SUMMARY
- Luka Doncic scored a game-winning three-pointer to give the Mavericks a 2-0 lead in the WCF.
- Doncic has a lot of confidence in himself and his teammates.
Luka Doncic came out with vengeance during the second half of Game 2 between the Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Mavericks are showing their thirst for the title, and it’s going to be one hell of a run. Towards the end of the game, Dallas was down by 5 (103-108). With 1:05 minutes left on the game clock, Kyrie Irving hit a 23-foot three-pointer to close the distance to two points.
The Timberwolves gained possession and dribbled the ball onto their side of the floor, Anthony Edwards made a pass to Jaden McDaniels in hopes of sinking a mid-range shot or a layup. Irving and Doncic forced a turnover. The Wolves eventually regained possession for the second time with under 30 seconds left, and Edwards turned it over again.
Jason Kidd used Dallas’ final timeout and they began their possession from the baseline. Doncic was passed the ball with McDaniels guarding him. Dereck Lively II executed a successful switch to bring Rudy Gobert on Doncic. The 25-year-old made an incredible step-back three-pointer and the Mavericks took the lead with 3 seconds left. The Wolves Naz Reid missed an open three-pointer, ultimately giving the Mavericks their second win.
Luka Doncic breaks down the final play that led to his game-winning three-pointer
Following the game, Luka Doncic addressed the emotions that ran through him during those final moments. He said, “Yeah, I have all the confidence in the world. I have a great, great team behind me. They support me every time and we just roll together.” While he sat down with Inside the NBA, Doncic admitted that getting a switch with Gobert was intentional since the DPOY was a slower matchup. Gobert found it hard to pace himself according to Luka’s speed and couldn’t contest the game-winning step-back attempt.
However, there were times when Doncic would step off the court possibly because of a lingering injury. Ernie Johnson asked Doncic about it and the youngster simply replied by saying he’s okay. “I will play, no matter what,” he told Johnson with a beaming smile on his face. The Mavericks guard finished with his fifth triple-double in the playoffs. He scored 32 points, 10 rebounds, and 13 assists during the game.
Kyrie Irving calls Luka Doncic a warrior
Kyrie Irving was also certainly responsible for holding off the Timberwolves in various ways, especially while executing a number of defensive plays. The veteran point guard and former NBA Champion also briefly spoke about Luka Doncic’s injury concerns. He said, “That guy is a warrior. I’m not even worried about him. He counts himself out, he has the utmost confidence and when you’re on the floor with him, you always feel like you got a great chance to win. So, I knew he was laboring. But I told him the entire game that I got him.”
Doncic also doubled down on what his teammates did for him during the game. He said, “That’s our DNA, we stayed together. [We were] positive. Nobody [had their] head down. Everybody was positive. That’s our DNA.” Irving finished with 20 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists. Lively II came off the bench and scored a perfect 6-6 from the field and 2-2 from the free throw line.