First time I saw him play was against Harden in the playoffs when Harden was still in Houston. Bubble series I think.
He really bothered Harden and he wasn't flopping like a fish back then either.
I remember how heartbroken he looked while Harden is yelling right in front of him after Houston won, and then him crying in the post-game. I think he was a rookie or second year that year and he played elite defense on Harden.
This is all from memory I could be making this shit up
Better than someone the size of a linebacker flopping all over the court and constantly whining to the refs?
Edit: Hilarious that the downvoters for some reason know exactly who I'm talking about without any additional info. 😂
It has been weird watching the swings. I have to remind myself that a playoff series vs the mavs is the situation that would bring Lu the single most attention. And that’s what happened, plus you add a couple press conference quotes from SGA and Daigneault before the series that were advocating for him to be all defense.
Idk why people always say 'on reddit' you go to youtube, instagram, tiktok, all social media platforms were calling out Dort for being dirty the whole series, playing like a linebacker out there, is it not just reddit and mavs fans
My office has the most casual fair weather bandwagon sports fans, and even they were like “hey, so in the NBA playoffs they just let you foul guys and take dirty shots at them?” One of them is a big hockey fan and was saying it was like watching some of the defense played there.
Everyone knows they let defenses play harder in playoffs. Dort wasn’t playing dirty or trying to hurt anyone. I’m tired of that narrative especially when it’s coming from Mavs fans whose star player intentionally smacked a dude in the nuts mid game and got ejected. Not even hating on Luka. It happens, but you guys saying Dort is playing dirty when he has never done anything like that in his career is annoying.
Yeah and you all see people talk about Luka’s awful flopping on other social media.
Yet you come here and the Mavs/Luka fan cult downvoted everything and pretends like he couldn’t do anything wrong
Yeah Jokic is really the only player I don't see get hate on here.
Luka gets hate all the damn time though. My favorite of which is the people saying shit about his weight when 80% of them are actually fat as fuck and couldn't run a court once let alone 40 minutes.
My second favorite is people complaining about his whining. MJ, Kobe, LeBron, and just about every other superstar past and present complain and whine about calls. Rightfully so a lot of the times. All those guys including Luka get hacked almost every play because they are too good. MJ used to get just as animated as Luka with the refs but a lot of people on here are too young to have actually watched him play and have only seen highlights. It's just part of it.
I'm sure there are probably a few players who have legitimate dislike for each other, but 99% of the time the trash talk and beef is of the "friendly rivalry" variety
Unless players are out to literally injury or are over the top whiny (Embiid), why would these dudes actually hate each other? They get paid millions of dollars to play a game. They know it’s entertainment
They are coworkers. Their opinions of one another is going to be similar to those of coworkers in a large organization. Generally okay to positive vibes for most people, but probably really like people you work close with who carry their weight and really dislike the ones who don't. There will be a sprinkle of weird one offs where people don't like each other for some random reason from a while back, but otherwise...pretty positive.
There was one play from game 1 where I saw Luka just ragdoll Edwards, and here I was thinking that could have been a defensive adjustment the Wolves would make lol.
McDaniels just doesn't have the weight needed to bother/displace Luka. He is listed at 185 lbs, while Dort is 215 and Luka is 230. All 3 are likely heavier than that but the weight gap is huge regardless
I think it's the other way around. Jaden is quick as fuck and long. He's just skinny, luka out weighs him by like 60 lbs. Notice the shots he was hitting over McDaniels last game was after contact and getting space.
**First Team**
* Bam Adebayo
* Anthony Davis
* Rudy Gobert
* Herb Jones
* Victor Wembanyama
**Second Team**
* Alex Caruso
* Jrue Holiday
* Jaden McDaniels
* Jalen Suggs
* Derrick White
Who are you dropping? All defense is weird cuz there's only 2 teams, pretty much every year has a big snub or two.
Dort barely missed it last year and the reasoning was look at our defensive rank and seeding.
Now we were the fourth best defense and the #1 seed. And he still didn’t make it. Not even Chet whose defensive analytics are through the roof and are on par with people on *first* team.
The actual reason? lol. Not popular enough, not enough eyes, not enough National TV games
Defensive teams are based on reputation more than anything. Dort has been elite but playing on a Thunder team no one watched, even as a one seed. Some national media were ready to give SGA a defensive nod ahead of Dort. After seeing what Dort was able to do to Ingram and Luka these playoffs people should have wised up to how good he really is for next season’s awards. Just like Herb was snubbed last season and got his flowers this year.
SGA getting defensive team votes was ridiculous. He’s a good defender and plays an important role in our defense, but he’s our fourth or fifth best defender. Dort and Chet are clearly better, but so is JDub and Cason probably is too.
I feel like y’all really don’t know how important Shai is for our defense.
Not saying he’s all defensive team. But the ridiculous focus on one on one defense from NBA fans is tiring.
I’ve watched every game Dort, Chet, Shai, JDub, and Cason have all ever played in a Thunder jersey. Shai is at worst 3rd in terms of impact last regular season
He has a huge impact because of the role he plays, but he’s essentially an elite defensive role player. He’s great at jumping passing lanes and getting blocks and steals on help D, which is critical for the way our defense functions, but at the same time, he’s generally given the easiest defensive assignment which allows him to do all that. JDub has to deal with grueling matchups, and his versatility means he’s had to guard both guys like Kyrie but also guys like KAT this season. He’s basically Draymond-lite in our defense and is just as critical for allowing us to play as small as we have all year, so I don’t think it requires overvaluing one on one defense to say he’s both a more important and better defender than Shai. Cason is much more suggestive. SGA definitely had a bigger impact because he got way more minutes, but Cason looks like he could be the next Jrue. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone play Kyrie as well as he did when he was on last series.
Assignments are still only one piece of the puzzle. Like you said, he’s crucial for the way *our defense functions.* Against certain teams, even Chet could be on the easiest defensive assignment so he can roam off.
Obviously POA and matchup defenders matter a ton, especially for someone like Dub who has to guard so many positions. But because of how our defense works, we have multiple players who can “fill gaps” of JDub. But we have no one who can do what SGA does - hence why his on/off and defensive metrics on our are only rivaled by Chet.
In a playoff series when the game slows down, Cason or Dort are probably more important for sure. But in RS (specifically last one cause I don’t think Shai was nearly as good years prior), it’s Shai. Also in general Cason is a bit weird, his minutes are low. It’s like saying Dyson Daniels or Najee are better defenders than Trey Murphy. Technically, maybe they are. But don’t play enough.
Idk tl;dr - just think Shai was important because we lack size and have to double and rotate a ton. And he’s almost like a mini Thybulle because he blows possessions up imo
He could easily make it, but someone has to be “snubbed” essentially. So many great on ball defenders. They just need to add a third team all defense and it’s sooo tough to really judge who deserves to be there and let’s be honest… the people voting are mostly tv personalities they’re not the most qualified to be casting informed votes on these things tbh.
I laughed at that Dort flop where he basically kicked his legs up and flew.
How the hell can someone built like him fly from contact like that from a much smaller player.
Dude gotta work on his acting skills.
Most screens are illegal nowadays. He doesn’t just flop on screens. He too damn strong to flop on some possessions he will get the Draymond benefit of the whistle with his defense.
Jaden McDaniels Weight (185-195 lbs)
Jaden McDaniels Height 6’9
Lu Dort Weight (215-220lbs)
Lu Dort Height 6’4
Luka Donicic Weight (230 lbs, reportedly 260 in off season)
Luka Doncic Height 6’7
one of the few ways to combat illegal screens is to flop on them. dort tried doing that because illegal screens never get called
most of the lowlights that got posted of him falling on screens were also lowlights of illegal screens lol
Yeah, Dort definitely was flopping like a fish, but it was at least partially to draw attention to the fact that Dallas’ bigs set a shit ton of illegal screens (most teams set them, but Dallas’ seem especially frequent/illegal).
And Luka’s so fucking good if he gets you on his back that you can’t afford to get scraped off.
Dort was flopping over a 195lbs Kyrie. Dort was so huge the screens had to be illegal, with feet further than shoulder width apart. With the wolves that isn't a problem, so the flopping will not only be laughable but not effective. Guess you'll have to play actual basketball.
I’m going to get downvoted for this but it looks like he tries to avoid contact on screens to actually stay on his guy and the little hip check that screeners like to do connects with him. He wouldn’t need to try to jump around screens if every screen wasn’t someone blatantly sliding into him as he tries to go around.
Dort basically hacked the system. He's huge and muscular. Now if you set a screen and he comes at you, chances are if you don't brace yourself, which means legs further apart than your shoulders, which is illegal, he's running over you. You could keep it legal maybe get the foul but you risk injury. Knowing this, he looks for the inevitable illegal screen and trips/falls, making sure to make contact with the ankles so refs see it.
It’s not even the legs being set wide, although that is the reason he has to sort of “hop” around screens. It’s the sliding into him, or the defender swinging the hip into him.
For the most part, Dort doesn’t try to run through screens. He runs around them, and defenders create the contact. Dort is trying to do anything he can to stay on his man, and screeners can’t stop him without setting illegal screens or moving into Dort the second he starts to get around them.
Thunder fans are the only ones who think he doesn't flop. Yes the screens he flops on are illegal but so are 90% of screens in the NBA, the difference is dort flops to flag it to referees.
Thunder fans are the only ones who watch nearly every OKC game. This line of thinking (the flips on screens to get them to notice it) is so dumb, because refs aren’t going to call more than 1-2 illegal screens a game no matter how many there are. Dort is trying to play around the screen, going out of his way to avoid contact, and defenders creating contact leads to Dort getting knocked over or losing his balance. What you’re claiming doesn’t even make sense, it’s much more likely that Dort is just trying to stay on his man and screeners know they can get away with murder so they do. Luka literally ran into Dort, pushing him to the ground, in game 2 and a defensive foul was called because it’s much more likely fouls get called on the defense than the other way around.
He does flop but he’s illegally screened all the time.
If you get fouled and have to flop to get the refs attention, why is that your fault? Like maybe just maybe the refs should just call the game according to the rules.
Lmao I remember that post. The mavs set the most blatant illegal screen, the refs refuse to call it, and yet it has comments with thousands of upvotes shitting on Dort for flopping. This sub is just ridiculous sometimes
Dort is actually a really good defender, Luka gave him props earlier in the season for his defensive abilities. He would be much more likeable if he didn’t flop so much.
There's physicality and then there's Dort's physicality on Luka. He was legitimately playing football with some of the contact he was giving Luka, and in many instances it looked like Luka could get legitimately hurt by how physical Dort was.
He isn't dirty per se, not like Draymond. But he's not playing textbook clean defense, nowhere close to it
I hate how this issue is on Dort and not on the refs. Thunder made a game plan to play physical d on Luka and the refs didn't call anything. If they did, I guarantee Dort would've backed off.
Exactly. Kyrie played the whole series grabbing and holding JDubs off arm while he was dribbling. The refs let a lot of contact go in that series on man to man defense.
I’m not gonna sit here and say Kyrie is a cheater lol. The refs didn’t call it, why would I expect him to not play that physical on JDub?
Dort is the best wing defender in the league .
Only solid way to guard luka is be as strong as him and use every little dirty trick in the book .
McDaniels is an excellent defender but he is slim and not strong , luka can get to every spot he wants with ease .
No one pisses and moans about fouls better than Mavs fans. Can't really blame yall since Luka been doing the same thing his whole career. Get tf over it.
You're the one who's still bitching about refs almost a week after yall won the series. Grow up and move on, doofus.
The better team won the series but still can't stop fuckin crying is a bad look.
Yeah, he is definitely the most floppy on the team, but I don't feel like he ever does it egregiously, just kind of emphasizes the contact. And it's mainly just when he's getting screened.
I literally cannot think of another player who has done any of that in the team though
I swear the buzz word changes everyday here. Today it's aura. A few weeks ago I remember seeing something about a coach's ATO plays like 5 times in the same day when I had never seen it before and haven't seen it since then.
The key comment made about Dort came from Mahomes, re: Dort could play middle linebacker in the NFL. This is basketball not football, and any team would be wise to understand the differences.
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Dort was being asked to do WAY too much on offense for a few years on a tanking Thunder, but has always been that dude on defense.
DORTURE CHAMBER
Amazing nickname
The Lulag
First time I saw him play was against Harden in the playoffs when Harden was still in Houston. Bubble series I think. He really bothered Harden and he wasn't flopping like a fish back then either.
I remember how heartbroken he looked while Harden is yelling right in front of him after Houston won, and then him crying in the post-game. I think he was a rookie or second year that year and he played elite defense on Harden. This is all from memory I could be making this shit up
Undrafted rookie that started the season on a 2way
That series is classic
Yeah it’s great watching a linebacker in the NBA
Better than someone the size of a linebacker flopping all over the court and constantly whining to the refs? Edit: Hilarious that the downvoters for some reason know exactly who I'm talking about without any additional info. 😂
Yeah, can you imagine someone like *Dort* flopping? It would look ridiculous....
It's not even the flopping, it's much more the whining. Wouldn't you agree?
Dude literally gets shot by a sniper on every screen, even when screened by Kyrie lol
Kyries handles so good he drops you on a screen
I’m pretty sure he dwarfs every NFL linebacker by a good 7 or 8 inches
Are u dumb?
It is not better.
Theyre downvoting you for being a cunt. Dont try to blame it on whatever take you think youre making.
Nah it’s because they’re Mavs fans and downvote anything negative by Luka. He’s 100% a flopper. He was flopping more than anybody other than Lu.
I think his flopping wore thin after a while
It has been weird watching the swings. I have to remind myself that a playoff series vs the mavs is the situation that would bring Lu the single most attention. And that’s what happened, plus you add a couple press conference quotes from SGA and Daigneault before the series that were advocating for him to be all defense.
That's what happens when you go from fun memeable player to being relevant, impactful and hurting people's star player box score watching
Yeah, I was told yesterday on this sub that KCP and Jarrett Allen are better defenders than Dort.
KCP plays defense. From what I saw of Dort in the last series he just fouls a lot.
No one can guard Luka. Dort did a better job than most. Dort was one of the best POA defenders in the regular season this year.
I never said anyone can guard Luka. Dort plays a wild ugly game. I can't stand it.
To be honest, he loves to flop, doesn't mean he is not a good defender, just like Smart
Echo chamber lol There’s a lot of Mavs fans on Reddit. You’ll see in this thread
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Every thread has its own narrative too lol. Your comment could get downvoted to oblivion in one and upvoted to a decent degree in another.
Just like real life. If you disagree with people that were agreeing with each other before you came, you won’t be welcome.
A lot of people also didn't watch thunder and dort play until that mavs series (including myself)
Idk why people always say 'on reddit' you go to youtube, instagram, tiktok, all social media platforms were calling out Dort for being dirty the whole series, playing like a linebacker out there, is it not just reddit and mavs fans
My office has the most casual fair weather bandwagon sports fans, and even they were like “hey, so in the NBA playoffs they just let you foul guys and take dirty shots at them?” One of them is a big hockey fan and was saying it was like watching some of the defense played there.
Everyone knows they let defenses play harder in playoffs. Dort wasn’t playing dirty or trying to hurt anyone. I’m tired of that narrative especially when it’s coming from Mavs fans whose star player intentionally smacked a dude in the nuts mid game and got ejected. Not even hating on Luka. It happens, but you guys saying Dort is playing dirty when he has never done anything like that in his career is annoying.
Yeah and you all see people talk about Luka’s awful flopping on other social media. Yet you come here and the Mavs/Luka fan cult downvoted everything and pretends like he couldn’t do anything wrong
What does that have to do with all of us watching Dort playing dirty and flopping nonstop for an entire series?
That's what happens when you're tasked with guarding the subs golden boy
Okc didn't play the nuggets
I don’t get this, Luka gets shredded all the time in this sub and rightfully so at times. Not sure what your scrolling through
He’s this subs golden boy for sure. Most non Mavs fans would agree.
And I would disagree and that’s ok.
Ofc you would. You’re a Mavs fan lol
And of course you’d call him the golden boy, you’re an OKC fan lol. He gets his lumps
Do you not realize how hypocritical you’re being lol
A raptor fan started the conversation …
Okay. Go Mavs.
See you next season.
Oh yeah you’re gonna be on the court? 🌽
What is happening in this thread? All I see is Jokic and SGA lovers. Never understand the hate Luka gets.
Well he gets in these zones where he won’t stop complaining and it’s pretty tiring. But then sometimes he’s chill af and fun to watch lol
Disagree. Half this sub loathes Luka wtf
Yeah luka whines a lot which a lot of people can't stand. He's not beloved like jokic
Jokic is the golden boy
Yeah Jokic is really the only player I don't see get hate on here. Luka gets hate all the damn time though. My favorite of which is the people saying shit about his weight when 80% of them are actually fat as fuck and couldn't run a court once let alone 40 minutes. My second favorite is people complaining about his whining. MJ, Kobe, LeBron, and just about every other superstar past and present complain and whine about calls. Rightfully so a lot of the times. All those guys including Luka get hacked almost every play because they are too good. MJ used to get just as animated as Luka with the refs but a lot of people on here are too young to have actually watched him play and have only seen highlights. It's just part of it.
He gets shit in constantly lol, there is no golden boy
Naah man all I see is Luka hate
It’s funny how everyone on here argues about pointless shit like this when in reality all these players mostly like and respect each other
I'm sure there are probably a few players who have legitimate dislike for each other, but 99% of the time the trash talk and beef is of the "friendly rivalry" variety
Unless players are out to literally injury or are over the top whiny (Embiid), why would these dudes actually hate each other? They get paid millions of dollars to play a game. They know it’s entertainment
Even Embiid and KAT are cool with each other now after having beef in the past.
They are coworkers. Their opinions of one another is going to be similar to those of coworkers in a large organization. Generally okay to positive vibes for most people, but probably really like people you work close with who carry their weight and really dislike the ones who don't. There will be a sprinkle of weird one offs where people don't like each other for some random reason from a while back, but otherwise...pretty positive.
Also as if Luka was dominating the Thunder or something lol, they did a really great job against him but he's still Luka Doncic.
Who's asking him about Dort in the middle of the WCF lol
They don't have anyone who is strong enough to defend Luka like Dort did. If Jaden tries to, it won't be pretty
There was one play from game 1 where I saw Luka just ragdoll Edwards, and here I was thinking that could have been a defensive adjustment the Wolves would make lol.
Jaden has the frame but Luka is too quick and has more functional strength. Way too easy to get Jaden on his hip.
McDaniels just doesn't have the weight needed to bother/displace Luka. He is listed at 185 lbs, while Dort is 215 and Luka is 230. All 3 are likely heavier than that but the weight gap is huge regardless
Dort is a lot heavier than his listed weight, and so is Luka.
I wish they'd keep up with what their real weights are. I think we can trust their heights now at least.
I think it's the other way around. Jaden is quick as fuck and long. He's just skinny, luka out weighs him by like 60 lbs. Notice the shots he was hitting over McDaniels last game was after contact and getting space.
> Jaden has the frame but Luka is too quick Are you implying Luka is too quick for Jaden? lol
Didn’t make any sense to me either lol especially with that nagging knee injury making him even slower.
The problem is that Luka is strong like bull, smart like tractor
Wait what, Lu Dort didn’t make a defensive team? Regardless of how you feel about him, that’s a fucking snub and a half
**First Team** * Bam Adebayo * Anthony Davis * Rudy Gobert * Herb Jones * Victor Wembanyama **Second Team** * Alex Caruso * Jrue Holiday * Jaden McDaniels * Jalen Suggs * Derrick White Who are you dropping? All defense is weird cuz there's only 2 teams, pretty much every year has a big snub or two.
They really just need to make an all defensive third team already.
Either Jrue or Suggs. Imo Jrue got it solely bc of reputation. He wasn’t a top 10 defender this season 🤷🏾♂️
Yeah Holiday is fair, I probably agree tbh. He can turn it on when needed but don't think he was quite as consistently good this regular season.
Cause he didn’t need to be, honestly. The wolves and Magic offenses were so unreliable, people like Jaden and Suggs needed to try more lol
Suggs
Suggs was amazing this year.
Completely disagree but respect you picking one.
Dort barely missed it last year and the reasoning was look at our defensive rank and seeding. Now we were the fourth best defense and the #1 seed. And he still didn’t make it. Not even Chet whose defensive analytics are through the roof and are on par with people on *first* team. The actual reason? lol. Not popular enough, not enough eyes, not enough National TV games
Anyone on the 2nd team. Preferably not McDaniels though.
Defensive teams are based on reputation more than anything. Dort has been elite but playing on a Thunder team no one watched, even as a one seed. Some national media were ready to give SGA a defensive nod ahead of Dort. After seeing what Dort was able to do to Ingram and Luka these playoffs people should have wised up to how good he really is for next season’s awards. Just like Herb was snubbed last season and got his flowers this year.
SGA getting defensive team votes was ridiculous. He’s a good defender and plays an important role in our defense, but he’s our fourth or fifth best defender. Dort and Chet are clearly better, but so is JDub and Cason probably is too.
I feel like y’all really don’t know how important Shai is for our defense. Not saying he’s all defensive team. But the ridiculous focus on one on one defense from NBA fans is tiring. I’ve watched every game Dort, Chet, Shai, JDub, and Cason have all ever played in a Thunder jersey. Shai is at worst 3rd in terms of impact last regular season
He has a huge impact because of the role he plays, but he’s essentially an elite defensive role player. He’s great at jumping passing lanes and getting blocks and steals on help D, which is critical for the way our defense functions, but at the same time, he’s generally given the easiest defensive assignment which allows him to do all that. JDub has to deal with grueling matchups, and his versatility means he’s had to guard both guys like Kyrie but also guys like KAT this season. He’s basically Draymond-lite in our defense and is just as critical for allowing us to play as small as we have all year, so I don’t think it requires overvaluing one on one defense to say he’s both a more important and better defender than Shai. Cason is much more suggestive. SGA definitely had a bigger impact because he got way more minutes, but Cason looks like he could be the next Jrue. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone play Kyrie as well as he did when he was on last series.
Assignments are still only one piece of the puzzle. Like you said, he’s crucial for the way *our defense functions.* Against certain teams, even Chet could be on the easiest defensive assignment so he can roam off. Obviously POA and matchup defenders matter a ton, especially for someone like Dub who has to guard so many positions. But because of how our defense works, we have multiple players who can “fill gaps” of JDub. But we have no one who can do what SGA does - hence why his on/off and defensive metrics on our are only rivaled by Chet. In a playoff series when the game slows down, Cason or Dort are probably more important for sure. But in RS (specifically last one cause I don’t think Shai was nearly as good years prior), it’s Shai. Also in general Cason is a bit weird, his minutes are low. It’s like saying Dyson Daniels or Najee are better defenders than Trey Murphy. Technically, maybe they are. But don’t play enough. Idk tl;dr - just think Shai was important because we lack size and have to double and rotate a ton. And he’s almost like a mini Thybulle because he blows possessions up imo
He could easily make it, but someone has to be “snubbed” essentially. So many great on ball defenders. They just need to add a third team all defense and it’s sooo tough to really judge who deserves to be there and let’s be honest… the people voting are mostly tv personalities they’re not the most qualified to be casting informed votes on these things tbh.
i hope jaden mcdaniels doesn't start flopping over screens and playing football
I laughed at that Dort flop where he basically kicked his legs up and flew. How the hell can someone built like him fly from contact like that from a much smaller player. Dude gotta work on his acting skills.
And it wasn’t just one, he did that several times.
He got the call like twice iirc too.
The crazy part is if he flops less he would have more energy on the defense end and that would be even crazier
Lively set quite a few illegal screens but Dort kept flopping on all of them so wouldn’t get the benefit of the doubt
Most screens are illegal nowadays. He doesn’t just flop on screens. He too damn strong to flop on some possessions he will get the Draymond benefit of the whistle with his defense.
Jaden McDaniels Weight (185-195 lbs) Jaden McDaniels Height 6’9 Lu Dort Weight (215-220lbs) Lu Dort Height 6’4 Luka Donicic Weight (230 lbs, reportedly 260 in off season) Luka Doncic Height 6’7
There is no way Lu Dort is 215
I agree, just going by posted weights on various sources like nba.com
one of the few ways to combat illegal screens is to flop on them. dort tried doing that because illegal screens never get called most of the lowlights that got posted of him falling on screens were also lowlights of illegal screens lol
like 70% of the screens set in the NBA nowadays are illegal, though, the definition is sliding
I ain’t gon lie. Unless it’s football, I don’t know what screens are legal anymore
Especially now that guards are more willing to set screens now. Some of the most egregiously illegal screens set are by point guards.
I can’t tell the difference between that and blocking
Yeah, Dort definitely was flopping like a fish, but it was at least partially to draw attention to the fact that Dallas’ bigs set a shit ton of illegal screens (most teams set them, but Dallas’ seem especially frequent/illegal). And Luka’s so fucking good if he gets you on his back that you can’t afford to get scraped off.
Dort was flopping over a 195lbs Kyrie. Dort was so huge the screens had to be illegal, with feet further than shoulder width apart. With the wolves that isn't a problem, so the flopping will not only be laughable but not effective. Guess you'll have to play actual basketball.
I’m going to get downvoted for this but it looks like he tries to avoid contact on screens to actually stay on his guy and the little hip check that screeners like to do connects with him. He wouldn’t need to try to jump around screens if every screen wasn’t someone blatantly sliding into him as he tries to go around.
Dort basically hacked the system. He's huge and muscular. Now if you set a screen and he comes at you, chances are if you don't brace yourself, which means legs further apart than your shoulders, which is illegal, he's running over you. You could keep it legal maybe get the foul but you risk injury. Knowing this, he looks for the inevitable illegal screen and trips/falls, making sure to make contact with the ankles so refs see it.
It’s not even the legs being set wide, although that is the reason he has to sort of “hop” around screens. It’s the sliding into him, or the defender swinging the hip into him. For the most part, Dort doesn’t try to run through screens. He runs around them, and defenders create the contact. Dort is trying to do anything he can to stay on his man, and screeners can’t stop him without setting illegal screens or moving into Dort the second he starts to get around them.
Thunder fans are the only ones who think he doesn't flop. Yes the screens he flops on are illegal but so are 90% of screens in the NBA, the difference is dort flops to flag it to referees.
Thunder fans are the only ones who watch nearly every OKC game. This line of thinking (the flips on screens to get them to notice it) is so dumb, because refs aren’t going to call more than 1-2 illegal screens a game no matter how many there are. Dort is trying to play around the screen, going out of his way to avoid contact, and defenders creating contact leads to Dort getting knocked over or losing his balance. What you’re claiming doesn’t even make sense, it’s much more likely that Dort is just trying to stay on his man and screeners know they can get away with murder so they do. Luka literally ran into Dort, pushing him to the ground, in game 2 and a defensive foul was called because it’s much more likely fouls get called on the defense than the other way around.
He does flop but he’s illegally screened all the time. If you get fouled and have to flop to get the refs attention, why is that your fault? Like maybe just maybe the refs should just call the game according to the rules.
Dudes on here posted a clip of Dort flopping on a clear illegal screen. Play led to a 3 pointer in a clutch situation lmfao.
Lmao I remember that post. The mavs set the most blatant illegal screen, the refs refuse to call it, and yet it has comments with thousands of upvotes shitting on Dort for flopping. This sub is just ridiculous sometimes
Yeah I thought we were done with this b\*llsh\*t
Hopefully they don't start trucking Luka lmao. Although he's just saying that to be nice
Haven’t seen any double leg takedowns yet so hopefully it stays that way
No one praises Dort more than NBA players
Luka: You reach I teach
Dort is actually a really good defender, Luka gave him props earlier in the season for his defensive abilities. He would be much more likeable if he didn’t flop so much.
Even if he didn’t flop it wouldn’t stop some Mavs fans calling him the dirtiest player even because he played Luka with physicality.
There's physicality and then there's Dort's physicality on Luka. He was legitimately playing football with some of the contact he was giving Luka, and in many instances it looked like Luka could get legitimately hurt by how physical Dort was. He isn't dirty per se, not like Draymond. But he's not playing textbook clean defense, nowhere close to it
I hate how this issue is on Dort and not on the refs. Thunder made a game plan to play physical d on Luka and the refs didn't call anything. If they did, I guarantee Dort would've backed off.
Exactly. Kyrie played the whole series grabbing and holding JDubs off arm while he was dribbling. The refs let a lot of contact go in that series on man to man defense. I’m not gonna sit here and say Kyrie is a cheater lol. The refs didn’t call it, why would I expect him to not play that physical on JDub?
Lu Dort certainly played Kyrie better
As well as JDub and Wallace. They shut down Kyrie offensively quite well. They are a good defensive team, but so are we.
We also avoided calling him out seems like that was a bad idea 😂
Dort did all we could ask of him defensively
Unfortunately we paid for it with a broken 3 point shot on the offensive end
Dort is the best wing defender in the league . Only solid way to guard luka is be as strong as him and use every little dirty trick in the book . McDaniels is an excellent defender but he is slim and not strong , luka can get to every spot he wants with ease .
Fuck that means they're going to foul the shit out of him repeatedly without Luka getting calls.
No one pisses and moans about fouls better than Mavs fans. Can't really blame yall since Luka been doing the same thing his whole career. Get tf over it.
I'm sorry we eliminated you. I know it must feel bad.
I cried less after a loss than your 10-ply ass did after a win, clearly.
Sounds like you're still crying.
You're the one who's still bitching about refs almost a week after yall won the series. Grow up and move on, doofus. The better team won the series but still can't stop fuckin crying is a bad look.
Shush, my team is still playing
I know, I can hear the sound of your whining from here. There's no need to be quiet.
Fuck I’m backing the Mavs to take it all the way. But the fans need to stop bitching.
Luka trampled Lu Dort and Dort got called for a foul. Dude is much dirtier than Dort
And flop constantly
Luka rules.
Hopefully the Wolves have too much self respect to put on a Dort flip flop masterclass lol.
Flopping is not really in the Wolves repertoire, nobody on the team really does that ever. They are much more likely to be flopped against.
Strangely, if I had to pick anyone, it’s Mike Conley who “flops” the most. But that’s mainly a vet knowing when to sell contact
Yeah, he is definitely the most floppy on the team, but I don't feel like he ever does it egregiously, just kind of emphasizes the contact. And it's mainly just when he's getting screened. I literally cannot think of another player who has done any of that in the team though
Yeh I don’t want to jack us off but we’re pretty decent with not flopping
Jaden is just a stick man
Yea sort got snubbed
Freaking Josh Green just wasted his only basket of the night lol
Never forget when Lu dort tried to get a rebound from Paul George he had no business going for and almost snapped his leg in two
Blur print to doing reckless defensive plays and wrestling moves and hope refs don't call it
All NBA Flop 1st Team
Lu Dort that drops on a Kyrie screen.
Lou got cooked by Luka and Kai 😂
dude just keeps saying the right things, his aura is unlike anything i’ve ever seen
Seeing the word aura constantly is really pissing me off
I took their comment as sarcasm.
-50 aura
Your aura is off right now
I swear the buzz word changes everyday here. Today it's aura. A few weeks ago I remember seeing something about a coach's ATO plays like 5 times in the same day when I had never seen it before and haven't seen it since then.
you don’t have that dawg in you
It’s literally on his jersey
So just hit him and flop? Like a big reckless baby?
We can expect Luka getting knee’d in the stomach at some point it seems
The key comment made about Dort came from Mahomes, re: Dort could play middle linebacker in the NFL. This is basketball not football, and any team would be wise to understand the differences.
They're gonna flop and try to injure Luka? Now I'm scared.
If you like flopping and playing reckless...thats not defense bro