Tag: Luka Doncic

Full injury report for Thursday’s Mavericks vs. Thunder Game 2 matchup

Full injury report for Thursday’s Mavericks vs. Thunder Game 2 matchup.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will face the Dallas Mavericks in Game 2 of the 2024 NBA playoffs second round on Thursday. OKC hopes to add to its 1-0 series lead.

The Thunder enter the contest fully healthy. Not a single player was listed on their injury report.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks will be without Maxi Kleber (shoulder sprain) and Olivier-Maxence Prosper (ankle sprain). Luka Doncic (knee sprain) is probable.

The Thunder haven’t lost in over a month. They’ve won five in a row in the postseason. This included a dominating Game 1 win over the Mavericks on Tuesday. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the way with a 29 points and nearly posted a triple-double.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks had their worst offensive outing of the playoffs. Doncic was limited to 19 points on 19 shots, and Kyrie Irving had a quiet 20-point performance.

Tipoff from Oklahoma City is 8:30 p.m. CT.

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finishes 2nd in 2023-24 MVP award

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finishes 2nd in 2023-24 MVP award.

The NBA announced on Wednesday that Nikola Jokic had won the 2023-24 MVP award. This is the 29-year-old’s third time receiving the prestigious trophy.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished second in MVP voting. Luka Doncic finished third to round out the top-three vote-getters.

Jokic finished with 926 points. Gilgeous-Alexander tallied 640 points: 15 first-place votes (10 points each), 40 second-place votes (seven points), 40 third-place votes (five points), three fourth-place votes (three points) and one fifth-place vote (one point).

The full voting results can be viewed below:

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This shouldn’t be a shocker. It felt inevitable over the last month that Jokic was going to win the MVP award. The real intrigue was who would finish second.

Even though he didn’t win the award, Gilgeous-Alexander had a phenomenal season in which he entered the upper echelon of elite players. The 25-year-old has had back-to-back top-five MVP finishes.

In 75 games, he averaged 30.1 points on 53.5% shooting, 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds. He led the Oklahoma City Thunder to the top seed in the Western Conference and a 17-win improvement from last season.

This is likely the first of many All-NBA caliber seasons by Gilgeous-Alexander. At 25 years old, he’s in his prime. The Thunder continue to have MVP-caliber players on their roster.

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Kyrie Irving details Lu Dort’s defense after Thunder’s Game 1 blowout win

Kyrie Irving details Lu Dort’s defense after Thunder’s Game 1 blowout win.

Fighting through screens all night, Lu Dort might as well have been glued to Luka Doncic.

The biggest matchup of the Oklahoma City Thunder’s second-round series against the Dallas Mavericks involves Doncic and Dort. It’s a one-on-one war between an MVP finalist and one of the best perimeter defenders.

Through one game, Dort won a battle. In the Thunder’s Game 1 blowout win, Doncic had his worst playoff game. He was limited to 19 points on 6-of-19 shooting and went 1-of-8 from 3.

The 25-year-old superstar struggled to create space from Dort. Several screen attempts proved wasteful for Dallas. While Doncic is simply too good to be held to under 20 points all series, Dort did exactly what the Thunder hoped by making Doncic earn his buckets with 19 points on 19 shots.

Doncic’s co-star Kyrie Irving, who had a quiet 20 points, went into detail about Dort’s rise to one of the more prominent on-ball defenders in the league.

“Lu’s been a great defender since he walked into this league; he’s got to be given his credit and respect,” Irving said. “I think he causes a lot of issues when he’s pressuring the ballhandler 94 feet for practically the whole game.

“That’s something that we have to be aware of, but he’s not the only good defender out there. I don’t think what makes him great is just him individually. I think it’s the team game that they play, and he does a great job of being the head of that.

“But for me and my teammates, we just have to continue to attack him and continue to play downhill in a way where we play off of two feet. … This Game 1 is done, we didn’t play as well as we would have liked. We failed on a lot of our coverages, and we didn’t come in with the attitude that was necessary to get this W. …

“I had too many turnovers tonight, especially in that first quarter, just trying to get my guy settled. So there are some things to look back on, but the defensive pressure is not going to stop. So we just got to adjust.”

Through five games, OKC’s defense has been stellar in the postseason. It has yet to allow 100 points by an opponent. This will be a challenge Doncic will have to overcome if the Mavericks hope to advance past this round.

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Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should win the 2023-24 MVP award

Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should win the 2023-24 MVP award.

The NBA will announce its 2023-24 MVP winner on Wednesday and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is one of three finalists with a shot to win the prestigious award.

The other two finalists are Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic. Reading the room, it appears Jokic is likely on his way to collecting his third career MVP award as he tries to lead the Denver Nuggets to back-to-back championships.

Here’s why that shouldn’t be the case.

Gilgeous-Alexander had a career season after he finished No. 5 in MVP votes last year. In 75 games, he averaged 30.1 points on 53.5% shooting, 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds.

The 25-year-old led the Oklahoma City Thunder to the top seed and a 17-win improvement from last season.

Just like his squad, Gilgeous-Alexander was a constant drumbeat in the six-month campaign. He led the league in 30-plus point outings and never allowed OKC to lose more than three in a row.

Gilgeous-Alexander might’ve not enjoyed the highs Jokic and Doncic had in the season, but being a consistent threat is arguably a better season arc.

In an 82-game campaign, the consistency of scoring 30-plus points on center-esque levels of efficiency led to more team success this season than the other two had.

The Thunder smashed expectations as they graduated to title contenders this season. Meanwhile, the Nuggets had a so-so season and the Dallas Mavericks needed to tweak their roster to reach 50 wins.

Boiled down to it, reliability should be the main component of the MVP award.

Outside of the sun rising every morning, Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30 points on 50% shooting or better was one of the more reliable aspects of life over the last six months.

While the existence of voter fatigue shouldn’t factor into NBA awards, it’s hard to deny its impact. The human element of voter fatigue and biases should help Gilgeous-Alexander’s odds. After being one of the more underrated players in the league since 2018, the 25-year-old deserves his flowers.

Jokic has already won the award twice and has been a prominent face in the discussion for best player in the league for a few years. The 29-year-old has had his fair share of moments in the sun with two MVPs and a championship.

While Doncic hasn’t won the award yet, he’s been mentioned as one of the best players in the league since essentially his rookie season. His time will come, so not winning MVP this year shouldn’t sting as badly.

Meanwhile, Gilgeous-Alexander has ascended into one of the best players in the league over the last two seasons. His development is the main reason why the Thunder’s rebuild only lasted a couple of years.

The Thunder have been a model example of how to properly conduct a rebuild by establishing a strong culture and developing homegrown talent. OKC is set up for another long contention window with this core thanks to Gilgeous-Alexander’s unexpected rise to superstardom.

That type of progression should be awarded with an MVP trophy for Gilgeous-Alexander.

He’ll surely have future campaigns similar to this season, but this might be the 25-year-old’s best shot at MVP. His case this year is as strong as it’ll likely ever be.

Averaging 30-plus points on 53% shooting and being a two-way threat for the top seed in a competitive Western Conference is about as textbook of an MVP winner as they’ll ever be.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s efficient scoring season shares elite company. He’s only the fourth guard in league history to average 30-plus points on 63% or better true-shooting percentage.

The precedent is there for him to win the MVP. One of those four seasons includes Stephen Curry’s MVP season in 2015-16, where he was the unanimous winner.

The Thunder were arguably the second-best team in the league behind the Boston Celtics this season. They finished top four in net rating, offensive rating and defensive rating. They had the second-best point differential.

That type of success — especially when it was unexpected — should be awarded by the league. They can do that by handing Gilgeous-Alexander a much-deserved MVP award.

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NBA Twitter reacts to OKC taking Game 1 vs. Dallas: ‘Stepback Shai doesn’t miss’

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to a 117-95 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals vs. the Mavericks. The Canadian star almost recorded a triple-double (29 points, nine rebounds and nine assists) while Chet Holmgren added 19 …

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder to a 117-95 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals vs. the Mavericks. The Canadian star almost recorded a triple-double (29 points, nine rebounds and nine assists) while Chet Holmgren added 19 points and seven rebounds.

Kyrie Irving scored 20 points while Luka Doncic just shot 6 of 19 from the field for the Mavs.

Here’s how NBA Twitter reacted to OKC’s win over Dallas.

Josh Giddey campaigns for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP case

Josh Giddey campaigns for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s MVP case.

The Oklahoma City Thunder were arguably the biggest surprise of the season. They jumped from finishing a win shy of the playoffs a year ago to claiming the first seed in the Western Conference.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s development into one of the best players in the league over the last two seasons is the largest reason. He’s had back-to-back seasons of top-five finishes in MVP voting.

This season, the 25-year-old was a much more active participant in the MVP conversation. He was named one of three finalists for the prestigious award along with Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic.

Gilgeous-Alexander’s backcourt partner has had a front-row seat to his graduation to the league’s upper echelon.

Josh Giddey discussed the MVP candidate’s case and why Gilgeous-Alexander should win the award ahead of Game 1 against the Dallas Mavericks.

“He understands how good he is. He can take over a game any night. He’s a very unselfish superstar,” Giddey said about Gilgeous-Alexander. “He could go out and have 40 every night if he wanted to. That’s the type of scorer he is. … Very deserving of the MVP award.”

The MVP winner will be announced on Wednesday, May 8. Odds are, Jokic will win the award for the third time in his career. That doesn’t mean Gilgeous-Alexander doesn’t have a strong case though.

In 75 games, Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.1 points on 53.5% shooting, 6.2 rebounds and 5.5 assists. It’s one of the most efficient 30-plus point-scoring seasons by a guard in league history.

Even if Gilgeous-Alexander doesn’t win MVP, there’s no doubt he’s turned into one of the best players in the league. Considering his scoring profile, he’ll likely be in that conversation for several more years during his prime.

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Full injury report for Tuesday’s Mavericks vs. Thunder Game 1 matchup

Full injury report for Tuesday’s Mavericks vs. Thunder Game 1 matchup.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will face the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA playoffs second round on Tuesday. It’ll be OKC’s first game after a week’s break.

The Thunder enter the contest fully healthy. Not a single player was listed on their injury report.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks will be without Maxi Kleber (shoulder sprain) and Olivier-Maxence Prosper (ankle sprain). Luka Doncic (knee sprain) is probable.

A sweep over the New Orleans Pelicans in the first round afforded them the luxury of another extensive break between playoff series. It was a strong debut series for the trio of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren.

Meanwhile, the Mavericks clinched their first-round series over the LA Clippers in Game 6 on Friday. Doncic and Kyrie Irving went supernova. Each averaged 25-plus points in the series.

Tipoff from Oklahoma City is 8:30 p.m. CT.

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Gordon Hayward can still contribute to the Thunder’s playoff run

Gordon Hayward can still contribute to the Thunder’s playoff run.

During a recent practice, Gordon Hayward had a roughly five-minute session during which he swished all of his 3-point attempts with ease. It was mesmerizing to watch unfold. The 34-year-old has one of the best shooting forms on the squad.

Which makes his first-round performance even more puzzling.

Hayward totaled one shot in 31 minutes against the New Orleans Pelicans. His playing time dwindled with each game. In Game 4, he logged four minutes.

The four-game sample size perfectly encapsulated Hayward’s awkward marriage with the Thunder. Averaging 14.5 points on 47% shooting in Charlotte, his stats were cut to 5.3 points on 45% shooting in 26 games in OKC.

The stats were expected to decrease as he went from one of the Charlotte Hornets’ top-scoring options to a bench piece for the Thunder, but not to the extent they did.

As the regular season progressed, Hayward regressed as a viable rotation player. He looked a step slow and missed a chunk of time dealing with a nagging calf strain.

But that was expected. After all, Hayward is in the twilight years of his career, so of course he’s not going to be the athletic wing he used to be. There’s a reason the Thunder were able to acquire him without giving up anything of note.

What is unexpected is the lack of shot attempts.

In Charlotte, Hayward averaged 11.9 shot attempts. In OKC, that number was slashed to 4.1 shot attempts. To add to the perplexity: He shot an impressive 51.7% from 3 but on just 1.1 attempts with the Thunder.

The 3-point shot is still clearly there for Hayward. He’s shown that in practice and pregame warmups. He suddenly didn’t forget how to shoot the ball. The problem is the volume.

Averaging one 3-point attempt simply isn’t going to cut it. The Thunder can survive Hayward’s weaknesses if he provides them with outside shooting and spacing.

Considering how drive-heavy the Thunder are, Hayward is a perfect dump-off option as a catch-and-shoot shooter once defenses collapse to defend a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Jalen Williams drives to the basket.

Instead, Hayward has looked hesitant when the ball has reached his way. It looked the worst it has all year in the first round. He quickly passed the ball out when he received it, not even looking to shoot for almost the entire series.

It wasn’t detrimental as the Thunder swept the Pelicans. It likely will not be against the Dallas Mavericks in the second round either.

If he continues to play with the same conservative approach, he simply will not see time on the court. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault will seek other backup wing options on his roster or boost his starter’s minutes to nearly 40 a night.

But if Hayward can flip his mindset to a more aggressive approach and simply park around the perimeter and shoot, the Thunder suddenly have another weapon they can use.

Theoretically, the veteran wing can bolster OKC’s odds of advancing to the Western Conference finals. All he needs to do is translate his practice shots to the games.

It’s been a lackluster tenure for Hayward since he joined the Thunder but a hot series against the Mavericks would more than make up for it. The week-long break between series gives him a chance to reset his mindset and snap out of his funk.

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Mark Daigneault addresses facing the Mavericks in Round 2 of NBA playoffs

Mark Daigneault addresses facing the Mavericks in Round 2 of 2024 NBA playoffs.

After a four-day wait, the Oklahoma City Thunder finally found out who their second-round matchup will be on Friday: the Dallas Mavericks.

The two-headed monster of Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving rivals the best duos in the league. They lived up to the hype in their postseason debut with a first-round series win over the LA Clippers. Each averaged 25-plus points.

The first-seeded Thunder are enjoying another weeklong break between playoff series. A sweep against the New Orleans Pelicans gifted them the impromptu vacation.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault addressed the Mavericks for the first time since they advanced to the second round on Sunday. The Coach of the Year winner was very complimentary of his opponent, stating they’re one of the last eight teams left for a reason.

“Anybody advancing in the playoffs is a really good team. We obviously have a lot of respect for them,” Daigneault said about the Mavericks. “They’ve been playing exceptionally. … Post trade deadline I thought that really changed their team. … Obviously a tall task for us.”

The additions of P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford have improved the Mavericks. Since the All-Star break, they had the league’s fifth-best record (18-9).

Both could play huge roles in their matchup against the Thunder. Washington was Dallas’ third-leading scorer behind Doncic and Irving in the first round. He can stretch the floor and give OKC troubles on the defensive end.

Gafford is the prototypical rim-running big who’s given OKC problems all season. He can be a hindrance to the small Thunder as a rolling center with enough athletic pop to constantly be a lob threat.

The Mavericks might rely on both more than they did in the first round. Backup big Maxi Kleber will likely miss the Thunder series with an AC joint shoulder separation. He will be reevaluated in three weeks.

Daigneault believes Kleber’s absence could cause the Mavericks to reshuffle their frontcourt rotations. He played a key role against the Clippers as a stretch forward.

“Our guess for them is to stay big. But we’re ready for everything,” Daigneault said about Kleber’s injury. “It definitely changes their looks in the frontcourt.”

The Thunder will get their first chance against the Mavericks on Tuesday, May 7. Game 1 will be held at Paycom Center.

Once that contest is concluded, Daigneault will have a clearer picture of what he’s working against in second round.

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Lu Dort breaks down defensive matchup against Luka Doncic

Lu Dort breaks down defensive matchup against Luka Doncic in Round 2 of 2024 NBA playoffs.

The biggest matchup in the second-round series between the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks involves an offensive hub and one of the best perimeter defenders.

A key matchup will be how Lu Dort defends Luka Doncic. Dort had a fantastic first round. He limited Brandon Ingram to 14.3 points on 34.5% shooting in four games.

Dort’s one-on-one matchup increases in difficulty by tenfold against Doncic.

Doncic is one of the best players in the league and is an MVP finalist this season. He averaged 29.8 points on 40.5% shooting, 9.5 assists and 8.8 rebounds against the LA Clippers.

The 25-year-old had a stellar pair of games against the Thunder this season. He averaged 34 points on 56% shooting, 13.5 assists and 11.5 rebounds. Doncic will average his monster numbers, but Dort can make him earn those points.

“A great player. Good ability to create shots. Makes a lot of tough shots,” Dort said about Doncic. “The ball is gonna be in his hands a lot so my main thing is to make everything tough.”

A point of emphasis for defending Doncic will be to stay disciplined and avoid falling for his foul-baiting. He averaged 8.7 free-throw attempts this season. Dort cannot allow the MVP candidate to get free points at the charity stripe.

“He’s good at that. Drawing fouls and stuff like that,” Dort said about Doncic. “Whenever he gets to his spots, I gotta be aware of that.”

The Thunder will not be able to blanket Doncic; he’s simply too great of a player to do so. Instead, OKC will need to focus on limiting him and turning him into an inefficient high-volume scorer like he was against the Clippers.

Doncic struggled from outside against LA. He shot 23.9% from 3 on 11.2 attempts in the first round. If he puts up similar shooting numbers in second round, OKC has the offensive firepower to make that a costly deficiency.

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