Eliminated the Thunder 4-2 to advance to the Western Conference finals, and rookie Lively became the team's interior pillar

Suisi-ryu

2024-05-19 12:39Posted in Hunan Sports Creators

This rookie Lively is really good!

PJ Washington made a free throw, and the Mavericks came from a 17-point deficit to defeat the Thunder 117-116 and advance to the Western Conference finals 4-2 in the series.

Once again, the Mavericks completed the same script as in the first round: first lose G1, then G2 and G3, then G4, then G5 and G6.

This is the second time in Doncic's career that they have reached the Western Conference finals, and their opponent will be the winner of the Nuggets vs. Timberwolves.

In this game, the key players of both teams did not perform badly.

On the Mavericks' side, Doncic had 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, Irving scored only 4 points in the first half, scored 18 points in the second half, and scored 22 points and 3 assists in the game, and Jones once again became the X-factor, scoring 22 points.

The Thunder also scored 20+ points with three players, Alexander 36 points and 8 assists, Jalen 22 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists, and Holmgren 21 points.

The core players of the two teams performed equally, and the performance of the role players once again became the weight of the team's victory or defeat.

The Thunder lost this time in rebounding, the rebounds of the two teams were 47-31 Thunder compared to the Mavericks, and the Mavericks rebounded 14-7 Thunder in the frontcourt, just twice as much.

And the Mavericks' rebounding has such a big advantage, and Lively has made a big contribution.

In this game, Lively came off the bench for 29 minutes and 30 seconds, made 5 of 6 shots, scored 12 points, 15 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block, with a plus/minus of +26, the highest on the team.

In this game, Lively's advantage under the basket was an important reason for the Mavericks' comeback in the second half.

It is worth mentioning that in the entire series, Lively had the highest overall plus/minus of +71, and the team led the game, and the second Irving was +23.

In the six series, Lively grabbed 19 frontcourt rebounds, and he was under the basket, which was a huge size advantage for the Mavericks.

As Doncic said after the game: Without Lively, we can't win this series!

When it comes to the Eastern Conference finals, whether it is against the Nuggets or the Timberwolves, the Mavericks need Lively's size.

Interestingly, last summer, the Mavericks traded down with the No. 10 pick to get the No. 12 pick to select Lively, while the Thunder used the No. 10 pick to select Carson Wallace.

Now, what the Thunder lack most happens to be the size of the inside.

The Mavericks were able to make it to the Western Conference finals, and last summer and mid-season operations were commendable.

Last season, the Mavericks gave up the season in the final stage and finished 11th in the West, and although they were fined $750,000, they also retained the top 10 pick in the first round, and finally finished 10th in the draft.

The Mavericks traded the No. 10 pick and Bertans to the Thunder in exchange for the Thunder's No. 12 pick, and in this deal, the Mavericks got rid of Bertans' $22 million contract for the next two years and selected Lively with the No. 12 pick.

In the middle of the season, the Mavericks traded PJ-Washington and Gafford to bring in PJ-Washington and Gafford in this series, with G2, G3, and G4 scoring 20+ points in three consecutive games, which was the X-factor for the Mavericks to win G2 and G3. Although G6 Washington only scored 9 points, the two three-pointers in the final quarter were crucial, and the final free throw was an important contributor to the Mavericks' promotion.

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