Ask Luka Dončić all you want – just be OK with ‘I told you so’ at the end of the day. – Gudstory

At the risk of hyperbole turning into a heated situation, I’ll say it: Year 6 Luka Doncic looks a lot like the Michael Jordan of 1988-89, or the LeBron James of 2007-08. I’m not saying he’s better than any of the goats. It is simply impossible to watch what he is doing, and how he continues to improve, and think that any other young player is even close to his level.

His three-point accuracy has reached a clip that would put him in the range of a 50-40-90 shooter. If he continues at this pace, a 48-38-78 split would be a career high to go along with personal bests in points (33.7) and assists (9.2). Dončić’s individual greatness has officially been overlooked.

There are multiple reasons for this, the first reason being the team’s lack of success. It’s funny how quickly people forget that the Dallas Mavericks put Chris Paul into early retirement two years ago. I mean this will happen when you intentionally miss a game and get fined for it, but still.

The front office’s solution to the talent shortage was to bring in a less reliable facsimile of a player who had participated in free agency the previous offseason. Only this shooting-first guard hasn’t shown interest in winning or basketball in about five years.

Speaking of Kyrie Irving, his rehabilitation from a heel bruise is going well. According to coach Jason Kidd, who also declined to provide a timetable for the return of their main goalkeeper during Wednesday’s update. amazing! The Mavs could have used Irving’s services during their 113-110 collapse against a Cleveland Cavaliers lineup that was without Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley last night. Building a 20-point lead at home in the first half is one thing, but getting humiliated by Caris Lavert is where I draw the line.

Dallas has lost five of its past eight games and appears to be headed toward Western Conference purgatory once again. The narrative surrounding Dončić is very much of his own making. Critics hate empty statistics as much as they hate empty calories. His usage, style of play, and indifference to weight have led to comparisons to James Harden.

So why did I lead this piece by putting Luka in the same breath as LeBron and MJ? Maybe it’s because I’m an idiot, but he’s only 24. Harden was a fully formed player when he started racking up stats like Hamburglar does with McDouble.

I agree that Dončić’s numbers can come at the expense of teammates finding a rhythm. Did this lead to Jalen Brosson being out or Kristaps Porzinis’ fluctuating health? Maybe for the former, not for the latter. Brunson had the opportunity to be the de facto No. 1 option for his hometown team, and he’s still just a 6-foot-2 point guard. Porziņģis is now Boston’s fourth best player.

Remember when LeBron went to the Miami Heat and some people said he might not be the best player on the team because Dwyane Wade had a ring? Do you remember how stupid that was? That’s what I think of when someone throws Jayson Tatum’s name into the MVP discussion ahead of Dončić.

Not another word on Devin Booker. Or Anthony Edwards too. Mark Cuban is here to dash hopes Shark tank contestants while at the same time thinking that Christian Wood and Kyrie Irving are worthy teammates for Dončić’s talent. The current coach of the Mavericks once intentionally spilled a Diet Coke on the court because he didn’t have a timeout.

Forgive me if you find the idea ridiculous that Dončić is not a winner. It’s an above-average roster away from giving MVP voters an epiphany and trying to rework their ballots. Why did I choose those specific years of LeBron and Jordan’s careers? There was a time when fans and speakers began to question what they were clearly witnessing with these two all-time greats.

stop doing that. Luka Dončić is one of the basketball experts, and it is just a matter of chance that he will reach the top of the sport.