“He’s Better Than Dirk [Nowitzki]”: Jason Kidd Went Full Troll Putting Luka Doncic “In The Atmosphere” With Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant And LeBron James
Maybe it’s been a slow couple of weeks for the NBA as players start to slide into All-Star weekend mode and gear up for the second half of the season. So, while everyone was asleep and the floor was open, Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd decided to troll everyone.
Coming off star player Luka Doncic‘s 45-point, 15-assist performance against the Orlando Magic Monday night, Kidd put Doncic in rarified air while speaking on 97.1 The Freak’s “The Downbeat” radio show in Dallas.
Luka Doncic Is Better Than Dirk Nowitzki? On Same Level As Kobe, Mike, Bron?
“I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it for as long as I’m here. You can’t take this man for granted,” Kidd said on Tuesday. “He’s better than Dirk [Nowitzki]. He’s in the atmosphere of MJ [Michael Jordan], the best to ever do it. LeBron [James], Kobe [Bryant].
It seems like Kidd was putting something else in the atmosphere when he made that statement.
Enter Stephen A. Smith: “Lay off the weeeeeeeed.”
He wasn’t done: “So, just to appreciate what this young man is doing at the age of 24 is something that Dallas has never seen,” Kidd continued. “And I’ve said this internally. He’s better than Dirk. He’s done things that Dirk could never do. And now is the opportunity of getting the right people around him to ultimately win a championship.”
In a recent three-game span, played over four days, Doncic averaged 48.6 points, 13 assists and 9.6 rebounds, highlighted by a 73-point performance against the Atlanta Hawks Friday night.
The 73 points tied Doncic for the fourth-highest single-game point total in NBA history with Wilt Chamberlain (twice) and David Thompson. This came a few days after Joel Embiid dropped 70 and Devin Booker dropped 62 on the same night.
Luka Doncic Needs Kyrie Irving: One-Man Show Won’t Win
Despite the outburst of offensive bliss, the Mavs are still 2-3 in their past five games.
The truth of the matter is, even with Luka, the Mavs are a good team at best, currently sitting in the eighth seed in the Western Conference with a 26-22 record.
Kyrie Irving has been out with a right thumb sprain, and that has seriously hurt the , who were relying on the two future Hall of Famers to carry the weight, be available and lift the franchise to new heights.
Luka has been great at one thing since he entered the league, and that’s scoring and playmaking. He hasn’t won much and has yet to play in any career-defining playoff games. He’s also still hunting his first regular season MVP.
The Mavs just made it to their first Western Conference Finals in 2022, getting disposed of in five games by Golden State. The Mavs missed the playoffs last season and are in jeopardy of doing the same this season if they don’t have a strong second half and get Kyrie back.
Jason Kidd Adding More Pressure On Luka Doncic
Jason Kidd needs to be drug tested. You also have to wonder how much he actually likes his 24-year-old superstar by anointing him MJ status. That’s a crazy vote of confidence, but also a lot of pressure to be putting on Doncic.
While we understand his appreciation for Luka’s game, especially as the coach getting to see him behind the scenes and live in action giving players the business every night, to put a guy with no résumé outside of scoring statistics on the same level as Jordan, Kobe and LeBron, is downright absurd and very disrespectful to the legacy those players compiled over lengthy careers. And the trials and tribulations that they all had to endure en route to becoming iconic pillars of the sport.
Dirk Nowitzki’s Historic NBA Championship Run
As far as Dirk Nowitzki is concerned, Kidd was one of the old veterans that Dirk carried across the finish line in that improbable upset of Miami in 2011 to bring the franchise the only NBA Championship in its 44-year history.
Dirk’s performance is still one of the single greatest NBA finals accomplishments of all time. They were not only heavy underdogs against LeBron James’ Superteam Miami Heat, but Dirk didn’t have any other superstars in their prime to assist him in his mission.
It was also his second trip to the Finals after losing to Hall of Famers Dwyane Wade and Shaq in heartbreaking fashion in 2006 after leading in the series. Dirk had Dallas in contention year after year and he won an MVP in 2007.
Let’s stop the madness: Luka isn’t Better Than Dirk Yet
For Kidd to say Luka is better than Dirk based on regular season scoring performances in meaningless games is kind of wild. It’s total capping, and you wonder why Jason Kidd chose to anoint Luka as a member of NBA’s Mount Rushmore at this point.
Look, we have seen plenty of incredible scorers in NBA history. And the way the Mavs are currently constructed, Luka has to take the offensive burden, and he has no problem letting it fly.
According to StatMuse,Luka Doncic has attempted the most field goals per game this season, with 23.7 per game. In the NBA, the star who takes the most shots usually ends up with the most points. It’s not like defense is part of most game plans in the league these days.
We are seeing 60- and 70-point explosions almost on a nightly basis. 40-point games are the new 25-point games back in the day.
Jason Kidd is known as one of the shrewd minds of the game. The 6-foot-4 point GOD averaged12.6 points, 8.7 assists and 6.3 rebounds in 1,391 regular-season games. He was selected to play in 10 All-Star games. He won the Rookie of the Year award and one NBA championship.
He’s coaches for several teams including the Milwaukee Bucks and New Jersey Nets and he’s on the hot seat in Dallas because of his inability to make all of this legendary talent he’s gushing over equate to championship level success.
Luka Isn’t Dynamic Two-Way Player
Luka is a great scorer. He complains too much on every play and his conditioning and defensive effort leaves something to be desired. His triple-double capabilities don’t make him a two-way player. Every single person Kidd mentioned, with the exception of Dirk, was a perennial candidate for Defensive Player of the Year and made All-NBA defensive teams as well.
That’s not Luka’s game. He’s not locking anybody on both ends of the court. He’s putting up a bunch of shots and most of them are going to go in. It hasn’t proved to be a championship-caliber formula for him or the Mavericks.
Maybe Kidd is trying to motivate Luka or publicly campaign for Luka’s first MVP. Maybe Kidd feels it’s overdue. With so many worthy candidates, it’s hard to win it on a mediocre team. Luka’s place among the greatest to ever grace the hardwood will be earned and come in due time. He doesn’t need his coach making outlandish comparisons with nothing to stand on but an overhyped, biased opinion.
