MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Luka Doncic was on the court, hitting shots from nowhere, suffocating the crowd and flashing those mischievous smiles as the Dallas Mavericks put on a playoff performance.
Now one of the young stars of international sports has earned his first trip to the NBA Finals.
Doncic had a 20-point first quarter on his way to a career-high 36 points this postseason, and the Mavericks beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 124-103 on Thursday night to win a five-game sweep of the Western Conference finals.
“He let his teammates know it was time and they needed to step up,” coach Jason Kidd said. “He sent out the calls and they all came.”
Kyrie Irving also scored 36 points for the Mavericks, building a 29-point halftime lead on 61% shooting to quell a rousing crowd before most fans left for the first snack break. The Mavs went up by 36 in the third quarter, constantly pushing the Timberwolves’ offense out of slumps.
“When I went to bed last night and went to shoot this morning, I had that much confidence,” Irving said.
The Mavs, the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference, have a full week to rest before the NBA Finals begin June 6 in Boston for the first time since Kidd won their championship in 2011. After sweeping Indiana in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics went 10 days between games.
Anthony Edwards scored 28 points, Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 12 rebounds for the third-ranked Wolves, who matched defensemen Doncic and Irving to stifle Phoenix in the first round and then dethrone the defense. Champion Denver in seven straight games.
“We’ve never clicked together as a team in this series,” Edwards said.
Irving improved to 15-1 in the playoffs.
Doncic started a 4-for-4 start, hitting 28- and 31-foot jumpers to talk trash to fans on the swish court.
“That’s what keeps me going,” Doncic said. “Everybody knows it at this point.”
A 32-footer led to a late spill as the Mavs closed on a 17-1 run.
“I thought I set enough of a screen, and I turned around and he’s shooting from half court,” center Daniel Gafford said.
It was Doncic’s second 20-point quarter of the season, following a 21-point fourth quarter loss to Golden State in the Western Conference Finals in 2022. He was named the series MVP.
Doncic, who shot 14-for-22 and grabbed 10 rebounds, and veteran rookie Irving, who has a championship ring from 2016 with Cleveland, were the dominant stars in the series as this Wolves team got its first taste of a bitter — but ultimately rewarding — postseason run.
“You can’t skip any steps. As the West continues every year, next year will be a monster. There were a lot of things we did well this year,” Wolverines coach Chris Finch said. “I’m very proud of our guys. We just need to build another base layer to get to where we want to be.
Despite waving his hands at the officials almost every time a buzzer didn’t go off, the 25-year-old Doncic played with unwavering confidence and exuberant joy from start to finish. “Flopper!” When they make fun of him. He sang as he hit free throws in the third quarter, Doncic smiled and mocked his words with them.
Mavs 7-foot-1 starter Derek Lively II returned from a sprained neck that kept him out of the game last game, helping them disrupt Rudy Gobert in the post by getting back to full strength with Gafford and everyone else trying to attack the basket. Gafford had 11 points and nine rebounds, while Lively added nine points and eight rebounds.
Edwards struggled to find his rhythm between all doubles teams, despite scoring 25 points for the 15th time in 27 career playoff games. For their progress this season, the Colts are reminded that despite his dynamic ability and clutch mentality, they still don’t have a championship offense.
They had several game-winning goals in the decisive first half and the coaches have been struggling to find a cohesive team.
With the final seconds ticking away in the second quarter, Edwards drove to the line and Kyle Anderson hit the ball in the corner and tipped the ball back to Towns, who couldn’t get the look he liked. He went back to Anderson, who tried to get close and let the shot clock run out on him.
PJ Washington, who had 12 points, folded his arms to celebrate another stumbling defensive sequence by the Mavs.
“They won the series. They earned the series. They deserved the series. Congratulations to them and their entire staff. They were led by two world-class players who played world-class,” Finch said.
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