Double-edged sword. I think it's like the "running" quarterback in the NFL. That style of quarterback wastes the talent of elite wide receivers and finds production from lesser talented receiving options like running backs and tight ends. They make it easier or simpler to gameplan for and gameplan against. The front office has to use more of the budget on defensive talent because they won't get bang for their buck on offense when one player is taking care of most of it. And they both go against the "spirit" of the game so there is always some level of chaos around the team.
Isn't this what Lebron does too? The difference is Hardens teams have just never been good enough to win. Because someone always gets hurt. Doncic teams have just not been good enough to win either. I don't think it's the style.k at all. CP3 and Harden easily coulda won that season with purely iso offense. It's just you can't rely on him to do it for and entire game in the playoffs and if you don't have that other guy who can iso it doesn't work.
For sure LeBron is the outlier. He's just different. He's the absolute best among those types of players. The type that started with Oscar Robertson. One major difference between Harden, Doncic, and LeBron is that LeBron could play DPoY-worthy defense while dominating on offense. Harden and Doncic can't do that. Harden and Doncic also get tired down the stretch or choke. LeBron never tired and he reached a point in his career where he was as clutch as anyone. Also, at the end of the day, not even LeBron could maintain his teams. For me, that's because that style goes against the "spirit" of the game of basketball. Those teams are meant to collapse because they are built on the foundation of a singular player.
Im just saying the isolation style can work to win a ring as long as you have more than one player doing it. It's impossible to ask 1 man to do that for 48 minutes and in a 7 game series. It's not the style that let the Rockets down. It was the players around our star,
https://www.basketball-reference.com/leaders/usg_pct_season.html Luka is under 25 and already has 4 of the top 20 highest single season usage rates ever this man gives no ****s 42% usage rate, that’s unheard of
Harden is almost automatic at the FT line and Doncic has been hovering around 75% now 78% in limited sample size. Dallas lost close games due to FTs. That is his biggest flaw right now, you can cover for him on D. And of course shoot consistently from 3. He has to shoot better than 82% FT and he is pretty much invincible. You forgot.
Luka is taking 26 shots and 12 free throws a game…he has the most ISO possessions in the league… 1st in average seconds per touch and 2nd in average dribbles per touch when u filter out random bench scrubs like Malcolm Hill and Jaden Springer Will fans and the media keep that same energy for Luka that they had with Harden? Are we gonna get a bunch of “a lot of players could do that if they had Luka’s green light and usage” talk? I doubt it…
That criticism always got me when Harden was going on that unreal scoring bonanza. Because hell ****ing no there aren’t a lot of players who could score 40 a night on 60+ TS% if given the green light. Such a ridiculous take. On the other hand there are plenty who could pull a Westbrook and get 30 points on below average efficiency chucking as many shots as they want.
People have already started with the "Luka is boring" thing. It's weird because nobody ever says about Giannis and like many have said, he's hardly a subtle or sophisitcated offensive player in terms of his very similar "take ball at top, drive to basket, score or pass or get fouled" game. Guys who look more "conventionally" athletic tend to get a free pass on this than Luka or harden who relied on guile/deceleration etc as much as speed and power.
It's still very early, but Luka is on pace to join Westbrook (2017) & Harden (2019) as the only players with 40% or more usage rate (no one else even has 39%). Lebron's career high usage is only (33.8), Jordan is (38.2), Kobe is (38.7). This is an incredible load and is a result of having an elite offensive talent, extreme ball-dominance and an average or below average supporting cast (offensively). The thing that separates these three seasons from other "one man" team helmed by Lebron, Jordan, Kobe and others in the past is the extent to which they have the ball in their hands. Luka, Westbrook and Harden are regularly over 9 minutes of time of poss and approaches 10mins, An astonishing number when you consider only 2 or 3 other even reach 8 minutes in the data provided by NBA,com since 2014. Lebron only avgs about 6-7 minutes with the ball in his career, which is about the same as Steph. While NBA.com doesn't have the data that far back, I'm guessing Kobe and Jordan probably even less so.
QUESTION: Is Luka's dominance why Brunson left? or was it all about the money and New York? Will people have the wild narratives of "no one wants to play with Luka." ?/ I think Luka will have to win a championship within the next three years before it really turns Rocket River
I think the thing that people don't understand with these great playmakers that are ball dominant is that you actually want other well rounded offensive players around them. You want guys who can maximize everything they create. You don't need stiffs. The Bucks didn't win until they got Jrue. LeBron only won with Wade/Kyrie/AD. Luka can't be the only guy. He needs another guy that has skills on offense.
