![]() ![]() Neither franchise went for a slow rebuild once obtaining its star, but Boston was in a far different place - and it was not instantly clear Tatum was this type of franchise player - than when Dallas began building around Dončić. But Tatum has made deeper playoff runs, of course, and that’s the thrust of this conversation we wanted to have. Clippers in consecutive first-round series is as impressive as any series Tatum has had. They were traded for each other on draft night, of course, and that early narrative of those two players has persisted even as Tatum has clearly emerged on the most similar trajectory. Is that really the case though? Where would you say Dončić is in his trajectory after we just saw Tatum try to pull off an NBA Finals run while the Mavs were watching from home?Ĭato: Yeah, I feel like Dončić is still linked more often to Trae Young than Tatum. ![]() Dončić seems impervious to just about anything thrown at him, though I’m not sure we’ve seen him tested in the playoffs quite as much or as substantially as Tatum. The obvious issues with Tatum are that his open shooting has cooled over the past year-plus and he still gets stuck turning it over against elite defenses deep into the postseason. It’s all stuff Dončić has been elite at since his second season and it’s about time Tatum steps it up there. Tatum is able to get to the rack at will and come up with different attacks for different coverages. He’s finally becoming a good game manager and playmaker who can run an offense. Weiss: The proximity of these two players in the NBA’s upper echelon has been closer than most seem to recognize, likely because Dončić was well ahead of Tatum on the development curve for a while and the Celtics star is steadily catching up. They’ve both been All- NBA first-teamers the past two years. They’re less than one year apart in age and playing the same position. Let’s start here, because this is how we came up with this conversation topic: I don’t really feel like Luka Dončić and Jayson Tatum are compared to each other as much as they probably should be. And what we’re here to discuss is how the two teams we cover, the Dallas Mavericks and the Boston Celtics, have approached their offseasons over the past half-decade around their respective stars. Jared Weiss: We all know the only thing better than actual basketball is talking about how (insert franchise here) would be a problem if they can trade two above-average starters and three firsts for (insert All-NBA name here).Ĭato: We joke, but the offseason is this league’s most engaged time because possibilities can be more exciting than dull midseason realities. ![]()
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