Not that I want Moe to be on the business end of that, but having grown up with the Bad Boy Pistons, I think the league could use a little more of that old spice. Headbutting would get you, like, one tech back then. 
I remember Parrish sucker-punching Laimbeer, delivering 3 or 4 shots and he didnāt even get ejected.
It was a timeā¦
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Duncan having a tough game here in his first playoff appearanceā¦ got picked apart on a few switches and shot isnāt falling.
One thing the pacers do have is three guys that can run a pick and roll in their starting five - Oladipo, Brogdon, Holiday. Heās not going to guard TJ Warren or Myles Turner, so they were always going to hunt him down defensively.
Caris has it going early in the Brooklyn/Toronto game if anyone wants to catch some daytime hoops. Announcers have been talking him up all game too.
LeVert has 12 points, seven dimes, and four boards at halftime. Only 3-13 from the field, but zero turnovers. Nets up three at half.
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Thereās so much attention paid to him. If any of KD, Kyrie or even Dinwiddie was out there with him, heād have a much better time of it from the field.
BTW- there was a 4-minute stretch right before half where neither team made a FG. It was some comical/ugly basketball.
As someone whoās 4 years at Michigan overlapped directly with LeVertās, and a Nets fan, he may be my favorite NBA player.
That being said I question his long term for with this current Nets roster. The reason heās been so good in the bubble is that heās been the primary ball handler/creator. Especially these last 3 games heās been able to show how good a finisher/distributor he is. What heās not is a great shooter/off the ball player. Heās a solid rebounder and has the tools to be an above average defender, but his shooting/catch and shoot ability needs some work.
When the Nets are healthy, Kyrie will be the #1 ball handler for sure, Durant will finally be back and Dinwiddie is also a guy who needs the ball in his hands. I think the only way I can see LeVert playing at a high level on a successful Nets team is if they bring back Harris, LeVert improves his shooting, Dinwiddie stays in his role as the bench leader/star 6th man, and most importantly Durant becomes more of an off ball player. It sounds weird to say but especially coming off his injury Durant probably wonāt be the same overall player. If Durant is able to settle into a role as an elite off ball scorer with less iso stuff and play making in his game, LeVert can find a successful role as the second ball handler behind Kyrie.
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Not really a comment on this specific game (but it is emblematic of the problem) - but Caris just needs to shoot better. The league average true shooting is 56% and heās generally been around 51%/52%. Heās older than youād think given service time and time lost to injury. Really, he needs to become a more reliable shooter, and then his plus handle/defense for his lineup slot will shine.
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Given how much offense he has to create for himself, I think youād expect his TS% to be below league average. Heās basically the entire Brooklyn offense.
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Iād love to see him on the Pistons.
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Sure, but he shot pretty poorly when DeAngelo Russell was around last year, and he had Spencer Dinwiddie for most of this year. Right now - whatever, heās the only game in town.
Itās tough to get a good read because heās been fighting his own injuries and injuries to those around him. You see glimmers certainly but those need to become the norm.
Yeah, the struggle is heās a better shooter off the dribble than off the catch. Thatās great for this situation because you need a creator but when you have KD and Kyrie next to him, heās not exactly ideal for that role b/c his catch and shoot numbers are not great.
And they have Dinwiddie around who kind of does the same things a little better (I mean in general, not now).
LeVert finished with a double-double (16 points, 11 assists), but was 5-22 from the field and Toronto outscored the Nets by 11 in the 4th to win by five. Agree with the posters above who mentioned that Caris is the whole team right now, so efficiency will be a battle. I also agree with the concerns about his fit with the Nets once Durant, Kyrie, and Dinwiddie are playing regularly next year. Caris needs the ball in his hands, tough to do when Kyrie goes on his dribbling exhibitions.
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Trey and TIMMAY had some nice moments to close the 3rd quarter. Dallas is up 13.
Trey is cooking right now and keeping the Clips at bay with Doncic in foul trouble.
Trey has a really good second half shift tonight - Luka has some foul trouble and they didnāt miss a beat when Trey came in.
Mavs are fun to watch. Tim and Trey had some nice moments, and itās really fun to watch them on the floor together. Need this Mavs upset to keep my NBA interest piqued.
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Trey last night. I feel like Iāve watched him long enough to know when heās completely immersed and when heās hesitant. Looks very stuck in here.
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