05-25-2024, 10:43 AM
WOW. WHAT A GAME. WHAT A FIGHT. I cannot believe the Mavs won this. I lost my voice from screaming.
Holy shit. Luka dominated. ON ONE LEG??!??!?!??!?!??!?!???!!!! This game was intense. The Mavs never gave up. I'm in disbelief at this win. To the dirkie candidates!
PJ had probably his worst game of the playoffs thus far. And yet his play was pretty crucial in this Mavs comeback. He boxed out and rebounded very well in the 2nd half. He started looking for his shot a bit during the end of 2nd to 3rd quarter, and he made some great plays off the dribble. He didn't score much, but the shots he did hit felt substantial. His defense still was solid. Overall okay game from PJ! And that's fine! He is still standing on business!
DJJ now also had a subpar game compared to how he was playing before. He couldn't buy a bucket. However he had probably one of the most important offensive possessions late in the 4th when he drove right at Gobert and drew his 5th foul with 3 mins remaining. Like PJ, he didn't score a lot, but the shots he did hit felt big. And also like PJ his defense was solid all night. Can't wait for the inevitable DJJ poster on Gobert this series!
Green has an honorable mention even though he doesn't deserve the dirkie. He hit a big 3 in the 2nd half when no one could hit one. Had some great passes too. But the difference between the 1st game and the 2nd game was massive. Big bounce back for Josh.
HOW ABOUT JADEN HARDY THOUGH? 8 points and some solid extended run this game. Its crazy how I'm way more comfortable with him on the court than THJ in the WCF. Never would've expected it given how his season went.
Gafford. FINALLY! What a great game from him. A menace at the rim all night. He had THREE blocks in the 1st quarter alone! His rebounding effort left a little to be desired, but truthfully rewatching some plays and Rudy keeps getting away with so much contact to his head. That doesn't stop the Landlord though. Had one of the craziest finishes I've ever seen off of a full court Luka pass. Falling down, no chance in sight with 3 Wolves around him and he somehow banks it in. Incredible.
Lively Lively Lively. What more can I say? I am not going to normalize a rookie playing the way he's playing. He was the spark of energy sorely needed this entire game. Game on the line, he stepped up and contained Ant and forced him into a turnover. The amount of incredible defensive possessions he had on Rudy seemed endless. Offensively he makes so many nice passes and he probably ends up with a triple double this game if DJJ or PJ hit their shots. But probably his biggest contribution to this game was his rebounding. 3 BIG offensive rebounds in the 1st half to keep the Mavs with some momentum. My favorite moment of the night was post Luka's shot (and we'll get there), he runs up and gives him a hug saying "IM THERE FOR YOU. IM THERE FOR YOU." I WILL RUN THROUGH EVERY WALL FOR LIVELY. LETS GO!
Kyrie Irving had such an emotional rollercoaster this game. Wolves adjusted from game 1, putting McDaniels on him for half the time. Kyrie was definitely taken out his rhythm for the majority of the game due to that. Further, the refs called so many ticky tack fouls on him that put him in foul trouble all night. Very hard to get a rhythm with that going on. But after the Mavs somehow clawed their way back in the 3rd quarter, you could almost sense Kyrie flip a switch entering the 4th. He starts the quarter hitting a 3 over Conley with a calm jab step and drains it in his face. The camera pans to Kyrie running back and he is so locked in, shaking his head that the Wolves dared to put Conley on him. He then comes back down and does the same exact thing to Naz Reid (after a HUGE hustle play by Lively diving on a loose ball!). Boom. 6 straight points from Kyrie to start the 4th in less than 2 mins. Mavs up by 1. Minny calls timeout. Mavs come out of the timeout and Kidd must've said: KYRIE IS HOT, GIVE HIM THE BALL! Because basically from then on the Mavs played through him until the last couple of minutes. Every possession was initiated by Kyrie. 2 mins after the timeout Kyrie hits ANOTHER 3. After that, Wolves start to double and Kyrie starts facilitating and finds Lively and Gafford for lob dunks. The heartbreaking moment had to be the FTs though. 3 missed FTs this game for Kyrie, ones that would've potentially tied/sealed the game. Unfortunate he missed them. But he still hit a final 3 with a minute remaining to keep the Mavs alive. 4 threes, 13 points, and 3 assists in the 4th to finalize the comeback. What a game from Kyrie.
But the man of the game, and rightful Dirkie winner is Luka. I mean shit. What a shot. But before we dissect that shot, his play for the other 41 minutes he was out there was nothing short of spectacular. He made so many incredible passes. He hit so many tough shots. Rebounded the best on the team. He was talking trash. He looked like the Luka of old, despite his obvious limping after he slipped early in the 1st. Luka is hurting man. He is not 100%. But he still put the team on his back and had a legacy game. Luka scored or assisted on 13 on the Mavs last 23 made shots. Including THE shot over Gobert. WHY would Minny give that switch?? I do not care at all. Luka's shot was incredible. Shades of his 1st game winner against the Clippers except this time he had a crowd in the building that could witness the greatness. Seeing Minny's fans become so deflated after that shot was such a joy. Luka talked his shit to Gobert too. "YOU MOTHERFUCKEEEEERRRRRR....YOU CAN'T FUCKING GUARD ME!"
TALK YOUR SHIT LUKA! WHAT A GAME WINNER. WHAT A GAME FROM THE DON! DIRKIE FOR HIM!
MAVS ARE UP 2-0! PROTECT HOME COURT AND PUT THESE WOLVES AWAY!
Holy shit. Luka dominated. ON ONE LEG??!??!?!??!?!??!?!???!!!! This game was intense. The Mavs never gave up. I'm in disbelief at this win. To the dirkie candidates!
PJ had probably his worst game of the playoffs thus far. And yet his play was pretty crucial in this Mavs comeback. He boxed out and rebounded very well in the 2nd half. He started looking for his shot a bit during the end of 2nd to 3rd quarter, and he made some great plays off the dribble. He didn't score much, but the shots he did hit felt substantial. His defense still was solid. Overall okay game from PJ! And that's fine! He is still standing on business!
DJJ now also had a subpar game compared to how he was playing before. He couldn't buy a bucket. However he had probably one of the most important offensive possessions late in the 4th when he drove right at Gobert and drew his 5th foul with 3 mins remaining. Like PJ, he didn't score a lot, but the shots he did hit felt big. And also like PJ his defense was solid all night. Can't wait for the inevitable DJJ poster on Gobert this series!
Green has an honorable mention even though he doesn't deserve the dirkie. He hit a big 3 in the 2nd half when no one could hit one. Had some great passes too. But the difference between the 1st game and the 2nd game was massive. Big bounce back for Josh.
HOW ABOUT JADEN HARDY THOUGH? 8 points and some solid extended run this game. Its crazy how I'm way more comfortable with him on the court than THJ in the WCF. Never would've expected it given how his season went.
Gafford. FINALLY! What a great game from him. A menace at the rim all night. He had THREE blocks in the 1st quarter alone! His rebounding effort left a little to be desired, but truthfully rewatching some plays and Rudy keeps getting away with so much contact to his head. That doesn't stop the Landlord though. Had one of the craziest finishes I've ever seen off of a full court Luka pass. Falling down, no chance in sight with 3 Wolves around him and he somehow banks it in. Incredible.
Lively Lively Lively. What more can I say? I am not going to normalize a rookie playing the way he's playing. He was the spark of energy sorely needed this entire game. Game on the line, he stepped up and contained Ant and forced him into a turnover. The amount of incredible defensive possessions he had on Rudy seemed endless. Offensively he makes so many nice passes and he probably ends up with a triple double this game if DJJ or PJ hit their shots. But probably his biggest contribution to this game was his rebounding. 3 BIG offensive rebounds in the 1st half to keep the Mavs with some momentum. My favorite moment of the night was post Luka's shot (and we'll get there), he runs up and gives him a hug saying "IM THERE FOR YOU. IM THERE FOR YOU." I WILL RUN THROUGH EVERY WALL FOR LIVELY. LETS GO!
Kyrie Irving had such an emotional rollercoaster this game. Wolves adjusted from game 1, putting McDaniels on him for half the time. Kyrie was definitely taken out his rhythm for the majority of the game due to that. Further, the refs called so many ticky tack fouls on him that put him in foul trouble all night. Very hard to get a rhythm with that going on. But after the Mavs somehow clawed their way back in the 3rd quarter, you could almost sense Kyrie flip a switch entering the 4th. He starts the quarter hitting a 3 over Conley with a calm jab step and drains it in his face. The camera pans to Kyrie running back and he is so locked in, shaking his head that the Wolves dared to put Conley on him. He then comes back down and does the same exact thing to Naz Reid (after a HUGE hustle play by Lively diving on a loose ball!). Boom. 6 straight points from Kyrie to start the 4th in less than 2 mins. Mavs up by 1. Minny calls timeout. Mavs come out of the timeout and Kidd must've said: KYRIE IS HOT, GIVE HIM THE BALL! Because basically from then on the Mavs played through him until the last couple of minutes. Every possession was initiated by Kyrie. 2 mins after the timeout Kyrie hits ANOTHER 3. After that, Wolves start to double and Kyrie starts facilitating and finds Lively and Gafford for lob dunks. The heartbreaking moment had to be the FTs though. 3 missed FTs this game for Kyrie, ones that would've potentially tied/sealed the game. Unfortunate he missed them. But he still hit a final 3 with a minute remaining to keep the Mavs alive. 4 threes, 13 points, and 3 assists in the 4th to finalize the comeback. What a game from Kyrie.
But the man of the game, and rightful Dirkie winner is Luka. I mean shit. What a shot. But before we dissect that shot, his play for the other 41 minutes he was out there was nothing short of spectacular. He made so many incredible passes. He hit so many tough shots. Rebounded the best on the team. He was talking trash. He looked like the Luka of old, despite his obvious limping after he slipped early in the 1st. Luka is hurting man. He is not 100%. But he still put the team on his back and had a legacy game. Luka scored or assisted on 13 on the Mavs last 23 made shots. Including THE shot over Gobert. WHY would Minny give that switch?? I do not care at all. Luka's shot was incredible. Shades of his 1st game winner against the Clippers except this time he had a crowd in the building that could witness the greatness. Seeing Minny's fans become so deflated after that shot was such a joy. Luka talked his shit to Gobert too. "YOU MOTHERFUCKEEEEERRRRRR....YOU CAN'T FUCKING GUARD ME!"
TALK YOUR SHIT LUKA! WHAT A GAME WINNER. WHAT A GAME FROM THE DON! DIRKIE FOR HIM!
MAVS ARE UP 2-0! PROTECT HOME COURT AND PUT THESE WOLVES AWAY!
14x All-Star, 12x all-NBA, 1x MVP, 1x Finals MVP, 1 NBA Championship: Dirk Nowitzki, the man, the myth, the legend.
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