Mavericks PG Kyrie Irving (2) - Matt Slocum/AP Photo
If this year’s playoffs have taught the NBA world anything, it is that home court advantage has mattered little. But the Dallas Mavericks taking the first three games of the Western Conference Finals, including two on the road. They are now one win away from reaching their first NBA Finals since 2011.
The 2024 Western Conference Finals marked the second consecutive time that the Minnesota Timberwolves dropped both home games to begin a series. In the second round, they lost Games 3 and 4 at home against the Denver Nuggets, but would go on to win the series.
But now, the T’Wolves find themselves in an 0-3 deficit for the first time after dropping Games 1, 2, and 3 against the Mavs. Luka Dončić, Kyrie Irving and crew arrived in Minnesota and took care of business, thanks to their lob-heavy offense that the T’Wolves simply failed to contain.
“Definitely going to watch [film], some situations that are different from one another,” Rudy Gobert said. “Pick-and-roll situations are different than a blow-by, a drive where he’s going full-speed. And on the last help on the defense, it’s a great weapon. Throwing the lob to an athletic big is a great weapon.”
Defensive Implosion
Gobert has been the league’s best defender this season, but the Mavericks have weapons that are simply hard to contain. Gobert learned that in Game 2, when Dončić fired a brilliant step-back three pointer over his head with three seconds remaining in the game, silencing the Target Center crowd.
It would be there where the game would end, as Dallas would take the game by a score of 109-108. The Mavericks trailed by as much as 16 points in the third quarter, but Dončić recorded 32 points in the game and Irving went 4-for-7 from the three-point range.
“We just feed off each other’s energy,” Daniel Gafford of the Mavs said. “We always are in the film session trying to figure out ways to be better than the game before…whenever I come out of the game I tell him to be a monster.”
One-Two Punch
Gafford and Lively have been the one-two punch to round out the rotation of the Mavericks elite offense. Dončić sends a pass their way, setting them up for a slick lob, and they are already in prime position to leap high and unleash an easy dunk. That is yet another area of the Mavericks’ offense, and it allowed them to get the win in Game 2, where they shot 60.5% from the floor in the second half.
“We’re making an impact at the end of the day,” said Gafford. “We’re trying to find the seams…put ourselves in a position where we can help the team.”
The Mavericks are defined by their pair of elite superstars at the top of the lineup, Dončić and Irving. But teams must feature complete lineups that get the job done in all aspects of the game, in addition to the superstars, and that is exactly what the Mavericks’ lineup encompasses. It is why they are up three games to none in the series, and will seek to sweep the series on Tuesday night.
