MINNEAPOLIS – You don’t become a champion in this NBA by playing it safe. You accept the risk and if your culture is what you think it is, it could be worth it.
Or it can help build a culture.
The Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota Timberwolves were in two different places when they threw pessimism to the wind and embraced the unknown.
Dallas faced Kyrie Irving when he was considered radioactive by basketball standards, and the Timberwolves paid a real ransom in draft picks by acquiring Rudy Gobert months earlier.
Luka Dončić advances to the stage where he can wear the crown that has been on different heads for the last six years, after his individual greatness forced the organization to find him a suitable running mate.
The NBA Finals awaits the Dallas Mavericks for the third time in franchise history, and they will face the Boston Celtics on Thursday night in Boston by virtue of a 124-103 victory in Game 5 at Target Center.
Dončić received the Western Conference Finals MVP award from Magic Johnson for his all-around performance, but it was his fiery start to the night that was very reminiscent of the last time the Mavericks made a deep playoff run, when they eliminated the favored Phoenix Suns in a shocking turnaround in the seventh game in the second round in 2022.
In that one, Dončić scored 42 and provoked everyone in Phoenix. Tonight, he erased little doubt about bringing the Timberwolves back to Dallas for a pressure-packed Game 6, dropping 20 crucial points in the first quarter – single-handedly outscoring the opponent in the stanza.
“He was definitely Luka magic in his own right,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said. “He set the tone. Game 7 in Phoenix was very close to that. He took the crowd out of the game right away. And he told his teammates that we needed to go further and he joined the party. But he said he sent out the invitations and everyone came.”
He would have sent out invitations to the crowd – the fans who were powerless to stop him but desperate to provoke him – because that only fueled his fire further. He could hear every complaint, every complaint about his complaints to the referees – because in the early moments the noisy crowd was silenced with each moonshot.
“It feels good, I can’t lie. It’s us versus them,” said Dončić, who finished with 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. “It keeps me going. Everyone knows that.”
The game was not truly in doubt after the first few minutes, with the Timberwolves having their relative inexperience exposed at this new altitude. When Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards (28 points each) established themselves, the crowd was anxious, the duo’s legs were tired and the lead grew to almost 40 in the third quarter.
As Towns and Edwards sat at the podium explaining their feelings, the sound echoed down the hall through the walls of the Mavericks’ celebration – a joyful scene in the locker room, much of it coming from the young pieces with which Dončić and Irving were surrounded, as Dončić calls himself. himself and Irving, 32 years old, from “old bosses”.
It’s a stark contrast to what happened two weeks ago, when the Timberwolves celebrated, very loudly, in the ears of Nuggets coach Michael Malone.
Maybe it’s poetic, maybe it’s just basketball.
It’s another series that the Mavericks closed away from home, the third consecutive series in this postseason in which they didn’t have home field advantage. The last time this happened in the Western Conference was when the 1995 Houston Rockets won their second consecutive title with Hakeem Olajuwon as the headliner, with the second edition adding Clyde Drexler as a co-star.
These Rockets beat two teams with 60 wins and two that won 57 or more on the way to the title. This Mavericks team defeated three of the four best teams in the West, all of which won at least 51 games, with the Timberwolves and Thunder winning 56 and 57, respectively.
The upcoming Celtics have a league-best 64 wins and a 12-2 record in the playoffs.
“It’s not easy. It’s a very difficult path,” said Dončić. “Very difficult. But we are here. Obviously we’re not done yet, but today we all deserve this.”
And although Jalen Brunson broke through in the Mavs’ last postseason, he wasn’t destined to emerge as the perfect complement to Dončić like Irving became, nor was this lineup ready for true prime time.
Irving matched Dončić at 36-34 after the first quarter. The proof of concept for these two has been stamped and the skeptics have calmed down, at least temporarily until the next test is presented.
It’s a fully formed cast worthy of June’s attention, who will have a different suitor for the sixth year in a row.
It was difficult to say how good this team was, whether Kidd could really unite this group, whether Dončić’s ball-dominant style could produce real results. Forgive Kidd if he threw a few sharp barbs in celebration – he earned this moment and knew what was said about the Mavericks’ ambitious gamble.
“But those two worked on it. It just didn’t happen overnight,” Kidd said of Dončić and Irving. “And that’s a beautiful thing.
“And so, it’s okay to be wrong. We are not always right. But it’s a beautiful combination. These two play against each other. And you can see that they care. They care about each other.”
Unlike the Celtics, however, they will enter the Finals strengthened by the fire coming their way. In each round, the opponent had true championship dreams, if not expectations. The Los Angeles Clippers were perhaps too old, too broken. The Oklahoma City Thunder, very green. These Timberwolves aren’t as inexperienced as they seem, but there are still playoff lessons to be learned.
Lessons the Mavericks learned two years ago, when the Golden State Warriors felt a title was achievable and played with appropriate urgency.
The Mavericks exercised urgency with their lineup, believing an opportunity was within reach. Good wasn’t just good enough, and even strategically losing two games late last year to miss the play-in and thus keep his draft pick scored Dereck Lively II – the biggest piece of his defense.
It wasn’t just the Irving acquisition, which was considered desperate and lacking organizational guidance. Getting PJ Washington and Daniel Gafford, two players languishing with losing teams and lost cultures, was the most impactful at the trade deadline.
“We really believe we have the pieces. Sometimes you take a step back to see what you have,” Kidd said.
That’s where the Timberwolves are, the team that has to step back and look at its reflection even in the midst of emotional exhaustion and disappointment.
It’s been said before and it’s worth repeating: the Timberwolves will be back. There’s no shame in getting this far and not advancing to the NBA Finals.
They stifled the Phoenix Suns and eliminated the champion Nuggets at home in a stunning comeback and made many believe this year’s run was just beginning.
Maybe, but there’s no guarantee.
They wouldn’t be here without acquiring Gobert, just as the Mavericks wouldn’t be moving forward without Irving and his wonderful shooting, quiet leadership and ability to play alongside Dončić.
As the night ended, Kidd met with the team’s new governor, Patrick Dumont, Irving hugged his stepmother, Shetellia Riley Irving, and Dončić carried his Magic Johnson trophy like a sack of potatoes.
We’re in Boston, on the next challenge – strengthened by fire, forged by a risky proposition that doesn’t seem so risky after all.
