The OKC Thunder seem to be headed towards a 2nd round loss to the Dallas Mavericks, and game 5 was a perfect example of why. #thunder #okcthunder #thundermavs
The funny thing is Shai actually has a decent squad around him, the issue really is that he is dribbling for far too long and isn’t circulating the ball as much. Maybe it’s because his teammates haven’t been shooting that well but playing iso and spamming middies is clearly not helping either for the thunder. SGA needs to pass around the ball more and get his teammates involved more
Sounds like you don’t follow Thunder basketball. Okc’s offense isn’t “forcing anything due to the Mavs defense”. They are simply missing a lot of normally open rhythmic 3 pointers! They are not being “shut down”. When those normal open shots start going down, game 1 type of results will happen without turning the Mavs over.
Man, being a mavs fan where for the last 8-9 years our best 5 was Dwight Powell, this is really a great time to be a mavs fan. Derek and Daniel are complete breaths of fresh air under the rim for the mavs. Not to mention PJ and DJ. Also, wouldn’t mind seeing Kyrie close out with a 10 point game if that means he explodes next series. Have a feeling they’re going to need his scoring against the wolves or nuggets.
I think Kyrie is secretly injured, there is just absolutely kinkther reason he isn’t taking shots, he isn’t taking three or long range two’s I reckon he is facilitating and secretly getting a lot of rehab on this injury in hopes it’s fine for WCF or finals
Even when Luka is not shooting well, he is still getting doubled all game long, and he consistently makes the right play and creates open looks for others. People complain about his usage but it's mostly just a narrative, Embiid and Giannis have been TOP3 in usage the past couple of seasons and nobody talked about their usage, Giannis was #1 last season and Embiid was #1 in the first part of the season, and somehow a PG having a ball a lot is a bad thing. But you know what having the ball on Luka's hand does? Career years for a lot of role players, why is it that Gafford, PJ, Lively and DJJ are having big numbers? Why is it that Dinwiddie, Bullock, DFS were great with Luka and you don't even hear about them since they were traded? Because when it becomes tough for role players, it's great to have a player with Luka's gravity and playmaking so others can get easy buckets. Unfortunately for OKC, that's not SGA's game, and the offense looks stagnant. SGA is making really tough shots, but all other players are struggling mightily and as the series advances, they are feeling the weight of the playoffs, it's far harder to get your own shot and now even decent looks feel harder.
you can see the bias just looking at this series alone. Sga losing with a 30 piece, less rebounds and way less assists is seen as a young star needing help. The even younger luka with slightly less points and way more offensive facilitation for his team is seen as a ball hog who dribbles too much.
@@ellieswagaye they just hate Luka to be the 'face' of the NBA for another, what, 10/15 years? and that's alongside another white they hate,Jokic. lmao the NBA talking heads are lowkey being racists for a few years now
@@AngelLV2 so odd to me how a more heliocentric offense manages to be so much more effective at getting the team involved. Much higher usage too, dude is a phenom who cannot be compared.
This mavericks team reminds me of the 2019 Texas tech red raiders defensively. They’re so long but athletic to the point where every single player can guard multiple guys. This team is dangerous. I don’t think okc is struggling. I think the mavs are just that good.
@@alexham28Almost none of them as important as Luka is for Mavs. His PIE numbers, last I checked was no. 2, right behind Joker. OKC otoh, has been the healthiest teams this season, hell, Chet was boasting about his attendance at the end of the regular season. Shai is playing with a stacked crew.
As mavs fans I agree, but injuries do happen to players tho.. Bucks played without Giannis and Even Dame also injured.. 76ers played with Injured Embidd.. We should be thankful that Luka injuries arent as serious as Maxi or Giannis or Embidd injuries
@@HuanNguyen-th3sg how comfortable you are shooting is definitely affected by playoff atmosphere. You’re a casual if you say it’s not. Ask Josh Giddey or even Dante Exum. Exum was tearing it up towards the end of the season. Now come playoff time, they’ve given most of his minutes to a 3rd year player.
@@Smido83 110% true honestly any nba player shoots better from anywhere than someone who is not a pro. Ben Simmons and Shaq have videos on socials about nailing 3s over and over but in a game free throws were allready hard for them. We could probably never understand the stress of shooting with a whole arena screaming at you
This series clearly shows the difference between a "BALL HOG" Luka and a BALL HOG Shai. Luka has been getting everyone involved and getting them open shots they just couldn't make use of it but thats in the past now. OKC squad was way better than DALLAS's squad till the trade deadline. Luka should have been #2 in the MVP race, MAVs starters have all been out for 20+ games and Kyrie been out for 22+ games Luka kept them floating enough and they still got top 5 with new rotation 2 new guys and ended the season top 5 with his STAT LINE with an inconsistent LINE UP.
They’re missing open 3s.. that has nothing to do with a tougher defense. They’re shooting far worse than the worst 3pt% team in the league so far in this series. They were ranked first in % throughout the season.
@@changed_name1951 honestly might be just highlight bias but its the second or third game recap where I see dalas blocking several 3 point attempts idk if it is just me but that can kinda break your confidence in the 3 ball
@@changed_name1951 they scared of the closeouts (look at djj's block on Chet as an example) + Dallas Is allowing 30% less of the amount of Wide open 3pt chances that okc got per game in regular season (23 open 3s a game in regular season to 16 open 3s a game against Dallas in playoffs)
I heard on the broadcast that OKC had only scored less than 100 pts 3 times in the regular season and they’ve been held to less than 100 in 2 of the 5 games in this series. Jalen Williams has been a no show.
Dallas is just playing better right now, Even with a hobbled Luka this team is better, Dallas is limiting the shooting which is killing OKC, this is why you see these 3 point reliant teams be so volatile because if they don’t fall your in trouble, OKC got a bright future but Dallas just is the better team
It’s hard to shoot well when you are spending all your energy trying to stop Luca and Kyrie and try to get a board against Dallas’ length. I’ve never seen a series where a team put this much pressure on 2 guys. They are doing a great job but that energy has to take its toll to reduce shooting percentage. It’s no fluke or bad luck. If they slack on defense or the glass, Dallas is up by 30 quickly. I don’t see how they can have their cake and eat it too. This is Dallas’ series to lose.
Dallas gave up their small line up with more 3pt scoring dept for this bigger and more defensively better lineup and it's been really good all playoffs.
Basically the Mavericks are just a bigger and better team... I don't understand why the narrative isn't as simple as that. Luka is better than Shai but Shai is still amazing! Oklahoma is still a very great team and very young but each young star needs to go through growing pains just like the Mavs for the last few years
Thunder just can’t hit shots and it’s depressing. And. Seeing dudes just hesitate even when they’re open is frustrating. Rn it’s SGA vs. Mavs. Mavs role players are hitting everything meanwhile our 2&3 options can’t hit shit
Thunder's 3 point shooting has been highly overrated. They were like 15th this year in attempts, so thier % is gonna be higher if they only choose to shoot wide open threes. Right now thier game is very predictable cause its shai with the dribble/drive middy or roleplayer 3s. Dallas is too long and too big for OKC.
and also too skilled. Luka and kyrie have been centerpieces to their impenetrable defense. Despite not getting some highlight blocks and steals they fill the gaps and direct the traffic defensively perfectly while not being as big or long as the guys getting credited for it.
Man this series has been rough. We completely dominated game one and it feels like we've been chasing a lead ever since. Managed to claw back a win in game 4 after again going behind early and being on the backfoot for almost the entire game and that's been games 2, 3 and 5 only we weren't able to claw it back. It seems like game six will be the same. We'll be down by ten after five minutes and have a few moments where we pull it back to five but ultimately we'll lose. it's no biggie we're a young team we can regroup and try again next year. 12th pick in the draft too so maybe get a nice player out of that.
I mean you’re one of the only sensible OKC fans. Any team this young ain’t making it to the conference finals. You just need more experience and now they’ve got it after this year! Plus that pick could be a great player and with all of the high draft picks on this team I would not be surprised in two years they’re in the finals.
hey its not over yet!!!! you saw what antman did, i may be a mavs fan but im thoroughly afraid that okc can force a game 7. And if they do come up short, it was an amazing series as well as a great playoff run for such a young team. At this stage of building the lineup, getting that postseason experience is priceless, so it really has just been a net positive.
For years, the Mavs have been constructed as a “make or miss” three point shooting team because Luka’s gravity created WIDE open threes. That can be a very good formula as we saw with their WCF run especially if they can lock in on defense. But what happens when you go deeper in the playoffs and guys start closing out harder, or you run in to longer defenders, or you are more exhausted from playing harder defense? Even a little bit of discomfort can result in poor shooting, particularly from role players who are used to a bunch of space. And what I saw a lot with the Mavs during that time is that missed threes are practically live ball turnovers with how long they take to get to the rim and how far they can bounce away, so it made playing defense so much harder. If your threes aren’t falling you HAVE to have another way to score. That keeps the you connected in the game, limits the transition opportunities, and can start open up a bit more space for your three point shooters. TLDR, even if the Thunder get hot from three again and beat the Mavs, I don’t think it is a good long term recipe. I think they need another way to get easy buckets in the half court, wether that’s a rim rolling big or J Dub making a jump
Except for Game 1, the Mavs have thoroughly outplayed the Thunder this series. It really should be over already, but the Mavs let Game 4 slip away by missing half their free throws.
What u don't understand is kai said he can just flip the switch when he want it to but they're doing whats working for them and they also want to give their role players confidence in hope if they make it to the conf. Final they'll be able to rely on them when they needed to
In the event Mavs reached WCF, this team would give a run for their money on that 2022 Warriors WCF run. That series was heavily outmatched the Mavs. Powell/Maxi as the starting centers, DFS as the PF, and the 3-man guard in Dinwiddie, Luka, Brunson.
Rlly wish we would start J will at the PF and Chet at center and throw away the defensive scheme of allowing 3s and just have the big boys protect instead of all 5 guys waiting around the paint just to go close out late
every dallas win has been because of either pj washington going off or this last game with derrick jones jr. without those two guys making shots the mavs would be out rn
well his job is to create for his whole team, right now he's losing because he can only create for himself. Luka and kyrie showing there's levels to this shit
"If they just made more shots" is a completely ridiculous argument lol. If the Mavs "just made more shots" they'd have won game 4 and closed out OKC in game 5. If the Mavs "just made more shots" in game 5, they'd have an insurmountable 20 point lead. This whole video is a backhanded compliment to Dallas's defense to just say OKC just has to make more shots. They are missing them because the are uncomfortable. These are not just rhythm shots, they drive into the paint and get turned out then have to whip the ball outside multiple times to get a shot off, and its usually not the best shot. That's ENTIRELY defense. Fun fact: both the Clippers and OKC have had their worst shooting performances of the season against the Mavs in their series. It's not a coincidence. The defense is immaculate right now.
I half agree with you, only because of their game 1 performance makes me hesitant to fully agree. Okc is simply just missing shots plain and simple, these are shots they've been hitting all year, even at the start of games with "fresh" legs they're missing. But this is a series and everything is much tighter and schemed for so I do agree the pressure is catching up to them a bit, but at the end of the day they are just missing, been watching them all year, these are shots they've been hitting all year, even with great defenses they played against they hit their shots. I think it's a combination of series fatigue (shutting down luka/kyrie except game 5), most of them playing 90% of the regular season Chet having now played 90+ straight games as a ROOKIE is unheard of. He's a hit a major wall, and even though I don't wanna admit it, experience as well, because Jdub has not been himself which is OK it's only his 2nd year. It's a lot being asked of this team right now and I still do believe they'll find a way to win next game, just cuz that's their DNA, but if they do, I think game 7 will be the biggest uphill battle for them. And yes the Mavs defense is great, but I think OKC is the better overall team they're just not playing like it, and I feel like I explained why. Edit: also haven't watched the video, forgot who's channel this was before I clicked it and his takes are underwhelming at best..
“Shoot the ball better” While not the best coaching, there’s some truth to that. They have missed a lot of wide open 3’s. And okc - stop giving up so many lobs lol
Health at the beginning of the season is one of the reasons they are 5th seed. They would be in the top 4 if they had Gafford and PJ from the beginning of the season, probably 1st.
We’re just a better team than the Thunder and have showed it this series. if it wasn’t for us shooting 50% from the FT line in game 4 this series would be over
He’s right they aren’t doin anything different so why is it not working now? Dallas’s defence is really good but the majority of the issues are caused by their lack of experience they’re lack of size and they just look uncomfortable and young plus jdub has been terrible offensively without him as ur 2 okc has no chance of beating playoff level teams
Im not sure why this is that shocking. They shot 39% from 3 in the regular season. Defending was always going to clamp down in the finals and making those same shots was always going to become far more difficult. But that's only half the problem. The other half comes in the fact that not only are the shots not dropping so you lose confidence, but now they are behind the 8 ball and they have to either live or die by the 3 or make last minute adjustments deep in a finals series which they also dont have confidence in because that's not how they played to get the number 1 seed....the lack of confidence in not knowing how to proceed is what is gonna cost them the series, not their ability. It's also why i think the wolves with win this year. Outside of Joker doing some MVP shit in game 7. If the wolves just play the basketball they have played all season their regular season game to finals gameplay doesnt really need any adjustments.
Btw your glazing about the attention SGA is getting lmfao they are playing single coverage comfortably dealing with it. He just doesn’t make the players around him better, the Thunder have to double Luka because he’s just fucking better then shai, the mavs are okay with DJJ or PJ guarding him 1v1 because they know he won’t do shit else with the ball lol
He can’t really drive over Lively or Gafford though and Dallas has been using the three ball and lobs a lot so I’m not sure how much Chet could really do, it’s just a mismatch
OKC, I just need another consistent scorer next to SGA . They've got plenty of good players and picks and I haven't really heard anybody talking about a guy loke Mitchell would be perfect for OKC.
We never heard of Shai until Ja morant is grounded. NBA’s new toyboy just not good enough. OKC’s playmaking is just too stagnant. That’s all. PS: Shai is older than Luka. Chet is older than Lively. They are not younger.
Again this guy must not understand what efficiency is. SGA is shooting 50+ percent from the floor this series. That is efficient! Come on man it’s a quick look at the stat sheet
@@leastattractivebro quit recycling RUclips comment takes u sound dumb. bro doesn’t get majority of his at the free throw line and he gets some many free throws because he barely takes 3s and always attacks. I’ll give you the vision tho he needs to work on it for sure and find the open guy on time.
SGA FG% - Regular season - 53.5% - Turnovers - 1.7 per game SGA FG% - Dallas series - 49.6% - Turnovers - 2.4 per game He's not as efficient, and is turning the ball over more often.
Oh look a Dallas hater strikes again... man you should just stop... stop hating ... your life will be much better ... just be more positive .... it will help....
you are mostly right however I think an important thing to note is the fact that you can see the okc players besides shai look stiff and nervous. Chet is playing the worst basketball of his career in these playoffs bar one game vs dallas. He isn't shooting because hes scared to miss and he isnt trying to rebounds or box outs or anything. It's sad but dallas is actually the worst team for them to play against because of DL2 and gaf gaf. Edit1 : Dallas defense is embarassing but OKC defense is even worse. It's really poorly managed and un co ordinated and that's the biggest problem.
Dallas defense is embarrassing? Maybe pre-trade deadline. But since then they are the #1 defense in the league. Held OKC and Clippers under 100 pts multiple games.
Shai has to be the most protected star in the league lmao so now OKC don’t have a good enough squad? Even though Chet is supposed to be apparently close to Wemby’s level? Even though there were so many tweets and debates on how Jdub is better than some teams first option? Even though Lu Dort is supposed to be a borderline 1st team defense and is supposed to be one of the best 3 and D guys in the league? Luka dragged a significantly worse Mavs team to the finals he was still being called a ball hog, there’s been multiple games in this series where both Kyrie and Luka have not been at their best but the difference between them and Shai is they make plays to bring their other teammates into the game, they pass at the right time and their off the ball movement is solid, Shai just waits to gets the ball so he can drive and statpad his way to 30 points as always
i think the age and inexperience thing is massive protection for them as well. I mean luka is younger than sga, lots of dallas' lineup is younger than okc's, and okc's lineup has way more minutes played together than dallas'. Alongside the no help treatment sga is getting now its insane to see the narratives flip so quickly to save that team.
@@ellieswagayeOKC is literally the youngest ever 1 seed and youngest ever to win a playoff series sure SGA and Luka are roughly the same age but that doesn’t change the fact the rest of OKC is infinitely younger
@@AngelLV2 "infinitely younger" is insane and exactly what im talking about. Crazy narrative being painted to the masses. Lively is fucking 20, okc's rookie got 2 damn years on him. Mavs have the second youngest average age lineup behind okc, and would more than likely be 1st if kyrie old ass wasn't with em lmao. Told you bro its a narrative being painted, this is really 2 young teams squaring off.
@@ellieswagayethat is a lie. Kyrie ofc is 32. So is THJ so is Maxi. DJJ is 27. Dallas has 5 guys the age of 25 and below getting real minutes. All of OKC guys getting real minutes in the playoffs are 25 and below. Everyone one. Dallas isn’t young. OKC is.
@@whoopiebob8782 uuuuhhh are you stupid? you understand average lineup age is an objective numerical stat? Look it up, dallas is right behind okc in second place for youngest. Sga and luka same age, lively even younger than their star center chet, okc also has 23 and 25 year olds like dallas. Again without kyrie then we'd def be younger on average. Maxi is out and thj trash so not like they count.
2 days rest is actually great especially for Luka. But im not counting anyone yet. Unless a team has 4 wins, id give anyteam a chance to win a series. I had mavs in 6. But this okc might find their groove offensively game 6 and all of a sudden were at their home court losing. So as a mavs fan its fine were enjoying the win but mavs have to close this at home if not, im not really confident in a game 7 against this team.
This pretty much what happened when Dallas beat Phoenix a few years back, their defense was incredibly disruptive and the pressure Brunson and Luka put on the defense stars forcing dudes open, this same thing had Dorrian Finney-Smith looking like an elite role player.
@@theobadji6282trading for Allen would not work due to how okc plays he doesn’t fit at all he just wouldn’t play that why okc haven’t gotten a traditional big because they can’t play in the system plus shai is best in isolation having a traditional doesn’t work due to shai not being a good pick and roll passer so the big wouldn’t be helpful offensively he just clog the paint
This series is pointing out just how young and wing heavy the Thunder are. They’re good, but not a balanced squad. They’ll be better next year. They’re the second youngest team in the league. But they should also trade for a big. Maybe Lauri, Claxton, or Jarrett Allen. Capela wouldn’t be a bad backup big, maybe get some minutes next to Chet.
No one actually thought OKC was a big contender did they? They won all their regular season games in like the last five minutes not by dominating the league.
What are you talking about? The issues is they’re missing open 3s. They aren’t even crying for calls like Luka has done all series, so your comment makes zero sense.
@@changed_name1951 Why would OKC cry about anything when SGA is getting to the ft line every time Dallas attempts to guard him, let alone look his way when he touches the paint.
@@changed_name1951 tbf Id say OKC is playing as tough as Dallas is Luka might be talking to the refs more but they kinda went for his knees these past games
@@changed_name1951Luka has been getting no calls all series compared to the Thunder, stop whining you ran into a better team, if you can’t make open 3’s that’s your teams fault execute on opportunities Dallas has done that all series and it’s how you win in the playoffs
It’s not that simple 🤦🏼♂️😂 our lack of height is nullifying everything this team is good at. Not that they aren’t physical enough. Those are two different things my man
All season long looking for the fifth guy. No 1 in the Western Conference, Took care of the Pelicans with the youngest team in the finals. Your bias against Josh is truly amazing.
Kyrie only need to step up and score when Luka is on the bench. When Luka is playing drags so much attention that can create easy looks for everyone, and even more if Kyre is on the court because they had to defend him off ball. Okc don't have an answer to Gaford/Lively and they were wrong when they though they could leave Dallas' shooters open in the corners to double Luka. If they double Luka a shooter is open, if don't they can't stop the Luka's pick & roll. And Okc is not shooting badly, the Mavs are defending godly. Same happened to the Clippers, they won the 2 games they were able to make shots DESPITE the Mavs defense. In a long series you can't expect to make those tough shots. They have to create better looks, but they can't because Shai is unable to create shots but for himself.
4:01 I don’t think SGA has faced anywhere near as much adversity this offseason as Jalen Brunson has with the injuries the Knicks have had & the burden he’s had to carry. Not even close to comparable.
@@swhoshing6237 Kind of a dumb exercise, because OKC isn't hitting shots, but if they hit their average 3pt %, Dallas would already be out of the playoffs 4-1, winning only game 2, and all others would have looked like a blowout like game 1. Saying "if it wasn't for OKC's defense" is also dumb, because OKC has been a top tier defense all season, so that's not really an anomaly in this series. OKC is the better team on paper, but their inexperience is showing a lot right now.
@@hestilllives192 to be fair as both this and like 15 other videos mentioned already Dallas is quite well equipped to deal with OKC and I would not consider OKC a clearly better team, even on paper. As you mentioned, it is quite a dumb exercise as Luka is hurt and plays quite badly and Dallas is still up a game right now. Like as you argue that the 3pt % is not there to OKC but if you adjust the numbers of Luka you can have a case too where it is a gentlemen's sweep most likely. Plus again Dallas has a very good defense idk why people just don't like to admit that. It is dumb to say that OKC is in the series because their defense only but in the same time their 3pt% went in part down cuz Dallas just defends them well
For an OKC fan, win or lose, at least you can take from Thai series that SGA game WITHOUT A DOUBT translates into the playoffs. You don’t have to hear this nonsensical takes anymore about how his game translates into the playoffs.
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Funny, luka used to carry teams by himself and everyone called him a ball hog but when shai does he just needs more help
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The funny thing is Shai actually has a decent squad around him, the issue really is that he is dribbling for far too long and isn’t circulating the ball as much. Maybe it’s because his teammates haven’t been shooting that well but playing iso and spamming middies is clearly not helping either for the thunder. SGA needs to pass around the ball more and get his teammates involved more
@@akshayar2467 that is not true at all, he's passed out so many times and we've had so many open 3s, our shooters are just not hitting them
Hell yea 😂
Sounds like you don’t follow Thunder basketball. Okc’s offense isn’t “forcing anything due to the Mavs defense”. They are simply missing a lot of normally open rhythmic 3 pointers! They are not being “shut down”. When those normal open shots start going down, game 1 type of results will happen without turning the Mavs over.
Man, being a mavs fan where for the last 8-9 years our best 5 was Dwight Powell, this is really a great time to be a mavs fan. Derek and Daniel are complete breaths of fresh air under the rim for the mavs. Not to mention PJ and DJ.
Also, wouldn’t mind seeing Kyrie close out with a 10 point game if that means he explodes next series. Have a feeling they’re going to need his scoring against the wolves or nuggets.
Deepest Mavs team ever I think. Imagine starting next season with this team...
I think Kyrie is secretly injured, there is just absolutely kinkther reason he isn’t taking shots, he isn’t taking three or long range two’s I reckon he is facilitating and secretly getting a lot of rehab on this injury in hopes it’s fine for WCF or finals
The crushing Mavericks Defense is so good .
The collective alertness and ability to recover is really impressive.
Even when Luka is not shooting well, he is still getting doubled all game long, and he consistently makes the right play and creates open looks for others.
People complain about his usage but it's mostly just a narrative, Embiid and Giannis have been TOP3 in usage the past couple of seasons and nobody talked about their usage, Giannis was #1 last season and Embiid was #1 in the first part of the season, and somehow a PG having a ball a lot is a bad thing.
But you know what having the ball on Luka's hand does? Career years for a lot of role players, why is it that Gafford, PJ, Lively and DJJ are having big numbers? Why is it that Dinwiddie, Bullock, DFS were great with Luka and you don't even hear about them since they were traded? Because when it becomes tough for role players, it's great to have a player with Luka's gravity and playmaking so others can get easy buckets.
Unfortunately for OKC, that's not SGA's game, and the offense looks stagnant. SGA is making really tough shots, but all other players are struggling mightily and as the series advances, they are feeling the weight of the playoffs, it's far harder to get your own shot and now even decent looks feel harder.
you can see the bias just looking at this series alone. Sga losing with a 30 piece, less rebounds and way less assists is seen as a young star needing help. The even younger luka with slightly less points and way more offensive facilitation for his team is seen as a ball hog who dribbles too much.
@@ellieswagaye they just hate Luka to be the 'face' of the NBA for another, what, 10/15 years? and that's alongside another white they hate,Jokic. lmao the NBA talking heads are lowkey being racists for a few years now
@@ellieswagayethe difference is the efficiency of SGA is better and the usage is lower Luka runs a much more Heliocentric offense
@@AngelLV2 so odd to me how a more heliocentric offense manages to be so much more effective at getting the team involved. Much higher usage too, dude is a phenom who cannot be compared.
This mavericks team reminds me of the 2019 Texas tech red raiders defensively. They’re so long but athletic to the point where every single player can guard multiple guys. This team is dangerous. I don’t think okc is struggling. I think the mavs are just that good.
Sucks to see luka playing on one leg since round 1, if healthy with how the team is playing i think they could beat any team in a 7 game series
Alot of players are hurt, gotta keep it moving
@@alexham28 At Okc ?
@@adergas1 no just around the league it's the playoffs
@@alexham28Almost none of them as important as Luka is for Mavs.
His PIE numbers, last I checked was no. 2, right behind Joker.
OKC otoh, has been the healthiest teams this season, hell, Chet was boasting about his attendance at the end of the regular season. Shai is playing with a stacked crew.
As mavs fans I agree, but injuries do happen to players tho.. Bucks played without Giannis and Even Dame also injured.. 76ers played with Injured Embidd..
We should be thankful that Luka injuries arent as serious as Maxi or Giannis or Embidd injuries
Experience matters is the playoffs
airballing open shots isn’t an experience issue…
@@HuanNguyen-th3sg how comfortable you are shooting is definitely affected by playoff atmosphere. You’re a casual if you say it’s not. Ask Josh Giddey or even Dante Exum. Exum was tearing it up towards the end of the season. Now come playoff time, they’ve given most of his minutes to a 3rd year player.
@@HuanNguyen-th3sg It is, cause shooting is as much a mental thing as a talent thing.
@@Smido83 110% true honestly any nba player shoots better from anywhere than someone who is not a pro. Ben Simmons and Shaq have videos on socials about nailing 3s over and over but in a game free throws were allready hard for them. We could probably never understand the stress of shooting with a whole arena screaming at you
@@HuanNguyen-th3sg🤦
Shaq can hang out with his MVP in cancun
With company of Stephen A, Keyshawn and bunch of losers who can' see winners like.....ever
This series clearly shows the difference between a "BALL HOG" Luka and a BALL HOG Shai. Luka has been getting everyone involved and getting them open shots they just couldn't make use of it but thats in the past now. OKC squad was way better than DALLAS's squad till the trade deadline. Luka should have been #2 in the MVP race, MAVs starters have all been out for 20+ games and Kyrie been out for 22+ games Luka kept them floating enough and they still got top 5 with new rotation 2 new guys and ended the season top 5 with his STAT LINE with an inconsistent LINE UP.
OKC FG % is also a result that includes lottery teams.
In the playoffs, the deeper you get the better the opponent. So the FG% will go down.
They’re missing open 3s.. that has nothing to do with a tougher defense. They’re shooting far worse than the worst 3pt% team in the league so far in this series. They were ranked first in % throughout the season.
@@changed_name1951
This isn't the regular season and Dallas doesn't give up that many wide open 3s
@@changed_name1951 honestly might be just highlight bias but its the second or third game recap where I see dalas blocking several 3 point attempts idk if it is just me but that can kinda break your confidence in the 3 ball
@@changed_name1951 they scared of the closeouts (look at djj's block on Chet as an example) + Dallas Is allowing 30% less of the amount of Wide open 3pt chances that okc got per game in regular season (23 open 3s a game in regular season to 16 open 3s a game against Dallas in playoffs)
@@changed_name1951 yeah, but if you feel constantly pressured, you'll even rush the wide open shots. It's a ripple effect.
Simply sounds like they getting locked up🤷🏿♂️
The inability to rebound makes it even worse. We need a good rebounding forward if we want to compete with the top 3 teams.
I heard on the broadcast that OKC had only scored less than 100 pts 3 times in the regular season and they’ve been held to less than 100 in 2 of the 5 games in this series. Jalen Williams has been a no show.
Dallas is just playing better right now, Even with a hobbled Luka this team is better, Dallas is limiting the shooting which is killing OKC, this is why you see these 3 point reliant teams be so volatile because if they don’t fall your in trouble, OKC got a bright future but Dallas just is the better team
It’s hard to shoot well when you are spending all your energy trying to stop Luca and Kyrie and try to get a board against Dallas’ length. I’ve never seen a series where a team put this much pressure on 2 guys. They are doing a great job but that energy has to take its toll to reduce shooting percentage. It’s no fluke or bad luck. If they slack on defense or the glass, Dallas is up by 30 quickly. I don’t see how they can have their cake and eat it too. This is Dallas’ series to lose.
Right, they looked pretty confused...
Dallas gave up their small line up with more 3pt scoring dept for this bigger and more defensively better lineup and it's been really good all playoffs.
Basically the Mavericks are just a bigger and better team... I don't understand why the narrative isn't as simple as that.
Luka is better than Shai but Shai is still amazing!
Oklahoma is still a very great team and very young but each young star needs to go through growing pains just like the Mavs for the last few years
Thunder just can’t hit shots and it’s depressing. And. Seeing dudes just hesitate even when they’re open is frustrating. Rn it’s SGA vs. Mavs. Mavs role players are hitting everything meanwhile our 2&3 options can’t hit shit
Dallas offense have been off in both series, tbh.
OKC looks like they just cant
Thunder's 3 point shooting has been highly overrated. They were like 15th this year in attempts, so thier % is gonna be higher if they only choose to shoot wide open threes. Right now thier game is very predictable cause its shai with the dribble/drive middy or roleplayer 3s. Dallas is too long and too big for OKC.
and also too skilled. Luka and kyrie have been centerpieces to their impenetrable defense. Despite not getting some highlight blocks and steals they fill the gaps and direct the traffic defensively perfectly while not being as big or long as the guys getting credited for it.
Man this series has been rough. We completely dominated game one and it feels like we've been chasing a lead ever since. Managed to claw back a win in game 4 after again going behind early and being on the backfoot for almost the entire game and that's been games 2, 3 and 5 only we weren't able to claw it back. It seems like game six will be the same. We'll be down by ten after five minutes and have a few moments where we pull it back to five but ultimately we'll lose. it's no biggie we're a young team we can regroup and try again next year. 12th pick in the draft too so maybe get a nice player out of that.
I mean you’re one of the only sensible OKC fans. Any team this young ain’t making it to the conference finals. You just need more experience and now they’ve got it after this year! Plus that pick could be a great player and with all of the high draft picks on this team I would not be surprised in two years they’re in the finals.
Btw you stole game 4 lmao the mavs literally gave you the game
@@lando9670 Yeah that's what I said. We were down all game just like four of the five games we played only in game 4 we managed to clawed it back.
@lando9670. And Mavericks stole games 2 and 3 because Thunder literally gave you the games. Neither team has stole or been given anything.
hey its not over yet!!!! you saw what antman did, i may be a mavs fan but im thoroughly afraid that okc can force a game 7. And if they do come up short, it was an amazing series as well as a great playoff run for such a young team. At this stage of building the lineup, getting that postseason experience is priceless, so it really has just been a net positive.
Luka Sucks? Mavs in 6
Mavs have dominated points in the paint this series. Don't see that suddenly changing. OKC needs to hit their 3s or they're going home.
For years, the Mavs have been constructed as a “make or miss” three point shooting team because Luka’s gravity created WIDE open threes. That can be a very good formula as we saw with their WCF run especially if they can lock in on defense. But what happens when you go deeper in the playoffs and guys start closing out harder, or you run in to longer defenders, or you are more exhausted from playing harder defense? Even a little bit of discomfort can result in poor shooting, particularly from role players who are used to a bunch of space. And what I saw a lot with the Mavs during that time is that missed threes are practically live ball turnovers with how long they take to get to the rim and how far they can bounce away, so it made playing defense so much harder. If your threes aren’t falling you HAVE to have another way to score. That keeps the you connected in the game, limits the transition opportunities, and can start open up a bit more space for your three point shooters.
TLDR, even if the Thunder get hot from three again and beat the Mavs, I don’t think it is a good long term recipe. I think they need another way to get easy buckets in the half court, wether that’s a rim rolling big or J Dub making a jump
Except for Game 1, the Mavs have thoroughly outplayed the Thunder this series. It really should be over already, but the Mavs let Game 4 slip away by missing half their free throws.
What u don't understand is kai said he can just flip the switch when he want it to but they're doing whats working for them and they also want to give their role players confidence in hope if they make it to the conf. Final they'll be able to rely on them when they needed to
SGA is overrated. Hes too busy being an IG model and attending the Met Gala.
In the event Mavs reached WCF, this team would give a run for their money on that 2022 Warriors WCF run. That series was heavily outmatched the Mavs. Powell/Maxi as the starting centers, DFS as the PF, and the 3-man guard in Dinwiddie, Luka, Brunson.
Rlly wish we would start J will at the PF and Chet at center and throw away the defensive scheme of allowing 3s and just have the big boys protect instead of all 5 guys waiting around the paint just to go close out late
Thunder need a backup center that’s at least 6’11 so this size problems will be solved
every dallas win has been because of either pj washington going off or this last game with derrick jones jr. without those two guys making shots the mavs would be out rn
SGA is the only Thunder player that I’ve seen consistently hit shots all series
Could be shot attempts, could be he plays at his own pace to get to his spots
That's because Dallas decided to let SGA get his and instead take care of the rest of the OKC players.
@@swhoshing6237 not that much. I’ve been watching the games and they’ve had a lot of open shots but can’t hit em
well his job is to create for his whole team, right now he's losing because he can only create for himself. Luka and kyrie showing there's levels to this shit
@@ellieswagaye bro his team is missing wide open shots and turning the ball over when he passes to them
They need Josh Giddey's secondary playmaking.
Okc set up to shoot is too slow. The Mavs defender is right there in their face. They are stressed and shocked by the Mavs aggressiveness.
"If they just made more shots" is a completely ridiculous argument lol. If the Mavs "just made more shots" they'd have won game 4 and closed out OKC in game 5. If the Mavs "just made more shots" in game 5, they'd have an insurmountable 20 point lead. This whole video is a backhanded compliment to Dallas's defense to just say OKC just has to make more shots. They are missing them because the are uncomfortable. These are not just rhythm shots, they drive into the paint and get turned out then have to whip the ball outside multiple times to get a shot off, and its usually not the best shot. That's ENTIRELY defense.
Fun fact: both the Clippers and OKC have had their worst shooting performances of the season against the Mavs in their series. It's not a coincidence. The defense is immaculate right now.
I half agree with you, only because of their game 1 performance makes me hesitant to fully agree. Okc is simply just missing shots plain and simple, these are shots they've been hitting all year, even at the start of games with "fresh" legs they're missing.
But this is a series and everything is much tighter and schemed for so I do agree the pressure is catching up to them a bit, but at the end of the day they are just missing, been watching them all year, these are shots they've been hitting all year, even with great defenses they played against they hit their shots.
I think it's a combination of series fatigue (shutting down luka/kyrie except game 5), most of them playing 90% of the regular season Chet having now played 90+ straight games as a ROOKIE is unheard of. He's a hit a major wall, and even though I don't wanna admit it, experience as well, because Jdub has not been himself which is OK it's only his 2nd year. It's a lot being asked of this team right now and I still do believe they'll find a way to win next game, just cuz that's their DNA, but if they do, I think game 7 will be the biggest uphill battle for them.
And yes the Mavs defense is great, but I think OKC is the better overall team they're just not playing like it, and I feel like I explained why.
Edit: also haven't watched the video, forgot who's channel this was before I clicked it and his takes are underwhelming at best..
“Shoot the ball better”
While not the best coaching, there’s some truth to that. They have missed a lot of wide open 3’s.
And okc - stop giving up so many lobs lol
Mavs are just better
wild the 5 seed has so many more options than the one seed okc, how far the mavs have come since luka was solo vs the clippers in the bubble
Health at the beginning of the season is one of the reasons they are 5th seed. They would be in the top 4 if they had Gafford and PJ from the beginning of the season, probably 1st.
Game 5 OKC didn't get all that many open 3s, Mavs are contesting everything.
not on OKC fan, but i had a feeling the team was too young and didn't have enough experience
UNLEASH GIDDEY! he’s the only one other than Shai with any playmaking skills whatsoever.
We’re just a better team than the Thunder and have showed it this series. if it wasn’t for us shooting 50% from the FT line in game 4 this series would be over
He’s right they aren’t doin anything different so why is it not working now? Dallas’s defence is really good but the majority of the issues are caused by their lack of experience they’re lack of size and they just look uncomfortable and young plus jdub has been terrible offensively without him as ur 2 okc has no chance of beating playoff level teams
After 30 sga is done for the night...
Thunder fake #1 seed. Mavs in 6. Lucky these guys playing against injured Luka
Exactly. Thunder didn’t play a playoff team in round 1 . Pelicans didn’t have Zion
Im not sure why this is that shocking. They shot 39% from 3 in the regular season. Defending was always going to clamp down in the finals and making those same shots was always going to become far more difficult.
But that's only half the problem. The other half comes in the fact that not only are the shots not dropping so you lose confidence, but now they are behind the 8 ball and they have to either live or die by the 3 or make last minute adjustments deep in a finals series which they also dont have confidence in because that's not how they played to get the number 1 seed....the lack of confidence in not knowing how to proceed is what is gonna cost them the series, not their ability.
It's also why i think the wolves with win this year. Outside of Joker doing some MVP shit in game 7. If the wolves just play the basketball they have played all season their regular season game to finals gameplay doesnt really need any adjustments.
Luka and kyries defense is the difference they shutting off driving lanes
What a great analysis, shoot better win games, its almost like that applies to every team in the league you dope
Btw your glazing about the attention SGA is getting lmfao they are playing single coverage comfortably dealing with it. He just doesn’t make the players around him better, the Thunder have to double Luka because he’s just fucking better then shai, the mavs are okay with DJJ or PJ guarding him 1v1 because they know he won’t do shit else with the ball lol
And no veterans plus to light
These titles. What's the title of your video if OKC win's tonight? "Dallas has an OKC problem"
Be cool if okc had a true mismatch player they could utilize. Maybe like a 7’2 guy 🥶
He can’t really drive over Lively or Gafford though and Dallas has been using the three ball and lobs a lot so I’m not sure how much Chet could really do, it’s just a mismatch
OKC, I just need another consistent scorer next to SGA . They've got plenty of good players and picks and I haven't really heard anybody talking about a guy loke Mitchell would be perfect for OKC.
How would Mitchell be a perfect fit for okc?
One of their biggest issues are there size and u want them to bring in a 6'1 sg?
They should've went with Markkenen
Mitchell don’t want to be in a small market team like OKC . He’s sick and tired of playing for small market teams . He wants LA , NY , or Miami
@@sting114OKC won’t be small market for long
Shoulda traded giddey for a vet
Yeah Luka really sucks, Thunder forecast in Cancun on Sunday, Mavs to close it out in 6 😅
Pelicans with Zion would have taken OKC to 7 games .
I think the Pels would have won.
OKC in 6 anyways, Pelicans didn’t have a big enough threat
Let’s go Mavs!
How can you tribute missing open shots and passing on good shots to something the mavs are doing? Sounds more like beating yourself than getting beat
We never heard of Shai until Ja morant is grounded. NBA’s new toyboy just not good enough. OKC’s playmaking is just too stagnant. That’s all.
PS: Shai is older than Luka. Chet is older than Lively. They are not younger.
Again this guy must not understand what efficiency is. SGA is shooting 50+ percent from the floor this series. That is efficient! Come on man it’s a quick look at the stat sheet
He gets most of his points from free throws lol and he doesn’t really get his team involved his vision is iso. He’s not him!
@@leastattractivebro quit recycling RUclips comment takes u sound dumb. bro doesn’t get majority of his at the free throw line and he gets some many free throws because he barely takes 3s and always attacks. I’ll give you the vision tho he needs to work on it for sure and find the open guy on time.
SGA FG% - Regular season - 53.5% - Turnovers - 1.7 per game
SGA FG% - Dallas series - 49.6% - Turnovers - 2.4 per game
He's not as efficient, and is turning the ball over more often.
Time to trade SGA
Okc is too young
Oh look a Dallas hater strikes again... man you should just stop... stop hating ... your life will be much better ... just be more positive .... it will help....
Just play aaron wiggons more
Thunderstruck Thundersuck
you are mostly right however I think an important thing to note is the fact that you can see the okc players besides shai look stiff and nervous. Chet is playing the worst basketball of his career in these playoffs bar one game vs dallas. He isn't shooting because hes scared to miss and he isnt trying to rebounds or box outs or anything. It's sad but dallas is actually the worst team for them to play against because of DL2 and gaf gaf.
Edit1 : Dallas defense is embarassing but OKC defense is even worse. It's really poorly managed and un co ordinated and that's the biggest problem.
Dallas defense is embarrassing? Maybe pre-trade deadline. But since then they are the #1 defense in the league. Held OKC and Clippers under 100 pts multiple games.
Okc a terrible team
Especially SHOOTIN
Shai has to be the most protected star in the league lmao so now OKC don’t have a good enough squad? Even though Chet is supposed to be apparently close to Wemby’s level? Even though there were so many tweets and debates on how Jdub is better than some teams first option? Even though Lu Dort is supposed to be a borderline 1st team defense and is supposed to be one of the best 3 and D guys in the league? Luka dragged a significantly worse Mavs team to the finals he was still being called a ball hog, there’s been multiple games in this series where both Kyrie and Luka have not been at their best but the difference between them and Shai is they make plays to bring their other teammates into the game, they pass at the right time and their off the ball movement is solid, Shai just waits to gets the ball so he can drive and statpad his way to 30 points as always
i think the age and inexperience thing is massive protection for them as well. I mean luka is younger than sga, lots of dallas' lineup is younger than okc's, and okc's lineup has way more minutes played together than dallas'. Alongside the no help treatment sga is getting now its insane to see the narratives flip so quickly to save that team.
@@ellieswagayeOKC is literally the youngest ever 1 seed and youngest ever to win a playoff series sure SGA and Luka are roughly the same age but that doesn’t change the fact the rest of OKC is infinitely younger
@@AngelLV2 "infinitely younger" is insane and exactly what im talking about. Crazy narrative being painted to the masses. Lively is fucking 20, okc's rookie got 2 damn years on him. Mavs have the second youngest average age lineup behind okc, and would more than likely be 1st if kyrie old ass wasn't with em lmao. Told you bro its a narrative being painted, this is really 2 young teams squaring off.
@@ellieswagayethat is a lie. Kyrie ofc is 32. So is THJ so is Maxi. DJJ is 27. Dallas has 5 guys the age of 25 and below getting real minutes. All of OKC guys getting real minutes in the playoffs are 25 and below. Everyone one. Dallas isn’t young. OKC is.
@@whoopiebob8782 uuuuhhh are you stupid? you understand average lineup age is an objective numerical stat? Look it up, dallas is right behind okc in second place for youngest. Sga and luka same age, lively even younger than their star center chet, okc also has 23 and 25 year olds like dallas. Again without kyrie then we'd def be younger on average. Maxi is out and thj trash so not like they count.
2 days rest is actually great especially for Luka. But im not counting anyone yet. Unless a team has 4 wins, id give anyteam a chance to win a series. I had mavs in 6. But this okc might find their groove offensively game 6 and all of a sudden were at their home court losing. So as a mavs fan its fine were enjoying the win but mavs have to close this at home if not, im not really confident in a game 7 against this team.
This pretty much what happened when Dallas beat Phoenix a few years back, their defense was incredibly disruptive and the pressure Brunson and Luka put on the defense stars forcing dudes open, this same thing had Dorrian Finney-Smith looking like an elite role player.
A little less honestly. Nobody feared Brunson like they do Kyrie.
@@reececisneros1622 1000%, not only is kyrie an upgrade but PJ and DJjr are super disruptive w the rim protection lively and gafford are giving you
@@reececisneros1622 pretty nasty stuff
Thunder fan here. Sucks but still proud of our team. Wonder what moves Presti will make this off season.
A trade for jarret Allen could be good
@@theobadji6282 No it would not
@@adybalanolomete why ? It would add physicality rim protection even more some rebounding
@@theobadji6282trading for Allen would not work due to how okc plays he doesn’t fit at all he just wouldn’t play that why okc haven’t gotten a traditional big because they can’t play in the system plus shai is best in isolation having a traditional doesn’t work due to shai not being a good pick and roll passer so the big wouldn’t be helpful offensively he just clog the paint
@theobadji6282
That's exactly who I'm hoping they get.
This series is pointing out just how young and wing heavy the Thunder are. They’re good, but not a balanced squad.
They’ll be better next year. They’re the second youngest team in the league.
But they should also trade for a big. Maybe Lauri, Claxton, or Jarrett Allen.
Capela wouldn’t be a bad backup big, maybe get some minutes next to Chet.
No one actually thought OKC was a big contender did they? They won all their regular season games in like the last five minutes not by dominating the league.
The physicality of the playoffs is surprising OKC. I see them shocked when they aren't getting calls they normally do.
What are you talking about? The issues is they’re missing open 3s. They aren’t even crying for calls like Luka has done all series, so your comment makes zero sense.
@@changed_name1951
Why would OKC cry about anything when SGA is getting to the ft line every time Dallas attempts to guard him, let alone look his way when he touches the paint.
@@changed_name1951 tbf Id say OKC is playing as tough as Dallas is Luka might be talking to the refs more but they kinda went for his knees these past games
@@changed_name1951Luka has been getting no calls all series compared to the Thunder, stop whining you ran into a better team, if you can’t make open 3’s that’s your teams fault execute on opportunities Dallas has done that all series and it’s how you win in the playoffs
It’s not that simple 🤦🏼♂️😂 our lack of height is nullifying everything this team is good at. Not that they aren’t physical enough. Those are two different things my man
And this is why the "we're so deep" flex, is not the flex people think it is.
They were the best shooting team in the nba and right now they are not
📢 DEFENSE📢DEFENSE📢DEFENSE
All season long looking for the fifth guy. No 1 in the Western Conference, Took care of the Pelicans with the youngest team in the finals. Your bias against Josh is truly amazing.
Kyrie only need to step up and score when Luka is on the bench.
When Luka is playing drags so much attention that can create easy looks for everyone, and even more if Kyre is on the court because they had to defend him off ball.
Okc don't have an answer to Gaford/Lively and they were wrong when they though they could leave Dallas' shooters open in the corners to double Luka. If they double Luka a shooter is open, if don't they can't stop the Luka's pick & roll.
And Okc is not shooting badly, the Mavs are defending godly. Same happened to the Clippers, they won the 2 games they were able to make shots DESPITE the Mavs defense. In a long series you can't expect to make those tough shots. They have to create better looks, but they can't because Shai is unable to create shots but for himself.
4:01 I don’t think SGA has faced anywhere near as much adversity this offseason as Jalen Brunson has with the injuries the Knicks have had & the burden he’s had to carry. Not even close to comparable.
Yo SGA doesn't make his teammates better. Like Luka does that's your difference!
They were the 1 seed because other teams were playing for the playoffs
OKC's defense is the only reason why they're in this series otherwise they would have been swept.
OKC missing their open 3s is the reason Mavs are still alive otherwise they would’ve been swept. See how dumb your comment sounds?
@@changed_name1951
Not even in your wettest dreams were OKC able to sweep Dallas.
It should have been Dallas in 5, but they handed game 4 win to OKC.
@@swhoshing6237 Kind of a dumb exercise, because OKC isn't hitting shots, but if they hit their average 3pt %, Dallas would already be out of the playoffs 4-1, winning only game 2, and all others would have looked like a blowout like game 1. Saying "if it wasn't for OKC's defense" is also dumb, because OKC has been a top tier defense all season, so that's not really an anomaly in this series. OKC is the better team on paper, but their inexperience is showing a lot right now.
You’re commenting that under anyone critical of the Thunder. People can have different opinions
@@hestilllives192 to be fair as both this and like 15 other videos mentioned already Dallas is quite well equipped to deal with OKC and I would not consider OKC a clearly better team, even on paper. As you mentioned, it is quite a dumb exercise as Luka is hurt and plays quite badly and Dallas is still up a game right now. Like as you argue that the 3pt % is not there to OKC but if you adjust the numbers of Luka you can have a case too where it is a gentlemen's sweep most likely. Plus again Dallas has a very good defense idk why people just don't like to admit that. It is dumb to say that OKC is in the series because their defense only but in the same time their 3pt% went in part down cuz Dallas just defends them well
SGA is a shooting guard. End of story 😂
OKC stopped the off ball offense. Too much iso ball.
For an OKC fan, win or lose, at least you can take from Thai series that SGA game WITHOUT A DOUBT translates into the playoffs. You don’t have to hear this nonsensical takes anymore about how his game translates into the playoffs.
Well he isn't being doubled or tripled team.
Ain’t breakdown no film
MY TEAM MY TOWN MY MAVS
very well said man. okc fan here, hoping to at least give dallas a tough game6 before we wrap this season. season over but we only grow from here :)
6:25 Lively riding Chet lol
It ok if okc lose they can trade for anyone they want to unlike mavs