No shit it's the best back court. Austin Reeves should not be starting. Smart people have been saying this for the last 2 or 3 years. Max + DLo starting, Reeves + Dennis Schroeder off the bench (yes I said Dennis Schroeder, we need to move Vincent and figure out a way to get him back).
You’re leaving out the idea that D’Lo is most likely gone after Feb. so if you move AR to the bench you build up rhythm with lineups that might mean nothing post trade deadline and you also risk pissing off AR just to likely bring him back into starters later. You’d be starting from square one midway through the season 😅
"Piss off AR" Dude who cares? Why is Reeves treated like some superstar? He is one of the most overrated players I've ever seen. He's the one who should be traded, not DLo. This is a great video. I'm glad someone is finally giving DLo his props.
Yeah, I addressed that when I talked about the long term investments in both AR and Max. However, these are professionals. They’re used to trades happening and roles being swapped. Trades happen at the deadline every year, including trades that help teams get to the WCF (see Lakers 2023) or the Finals (2024). If the primary objective is to win as many games as you can through the 1st Half of the season - these are the players who should play more together. And in reality, DLO should be “the stand in” for whoever they trade for, because the Lakers need to get a shooting PG back.
Refusal to separate Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell in the best interest of the defensive side of the ball is lazy. You saw the Lakers improve to a Top 10 NBA Defense with Austin Reaves on the 2nd Unit. Just needed Lebron on the left side to start offensive possession to make D’Angelo pass the ball quicker.
I can agree for the regular season as Dlo was even a better regular season player than Reaves last season but the argument falls apart in the playoffs as D'Angelo has an extensive playoff sample where he has not been reliable. Just can't have that unreliable of a starter in place of Reaves who at least has a more balanced game conducive for the playoffs.
Bad games in the playoffs doesn't mean he isn't reliable. He has shown over the last 2 years that he also can be reliable in the playoffs. You just only focus on the bad. The right scheme DLo is actually pretty good in the playoffs. But because Darvin Ham put DLo in a tough spot last playoffs, he couldn't do much about it
@@dom3221 It's not that I just focus on the bad but rather the entire data sample. When evaluating a player you have to look at the aggregate; both the good AND the bad. D'Lo has been in the playoffs for 4 seasons, a total of 32 games and each season his play and efficiency dropped (not just with Ham). At this point it's not a small sample size anymore. Yes, D'Lo is capable of having good shooting performances in the playoffs but the reality of the NBA is that almost all players are capable of having quality games over a large sample size. That doesn't mean you only focus on that good performance and ignore the rest. It's important to utilize as much data as possible to get a more accurate picture and unfortunately for D'Lo that shows a dip in playoff performance. That's not to say D'Lo is totally incapable of improving but history suggests that is much more unlikely than likely and when determining personnel decisions it's malpractice to consistently go against the history/odds. Comparing the aggregate for D'Lo vs the aggregate for Reaves (both good and bad) in the playoffs the picture is quite clear on who has performed better and who is more likely to do so in the future.
@@concernedcitizen4171So what is the solution? Are you trading for a player who essentially isn’t a better player in actual play or potential as long as their playoff numbers are good? Everyone keeps talking about his numbers being bad in the playoffs but he has contributed in ways the last 2 years that has put his team over the top. It’s more that because it’s the Lakers, there is even more of a focus on the bad. Case in point, Austin had a good playoffs 2 years ago and everyone crowned him and wanted to extend him and that led to all this hype in the Olympic trials. What happened the next playoffs? I didn’t see him emerge as some playoff standout and clear 3rd star. Yet here we are talking about D-Lo’s sample size. People will take an 0-7 game and clown him but my question was, why is your starting PG and best shooter only taking 7 shots?! It’s clear there was a change somewhere that contributed to the play and limiting him. I think if you can pair D-Lo with a Max or another player who defends, his ability to space and pass are going to be more valuable than a what-if scoring game from AR. D-Lo is still capable of making great reads, communicating on defense, and potentially hitting a big shot or two. The alternative is to take lesser talent at PG or find some unicorn ‘better playoff performer’ which is not realistic IMO.
So...Are you on Team Austin Reaves + Max Christie or Team DLO + Max Christie? Or...you still like the Skill Guards Duo in DLO + AR in the Regular Season as long as Jarred Vanderbilt comes back healthy? Sound off in the comments below and let me know if you agree that DLO & Max represent the most balanced backcourt pairing the Lakers can deploy on the court.
I couldn't agree more! This video is gold 🥇!!!!! People think Dlo is just a shooter. But the truth is he's probably the most versatile offensive weapon we have. He just knows how to play the game. And Max fits perfectly in the lineup. The numbers and film don't lie. Great work! Keep cookin!!!
My eyes says Dalton for Reaves in the starting line up.
The original narrative was a 2-Man Game Pick & Roll duo of A.D & D’Angelo with veteran 3-point shooter Malik Beasley at 2-Guard.for skip passes.
I agree. Austin would make a great 6th man and strengthen our bench.
Great points, I’m sold!
No shit it's the best back court.
Austin Reeves should not be starting. Smart people have been saying this for the last 2 or 3 years.
Max + DLo starting, Reeves + Dennis Schroeder off the bench (yes I said Dennis Schroeder, we need to move Vincent and figure out a way to get him back).
You’re leaving out the idea that D’Lo is most likely gone after Feb. so if you move AR to the bench you build up rhythm with lineups that might mean nothing post trade deadline and you also risk pissing off AR just to likely bring him back into starters later. You’d be starting from square one midway through the season 😅
"Piss off AR"
Dude who cares? Why is Reeves treated like some superstar? He is one of the most overrated players I've ever seen.
He's the one who should be traded, not DLo.
This is a great video. I'm glad someone is finally giving DLo his props.
Yeah, I addressed that when I talked about the long term investments in both AR and Max.
However, these are professionals. They’re used to trades happening and roles being swapped. Trades happen at the deadline every year, including trades that help teams get to the WCF (see Lakers 2023) or the Finals (2024).
If the primary objective is to win as many games as you can through the 1st Half of the season - these are the players who should play more together.
And in reality, DLO should be “the stand in” for whoever they trade for, because the Lakers need to get a shooting PG back.
Refusal to separate Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell in the best interest of the defensive side of the ball is lazy. You saw the Lakers improve to a Top 10 NBA Defense with Austin Reaves on the 2nd Unit. Just needed Lebron on the left side to start offensive possession to make D’Angelo pass the ball quicker.
I can agree for the regular season as Dlo was even a better regular season player than Reaves last season but the argument falls apart in the playoffs as D'Angelo has an extensive playoff sample where he has not been reliable. Just can't have that unreliable of a starter in place of Reaves who at least has a more balanced game conducive for the playoffs.
Bad games in the playoffs doesn't mean he isn't reliable. He has shown over the last 2 years that he also can be reliable in the playoffs. You just only focus on the bad. The right scheme DLo is actually pretty good in the playoffs. But because Darvin Ham put DLo in a tough spot last playoffs, he couldn't do much about it
@@dom3221 It's not that I just focus on the bad but rather the entire data sample. When evaluating a player you have to look at the aggregate; both the good AND the bad. D'Lo has been in the playoffs for 4 seasons, a total of 32 games and each season his play and efficiency dropped (not just with Ham). At this point it's not a small sample size anymore. Yes, D'Lo is capable of having good shooting performances in the playoffs but the reality of the NBA is that almost all players are capable of having quality games over a large sample size. That doesn't mean you only focus on that good performance and ignore the rest. It's important to utilize as much data as possible to get a more accurate picture and unfortunately for D'Lo that shows a dip in playoff performance.
That's not to say D'Lo is totally incapable of improving but history suggests that is much more unlikely than likely and when determining personnel decisions it's malpractice to consistently go against the history/odds. Comparing the aggregate for D'Lo vs the aggregate for Reaves (both good and bad) in the playoffs the picture is quite clear on who has performed better and who is more likely to do so in the future.
@@concernedcitizen4171So what is the solution? Are you trading for a player who essentially isn’t a better player in actual play or potential as long as their playoff numbers are good?
Everyone keeps talking about his numbers being bad in the playoffs but he has contributed in ways the last 2 years that has put his team over the top. It’s more that because it’s the Lakers, there is even more of a focus on the bad. Case in point, Austin had a good playoffs 2 years ago and everyone crowned him and wanted to extend him and that led to all this hype in the Olympic trials.
What happened the next playoffs? I didn’t see him emerge as some playoff standout and clear 3rd star. Yet here we are talking about D-Lo’s sample size. People will take an 0-7 game and clown him but my question was, why is your starting PG and best shooter only taking 7 shots?! It’s clear there was a change somewhere that contributed to the play and limiting him.
I think if you can pair D-Lo with a Max or another player who defends, his ability to space and pass are going to be more valuable than a what-if scoring game from AR. D-Lo is still capable of making great reads, communicating on defense, and potentially hitting a big shot or two. The alternative is to take lesser talent at PG or find some unicorn ‘better playoff performer’ which is not realistic IMO.
So...Are you on Team Austin Reaves + Max Christie or Team DLO + Max Christie?
Or...you still like the Skill Guards Duo in DLO + AR in the Regular Season as long as Jarred Vanderbilt comes back healthy?
Sound off in the comments below and let me know if you agree that DLO & Max represent the most balanced backcourt pairing the Lakers can deploy on the court.
I couldn't agree more! This video is gold 🥇!!!!! People think Dlo is just a shooter. But the truth is he's probably the most versatile offensive weapon we have. He just knows how to play the game. And Max fits perfectly in the lineup. The numbers and film don't lie. Great work! Keep cookin!!!