WTF Is Happening In The NBA?!

Main channel video: Has Offense Gone Too Far In The NBA?:
• Has Offense Gone Too F...
The NBA's scoring explosion doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon -- with Luka Doncic and Devin Booker each going for 73 & 62 respectively last night. Is this becoming a problem?
check out Nick's channel: / @motownnoah
#basketball #nba #commentary
0:00 Intro
3:01 Luka Doncic dropped 73 on Atlanta
6:26 Devin Booker dropped 62 on Indiana
9:03 Have we become too desensitized to these scoring outputs?

[@BladeRabbit]

meanwhile Jokic trying to see how few points he can score and still win a game

[@golden10ful]

Bro is just training his team to not be as reliant on him to score. He's doing big brain things. Lol jk shit is just to easy to him

[@astriddececco3005]

Jokic does enough to win. He seems to not care so much about his stats.

[@inhop2443]

Dude's game is phenomenal.

[@kettlemypedals]

@@astriddececco3005I heard a joke that’s he’s purposely trying not to score to much to not get mvp cuz he doesn’t like the publicity, and I want to believe that

[@metalsadman]

they have a better team, mavs without luka is the worst team in the NBA, he can average 30 point triple double and this mavs team will still lose.

[@Iso_SSB]

I feel like kobe's record is gonna be broken soon, scoring has become so insane lately. I could even see wilt's record being broken which is crazy to say

[@phantom_isle]

I don't think we're gonna see wilt's record being broken, but I agree it's just a matter of time before Kobe's

[@eliwyatt2292]

Game might need to go to like 4OT

[@jonathansykes4986]

What record? Wilt has 19 more

[@Anthonydu01630]

What record ? Wilt scored 100

[@fazediamond5671]

I can’t seeing wilt record broken

[@spookyghostwriter3110]

Remember: The last guy who got 70 before Kobe getting his 81 was David Robinson. In 1994. And it was done deliberately to screw Shaq out of a scoring title. 11 years and change between those 2 games. And now we have 4 days off.

[@imdbtruth]

There's way more players with exceptional skills in today's NBA. Part of it is the evolution of the game. Logo threes and contested step-backs would've been unthinkable 20 years ago, coaches wouldn't have allowed it, and players wouldn't have practiced it. Luka's shot quality literally ranks worst in the NBA, and he dominates living on insanely difficult shot diet.

[@gugurupurasudaikirai7620]

Defense was horrendous in the early 60s and the pace was even higher than it is today. Multiple teams averaged and allowed 120+ per game. The final score of Wilt's 100 point game? 169-147. It's not just bad defense though, the 90s and early 00s are an outlier era because Shaq kind of broke offense, you had an influx of untalented bigs who were nothing more than but big bodies and some of the "defense" was actually just bad offense from that era.

[@lcchill]

Exactly. Looking back on it I would say the offensive talent coming into the league overall started going downhill in the late 90s and early 2000’s. Watching some games back then you saw poor ball movement in many games. There was a real concern back then because too many NBA games were ending in 85-80!!

[@vulcanraven9701]

@@lcchill i remember there used to be players who were just on the court specifically for defense, and they were bad at scoring. It continued until the early 2010s. Guys like Joel Anthony had no offense game whatsoever

[@JMOP1715]

Change the defensive rules. Let defense back in the league. The league is too offense orientated.

[@lilsmokeyy_93]

Exactly the game ain’t competitive at all during the regular season . But they doing it for the number and to keep expanding the NBA’s market … it’s a business move

[@Joe_Ma99]

Hell no. Who wants to go back to watching bums pack the paint? Rules have little to do with it. It’s floor spacing.

[@1capatter]

Players today would dominate players back in the day. They're bigger, stronger, more athletic & WAY more skilled. Getting rid of random players who's only job was to close line other players is a good thing

[@ckthegreat100]

@@Joe_Ma99facts

[@lilsmokeyy_93]

@@1capatter lmao wrong again 😂😂 ! Mfs use PED’s nowadays more scientists on payroll it’s been talked about for years champ sorry . Players back in the day we’re more naturally stronger . Technology back then was less advanced so documented times may be slightly off . What’s goin be more accurate a laser time or a stop watch in someone’s hand ? FOH 😂. Ppl sell y’all a narrative and you bite . Take some of the greatest athletes from the past mix em with some from now you’ll find that most are equally as athletic we just didn’t have stuff caught on camera or polarized like we do now .

[@chrisludwig4729]

Most people aren't old enough to remember, or haven forgetten, but Kobe's 81 point game wasn't a great viewing experience. It was an incredible feat of will, but it far, far from a good game, let alone great. The players in Wilt's 100 point game also called it a clown show. Lots of intentional fouling to either get Wilt the ball back or to get sb besides Wilt to score

[@shorewall]

Yep. It was peak toxic Kobe, who had driven off or cowed any help he could have had, and was just chucking for his ego.

[@JayTeeGR]

No way you score 70 under FIBA rules....🤔

[@icantthinkofacoolname1308]

Fans: *Criticize defense* JJ Redick: *Angry Noises*

[@shorewall]

Dude is biased and an idiot. People bring up that teams don't shoot more free throws than normal, but that's because teams don't try. If a team tried to play hard defense, the game would take 3 hours and the whole team would foul out.

[@LaBronny]

He’s right though most fans have 0 idea what the fuck they’re talking about

[@ckthegreat100]

@@LaBronnyand you do? 😂

[@LaBronny]

@@ckthegreat100 more than you I’m sure

[@Jonathan-A.C.]

Lolol

[@VllBezZ]

Scoring has become so easy people are becoming numb to it,that’s what happens when you change rules to benefit one side of the ball more than the other

[@jehushaphat]

Defense is severely frowned upon and punished by officials in the NBA these days; and officials no longer punish offensive mistakes -- no carries, no traveling, no double dribble, and no offensive fouls.

[@Mrballerize]

We need defense in the NBA again. This scoring pace is getting ridiculous.

[@sqweeps.03]

When I was like 8 years old and not really into basketball like that(I’m 20 rn) I remember watching games not to see who wins but who gets closer to 100 points first. Games would always end at like 95-98 or something

[@roscoeorginal]

Defense isn’t as bad as you may believe. There’s other factors to why players are scoring way more. 3 pointers creates more points and opportunities for other scoring chances, teams are turning the ball over less which creates more possessions, teams aren’t shooting at 6 seconds in the shot clock left every possession, teams are shooting way better and more efficient than any other era. Defense isn’t bad, offense is either at its peak or nearly reaching it and not to mention all those teams that got 60+ dropped on them are generally bad defensive teams being bottom 5 in defense.

[@imdbtruth]

There's way more players with exceptional skills in today's NBA. Part of it is the evolution of the game. Logo threes and contested step-backs would've been unthinkable 20 years ago, coaches wouldn't have allowed it, and players wouldn't have practiced it. Luka's shot quality literally ranks worst in the NBA, and he dominates living on insanely difficult shot diet.

[@Jonathan-A.C.]

@@roscoeorginal Offense is better, but Defense is more limited than it has to be. Hell, I’d just at least delay the 3 second Paint rule to 5 seconds, if not abolish it. That in and of itself does a lot.

[@abel6846]

The Hawks’ defense against Luka was woefully, if not mostly absent.

[@JuanNunez2023]

To me, the problem is not 60+ games, it's how mundane 40+ games have become. I remember a time when that was special. There used to be a day when having five 40+ games per season made you an MVP candidate. This year De'Aaron Fox already has four 40+ point games and we're not even at the All-Star break yet. No offense to Fox, he's a very good player but no one would consider him one of the league's A-list talent. When everything is special, nothing is special.

[@trendybistro]

Fox is averaging better this season than Kobe did his entire career other than maybe 2 seasons with much better efficiency other than at the free throw line. So are you saying Kobe wasn't A-list talent?

[@saltman6873]

Ngl Fox is the most underrated player in the league the moment and he should be an MVP candidate

[@JuanNunez2023]

@@trendybistro Obviously Kobe is one of the greatest to ever play the game. Peak Kobe Bryant averaging 27-28 points in a season was a huge accomplishment in the late 2000's-early 2010's. De'Aaron Fox average 27-28 today means he's not even a top 5 scorer because defenses are so terrible right now. When Kobe won MVP in 2007-08, the highest scoring team were the Warriors at 111 points per game. Today, the Chicago Bulls score 111.1 points per game that makes them the 26th best offense in the league. Different eras means stats mean different things.

[@trendybistro]

@@JuanNunez2023 He's 1.3 pts away from being a top 5 scorer, you're really nitpicking. Fastbreaks and 3s make the league have a lot more scoring. Sure there are some players that score a lot at the free throw line, but like I said, Kobe scored more from the line than any guard ever and he retired 7 years ago, not like 30 years ago.

[@Goldgotgame]

@@trendybistrothe difference is Kobe was also an elite defender. The 2000s also had a much slower pace than nowadays. It’s not really fair doing era comparisons like this, especially when the comparison of play style is also awful

[@JojiUrHomie]

Can I just say Thank you Nick for adding the bookmarks to these videos. I’m there for every Coping Hour pod and while I do listen here and there some of the football stuff I mainly care about basketball so I really appreciate that he puts the bookmarks on his pod and now that he’s editing these videos I extra appreciate the effort to put the bookmarks.

[@_.e.c.w]

my friend texted me at 2 in the morning about luka’s game, I woke up at 9, saw his text, looked at the scoreboard, and said wtf looking at it, fell into depression today because im a hawks fan

[@TheMysticalNinja65]

best editing I have ever seen in a video, truly special - but seriously the bookmarks are nice

[@hellraiser420]

Donovan had his 71 point game before Dame did

[@sadp9013]

Soon 2 players will have 70 in the same game lol

[@Opium64]

Crazy to see the worst offensive team today would be the best 20 years ago but the worse defensive team from 20 years ago would be the best today numbers wise

[@psychotropnilachtan8869]

They would get destroyed by modern offenses. There is 10 rookies more talented than most stars were back in a day ^^

[@kaykay9646]

⁠@@psychotropnilachtan8869Kobe, T-Mac, A.I., Shaq would beg to differ 😂

[@shorewall]

@@psychotropnilachtan8869 You mean they would be destroyed by modern officiating. Teams aren't allowed to play defense. You're the kind of casual fan that the NBA is catering to.

[@neptune4359]

@@psychotropnilachtan8869Talent is there for sure in the modern NBA but most of these players lack basic nba fundamentals outside of scoring. If you actually believe they will dominate the past era when defense was tougher you’re sadly mistaken. MJ would have a field day in today’s nba.

[@lilsmokeyy_93]

@@psychotropnilachtan8869you sound dumb as shit ….

[@MO-rl9gl]

Cant believe Motown Noah is the editor of this channel now. how times have changed

[@LL-iy7bg]

SAS after Embiid 70✅ Luka 73 ❌

[@rob_008_4]

Rusty should hand checking be introduced back into the nba as nba offense is unreal as defense is a little tougher to be good at in this age where contact isn’t what it used to be

[@sillybilly666]

I mean, the Raptors were literally ranked the worst defense in the league the year Kobe put up 81 on them, the only way performances like this happen is always because of really bad defense; this is nothing new tbh - regardless, these feats are still insane & something that just isn't as easy to do as folks wanna think it is - Teams also weren't shooting 3's anywhere near the level they are today - Saying scoring 70pts in a single game is not impressive is beyond overblown of a reaction lol ngl

[@alexgoldflame445]

Is this the first time a father son duo has done it though?

[@crazyluigi6664]

Bruh.

[@shalamahthezero5102]

Ya knowhow lots of ppl love gta. But when you play with cheat codes it gets boring and the game starts losing some value. Thats what thenba is going through.

[@jmandan8728]

nahhh

[@shalamahthezero5102]

@@jmandan8728 El Oh El

[@shorewall]

100%. The NBA is set on rookie defensive difficulty, and the offense is set on Legend, due to the rule changes and officiating, as well as the Analytical optimization of the offense.

[@shalamahthezero5102]

@@shorewall I concur

[@eliek2014]

Yea it's not something i really want to tune into

[@roninwave6548]

crazy timing to post the offense gone too far video

[@323johnnybravo]

70 is the new 40. It’s not special when teams are scoring 145 a night.

[@LembeckIsStaying]

I would say 60 is the new 40 and 70 is the new 50.

[@richcantgame]

It’s not 40 LOL

[@jayward8237]

The video about the offense problem in the NBA was fantastic!

[@xtrachrisb488]

25 foot 3 point arc. No corner 3's

[@brodro8571]

I’m pretty sure d Mitch had his 70 point game before dame

[@hellraiser420]

He did

[@atlien1988]

The current NBA can often be unwatchable & it's not due to lack of talent. I'm tired of watching so many games where NBA _veterans_ don't even know how to set proper picks, poor positioning & players constantly going under the screen on shooters like Steph Curry. Luka's 70 burger was like the 4th 60+ game in a week. It's difficult to get excited for these performances when there's so little resistance.

[@HEC892]

Thanks for the video I just subbed

[@inthecutstudios9505]

This is unfortunate for great scorers of the past like A.I, Mcgrady, and others. Now all the players of today can have historical scoring games easier, and youll mostly see players of today in the scoring leaderboards and it somewhat erases the great scorers in the past, when they could have had historic 70+ games in this era

[@shorewall]

I already think we have to isolate for era. We are in an era of offensive Hyperinflation.

[@lilsmokeyy_93]

Exactly this corny …. 4 players with 60+ in one week 😒

[@owethunala2632]

@@shorewall60s I think was the most offensive inflated and eventually it evened out so in a couple decades things may change

[@plantbasedking]

When you said “One in the 90s with David Robinson” I thought you meant he had a 90 point game, and I thought that I had somehow missed a canon event and was panicking

[@fpl_djhammer]

pace and tactics are often overlooked or even forgotten when it comes to the conversation of "offence going too far in the modern NBA" players in the 2000s played at a much slower pace than they do nowadays and offensive schemes have evolved so far that it's easier to score with so much space created by the average NBA player's 3 point shot

[@henry7486]

I actually forgot that Dame and Donovan even dropped 70 and it has only been one year. Also, when I first saw that Luka dropped 70, in my head I was just like ‘oh okay, cool’. It’s became far too normalised and I think the NBA will soon be forced into making big changes because at this point, it’s just not that enjoyable to watch

[@Headsale]

Haircut lookin slick homie, just needed a few days w it

[@godzilla2721]

As Luka said, it's easier to score in the NBA than Europe. The freedom of movement rules, the lack of travel calls, lack of palming, etc.coupled with the crazy 3's and pace makes this the new normal

[@Loquacious_Jackson]

Poo poo pee pee 💩💩💩

[@matthieusaade3616]

The amount of uncontested layups Luka had in this game was ridiculous. Defense is dead , competition is dead . How do you allow a dude to have an uncontested LAYUP when he already has 40-50-60 points ????? Luka is A MONSTER don't get me wrong but the Hawks lack of fight and physicality was just disgusting

[@KirbyS15]

Hey rusty I never comment or nothing but I watch every single second channel video and I love them appreciate you for PUMPIN them out even tho your more focused on the main channel

[@brandonhall4547]

I’m 42 and remember when a 55 point game was something you ran into the street to talk about . I miss the days of scoring being so hard those outburst were remarkable. This is just like watching 2k with the defense sliders down

[@SammyG6714]

Good defense is being fouled out of the game. It’s ridiculous.

[@topramen5718]

Bring back hand check

[@PrettyVicious]

They should have a 3second rule for it or something

[@topramen5718]

@@PrettyVicious good call I've never thought about that

[@leeswift7883]

Lol how would you check 3s?

[@paranoia_xo]

I don’t even think hand checking is super necessary, I think they really need to call some of the egregious carrying and travelling players are allowed to get away with 24/7. Very hard to defend someone when you can’t keep track of what’s left in their arsenal.

[@topramen5718]

@@paranoia_xo there definitely is a ton of carrying of the basket ball

[@Wolf-pp4sm]

A good player can score 70 when there isn't any defense. You barely graze them and thats a free throw. The reason it wasn't seen for 40+ years was because of hand checks and the fact players had to deal with a forearm on them. You do that now they may give you a flagrant

[@mitchellapple9184]

Good stuff

[@Trillchris9607]

The defense is better in these games than it was in the Kobe 81 game, and Kobe took 46 shots.

[@Shtogan]

Players points have been adjusted for inflation just like everything else these days

[@thomasgalla1670]

Rusty, I have a hard disagree, to me this is just the way basketball is meant to be played with a shot clock and a 3 pointer, every year from the 1960-1972 had teams score on average 110 points or more and that was before the 3 pointer, this faster pace and higher scoring is what is supposed to happen, like this year isn't even on track to be top have in PPG for a team, and pace wise the 70's and 80's had a higher pace than we do today, what we are seeing is teams becoming much more efficient as shown by the rise in effective field goal percentage and a lower turnover percentage, this is just the beginning and it's only going to get better. the 1992- 2016 seasons are all below the median points per game by a team and that's including the years when their was no shotclock the 90's through mid 2010's are the exception that has finally been broken not the normalcy we should try to return too

[@thinkinginsideout4053]

Finally, a comment with so much sense and bball knowledge. I'm one with you here bro!

[@xfanatick7972]

Agree it makes sense but people generally don’t like changes and the shift is scaring them because they want to keep the magic with high scoring games like in the past. I think that we will not see many different players drop 60+ points but it will always be the same guys. Luka, Dame, Giannas, Donovan and booker reached those points because of their team playing like trash. We also forget that those guys were always monsters like you can’t tell me it wasn’t predictable that embiid or Luka would reach these amount points in their career

[@shorewall]

Yeah, and the 90s through 2010s were the most popular era of the NBA, and the NBA of the 2020s is losing eyeballs, despite the high scoring. People don't watch until the playoffs, which is also ironically when the refs let teams play harder defense, and Embiid's PPG goes down 10 points.

[@thinkinginsideout4053]

Much has been written about NBA ratings the past few years, but where does the league truly stand? The 2022-23 NBA regular season averaged 1.59 million viewers across ABC, ESPN and TNT, down slightly in viewership from last season (1.61M). Contextualizing those numbers is a choose-your-own adventure game. If one is looking for the most unflattering interpretation, this season ranks among the least-watched of the past 30 years - ahead of the two COVID-shortened seasons of 2019-20 (1.55M) and 2020-21 (1.36M) and two years of the league’s mid-2000s lull (2002-03: 1.58M; 2006-07 1.52M). That the past four seasons rank among the six least-watched, even with the addition of out-of-home viewing to Nielsen’s estimates, cannot be brushed aside. Even so, it is also true that the NBA’s audience has been remarkably durable over the past two decades. Even with the out-of-home caveat, there are few properties that could average more viewers in 2023 than in 2003, especially considering that nearly 40 million fewer viewers were watching primetime television this season than 20 years ago (2002-03: 102.9M; 2022-23: 63.8M). The NBA viewership timeline When trying to make an argument that NBA viewing is not just down, but actively tanking, the common comparison is to the Michael Jordan era. Understandably so, as viewership is down close to half from the Jordan-era peak in the 1995-96 season (2.99M). Yet nearly all of the league’s drop-off in viewership post-Jordan happened more than two decades ago. The result of the plunge in primetime viewing is that the NBA’s diminished audience still accounts for a greater and greater share of the audience. NBA games averaged a 3% share during the 2022-23 season, the highest of the past 20 years. It is worth noting that the share is a consolation prize at best; few cited the figure prior to the recent collapse in TV viewing. Nonetheless, the share does indicate that the NBA, and live sports in general, has been largely resilient to the shrinking linear television landscape. It may be cold comfort that the league has been in far worse situations before - the 16% decline from 2017-18 to the current season pales in comparison to the 49% plunge from 1998-99 to 2002-03 or even the 26% drop from the 2001-02 to 2006-07 - but that does not make it any less true. It is not exactly saying much that the league is outdrawing baseball, hockey and college basketball, but again that does not make it any less true. The reality is that the league’s downturn is both real and exaggerated. The NBA may not be faring as well as five, ten or certainly 25 years ago, but it is faring far better than what seems to be the popular perception. -Jon Lewis

[@thomasgalla1670]

​@@shorewall I think the decline in NBA viewership is much more linked to the fall of cable television and the fact that most of the large streaming platforms don't have NBA games, also people watch more in the playoffs because the stakes are higher.

[@akalapov]

The NBA is becoming a joke, lack of defense and drama queens all over the league..

[@inhop2443]

Defence is broken. And people under 30 dont mind it. Enjoy your big numbers, kids.

[@Flyerman777]

This is my exact thoughts

[@tranceform9459]

People are failing to mention that this uptic in heavy scoring has been in the last 5 years or so. I think its directly related to golden state starting to win with high volume outside shooting. Before that everyone thought that you couldnt win as an outside shooting team. Warriors play changed the precident. Teams realized the value of floor spacing and having shooters in positions 1-5 in order to open driving and passing lanes for your best offensive play makers. The ability for high scoring has everything to do floor spacing and increase in possesions per game. Not to say there arent bad defensive teams or that every player gives max defensive effort every play. Every team doesnt have the personell to handle the most dynamic offensive teams and players. Saying that more scoring is only because of lack of defense dismisses how much each generation has built off and learned the generation before advanced methods of how to put a ball in a hole.

[@shorewall]

It's both. The Warriors taught the NBA how to optimize offense. But the NBA has also been favoring offense with the rules and officiating more and more each year. So when the league suddenly flipped the analytics switch and realized that 3 is more than 2, and spreading the court leads to shots at the rim, it led to an overcorrection that the NBA has not adjusted to. We could roll back a lot of the punitive rules on defense, and still have a more high scoring and free flowing game than the 2000s.

[@daviddiallo480]

im loving the changes to the rusty buckets cinematic universe so far

[@jaychow3]

Does feel like offense are just too good. Defense only matters in the 4th. But talking about the recent 70 point games. I feel like Donovan Mitchells was the craziest. Bro had like 20 at the half then scored the rest after the half. Also I think he didn't really start scoring in the 3rd until like halfway through it. And he was on fire like he didn't miss at all. Then he hit that crazy free throw putback to get them into O.T.. Kept pouring it on in OT

[@xfanatick7972]

Don’t forget Lukas 60 point triple double with the insane free throw put back too. Both of these games are the best games high scoring I’ve ever watched in my life

[@lubo1358]

Offense is solved and defense can do nothing to slow them down effectively. You can't take away the rim and the 3pt line at the same time and every star player can carry the ball and run off of questionable screens to shoot the ball or draw free throws. Removing the 3 second violation would help a lot imo it'd balance out all the 5 out offense.

[@interstellardeskplant]

All those points and yet it's still incredibly boring.

[@kurdan9848]

I could never imagine how quickly your main channel video got validated Rusty "Nostradamus" Buckets

[@PrettyVicious]

Tbh it’s getting unwatchable for me and i love bball. Someone scoring 60+ every other night

[@leeswift7883]

No one's forcing you to keep watching games then whining on social media

[@PrettyVicious]

@@leeswift7883 lol stop being weird. Social media is to have a discussion if you so choose about your opinion. You are adding nothing to the conversation, you must be fun at parties.

[@leeswift7883]

@@PrettyVicious there are people like you at most parties nitpicking everything so I don't even go lol If I didn't add to the convo then what did YOU bring to the table besides a complaint?

[@PrettyVicious]

@@leeswift7883 lol let me rephrase, you are responding to MY comment, not the video. So I’m saying you didn’t add anything to continue the conversation here within this comment thread. You just misunderstood my opinion as whining. If you had your own opinion or thought you could’ve made your OWN separate comment. Didn’t say anyone was forcing me TO WATCH. what i added to the whole collective conversation is if i don’t “whine” as you put it the KZbinr does not get engagement on his video. You just responded to ME specifically in a negative connotation not in such a way to have a conversation. So again, stop being weird. And you should go to parties- they are fun!

[@leeswift7883]

@@PrettyVicious lot of words to defend your whining, but ok You are right in 2 aspects - this thread was all just to respond to your comments, not the video. And I did make a separate comment, just outside of the thread that's more measured

[@kushpatel7181]

Very interesting that both Kat and bookwe has 62 points in a loss and they are seen to be rivals with Luka and embiid as well as the 2 international players scoring 70

[@LembeckIsStaying]

How "meh" has big scoring games become? Your video is the first time I saw any highlights from the Booker game. And the Luka highlights I watched once and didn't even finish it. The defense was pornographic lol.

[@speciesofgark4169]

Step back 3s for past 30 feet never used to be something players did. Lots of gus do that now.

[@TheKyubiisaan]

Wilt's game was recorded by Harvey Pollock, who was counting scores for the NBA for like 60 years. I trust him more than an expensive camera / tv broadcasting team

[@jaxsonbateman]

What's weird about this is that twice in the span of what, five days, we had one player drop 70+ and win, and one drop exactly 62 and lose. It's pretty weird that things lined up exactly like that.

[@GregTurismo]

Rusty is so baffled and mad at me like I did this 😂

[@Trillchris9607]

Luka’s performance is the best, highest true shooting percentage by far and lots of tough shots vs good contests.

[@itsjesse___]

Enjoy basketball, one day the league will be at a point where 50 is the new 20 because 7’2 robots aren’t programmed to miss

[@DeeReeseBeats]

Imagine Jordan and Miami Heat LeBron in the 2020s 😮‍💨

[@johnavernia1026]

I kinda stopped watching the games now. It just so boring. There's no drive to win, and competition. Its just I'm gonna shot and lay up. Watch me. And then the defender just watches.

[@picassojulien899]

We need hand checking back

[@vuknikolic4679]

"Its easy to score 70+ points every other game in the era of plumbers"

[@august6281]

better 3s + faster pace + no to little defense = All Star Game

[@eddietalley534]

I think it’s a myth that NBA is profiting so much off of this high scoring offense. Jordan 90s and Kobe 2000s era is still the highest rated in nba history. Seeing those guys do numbers like this against elite defense made them look like superheroes.

[@Hahahanoyes]

Teams are scoring 140 points practically every night, obviously refs calling fouls is the problem

[@zahcuri]

the luka hate is absolutely crazy i’m starting to see media hating on the new gen players offense is just crazy compared to 10 years ago defense is just impossible against unbeatable offense

[@ShniitSchneyder]

slick hairdo man!

[@cvillalta]

I think something like this is what happened when Wilt got his 100 point record, because defense was in the earlier stages of what it would later develop into. It hadn't even been 10 years since Bill Russell got into the league, who is regarded to be a pioneer in the defensive aspect of the game, when Wilt got a 100.

[@issackhussein5838]

They don’t play defense IDC!

[@venturamack]

Talk about luka every day I'll watch every video

[@uriel7940]

Dowager's Hump or Buffalo Hump is a real thing. Also, 80 will probably come soon.

[@randymayo7463]

Intense defence is missing in today's NBA

[@chrilpy]

Because offensive players are allowed to truck defenders, but defenders are called for fouls on the slightest contact

[@phantom_isle]

found the guy that doesn't watch basketball

[@shalamahthezero5102]

Lol LJ​@@chrilpy

[@paranoia_xo]

What’s really missing is HEART. Most of todays athletes don’t have it sadly, particularly these baby shit soft hoopers.

[@neptune4359]

@@chrilpyyep a elbow tap get called for fouls in today game. LJ gets away with subtle charging every game.

[@deus4329]

Hey rusty change the thumbnail of that scoring video to include the guys to get a boost from the news

[@gandydancer9710]

6:30 The Suns didn't win with Booker's 60? Well, they didn't win in his 70 point game, either. Is this a thing?

[@Joe_Ma99]

What are you talking about? There is no asterisk. Luka had the most efficient 70 point game of all time and he was still passing in the 4th. They needed all of his points to win. This was a pure. Why are people shitting on it?

[@latrellsprewell653]

Remember the mid 90s ?when scores didn’t even reach 100 most of the time

[@crazyluigi6664]

The game that made me a fan was a quadruple-overtime game between the Phoenix Suns and the Portland Trail Blazers in November 1997 where Phoenix won 140-139. That felt truly special to me.

[@fkm512]

I think the most telling stat that things are completely out of hand is comparing the offensive rating of todays teams against the KD warriors

[@pedrmunhoz]

The biggest difference isn't defense, is offensive skill and spacing. Have the officiating changed? Yes. Is it most consequent than not having 4 defenders around the paint most of the time? Nope

[@imdbtruth]

Luka should be separate from the rest! He scored the most, on far less shots and free throws than the others! 73 on 76% FG and 91% TS is in a class of its own!

[@honeyorsyrup]

Ofc all 4 of them are in my fantasy matchups team

[@2ktalk]

Be nice to see players take pride in defense can't think of too many superstars who do which is crazy because they all say Kobe's their favorite player Kobe Bryant himself cared more about defense than offense

[@paranoia_xo]

It’s because Kobe was a WINNER and defence = CHAMPIONSHIPS. these baby shit TikTok players don’t understand that. Timberwolves coach ranting post game the other day was so succinct and accurate.

[@hoppy23]

I think klay thompsons 60 points in 3 quarters on 29 mins and like 70 seconds possesing the ball is the only thing that rivals kobes 81 in terms of impressiveness

[@paranoia_xo]

So tired of people saying “The offensive talent is just so much better 🤓🤓🤓”! Ya it looks like you can have a lot more talent when you can carry and travel 24/7, defenders have NO RIGHT TO SPACE, offensive plays can barrel into defenders and get free throws ????? Like idk who’s dumb ass idea at the league office it was to turn NBA basketball into this garbage, but this ain’t it. Obviously it’s anecdotal evidence but I know a bunch of people who were HARDCORE hoops heads that have totally checked out and transitioned into watching NFL, F1, Tennis, etc. The NBA is insanely unwatchable as it currently is, no one’s trying to watch games that are 150-145 in REGULATION, ALL STAR GAMES in the early-mid 2000s had more intense defence. Shit is just comical. I’m honestly of the belief that players realized playing defence equals worse offensive numbers equals lower contract money. Sorry for the long rant, but the NBA used to be PEAK television, one of the most intense back and forth sports with some of the most COMPETITIVE athletes I’ve ever seen, this baby shit era ain’t it, I’m sorry.

[@fkm512]

Gotta say I agree, so sick of these nerds arguing otherwise. I think they’re just too protective of the nba product and don’t want to criticise it.

[@tudorm6838]

I really don't understand how the defender wants to block Luka standing on the side or behind?

[@alexanarchh]

Hair looks good Rusty

[@justc1re617]

Booker is just a great shot creator. He is proving what Kobe saw in him fr

[@crazyluigi6664]

Amen!

[@handeggchan1057]

Luka having 73 on 33 shots is the most insane part. Kobe's 81 was on 46 shots AND was against the 2nd worst defense in the league (and he took 20 FTs FWIW against Luka's 16)

[@donaldhutchison4652]

The raptors defense in 2006 would be 1st by a landslide in today’s league lol and look at the rosters. Kobe had a way worse roster.

[@handeggchan1057]

@donaldhutchison4652 they wouldn't be the best defense in the league at all, because offenses are a lot better now than back then. It goes both ways.

[@donaldhutchison4652]

@@handeggchan1057 so the hawks are the good defense this year? Oh ok 😂

[@handeggchan1057]

@donaldhutchison4652 no, I'm saying 5he Raptors would still be 29th in D if they played today, because offenses are better too. 29th out of 30 is a relative measure of how good the D is.

[@donaldhutchison4652]

@@handeggchan1057 yeah you sound like a Kobe hater tryna discredit his 81 point game lol did it in the nets defensive era. We just watched 4 60 point performances in one week😂

[@kostastube2010]

Bring back handchecking for crying out loud, punish flopping, call traveling, forbid "Euro" step! Why the f#ck is it even called Euro-step???? It is not allowed in Europe, it is traveling!!!

[@WHITEPERSUAS1ON]

If that Luka games goes to OT, he has probably 85

[@bldogg]

No. Players get better. not everything can be as special as it was the 1st time. Time keeps moving

[@GZQ9]

Wow!

[@acflux4017]

No defense that's it