Luka or Steph? Who Would You Rather Guard?
DALLAS - As Dallas Mavericks await for their first-round playoff series to begin vs. the Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday... I must pose a question... Would you rather be assigned with the task to guard Dallas star Luka Doncic or Golden State Warriors phenom Stephen Curry?
As I watched the Los Angeles Lakers attempt to guard Curry in the Play-In tournament game, they double-teamed and triple-teamed him and yet Curry still scored a game-high 37 points.
"The guy is just flat-out unbelievable," Lakers Coach Frank Vogel said of Curry. "Steve Kerr said we were going to throw the kitchen sink at him, and we did...and he still had 37."
The Lakers ended up beating the Warriors on Wednesday evening in Los Angeles to advance to play the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the playoffs, thanks to Lebron James' hitting a 34-foot 3-pointer over Curry to seal the victory.
But as Vogel said... "unbelievable" is the best adjective to describe Curry.
Similar to the magic that Doncic brings to the Mavs, who are preparing for a rematch of last season's bubble series, in which the Clippers beat Dallas in six games.
[OFFICIAL: Dallas Mavs vs. Clippers Full Playoff Schedule Released]
Doncic's buzzer-beater to beat Los Angeles in Game 4 was one of the defining images of the playoffs, not to mention his 38-9-9 stat line in the final game of the series.
“The way he handled adversity, with us being 9–14 and making our way back into the playoffs, he’s been remarkable,” Mavericks forward Tim Hardaway Jr. said about Doncic this season. “He’s our general out there.”
A two-time NBA All-Star, Doncic is one of only eight players to have collected over 2,000 points, 500 boards, and 300 assists before turning 21 years old. This season, he shot a career-high 35 percent from three and averaged 27.7 points and 8.6 assists per game.
Two insane athletes... Who would you rather guard: Luka or Steph?
"Tough choice... guarding either of these players is almost a guaranteed embarrassment waiting to happen... I'd pick Doncic. Although he is too good to stop, I would take a stab at slowing Doncic than trying to keep up with Curry's speed." -Bri Amaranthus
"Not that I could guard either one, but Steph Curry makes me miss while I'm watching him from the couch." -Cory Youmans, Bri Amaranthus' fiance.
"Is there a third option? Maybe a team equipment manager I can guard? Maybe a general manager? I mean, seriously, who really wants to guard either of them at this point?
If you're going to force me to choose, I'll take Luka. Why? Ehhhh..... well, he's young and a bit less mature than Curry, so maybe I can just frustrate him a little bit more than I can Curry? I dunno. Defending either one of these guys feels like a Kobayashi Maru to me. But, I'll take Luka and my medicine." -Matthew Postins
[READ: Will Dallas Mavs Be Without Top Defender In NBA Playoffs?]
"Can I take option C? None of the above?
Seriously though, I think I would have to pick Luka at this point simply because he is less experienced, and Steph has more tricks up his sleeve. Besides that, Steph’s game seems a a lot more exhausting to defend, due to his constant running to get open, and his ability to pull up from anywhere on the floor at any given moment. At least with Luka, there are periods of rest." -Matt Galatzan
"This week, I don’t want to guard Steph. This decade, I don’t want to guard Luka.
A passing of the torch is coming; at this moment, Curry - who happens to be somebody Luka greatly admires - has accomplished all of the things Doncic aspires to.
So let’s bow to the king … while making room for the prince." -Mike Fisher
