in Lists, MLB, NBA, NFL

5 Things I Can’t Stop Thinking About This Week: Luka’s Future, Yankees Short Porch and AFC West Frontrunners

luka

This is a new column over here at Deadseriousness where I will randomly discuss some various sports topics that have been swishing around in my brain all week long. I am constantly thinking about everything all the time. Let’s turn it into some content.

Here are 5 things I can’t stop thinking about this week:

 

1. How do you build around Luka Doncic?

Luka Doncic has historic playoff numbers. One of the rare times we are told we are watching a generational talent and they immediately prove to be that guy. He looks like the slowest, out-of-shape player on the court but just casually drops 40-point triple-doubles against the best defenses in the NBA.

Unfortunately, I have zero faith he can win a championship as a one-man machine. Sure, there could potentially be a season where everything breaks and by everything breaking I mean the bones of the players he’d have to face. But outside of a crazy injury-ridden year, Luka cannot carry Dwight Powell and Dorian Finney-Smith to the Finals.

Luka currently leads all players with a 40.4% usage rate this postseason. He literally always has the ball in his hands with defenders body slamming him every time he backs them down. This doesn’t quite seem sustainable.

Jalen Brunson and Spencer Dinwiddie do a decent job taking some of the ballhandling responsibilities from him but Brunson is most likely leaving in free agency and Dinwiddie is more of a lightning bolt off the bench type of guy than a starter.

We’ve learned the hard way that a player like Kristaps Porzingis isn’t the answer so who is the perfect player to pair with Luka?

Brandon Ingram is one of my favorite scorers in the NBA. At 6-foot-8, he can shoot over most defenders and has a similar style as Luka in that they both appear to be moving in slow motion but still seem to always be able to get to whatever spot they want.

Kawhi Leonard and Paul George knocked Luka out of the playoffs 2 consecutive years. They should look to make their own tandem of big scoring forwards but the huge difference being Luka is 23 and Ingram is 24. They could have a decade-long run. Plus, Ingram looked way better at defense this season. I have literally convinced myself this would be the most dominant duo in the NBA based on nothing but my own imagination.

2. The Chargers are winning the AFC West

For the next like, 11 months, we are going to be waterboarded with how historically great the AFC West is. The Raiders acquired Davante Adams. The Denver Broncos acquired Russell Wilson. The Kansas City Chiefs are the Kansas City Chiefs but for some reason, everyone is overlooking the Los Angeles Chargers despite them acquiring the most impactful player of them all.

Last season, Khalil Mack only played 7 games before undergoing season-ending foot surgery. In just 7 games, Mack recorded 7 quarterback hits and 6 sacks. He is now playing alongside Joey Bosa. 2 of the best pass rushers in the NFL will be on the field at the same time giving Mahomes, Wilson and Carr HELL all season.

Most importantly, the Chargers are going to force the most turnovers this season with JC Jackson and Asante Samuel Jr locking receivers down. Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack forcing fumbles left and right. And Derwin James filling in all of the gaps.

Last season, Justin Herbert finished 2nd in yards and 3rd in passing touchdowns. Entering his 3rd NFL season, he might fuck around and win an MVP. Especially with Aaron Rodgers losing his no. 1 receiver and Tom Brady retiring and unretiring every month.

3. Maybe Ja Morant and Trae Young aren’t those guys

Last season, Trae Young dragged the Atlanta Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals. This season, the Miami Heat dogwalked them out of the gym and bounced them out in the first round. In 5 games, Trae scored less than 15 points 3 times including an absolute STINKER in Game 5 shooting 2-for-12 and 0-for-5 from 3.

Are we sure Trae is the next Steph Curry? Because lately, he’s looking a lot more like Monta Ellis. And that’s not necessarily an insult (yes it is) but Monta used to jack up terrible shots and ignore his teammates and score a bunch of points and well, that’s Trae Young’s game.

On the other side of the bracket, Ja Morant is in 8-minute long commercials nodding his head behind Lil Baby. Unlike Trae, Ja Morant is having no problem getting buckets. He is the most electric player on the floor.

But I’m starting to think neither player will end up actually being the ‘face’ of the NBA. As cool as Ja appears to be, I’m realizing he has way more Steve Francis in his game than I noticed before. We’re all smiling ear to ear watching Ja replicate Derrick Rose’s prime while simultaneously all ignoring how Rose’s career went.

Perhaps we jumped the gun a bit about the changing of the guard in the NBA. We are witnessing the weird time in the early-to-mid 2000’s when every single shooting guard was called the next Michael Jordan and uh, they weren’t even close. Remember Michael Finley?

With LeBron James watching the playoffs from home, it’s clear that these kids aren’t there yet. Not that anyone ever said they’d be as great as LeBron. But Trae Young is not about to become Steve Nash while he’s out here balling like Jamal Crawford. And Ja Morant has wayyyy more Baron Davis in his game than we’re all willing to admit.

I’m just saying are we sure Ja Morant isn’t just John Wall with a dad who dates bottle service girls?

4. The Texas Rangers lit $581 million on fire

Last season, the Rangers lost 102 games. 102 big fat L’s. They went into the offseason looking to redirect their franchise and return to some level of relevance. They spent $581fuckingmillion in free agency. They are currently 11-15 and quickly falling to last place in the AL West. $581 million.

Marcus Semien is batting .184. Corey Seager is batting .238. They make a combined $500 million. Lol.

What’s frustrating about the Rangers being mediocre is how every baseball team pretends they are poor and can’t afford to pay players so when a team finally decides to drop major cash and they still stink, it encourages these other teams to continue behaving as if they are living paycheck to paycheck.

The Rangers are currently leading the league in home runs allowed. They looooove grooving pitches down the middle of the plate and watching the opposing team swat balls into the stands. If you go to a Rangers game, you’re most likely leaving with a souvenir.

Oh, unless it happens at Yankees Stadium in which case Rangers manager, Chris Woodward, will act as if every homer hit there is a crime against humanity.

I’ll never understand teams coming into Yankee Stadium and crying about the short porch in right field as if their team isn’t also playing with that short porch. Like, you guys understand you can also pull swings toward right field too, right? Well, the Rangers can’t because they have $500 million tied up to two players who go 0-for-4 and then Scrooge McDuck into a pool of cash they stole.

5. We will never rid ourselves of Phil Jackson

One of my favorite parts of Winning Time on HBO is the very intentional inclusion of Jeanie Buss as this little girl who is also a genius or whatever matched with the present-day knowledge of Jeannie being one of the worst owners in the NBA.

There is a recent report in which Phil Jackson will help advise the Lakers in head coach search after firing Frank Vogel 2 years removed from an NBA title.

So many levels to what should be a nothing story. Phil Jackson is a Hall of Famer who coached the Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls and then the Kobe/Shaq Lakers. A coaching legend. Word. Then the New York Knicks made him the team president in charge of alllll decisions long after he had any desire to participate in the sport full time.

Phil Jackson pretty much stole checks from the Knicks while on vacation and made some of the worst decisions ever. This motherfucker signed Lamar Odom in 2014. He hadn’t played an NBA game since 2012 and was found passed out after smoking crack in 2016. So yea.

He hired Derek Fisher to be the Knicks head coach so he can run Phil Jackson’s ‘triangle’ offense that was completely prehistoric and outdated in the modern NBA. He went 40-96 and had a famous affair with Matt Barnes’s wife.

Jackson not only gave Carmelo Anthony a max contract but gave him a no-trade clause for seemingly no reason. There were stories that Phil used to sleep through rookie workouts because, ya know, he was an elderly man and should’ve been on a recliner somewhere watching Columbo reruns.

OH, and I can’t not point out that Phil Jackson and Jeanie Buss were banging for 17 years and broke off their engagement in 2017.

So Jeanie Buss called up her ex she dumped to help her hire the next Lakers coach even though the last coach Phil Jackson hired was statistically one of the worst coaches in NBA history. Damn. Addicted to what the dick did. Pray for the Lakers/

 

Written by thelesterlee

Creator of Deadseriousness. Diehard Knicks, Yankees and Giants fan who wants to create a sports and pop culture space that isn't the same copy and pasted AI content you see everywhere else.

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