On May 19, Beijing time, the Mavericks defeated the Thunder 117-116, Washington made a last-minute free throw, and the Mavericks entered the Western Conference finals with a score of 4-2 and will face the winner of the seven-game battle between the Nuggets and the Timberwolves. Judging from the game, the Mavericks trailed by 17 points at most moments, and were completely blown up by the Thunder in the first half, but they didn't expect Doncic to lead the team to launch a counterattack in the second half, and the performance of core players such as Jones and Irving was also very strong, young player Lively controlled the rebound, Washington made free throws, and the Mavericks' players all contributed to the key victory. And after this game, there are also three indisputable facts, three incredible.
Three indisputable facts
First, there should be no doubt that the Mavericks are already a championship-level team. Eliminated the Clippers in the first round, many fans felt that Leonard was injured and the Mavericks were lucky to advance, and in the semifinals, facing the Thunder, who was No. 1 in the West, defeated the opponent 4-2 in the case of being underestimated, which is definitely a reflection of strength. The great thing about the Mavericks is that they have role players in almost every game, with the exception of Eastern European combinations, such as Washington and Lively in this game, Washington hit a free throw, and 20-year-old rookie Lively grabbed 15 rebounds. The Mavericks have a bit of a 2011 flavor, and if they do win the championship, Doncic will be like the No. Captain of the year, and he will be among the best players of all time.
Second, Doncic will become the face of the league in the future, although the performance has ups and downs, but Doncic can always play a magical performance in key games, in the past 3 games, Doncic has scored 18 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, 31 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, and has scored a triple-double in 3 consecutive games in the playoffs, second only to Jokic and Chamberlain's 4 times, it is worth mentioning that Jokic in 2023 and Chamberlain in 1967 have both won the championship. Perhaps this law tells fans that this year's championship may belong to the Mavericks.
Third, Irving is the best key man in the league, he only scored 4 points in the first half, but in the second half, Irving led the Mavericks to launch a counterattack, scoring 18 points in the third and fourth quarters, and shooting 9-of-23 from the field, but Irving's killer nature is undoubtedly revealed. In this round of the series, Irving saved the Mavericks many times, although he only averaged 15.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game, but every point Irving scored was important, he never deliberately brushed the score, nor did he care about his own statistics.
Three incredible
First, after Kleber's injury, the Mavericks' internal strength was greatly reduced, but they didn't expect that in this game, the Mavericks completely controlled the rebounding. The Mavericks grabbed 47 rebounds, while the Thunder had only 31, a difference of 16 rebounds. The Mavericks' 20-year-old rookie Lively grabbed 15 rebounds, 4 of which were frontcourt rebounds, while the Thunder's 2.16-meter-tall center Holmgren only grabbed 3 rebounds in the whole game, which is also incredible.
Second, the Mavericks' Washington caused Alexander's three-point foul in the final moments, and as a role player, he ended up being the team's hero, surprising everyone, scoring 9 points on 2-of-6 from the field, and scoring all in the fourth quarter, he was the most watched star after the game. Washington's performance in the semifinals was also amazing, scoring 20+ in three consecutive games, and in the entire playoffs, Washington played 12 games, averaging 14.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1 steal per game, he is only 26 years old this year, and he is also an all-round offensive and defensive wing player, and he has booked the next big contract.
Third, the Mavericks trailed by 16 points in the first half, but they completed a miraculous comeback with a 69-52 run in the second half, also setting a new team record. According to media statistics, this is the first time that the Mavericks have completed a comeback after trailing by at least 16 points at halftime in the playoffs. Originally, Thunder fans had already celebrated in advance to drag the game into a tiebreaker, but they didn't expect Irving, Washington and other Mavericks players to change their lives against the sky, which was really a memorable game.