"They just wanna find him and destroy him" - Skip Bayless refuses to acknowledge 3x All-Star in 'Best Player on the Planet' conversation
Famous sports analyst Skip Bayless isn't ready to declare Luka Doncic as one of the best players in the NBA. Bayless' reason for this is because of Doncic inability to be effective on both ends of the floor. The Slovenian superstar is often considered a liability on the defensive end, and Bayless believes his shortcomings on that end of the floor essentially rule him out of any "Best Player on Earth" conversation.
Despite the mightily impressive Game 7 win over the league-best Phoenix Suns, Skip Bayless shredded Doncic. The three-time All-Star has been phenomenal in the ongoing playoffs, but Bayless isn't a fan of his defensive flaws. Skip Bayless spoke on "Skip and Shannon: Undisputed", saying:
"What did you see in Games 1, 2 and 5 at Phoenix?...And after Game 2, all I read was 'Phoenix is hunting Luka Doncic on defense.' They just wanna find him and destroy him. They made minced meat out of him on defense. Minced Meat."
.@RealSkipBayless doesn't believe Luka Dončić is entering The Best Player on the Planet conversation: https://t.co/LTprz0YJqX
The Dallas Mavericks deployed the same strategy on Chris Paul that the Suns did on Doncic. They attacked the 37-year-old guard on every possession and exploited his lack of defensive intensity. Doncic and the Mavs won Game 7 in a historic fashion because of that reason.
In fact, it was so evident that the Mavericks were hunting CP3 on defense that Patrick Beverley made the bold claim that Monty Williams should have benched his star point guard. However, Skip Bayless would rather pick apart Luka Doncic's defense.
Doncic was a +37 in this series. In the four games they won, he was an average +21.5 and was an average -16.34 in the three losses.
Skip Bayless believes Luka Doncic's inefficient shooting disqualifies him from any "Best Player" conversation
The Dallas Mavericks have defeated the title-favorite Phoenix Suns in the conference semi-finals, but Skip Bayless is not yet sold on Doncic's superstar status. He has routinely criticized the 23-year-old's shooting efficiency, especially from three-point range and the charity stripe. Bayless continued on "Undisputed":
"He is a career 34% three-point shooter. That's horrendous. That's worse than LeBron."
Luka, Mr. Giggles, is an amazing scorer for a guy who can't jump and who, going into tonight, was shooting 30% from three in the first 6 games of this series.
Bayless tweeted after the Game 2 loss:
"Luka is a sorry shooter, a turnover machine and a disaster of a defender. That is his 'triple threat.' No way you can call him a superstar."
Skip Bayless has taken up a hater-type role against Doncic, despite the Slovenian putting up historic numbers. He criticizes him the same way he does LeBron James on his free-throw and three-point shooting.
More Points Than Booker
✅ More Points Than Booker
✅ More Rebounds Than Ayton
✅ More Assists Than The Point God
✅ More Steals Than Bridges
Luka Doncic had a series vs the Suns https://t.co/PuH913A18M
Regardless of whether Bayless wants to acknowledge it or not, Luka Doncic has been posting unbelievable numbers at a young age and is certainly one of the best in the NBA. He averaged 32.6 points, 7.0 assists, 9.9 rebounds, and 2.1 steals per game in this series to advance his team to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2011.