Luka’s old school strategy that’s driving teams mad

Luka Doncic has added a new layer to his game this season by using the post up, and the Mavs have found creative ways to blend his post up and pinch post game into their offense. This detailed film breakdown & scouting report analyzes the Dallas Mavericks superstar while incorporating analytics & stats -- including a recent game against Portland with analysis by our film coordinator, Mike De La Rosa.
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Ben Taylor is the author of Thinking Basketball, a Nylon Calculus contributor, creator of the Backpicks Top 40 series & host of the Thinking Basketball podcast.
Stats courtesy:
www.pbpstats.com @bballport
www.basketball-reference.com
stats.nba.com
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Footage in this video is owned by the NBA and its partners. It is intended for critique and education.
Music by csus (instrumental)
#ThinkingBasketball

[@MDLR]

Thanks to Ben for letting me be involved in this! Excited to hear what everyone thinks. I love how old-school tactics can be remixed for the modern game

[@davidmitnick868]

Luka is the most impressive player I’ve seen live on court. It’s hard to convey unless you see it in person. The physicality, ballhandling, crazy shot making, breathtaking passes, control of tempo, ability to read defenses, it’s all incredible. It feels like he’s beating your team by himself. Real superhero stuff.

[@peterlopinto]

That's wild that Luka is leading the league in post-up points. Really interesting to see old-school tactics with new school twists

[@fateriddle14]

I love how this video is about Luka's playmaking dismentles his opponents, yet every teammate he passes to bricks the shot.

[@LukaDaGoat77]

Although he's only 23, he's already on pace to be one of the most incredible offensive juggernauts the league has ever seen and an all-time NBA legend.

[@calmfy1406]

Let remind yall that Luka is still 23 years old 😭😭😭 this dude has literally no ceiling and could potentially be one of the greatest of literally all time. As he could seamlessly fit into any era with his blend of old school and new school plays and skills. Thats why they call him Luka magic 🔥🔥🔥

[@simonl6005]

It's painful to watch how many wide-open 3s created by Luka being bricked.

[@jvostudio]

Luka putting modern big man to shame

[@usb-g5637]

It’s so annoying to see all luka’s crazy plays where his team bricks the shot 😭

[@ryanscott717]

It hurts me as a Mavs fan to see all these missed wide open threes. Get that man some help

[@MarioDiciple]

What gets me about Lukas post ups on mismatches is how fast he gets to work. Someone like James Harden would size up the defender and lull him to sleep and go to work. Luka just puts them in the pain train immediately. The defense doesnt have time to decide whos going to double him because luka has already backed them down and scored. Heres to hoping he stays healthy because this is mvp stuff.

[@leonardohernandez7191]

Man I wish ben had the staff to make more videos. I could watch breakdowns like this all day

[@Willy72070]

The mavs problem is that Luka is TOO good. With most young stars, the team has a few years to drafts high picks in hopes of a second star that can mature around them (Tatum and Brown). But with Luka, the team was in immediately good after he got drafted, so they never got a chance at drafting a second star. Hopefully they can get someone in free agency, but otherwise Idk how they expect to win a championship

[@kevinhowe3280]

I'm a former d1 college player. I wasnt really good in college but i was dominant in high school and I'm still pretty damn good compared to average players. The moves luka does takes so much strength. I practice all his post moves still to this day. Luka actually sparked a new interest in basketball for me. Hes doing things that I literally have never seen b4 and I never thought I'd say that again. Th balance it takes and the savvy to pull off these post moves. Hes th best player in th world

[@armin38822]

He is so damn talented. I honestly feel like if his only job was to be catch and shoot player he would somehow turn into a sniper. He can shoot off the drible,he can post up,he can play the pick and roll,he can pass from every angle,he has great ball handling,he can get creative and save the posession when he gets stuck,he can make those '' luka magic '' shots...I could go on and on. There is literarly nothing on the offense end he's not good at. Is simply not asked off him to be a catch and shoot player but if that was the mission I'm sure he would do it. He's just one off the best/most talented players that ever played basketball and I'm just happy I get to see it happen in real time.

[@diegomata3624]

Watching some of these clips just make it clear how genius Luka is and how badly he needs better teammates.

[@TheTEN24]

I love the versatility in Lukas game and that he still uses the post game to his advantage. There is absolutely a place for it and it’s satisfying to watch the variety of moves to get a good look

[@johanndiaz8387]

Luka is one of the basketball players of all time. The accolades will catch up but the eye test has been there from day one

[@MasterResolve]

Lbj didn't start doing this until late in his career. This dude is so advanced everywhere on offense.

[@MustardOverlord]

I think running this sort of offense makes a lot of sense for Luka. In the traditional high pick-and-roll version of these plays, Luka would call his own number by either driving all the way to the rim (which he can still do in a post-up because his footwork is so good, maybe even better because he can conserve a bit more energy and not telegraph his intentions as much) or take a step-back 3. He's shooting so well from 2 this season and mediocre enough from 3 that resorting to the step back less often is actually making him more efficient. Plus his free throw rate is ridiculous right now. Dallas found a way to emphasize Luka's scoring strengths (handle, rim touch and strength) while still giving him the traditional reads for passes in the PnR. Cool to see!