Luka Doncic and Mavericks return to conference finals after defeating Oklahoma | Relief

After a year in hell, the Mavericks are back. The team of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving returned from the draft zone straight to the conference finals, winning the sixth and final game at home (117-116). Against the favorite and best team in the conference, No. 1 in the West. Two free throws from P.J. Washington with 2.5 seconds left, the third one missed on purpose and sent the very young Thunder home. This will be the second Western final for Luka and his Mavericks in three years, following those reached in 2022. The Slovenian led his team with a triple-double, finishing with 29 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds (and 7 turnovers) on a night when the Mavs management’s work was critical.

Derrick Jones, a free agent this summer, scored 22 points., same as Kyrie Irving. P.J. Washington, who was scoreless late in the third quarter, scored nine points in the fourth quarter to keep Dallas alive and Derek Lively II, a draft pick, had 12 points and 15 rebounds off the bench. +26, which reflects the level of importance the rookie has in these Mavericks’ defense. These are two different teams, with him on the court and without him. None of them could stop Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the best in the match with 36 points and the only support in 48 minutes, the Thunder, who were overly dependent on their star and three. But in the end, the Canadian became Oklahoma’s executioner, violating Washington’s rules, which gave Dallas the opportunity to regain the lead. after losing 116-115.

Doncic’s step-back gave the Mavs the lead with 3:39 left in the game for the first time since the second quarter. The score was 107-105 after a 47-28 run between the end of the third quarter and the start of the final quarter. The Thunder controlled the game and gave Dallas extra life, which is inexcusable. Because in the last three minutes, both franchises started shooting. Dallas’ final points were two free throws by P.J. Washington, who missed a third, a mid-range shot by Derrick Jones Jr. and a triple by Washington, but Oklahoma answered on every attempt. A triple from Jalen Williams in the first and six straight runs from Shai gave Oklahoma the lead. until there was a foul that decided the match and the draw.

“I don’t want it to happen again, I shouldn’t have committed the foul at that moment,” the Thunder point guard said. The whole game was Doncic, who, after dribbling almost the entire possession, found PJ alone in the corner. Because the Slovenian knew how to delegate in all these playoffs. Physically exhausted and unable to deliver the very demanding version of 2022, Dallas management surrounded Luka with a team capable of helping him win. And even on a mediocre night from Kyrie, who scored just four points at halftime and 22 at the end of the game, Dallas knew how to win. From the defense to the secondary, rounding out the three (10/24 in the first half, 5/17 in the second for the Thunder) and controlling the rebounding led to 16 more than Oklahoma. Irving, by the way, is 14-0 in series-closing games, making history and returning to the conference finals for the first time since 2017.

And now they will have to wait for their opponent. Game 7 between Denver and Minnesota will be where Dallas begins the conference finals on Wednesday with the benefit of another day of much-needed rest. Luka Doncic is the second player with the most minutes in these playoffs (504) and Kyrie is fourth (481), and Washington is also in the top 10. There is time to think about them, but for now, celebrate. Because they returned, led by Luka, to the Western finals. And now they have Kyrie Irving, Derek Lively, PJ Washington, Derrick Jones Jr., and they want to make a lot of noise.