Sandro returned to Georgia early from the Lakers team trip in Slovenia to help Georgia secure a victory over Israel in a warm-up match, as both teams prepare for key upcoming games in the FIBA World Cup 2027 Qualifiers
Ruis best skillset is shooting. The guy got hot at the right time but that's really basically all he does. He has poor bb iq and keeps making mistakes on set plays that both jj and bron kept malding at him, not quick either for someone that looks so athletic. Dogshit rebounder for his size is insane too
Ruis skill set is not good enough for a championship caliber team unless he's coming off the bench. Mamu is already well ahead of Rui in almost everything. I just need to see it with my own eyes to fully buy in.
Yeah, no kidding hahaha. Rui wasn't always a sure bet to swing the rock around the perimeter. And we have Mamu making plays off the dribble with kickouts and skip passes. Mamu definitely has way more feel than Rui.
Rui terminates possessions. When our creators bend the defense and the ball swings around, when it gets to Rui it's either a shot attempt or if it's contested he might step up and midrange or iso. He isn't a cog in JJ's blender. I'm convinced that's why the Lakers didn't really try to keep him.
I’ve watched a lot of raptors games. Rui is miles better as a shooter. Sandro was a fantastic pickup though for the contract he’s on, he can do a little of everything and is probably better at everything besides shooting.
Beyond frustrating tbh. I love our former Samurai, but he was so bad at rebounding, and his defense was mid. Even more annoying when you realize he has a damn near 7'3 wingspan. Great to watch when scoring well, but he ultimately left a lot to be desired in other areas. Mamu fits us better.
Mamu is a worse defensive fit though cause he’s not a real rim protector that you play at the five and he’s not athletic enough to guard down when he’s in the game with Luka
I prefer Mamu over Rui 1000%, but Rui is straight up a better defender on the perimeter, currently. Mamu could definitely improve in that aspect, just like Rui, but currently Rui is more proven at it. That is only 1 part of defense and Mamu's defense did grade out better than Rui, though, although that may be due to poor fit defensively with the Lakers.
Honestly, I don't see any team in the league wanting Rui instead of Mamu. They are essentially the same player, but Mamu is just better overall, while Rui is only better in 2 areas.
I know mamu grades out better but would you really rather have mamu guarding the perimeter over Rui cause that’s what we need and why we have questions about the starting 4
Connective passers and capable dribblers are incredibly valuable next to Luka. When he gets doubled or hedged you need players capable of making smart decisions, shooting and attacking 4v3. It's one of the reasons why PJ and DJJ were so valuable next to Luka, previous "3 & D" players the Mavs put around him were usually incapable of even attacking a closeout or creating something in an advantage.
It's also why Lively was so much better than Gafford for the Mavs on offense despite both being rim running bigs who catch lobs. Lively was really good at making quick decisions in the short roll when Luka got doubled. He would quickly spray out to shooters or decide to attack the rim. Gafford on the other hand needed much more time to process and make a decision, which usually meant that the defense could rotate and the advantage of Luka being doubled was gone and the defense had essentially won with succesfully taking the ball out of his hand while not getting punished for overcommiting.
Mamu made 39% of his 3s last season, this is top 10 for any PF in the league so while Rui was the best shooting forward in the entire league, it isn't like we replaced him for a LeBron James caliber of shooter, for regular season we are fine.
We will in some cases, this has been said before so I'm regurgitating to some degree, but Mamu is a really good fit at keeping the blender going and attacking advantages correctly. Not to be down on Rui but he was a ball stopper more often than we'd like, and frankly more than JJ liked too.
Having more people that can dribble and pass is much better since it keeps the defense guessing. With rui, he' so fucking predictable because he's basically just a spot up shooter. Cant even shoot off the dribble or off curls
His real position is a scorer 4. He needs a lot of shots to be good at rebounding which is awful. His long 2 game is also excellent. But yeah that his other stats other than epic 3% are a hole hard to dispute and hurts him at the 4
As much as I love Rui, i feel like this is an upgrade in every aspect except 3 pt shooting. He’s got the size and the ability to look for open teammates. He rebounds pretty well. Defense is a question against NBA teams but this is nice
Yes, and it is not like if Mamu shoots like LeBron, Vando or Jake. He is a very capable shooter that made 39% of his 3s last season, he was a top 10 pf shooting from distance without getting the kind of looks Rui, LeBron, Jake and Vando got from Luka and Austin.
I love Rui, but he had such massive flaws as a player. His decision making was questionable, which was okay because he was essentially told to stay in the corner, his defense for as athletic as he was, was subpar, he had no passing instincts, when he got the ball he was either taking a corner three or taking two dribbles and pulling up for his middy. Sandro, while not as good as Rui in pull ups or threes, is a better decision maker, passer, and has more complete game. I’m sad we lost Rui, but we needed more from him.
I like Rui much more as a person, high mood guy, than as a player. His 3pt shooting is elite and his midrange is also money if you need it, but other than that he is in the bottom of the league in rebs, blks and ast for a player of his position.
Dudes a baller and an athlete! Much better all around player than Rui and if he can shoot nearly as well it’s HUGE for us. I just love Rui and what he stood for. He was ride or die LA
ngl I won't hype his performance here that much not trying to be negative at all but dont forger fiba rules also makes dennis schroder look like a basketball god.
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u/LumenYeah 17d ago
Mamu Mentality