I should have started this doppelgänger series with Moritz Wagner. After all, he’s German and it’s a compound German word, which mushes together doppel (meaning double) and gänger (meaning walker or goer). It’s entirely fitting that the Doppelgänger Machine produced the perfect comp for Wagner.
Wagner’s game is something like that — at least so far in his career — the mushing together of some NBA-level skills (mostly shooting and finishing) with out of control fouling and turnovers. Mix in irrational confidence in his own abilities and an odd personality that takes pleasure in annoying others.
Yes, there are great German words for these attributes.