The Dallas Mavericks have a new life in their best of seven against the Phoenix Suns after a 103-94 win on Friday night in Game 3 to help the Dallas avoid what could easily be considered an insurmountable 3-0 deficit. . With the victory, the Mavericks now have the opportunity to equalize the series on their home floor on Sunday.
Luka Doncic was fantastic for Dallas in the win, finishing the game with 26 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists, but there was also a lot of help as four other Mavericks players double-digit, led by Jalen Brunson’s record 28 points. On the other hand, the entire Phoenix starting lineup scored double-digit, but they did not get enough support from their bench to keep up with Dallas.
We will see what happens next when the two teams meet again this Sunday.
Here are three key findings from the game:
1. Doncic shows a show with work after his feet
The Suns withdrew from Mavericks in Game 2 largely because they attacked Luka Doncic again and again in defense, and he had no answers. It was so bad that Doncic was called up by head coach Jason Kidd, who said he had to “participate and play defensively”.
Until Doncic suddenly became the first Scotty Pipen, he at least played in this area in Game 3. And in truth, that’s more than enough when he dominates the offensive side of the ball. Although sometimes hampered by problems, Doncic made another great performance on Friday, finishing with 26 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists and two steals in just 34 minutes.
But while Doncic usually amazes with his 3-point pass or step back, he delved into his bag of tricks in Game 3 and did a show with his footwork. He absolutely cooked Deandre Ayton with a classic rise:
He then took Devin Booker in the paint and forged himself and turned his way into another easy bucket:
Eight of Doncic’s 11 flights came to the fore as he made his way early and often in match 3. While Doncic has to play his role in defense, this match was another reminder that he makes his money when he has the ball. his hands.
2. Brunson, The Mavs’ role players are growing
The first two games in this series were Luka Doncic’s show about Mavericks in attack – even more than usual. He either scored or assisted on 43 of Mavericks’ 76 flights (56.6 per cent) in games 1 and 2. This is impressive, but also not a recipe for success against a team as great as the Suns.
Dallas needed its role players to step up and provide some other offensive options if they wanted a chance to return to this series. To their credit, they did just that on Friday night. The points on the bench were pretty even – 18-17 in favor of Mavericks – but the other starters around Doncic were great. Reggie Bullock, Dorian Feeney-Smith and Jalen Brunson scored double-digit points and combined 47 points.
Brunson, in particular, was key. He was great in the first round against Utah Jazz, leading the Mavericks at the time in Doncic’s absence. But against the Suns he failed to achieve anything. That changed in Match 3 as he came out aggressive and had 10 points in the first quarter. He maintained this mindset for the rest of the way and finished with 28 points, four rebounds and five assists in his best match of the series.
The Mavericks will need Brunson to bring this to Game 4 if they want to level the playing field.
3. Gender, the Suns are out of their game
The Mavericks deserve a lot of credit for how they reacted in Game 3. They lost 2-0 and were sometimes embarrassed in Phoenix in the first two games. It was a big statement that they would not lie down and let Suns go around the way to the Western Conference finals.
At the same time, we have to admit that it was just a strange performance by the Suns. The first few minutes went well, but then they didn’t look like the team that took a 2-0 lead in the series and didn’t look like the Western Conference class. They were careless with the ball, missed shots they usually make and generally seemed inappropriate.
Nothing embodies this more than Chris Paul’s seven defeats in the first half. He hasn’t had that many turnovers in the first two games combined and has never had even six turnovers at halftime in a playoff game of his career. Mavericks’ defense played a role, but there were a bunch of uncharacteristic plays in which Paul simply lost the ball or missed.
At the strangest moment of all, he refused a wide open pass to throw a pass with a cut with his left hand, which caught Deandre Ayton completely unprepared.
The Mavericks won this match again. This is not to take away what they have achieved, but rather to prevent it from being a strange performance by Paul – on his birthday, no less.
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