“Luka [Dončić] gives you that triple-double almost about every night, but he’s too slow for me. If he wasn’t a scorer, I would cut him.

Ethnic Vagina Finder

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Back in the 1980s, Michael Cooper was an integral part of the Los Angeles Lakers' Showtime dynasty. He spent all 12 of his NBA seasons with them, and he helped them win five world championships during that time.

Cooper was known as one of the greatest defenders in NBA history, and he was arguably the league's very first 3-and-D player. He was also known for being the type of player and man who was intensity-personified and would always give 100%, and he would get on his teammates to make sure they did the same.

While on his podcast "Showtime," the Hall of Fame wing brought up Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic. While he gave Doncic credit for his statistical production, he threw shade at the Slovenia native for being slow and "lazy" (h/t Lakers Nation).

“Luka [Dončić] gives you that triple-double almost about every night, but he’s too slow for me. If he wasn’t a scorer, I would cut him. I give him credit for that, but to me, he’s lazy. Doesn’t hustle back on defense.”
Cooper isn't wrong in his assessment of Doncic. While Doncic should be praised for his career averages of 28.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists a game, he isn't exactly an impactful defender, and he plays at a slow pace offensively.

This became evident to those who hadn't noticed yet in the NBA Finals several weeks ago. Doncic consistently walks the ball upcourt and doesn't create pace or fast-break opportunities, and it bogged down the Mavs' offense. While they averaged 117.9 points a game in the regular season, which was seventh in the league, that figure fell hard to 99.2 points a game in the championship series as Dallas lost in five games to the Boston Celtics.

 

Harry B

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"If he wasn't a scorer I would cut him" might be the dumbest thing I've heard today :mjlol:

What else? If Noah Lyles wasn't fast he wouldn't win in the olympics? If Hemingway couldn't write books he wouldn't be a known author? IF Michael Cooper wasn't a defensive specialist he wouldn't have been in the league? :jbhmm:


With that being said it's 2024, a 2 might be a 3 or 4 on defense.
 
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