Game 55 Dirkie Thread: Kyrie by a lot.

[ballsrchr]

Another trap game. One we should easily win. These are the kind that bite you in the ass. And once again the Mavs start out slowly.

D. Gafford did what he is suppose to do, but not as efficiently as the last two games. Wemby is a handful.

Josh Green is not a negative like he used to be in the past. Not Dirkie worthy, though.

THJ. I don't want to talk about him. He was not the good Hardaway.

Jaden Hardy. Almost the same stats as THJ, but the timing of Hardy's play was better.

Derek Lively. Oh yeah...he is our starting center.

Luka!...played 33 minutes, which is good. Played good, but somebody else took the Dirkie away from him.

Kyrie was very timely with his scoring and lifted the team to the win. I don't feel bad at all about giving him my Dirkie.

[MrGoat]

I got Kyrie. We had an awful start to that game and his electric 2nd quarter got us on track. So good to have Lively back, too.

[dirkfansince1998]

Lively returned and made a bigger impact than the boxscore numbers indicate. Just a little bit longer and quicker on his feet than Gafford. Irving carried the team and almost single-handedly ended the game in the 3rd quarter. Tie breaker. Style points. Kyrie finishing over and around Wemby was incredible to watch.

[KillerLeft]

I actually think lively might be the right answer, but I feel compelled to vote for Kyrie tonight.

---

My goodness, lively was +27 in under 18 minutes.

[The Jom]

Wondering if P Wash can be our 4th best player. Cause 3rd best is taken. Darth Lively with the game-saving +27 on the evening!

All that said, 34 points on 22 shots without a free throw? Throw in 9 rebounds and 7 assists? Holy Guacamole, Batman!!!

[MrGoat]

I actually think lively might be the right answer, but I feel compelled to vote for Kyrie tonight.

---

My goodness, lively was +27 in under 18 minutes.

Lively had a huge impact. Kyrie only slightly edged him out for me because of the timing of his blitz

[Jakeospikez]

[MFFL]

Gotta be Kyrie!

[The Jom]

When they go high, we go low?

[F Gump]

My goodness, Kyrie was off the charts. Wemby for about 1 1/2 quarters was dominant and frustrating everything the Mavs tried to do, with SA leading by about 11. Then Kyrie took over. Rather than run from Wemby, he went on a series of shotmaking that attacked Wemby, with a pull-up in front of him at the FT line, then a right-handed tear-drop over him in the lane, the next time he went past and under him for a layup, then the next time full speed into the lane followed by a drop off for a dunk when Wemby challenged, then a 3, then as a trailer he gets the pass and attacks Wemby in the lane and drops in a giant-killer over him. Timeout SA, the game is now very close, and Wemby is taken out.

Every time down, Kyrie was LOOKING FOR Wemby, to toy with him and score on him, in a different way. What a show. Brutal, actually.

Start of 2nd half, and he begins with a left-hand teardrop in the lane over Wemby, then he drives the lane and when Wemby comes to challenge he drops it off for a Gafford layup, off-the-ball he gets open for a corner 3. Again TO by SA. After back-to-back TOs by Luka, Kyrie gets the ball, attacks Wemby, and drops in a giant-killer over him. Dallas by 12.

That was the game. His play absolutely destroyed Wemby. From the time Kyrie took over about 1/3 of the way through the 2nd, until halfway through the 4th when the Mavs were up by 25, Wemby only scored 2 points and was "just a guy." Kyrie teased him, tortured him, and made him very mortal.

Lively's spark is noted. In a game they won by 23, Lively's 17 minute portion was a +27. He provided energy and some good plays. 

But Kyrie was the guy tonight.

[SleepingHero]

Mavs came out so sluggish. I felt like everyone was ready to go on break and figured we were in for a slug fest much like the Wizards game. Luka was sloppy with passes and the refs were getting on his nerves. No one could get a clean look and everyone was turning it over. Wemby was eating everyone alive and swallowed up Gafford in the paint.

And then...the 2nd quarter happened and the Kyrie show began. FGump gave a perfect summary. He tortured Wemby and the Spurs at every moment after the 1st. When Kyrie is hot, there really isn't anything you can do. He could easily score 60+ points if he wanted to on nights like this. I have literally never seen a guy with such an array of moves and touch around the basket. The shots he was flipping up looked so pure. His baseline circus shot broke my brain. His FT line floater looked like something out of a video game. His ability to break down his defender and keep them guessing just destroys defenses. Will Kyrie pull up at the FT line? In and out cross into a clean layup? Fadeaway corner 3? He has it all. I can't in good conscious vote for anyone else but Irving tonight. Seriously one of the most entertaining players to watch in the league. Dirkie for you Kyrie.

Some other thoughts:

This game was a prime example of why Lively is amazing. You saw from the moment he was on the court his difference. Sure, Gafford has a high activity level and can protect the rim. But Lively can move his feet. Lively can make incredible athletic passes. This is no shot to Gaff. He played as well as he could have given the matchup. A double double 22 minutes is by all accounts a great night. But in terms of impact? Lively was just on another level. There was a moment where Lively received a pass on a fast break and instead of going up for a wild dunk took a step and found Josh Green for a corner 3. Further, he actually contained Wemby better than almost anyone I've ever seen can. Lively actually has the foot speed to stick with him on the perimeter and the size to contest his shots. I was SUPER impressed by Lively tonight. Great game back.

It felt like Luka had a bad night. After the 1st quarter I thought we were in for a horrible Luka game. Turns out he had 13 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists by that time. An entire game for most NBA players. He did feel checked out and chucked some awful threes, but overall Luka was still brilliant. 27/9/8 on 55% shooting in 32 minutes is an amazing night no matter how you slice it. But somehow Luka has made nights like this feel pedestrian and bad!!!!!! I can't wrap my head around it how much Luka has distorted my perception of what qualifies to be a good game for him is. I also want to compliment his defense. He looked pretty great tonight. He closed out well and seemed to take it personal against the Spurs. Lockdown is a good nickname for Luka. We should try and make it stick.

PJ has had an awful stretch offensively, and yet I somehow couldn't care less...? His defense has been stifling. The shots will come. He still looks hesitant. Regardless he fits very well and plays his role. I hope after the ASB he can find more of a role within the offense and still bring his great defense. 

Quiet game for Green, yet still hyper efficient. Those 2 threes he had in the 2nd really established the Mavs lead and the Mavs just took off from there.

[Scott41theMavs]

And then...the 2nd quarter happened and the Kyrie show began. FGump gave a perfect summary. He tortured Wemby and the Spurs at every moment after the 1st. When Kyrie is hot, there really isn't anything you can do. He could easily score 60+ points if he wanted to on nights like this. I have literally never seen a guy with such an array of moves and touch around the basket. The shots he was flipping up looked so pure. His baseline circus shot broke my brain. His FT line floater looked like something out of a video game. His ability to break down his defender and keep them guessing just destroys defenses. Will Kyrie pull up at the FT line? In and out cross into a clean layup? Fadeaway corner 3? He has it all. I can't in good conscious vote for anyone else but Irving tonight. Seriously one of the most entertaining players to watch in the league. Dirkie for you Kyrie.

Great post overall. I just want to note that much of the malaise and pessimism on the board in weeks past had to do with Kyrie's unavailability. I think it's pretty clear - if all three of Luka, Kyrie, and Lively (and a decent number of the rest of the lineup) are healthy in the playoffs, this is actually a contender. For real! If Kyrie is injured, 1st round exit and everyone screams to trade him in the offseason.