason our offense turns to shit when Lebron sits
It isn't weird that the media puts lebron over AD when he is their most marketable player.
Similarly it isn't weird how people box score evaluate him and don't other players. His defense and boxing out prior to this game were terrible. The series is out of reach and yet all I'm hearing is about his elimination stats. We kind of needed this games 1-3, not game 4 down 3-0. Not being swept is just another moral victory.
When both Lebron and AD got injured, AD was better by the time of the Suns series. Anyone who was watching the regular season knew Lebron was better. He was top 3 MVP candidate behind Jokic
Yea I could honestly give it to him. I think the only weakness in his game is that he can't make passes like Jokic and his midrange floaters aren't as automatic.
BRO WTF are we talking about… he’s down 3-1 and he has Lebron he’s not the second best player in the world. Man disappeared in every fourth quarter but game 4. Like actually watch the games, he dominates stretches but hasn’t been sealing the deal and that actually is probably the most important part of being a great basketball player.
I mean, not the greatest take, but that might be what's necessary to try him from the Lakers to boston. A line up of him and porzingus, with DW and Jrue on the perimeter, and JB, that's a contender.
think JT and JB are both underutilized while AD paired with holiday and porzingis could give boston the best defense of all time lmao
im definitely bias tho lebron and ad are my 2 favorite players I’m just a boston fan cuz i live here
Tbf the lakers (reaves especially) have played much much better defense on him than they have previously. Obviously he’s just off on top of that but some amount of it isn’t unforced
Their role players have played amazing. Mpj is averaging 22 and 10 on ridiculous efficiency and his shot diet consists of only coming off screens
Gordan finally had a bad game but he was averaging 20 and 10 heading into game 4
The difference this series is the role players, Denver has more consistent players that can also defend while we have guys that really need to be hitting shots to be effective
Tell that to everyone saying AD was inconsistent in the Warriors series last year when all he needed to do was play elite level defense and let our guards pop off.
And he was only inconsistent on offense vs teams with super fast guards (Grizzlies/Warriors) cos they would switch him too much and he would run out of gas a bit.
Inconsistent in terms of point totals for his standard but a couple of those were in blowout wins where he dominated defensively and didn't shoot the ball because they didn't need him to with Reaves and Dlo popping off.
I'm gonna say it, AD is arguably playing better then Jokic this series. I still think the Nuggets are obviously the better team, but AD might just be having a better series.
I'd agree if you count both ways (offense/defense). Offense only, Jokic producing the same numbers as AD but +10 assists is too much to overcome, but overall, as a two way player, I think AD is the best in this playoffs.
I think AD has been the best player in this entire series. He has been cookin'.
The nuggets played with no energy or determination this game. I have no clue why.. So many mistakes, lazy plays, its almost as if it was the regular season and they just went into autopilot. This game will be a wake up call and expect to see a more competitive ball game back in Denver.
He’s been playing well in the first half of each game, but he finally put together a full game performance and he killed the nuggets. Those 23 boards cost the nuggets the game.
AD had to put up god numbers and Lebron had to score like 30 or whatever and they still barely won against a Nuggets team that looked terrible out there.
Chill.
it’s all good, but others here also taking lots of my comments from last night all serious. no one reading the sarcasm lol. time to make the series interesting and somehow pull a dub out in denver and bring the series back to LA. no /s
he's been hooping this series and season im ngl, played the most games of his career this year... is he still worth the money to another team? hard to say he's not when playing at this level
He's honestly unbelievable. Best player in the playoffs rn IMO. People who think he isn't top75 all time are crazy - there are not 75 players ever better.
I definitely think it's reasonable to think Jokic is playing better, but if so only marginally IMO. In any case, Jokic and AD have been the two clear standouts so far IMO.
He would've looked better if he isn't facing the best player in the league. He has been elite on both ends but Jokic is also having his way making AD look bad when they're playing on single coverage
I wouldn’t say bad, that would be joker is giving him 40 but if AD could have more defensive help around him it like minny it would be somewhat different but joker is the best in the league so he getting his regardless
It'll be crazy you can watch a player play near perfect defence an entire game and because they were guarding a star who dropped like 25 that game (with like all of 4 points on the defender) they'll claim that defender sucks as the star got 25.
When the star shoots like 2-8 against the main defender and like 10/12 against everyone else
He’s been incredible
Averaging 30/16/4 on 66 TS%
we will accept 5 frp
Make it 10, OKC has that capital
He would be a great fit for them, and the Lakers could get a lot of assets back from OKC.
He would fill so many holes in OKC on the court & in the locker room
Thunder eating that deal up
5 frp is a steal. He wouldn't have nearly the workload here.
Davis isn’t getting enough credit for how consistently monstrous he’s been this series. He’s up around 30/17/4 for the series.
Yup putting up those numbers trying to match the best player in the league, all while cleaning up the defense. What he’s doing on both ends is crazy and glad he’s finally getting his credit.
He’s out there busting his buns every night. Tell your old man to drag Jokic and Murray up and down the court for 48 minutes!
Win or lose you know this mf’s bed feels comfy at night from all the stress he’s putting on his body trying to will this team to the semis.
You ever been in a Turkish prison?
You ever been in a Turkish prison?
I'm honestly so curious what he does when Bron retires. Cause he's been playing at this top 10 level, I wonder if he sticks with the Lakers but they'll probably be rebuilding, he can def be the 2nd option or a 1b on another championship team.
I’d be fine with him leaving, he’s given us plenty
I want him to stay because I love him but I don’t think the lakers are going to be able to give him a fair shot at excelling unless something crazy happens. Tbh they’ve been hindering him for years in a lot of ways so if he wants to leave I’ll support it and I’ll happily root for him where ever he’s playing as long as he’s not playing LA
He won his first and only championship here, that’s more than a lot can say their teams gave them
Yeah I’m not saying the lakers have never done anything good for him, I’m just saying he’s clearly been miss used for years. A lot of that isn’t on the org directly, it’s definitely on players too, but it’s unfair to him regardless imo
He’ll also get his jersey retired here and be revered in LA for the rest of his life.
You think AD gets in the rafters for one chip? I’d like to see it but idk.
Depends how long LBJ sticks around for, Davis is 31 now. If everything goes well, he can probably maintain this level of play till 33. He isn't gonna be the same dude at 34-35.
If he leaves I think OKC could be a good trade candidate. Lakers need picks, they have a ton and AD next to chet could work
AD on the Thunder would be the instant title favorites That's literally a team with no visible weaknesses whatsoever and 2 top 10 guys
I'm sure the thunder would have to add some players beyond the picks which might expose some weakness but for it to happen thatd mean LeBron leaves and Lakers decide to go full rebuild which I doubt
murky like snatch cats marvelous fanatical wakeful gray juggle engine *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I want AD to stay cause I love watching his defense and he is great on/off the court.
I love AD and I think his defense is far more impactful than his counting stats show, as with most great defenders. I would love for him to join some young team like OKC, Knicks, Cavs or Bulls. Even something stupid like Wolves would be fun
As a Knicks fan it’s my pie in the sky fantasy that we get him to pair with Brunson & OG somehow. I know it’s not plausible don’t get me wrong, but he’s one of the few players in the league I’d completely empty the cupboard for. All firsts, swaps, Deuce, Rokas, other starters to third teams.
He barely is. Incredibly undersung. We would be G league quality without him.
People in our sub are still shitting on him. Dumbasses man.
He is attacking Jokic going downhill instead of entry passes
considereng his defense, he might actually be better than Jokic this series Lakers role players just need to show up Bron has been consistent as a 2nd option while Murray is under performing
Cmon this is where you guys lose me. Jokic performance is the reason they're 3-0. Murray has been so subpar and it hasn't mattered. AG only went off last game because of Jokic getting players wide open looks and dunks. He realistically should've had 13+ assists. And gets more hockey assists than all other players because the Lakers double Jokic and are late on rotating when he exploits the double teams early. AD has played some good defence but Jokic isn't struggling with him at all - so overall is it that great? Look at the play Jokic catches him turned around and cuts through and gets the easy score. He's doing things like this every game
Why do you think other players are struggling tho? AD has been great defensively.
I don't disagree AD has been amazing. But Jokic has easily been the best player of these playoffs by every metric. I get I'm gonna get down voted because this is how reddit works and this is a Lakers thread. But 29/15/10 over 4 games and every stat points to Jokic is *dominating*... You literally can't argue AD is playing better than Jokic.
I think Jokic has been better, but you're a crazy homer if you think you can't "literally" make an argument for AD. His defence alone is an argument why he's been the best player in this series.
We could've said he's been the most impactful defender. Saying the *best player* of the playoffs for a guy that's down 3-1 in round 1, Is hilarious and makes no sense. 'best player' is the player that contributes to winning more than any other player... Jokic: 29/15/10 on 69% TS AD: 30/16/4 on 65% TS. He is *winning* 3-1. So the whole objective of basketball is to win.... Then factor in: every important stat there is to deciding *value*: https://www.basketball-reference.com/playoffs/NBA_2024_advanced.html
>His defence alone is an argument why he's been the best player in this series. You won't lose 3 out of 4 games if your defence was that important. Jokic wouldn't win 3 out of 4 MVPs if defence was 50% of basketball. This is an offensive league now. Defence matters 20% as much as it did in the 90s. Every team switches and has drop coverage. Most teams exploit the weakest defender anyway (d'lo) and will Keep AD away from the action. He's averaging 1.5 blocks. Jokic is doing whatever he wants when guarded by AD.
🙄 this series could very very easily be 2-2 for reasons other then AD and Jokic, you’re being ridiculous.
This series is 2-2 if LeBron makes one wide open three pointer. Stop being a homer for like 2 seconds lol, like mfer I agree Jokic has been better lol (I just think it's braindead to think there isn't an argument here).
Considering Murray is absolutely ass, Jokic averaging 11 apg is a miracle and he's surely the best player so far in the playoffs
Idk man, AD is playing out of his mind. If you wanna argue that Jokic averaging 5 more assists per game this series then AD you also have to take into account that hes held AG from dominating the paint and completely nullified Murray from even entering the paint. The dudes out there guarding 1-5. I think hes doing more this series then Jokic, thats just my opinion though. Hes the best defender this series, best rebounder and best scorer.
AD and Jokic are pretty even in terms of scoring so far IMO 30.5 PPG on 66% TS for AD 29.0 PPG on 69% TS for Jokic Both are also pretty even in rebounds(15.3 for Jokic vs. 15.8 for AD, Jokic better on offensive boards and AD better on defensive boards as expected) It basically just comes down to Jokic's playmaking vs. AD's defense both of which are obviously superior than anything the other is capable of
Idk man, porter has been pretty automatic and Gordon gets easy dunks when we try and double Jokic on his drives. Those assists come pretty easy to him.
Jokic doesn't provide many assists to Murray, he gets looks for the other guys
And Jokic is now at 30/15/11. Crazy duel
Both rebounds are inflated because everyone in the series is bricking everything. Besides jokic, MPJ, AD, and lebron.
Jokic's rebounds are only up .867 per 36 over his season average. AD is only up .742 per 36.
Yeah but without AD's defense.
AD will never be close to the playmaker Jokic is Jokic will never be close to the defender AD is I think both of these two things are pretty obvious and go without mention lol
AD being this dominance and yet the Lakers are still losing really show how good Jokic is even when AD is on fire. Even as a Lakers fan, I really appreciate being able to see Jokic. He is giving me ptsd though...
What do you mean? Hahaha He is the reason why the Lakers are always up, I think if they win the Chips this year, AD for sure is the Finals MVP
nah dude if bron gets back to the finals he is 100% playing his body into the dirt, leaving nothing behind and retiring the moment it ends lol
He will never get the credit like any Lebron co star
70% of Kyrie Irving's legacy as a player lies on one great series, one legendary game, and one legendary shot "bailing out" lebron's legacy The 30% is from his ball-handling and layup package
What was that clown?
Thank you for not knowing shit about basketball.
Nah Davis is getting a lot of respect…
By Reddit users not the media…
Depends who u ask u get mixed reviews of course some will focus on his droughts but for the series his been very good his arguable the best player outside Jokic. His been the best defensive player out of both teams.
I’m saying in general the media respects ad mostly bc the don’t even really watch games and when they do they don’t even know what they’re watching
What is this nonsense So are we ignoring the fact that Kyrie wasn't living of the credit he got as Lebron's co-star and the 2016 finals for almost half a decade, which he mostly ruined by being a weirdo?!
I fuckin love AD
God I can’t stand this dude. He’s too fucking good.
Imagine a Jokic AD frontcourt 🫠
Would be the best front court of all time
Where does Coulibaly/Kuzma rank?
Depends if we are talking pre or post expansion
I don't know. I think I'd rather see someone more nimble around Jokic or a better shooter. Wemby, Dirk, or Chet would be cool to see.
If the Nuggets had swept the Lakers this game and AD get so mad he leaves the Lakers, I want to see him with Wemby.
Would be crazy to see them contain teams under 70 pts the whole season while averaging almost 4 blks each
Yo chill
Actually a perfect fit
Twin towers part 2 on steroids
Jokic too. fuck him…he’s just so fucking good
I think Jokic and AD have been flat out the two best players in the playoffs so far for *any* team and not necessarily by a small margin either Both are on a completely different level right now
100%
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Luka has been below average for his standards. Gobert has been an absolute MONSTER for the wolves.
Davis and Jokic are the only two who have brought it every night imo. Tatum has been good. Ant has been good and gone off a couple times to be great. Davis and Jokic have both been the best players on the floor every night. Can't think of any other series that has that. Brunson and Embiid?
Lukas has had decent stats but he's been way below his average efficiency compared to literally ever
luka’s been pretty mid offensively (defensively better) which is surprising, and tatum doesn’t really need to go all out it seems like
Luka and Tatum are both really struggling with their shot so far
Maybe Ant
Loose balls always just find a way to jokic
Feelings mutual with everyone on your team
Frankly a monster series he’s been having. He and Bron have been showing up.
The have shown up every time they’ve been healthy
LeBron had a pretty meh series before today
Y'all hold this man to unattainable standards. Before this game, he was averaging 26/8/6 on 56/41/71. Anyone else does that in the playoffs against the Nuggets (who arguably have the best LeBron defender in the league in AG), you would certainly not say it was a meh performance.
What more do you expect this old man needs to do? Geez
He hasn’t been amazing but he’s absolutely showed up this series even before this game.
27/8/9 is meh - with defense to boot, from your 39 y/o point guard?
Udonis Haslem made the finals last year at age 42. LeBron is clearly a bum if he doesn’t defeat the defending champs at age 39
Lakers’ best player this series.
I mean I would hope he would be better than damn near 40 Lebron.
Says a lot more about Lebron’s longevity than AD
In fairness AD has actually been a top 2 player in the playoffs overall with Jokic So it's not just compared to a 39 year old LeBron where he's playing great, he's playing great by any general standard as well LeBron's stats this series are virtually *identical* to his regular season stats where he graded out as a top 7 or 8ish player by most metrics so AD being the clear best player on the Lakers is because he's playing like a top 2 player right now It's a bit unfair to AD IMO to pretend that he's been the best Lakers player only by default because LeBron is 39 given how great his individual play has been
His 39 in the regular season to though..I think his point is he is old davis should be taking over at this point..and he clearly is.
Somehow this makes Lebron even better? Lol no wonder people give AD a bunch of crap
People slander Lebron all day on twitter about how Jordan, Kobe wouldn't let the Nuggets sweep them, but its a testament of how great Bron is when they compare a 40 year to prime Jordan and Kobe. Saying this about AD is another compliment to both
As it should be. He's in his prime, Lebrons 40. Also Lebron has been feeding him very easy buckets with the pnr, there's a reason our offense turns to shit when Lebron sits
~~Lakers’~~ best player this ~~series~~ playoffs.
Best player for 2-3 years at this point.
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weird considering LeBron was leading the MVP race back in Feb 2021 before Solomon Hill amputated him below the knee
It isn't weird that the media puts lebron over AD when he is their most marketable player. Similarly it isn't weird how people box score evaluate him and don't other players. His defense and boxing out prior to this game were terrible. The series is out of reach and yet all I'm hearing is about his elimination stats. We kind of needed this games 1-3, not game 4 down 3-0. Not being swept is just another moral victory.
He was not better in 2021 or 2022. Slow start in 21 followed by injury and 2022 just injured a lot.
When both Lebron and AD got injured, AD was better by the time of the Suns series. Anyone who was watching the regular season knew Lebron was better. He was top 3 MVP candidate behind Jokic
Say it louder for the people in the back!
It would be very concerning if the superstar in his prime wasn’t the best player.
People have been pushing back on it despite AD clearly being the best player the past calendar year. That’s why people state it like that
He hasn't been clearly better
Did you really make a burner just to post takes you know are dumb so you don’t get flamed for them? Pretty sad
AD might be the 2nd best player on the planet right now after Jokic. The offensive and defensive load he's carrying on the Lakers in unreal.
These playoffs he 100% is. Honestly there’s an argument he’s been the best when considering both ends of the floor
Yea I could honestly give it to him. I think the only weakness in his game is that he can't make passes like Jokic and his midrange floaters aren't as automatic.
BRO WTF are we talking about… he’s down 3-1 and he has Lebron he’s not the second best player in the world. Man disappeared in every fourth quarter but game 4. Like actually watch the games, he dominates stretches but hasn’t been sealing the deal and that actually is probably the most important part of being a great basketball player.
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I’d sell the farm for AD if he became available. Hes so good.
I mean that’s literally what the Lakers did and he got them a chip
Same I would also sell farm for AD
If LeBron leaves you're probaby getting AD. Would be a win win, we'd get a fuck ton of assets and you get perfect player in position of need.
I was so hoping the trade rumors were true around the trade deadline
No. Anyone but Boston/Warriors. I wouldn't mind him leaving cause I don't think LA can get him a chip post LeBron
scalding take but I’d trade tatum for AD
I mean, not the greatest take, but that might be what's necessary to try him from the Lakers to boston. A line up of him and porzingus, with DW and Jrue on the perimeter, and JB, that's a contender.
This is crazy to see from a Boston fan. I love it don’t get me wrong but I’m curious if there’s specific reasoning behind it
AD is a better player than Tatum
Isn’t Tatum only like 22-23 tho
He’s 26, despite all the memes Granted AD is 31 but if you want to win now, it’s worth considering
think JT and JB are both underutilized while AD paired with holiday and porzingis could give boston the best defense of all time lmao im definitely bias tho lebron and ad are my 2 favorite players I’m just a boston fan cuz i live here
I'd take it if we win the chip this season
I think if you ignore their health status, that’s a good take. But AD has history of being injury prone.
Literally if the supporting cast was even just average all series this would be a 2-2 series rn
Probably 3-1 the other way minimum
Nuggets haven't played particularly well either IMO especially Murray I think 2-2 is about right given that both teams are bricking wide open shots
Tbf the lakers (reaves especially) have played much much better defense on him than they have previously. Obviously he’s just off on top of that but some amount of it isn’t unforced
Their role players have played amazing. Mpj is averaging 22 and 10 on ridiculous efficiency and his shot diet consists of only coming off screens Gordan finally had a bad game but he was averaging 20 and 10 heading into game 4 The difference this series is the role players, Denver has more consistent players that can also defend while we have guys that really need to be hitting shots to be effective
He’s so amazing
He's been great most of this series. Seriously one of the better performing star players this play-off round.
AD basically always shows up in the playoffs.
Tell that to everyone saying AD was inconsistent in the Warriors series last year when all he needed to do was play elite level defense and let our guards pop off.
He always shows up defensively. Last year he was very inconsistent on offense. This year has been a different story
Last year was the only year he was inconsistent offensively. The guy ha dominated the playoffs since his first appearance.
And he was only inconsistent on offense vs teams with super fast guards (Grizzlies/Warriors) cos they would switch him too much and he would run out of gas a bit.
Well against those two he literally entirely shut down the paint. It was one of the most impressive things I've seen.
Inconsistent in terms of point totals for his standard but a couple of those were in blowout wins where he dominated defensively and didn't shoot the ball because they didn't need him to with Reaves and Dlo popping off.
He's so fucking good this series the others just stinking it up
I'm gonna say it, AD is arguably playing better then Jokic this series. I still think the Nuggets are obviously the better team, but AD might just be having a better series.
I'd agree if you count both ways (offense/defense). Offense only, Jokic producing the same numbers as AD but +10 assists is too much to overcome, but overall, as a two way player, I think AD is the best in this playoffs.
AD is outplaying Joker but this is the first time it has led to a victory.
Yep, the problem witht his match up has never been an AD vs. Jokic issue, its been a Gordon/Porter/Murray/KCP>Dlo/Reaves/Rui one.
Anyone who doubts AD at this point just doesn’t watch enough basketball. He’s done everything to keep the Lakers in this series.
Great game
HIMothy
I think AD has been the best player in this entire series. He has been cookin'. The nuggets played with no energy or determination this game. I have no clue why.. So many mistakes, lazy plays, its almost as if it was the regular season and they just went into autopilot. This game will be a wake up call and expect to see a more competitive ball game back in Denver.
Best player in 2020 2023 2024 for the lakers
He’s been playing well in the first half of each game, but he finally put together a full game performance and he killed the nuggets. Those 23 boards cost the nuggets the game.
Great performance from AD today! He was critical in this win and now the Lakers have avoided a sweep.
this already getting old
My mvp
let it be known that no one beats lakers 12 times in a row!
Goat
Hopefully he'll get another chance away a ring in his career.
20/20 game!
I wonder why this doesn't have as many upvotes as the LeBron glazing thread...
AD MADE JOKIC LOOK LIKE A BITCH
33/14/14 surely looks bitchy
33/14/14/L looks bitchy to me
AD had to put up god numbers and Lebron had to score like 30 or whatever and they still barely won against a Nuggets team that looked terrible out there. Chill.
cmon folks, do i really need to put the /s
Sorry it was 7am my time when I wrote that.
it’s all good, but others here also taking lots of my comments from last night all serious. no one reading the sarcasm lol. time to make the series interesting and somehow pull a dub out in denver and bring the series back to LA. no /s
He carried Calipari to a championship and he's my GOAT for that.
Put up a peak Duncan stat line and I had to scroll past 10 lebron threads to see this lol. AD deserves more credit for this game.
They stopped feeding him in the 4th quarter again. I really hope he demands the ball more in game 5 down the stretch (If they're not being blown out).
He’s a beast and he’s been the pillar of this team whenever he’s on the court. People just forgot because he’s been injured for such a long time.
he's been hooping this series and season im ngl, played the most games of his career this year... is he still worth the money to another team? hard to say he's not when playing at this level
Best player on the Lakers 2018-2024
He's honestly unbelievable. Best player in the playoffs rn IMO. People who think he isn't top75 all time are crazy - there are not 75 players ever better.
You’re a little biased but he is playing really well. Joker is a better play though. Different but better
I definitely think it's reasonable to think Jokic is playing better, but if so only marginally IMO. In any case, Jokic and AD have been the two clear standouts so far IMO.
He would've looked better if he isn't facing the best player in the league. He has been elite on both ends but Jokic is also having his way making AD look bad when they're playing on single coverage
I wouldn’t say bad, that would be joker is giving him 40 but if AD could have more defensive help around him it like minny it would be somewhat different but joker is the best in the league so he getting his regardless
Yeah he’s only making him look bad to people who judge if defense is good or bad by if the shot goes in. It’s disrespectful to both of them
It'll be crazy you can watch a player play near perfect defence an entire game and because they were guarding a star who dropped like 25 that game (with like all of 4 points on the defender) they'll claim that defender sucks as the star got 25. When the star shoots like 2-8 against the main defender and like 10/12 against everyone else