Mavericks’ Improbable Game 7 Triumph

Looking back on the incredible Game 7, the thrashing of the Suns by the Mavericks, it's difficult to identify a single image or statistic that captures everything. Maybe it was Devin Booker and Chris Paul who started off with 0-of-11 shooting, while Doncic was 9-of-12, or the fact that the Suns were 3-of-14 from 3 and 5-of-20 in the paint during the first half.

Or maybe, it could be the fact that the Mavericks came guns out blazing in the third and proceeded to lead the game by as many as 46? Perhaps that’s our starting point: For the second year in a row, the Phoenix Suns led a series 2-0, but blew it up.

It wasn’t a good day for the 64-win Suns, in what appears to be one of their best chance to claim the title. Playing at their home turf, the Phoenix Suns’ Game 7 encounter versus the Dallas Mavericks is a night that they’d want to forget. There’s simply no other way to put it.

Still, the Suns would live to remember Luka Doncic, and the Mavericks master class performance, especially when faced with elimination.

Doncic stepped up, scoring 35 points, with Dinwiddie adding a further 30 points, something that saw the Mavericks eclipsing the Suns by 123-90. It means that the Mavericks now advance to the finals of the Western Conference for the first time since 2011.

Nobody expected the Mavs to win on Sunday. The Suns had knocked their first six back-to-back wins of the series, but the Mavs managed to tear the Suns apart, reigning dominance in away soil from the beginning to the end.

Frankly, it was a rather embarrassing night for the playoff-tested Phoenix Suns, who managed to advance to the finals of the NBA last season in a similar fashion.

Luka Doncic gave the Mavericks an early lead, landing his first three shots that included 2 3-pointers. This saw the Mavs push to a 27 – 17 advantage in the initial quarter, and a further 57 -27 cushion at the halftime break.

Coming off the bench, Doncic and Dinwiddie had a combined 48 points of the Mavs 57 points.

From the look of things, the Suns looked fatigued by the pressure of a Game 7. Most of the shots hit blanks, with most of their players making terrible passes. In short, the Suns didn’t look like a team that had won the NBA-best 64 games during the regular season.

With Phoenix heading into the offseason with plenty of issues to ponder about, the Mavs, on the other hand, will hop on a plane to take on the Warriors in San Francisco in the Western Conference Finals. Dallas will put on a tough defence, and with Luka Doncic on their side, a stiffer test awaits them when they face off with the Golden State Warriors, without a doubt.