Tag: Western Conference Finals

How to bet Mavericks-Warriors in a Western Conference Finals with an apparent talent discrepancy

Luka Doncic has some heavy lifting to do.

The Western Conference Finals features a matchup I doubt many saw coming, with the Dallas Mavericks overcoming the West’s seventh-shortest preseason title odds to become one of its final two teams standing. They’ll play the Golden State Warriors, who return to the big stage after a two-year playoff hiatus.

Dallas’ surprise ascent after first-round exits the last two years can be attributed to the continued brilliance of Luka Doncic, the continued growth of Jalen Brunson and an unheralded supporting cast that new head coach Jason Kidd has found a way to get the most out of.

However, I found it hard to believe those guys would find a way to scrap together four wins against the Phoenix Suns. And even after seeing it happen, I’m still faced with that conundrum. Could they actually beat the Warriors? The answer, of course, is yes. But I’m not ready to say they will.

The Warriors don’t look like the dominant team they once were, but they still defend well enough, and they have proven champions who can get hot at any time. That’s why they have the shortest title odds of the four teams left in the playoffs at +130 on Tipico Sportsbook (the Mavericks have the longest at +600), and that’s why I’m rolling with them to win this series in six games at +425 odds.

Prince’s Pick: Warriors win series 4-2 (+425)

All odds via Tipico

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Warriors vs. Mavericks: Western Conference Finals schedule, dates and times

Here is where to mark your calendar for the Warriors’ series against the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.

It’s official; the Dallas Mavericks eliminated the Phoenix Suns in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series to set a date against the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference Finals.

After taking out back-to-back Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic and the gritty Memphis Grizzlies in the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Warriors will now have to find a way to slow done Luka Doncic.

The Mavericks phenom averaged 32.6 points on 47.6% shooting from the floor with 9.9 rebounds, seven assists and 2.1 steals in 36.1 minutes per game against the Suns. During their seven-game series, Doncic recorded over 30 points in four games against the Suns, including a 45-point performance in Game 1.

All eyes will be on Steph Curry and Klay Thompson against Doncic in the backcourt in a star-studded Western Conference Finals battle.

The Mavericks hold a 3-1 record over the Warriors during their regular-season matchups from the 2021-22 campaign. Golden State’s single victory came on a 38-point blowout in San Francisco in Jan. Rookie Jonathan Kuminga led Golden State with 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the field. Seven total members of the Warriors recorded double-figure scoring efforts during the blowout against the Mavericks.

Prior to the Western Conference Finals tipping-off, below is where to mark your calendars for every potential game in the series.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! 

Mavs eliminate Suns in Game 7, earn spot against Warriors in Western Conference Finals

After blowing out the Suns in Game 7, Luka Doncic and the Mavs will officially meet the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals.

The stage for the NBA’s Western Conference Finals is officially set.

Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks will meet the Golden State Warriors in the 2022 edition of the NBA’s Western Conference Finals.

In a win-or-go-home Game 7 scenario on the road, the Mavs wasted no time punching their ticket against the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals. Doncic and the Mavs jumped on the Phoenix Suns out of the gate. Behind a barrage of triples from Doncic and Spencer Dinwiddie, the Mavs held a 30-point lead at halftime.

The Suns continued to stay quiet in the second half as the Mavs eliminated the defending Western Conference champs with a 123-90 victory.

Via @warriors on Twitter:

Doncic led all scorers with 35 points on 12-of-19 shooting from the floor with six 3-points. The All-Star guard added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals in 30 minutes. Dinwiddie tacked on 30 points on 11-of-15 shooting from the floor in 25 minutes off the bench.

With the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds eliminated in the West, The Warriors will now hold home-court advantage against the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals.

Game 1 is set to tip-off at 6 p.m. PT at San Francisco’s Chase Center on Wednesday, May 18.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! 

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NBA announces new trophies for conference champions, Most Valuable Players

Two fo the new awards have been named for Celtics legends.

The NBA announced on Thursday that it is expanding its universe of annual hardware awarded to the best of the best in the Eastern and Western Conference semifinals at the individual and team levels along. With it comes a minor reboot of the appearance of the coveted Larry O’Brien trophy for winning the 2022 NBA title and the Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) trophy, named for Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell.

Two of the four new awards bear the names of Boston legends to join Russell’s Finals MVP, with the league creating conference finals awards named for Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson (West), and for Celtics icon Larry Bird (East).

The NBA will also award a conference champion trophy to the top team from each conference, with the West being named after Milwaukee Bucks champion Oscar Robertson (the Bucks were in the West in his era) and Boston point guard luminary Bob Cousy.

Let’s take a look at the new trophies.

Western Conference Finals: Phoenix Suns vs. Los Angeles Clippers live stream, TV channel, start time, odds, how to watch the NBA Playoffs

The Phoenix Suns will meet the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals from the Staples Center on Wednesday night.

The Phoenix Suns will meet the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals from the Staples Center on Wednesday night.

The Suns will look to bounce back after a 116-102 loss at home to the Clippers in game five, they have the opportunity to close out the series tonight in LA. As for the Clippers, they can even up the series and force a game seven with a win at home tonight.

Can the Clippers force a Game 7? Tune in and find out, here is everything you need to know to follow the game tonight.

Western Conference Finals, Game 6

Phoenix Suns vs. Los Angeles Clippers

  • When: Wednesday, June 30
  • Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
  • TV Channel: ESPN, ESPN Deportes
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

NBA Odds and Betting Lines

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds last updated Wednesday at 6:20 p.m. ET.

Phoenix Suns (-1) vs. Los Angeles Clippers 

O/U: 214.5

Want some action on the NBA? Place your legal sports bets on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ, and WV at BetMGM.

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Ty Lue’s coaching record in elimination game is unbelievably ridiculous

Ty Lue is one of the best 5 coaches in the NBA and this stat proves it.

Ty Lue is one of the best five or so coaches in the NBA right now. It’s undeniable.

He might be the best coach in the league at figuring out how to adjust to whatever the opponent is doing. And because of that nack for adjustments, he’s been one of the hardest coaches to eliminate.

All we have to do is look to his playoff resume for proof of how good he is.

In total, Lue is 51-28 so far in the postseason for his career. But that’s not even the impressive part.

Lue is 10-2 in elimination games, according to ESPN’s Kirk Goldsberry. And that record stands as the best in NBA history with a minimum of 10 playoff games coached.

That’s the best mark in league history.

It’s like he just refuses to be embarrassed again after the Allen Iverson stepover all of those years ago. It’s amazing.

Sure, the sample size isn’t the greatest. But that’s an insane stat. Teams have had 12 chances to eliminate Lue in the playoffs and they’ve failed in 10 of them.

By the way, the two losses are from the Kevin Durant and Steph Curry era Warriors. That’s how good this dude is.

The Suns will get another crack at Lue’s Clippers on Wednesday night. We’ll see how he performs then.

Watch our sneaker unboxing series, Special Delivery

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Western Conference Finals: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns live stream, TV channel, start time, odds, how to watch the NBA Playoffs

The Los Angeles Clippers will meet the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals from PHX Arena on Monday night.

The Los Angeles Clippers will meet the Phoenix Suns in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals from PHX Arena on Monday night.

The Clippers will look to bounce back after a tough 84-80 loss to the Suns in game four and are in dire need of a win to keep their season alive. Meanwhile, the Suns are one win away from the NBA Finals and will look to close out the series tonight.

Can the Clippers force another game? Tune in and find out, here is everything you need to know to follow the game tonight.

Western Conference Finals, Game 5

Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns

  • When: Monday, June 28
  • Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
  • TV Channel: ESPN, ESPN Deportes
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

NBA Odds and Betting Lines

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds last updated Monday at 8:45 p.m. ET.

Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns (-7)

O/U: 212.5

Want some action on the NBA? Place your legal sports bets on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ, and WV at BetMGM.

We recommend interesting sports viewing/streaming and betting opportunities. If you sign up for a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Western Conference Finals: Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns live stream, TV channel, start time, odds, how to watch the NBA Playoffs

The Los Angeles Clippers will meet the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals from PHX Arena on Monday night.

The Los Angeles Clippers will meet the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals from PHX Arena on Tuesday night.

The Clippers will look to bounce back after a 120-114 loss to the Suns in game one and will have the opportunity to even up the series before heading to Los Angeles for Game 3. Meanwhile, the Suns didn’t miss a beat after a week off, and will be interesting to see if they can keep up the momentum after a game one win.

Expect a close game tonight between these two, here is everything you need to know to follow the game tonight.

Western Conference Finals, Game 2

Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns

  • When: Tuesday, June 22
  • Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
  • TV Channel: ESPN
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)

NBA Odds and Betting Lines

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds last updated Tuesday at 6:20 p.m. ET.

Los Angeles Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns (-4.5)

O/U: 222.5

Want some action on the NBA? Place your legal sports bets on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ, and WV at BetMGM.

We recommend interesting sports viewing/streaming and betting opportunities. If you sign up for a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Former Warrior JaVale McGee advances to NBA Finals with Lakers

After the Lakers game five win over the Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals, former Warrior JaVale McGee will advance to the NBA Finals.

Although Golden State’s streak of five consecutive appearances in the NBA Finals is over, a former Warrior will have a chance at bringing home a banner from the Orlando Bubble.

With the Los Angeles Lakers 117-107 victory over the Denver Nuggets in game five of the Western Conference Finals, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and a former Golden State big man will advance to the NBA Finals.

After appearing in the 2017 and 2018 Finals with the Warriors, JaVale McGee will suit up at center for the Lakers in the 2020 edition of the league’s championship series.

In the Lakers’ game five win, McGee logged only two minutes off the bench with a rebound. After starting in the first three games of the series, Frank Vogel opted to bring McGee off the bench in games four and five.

With McGee playing in a limited role, James closed out the Lakers with his 27th postseason triple-double. The four-time Most Valuable Player tallied 38 points on 15-of-25 shooting from the field with 16 rebounds and 10 assists.

Despite an impressive run throughout the playoffs from Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets couldn’t parlay another 3-1 comeback in the Western Conference Finals.

Watch highlights from the final game of the Western Conference Finals via YouTube:

The Lakers will wait for the Eastern Conference Finals winner between the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics. If the Heat can eliminate the Celtics, McGee will matchup with his former Golden State teammate Andre Iguodala in the 2020 NBA Finals.

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LeBron James expresses talks about joy of helping Davis to first Finals, doing it ‘his way’

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James is happy to help Anthony Davis get to his first NBA Finals and making his own way to a 10th NBA Finals.

It’s been just over two years for LeBron James between NBA Finals appearances, but after James punched his ticket to his 10th career NBA Finals, the first thing on his mind was the teammates who are going to the Finals for the first time in their careers. Most notably, Anthony Davis, the player whom he basically tanked an entire season to get, was first on his mind.

“Obviously AD had a lot of my thought process,” James said after the game/ “This is a reason I wanted to be a teammate of his. This is why I brought him here. To help show him things he’s never experienced in this league.”

After the game, James also was asked about all of the people who criticized his move to Los Angeles as something that nothing to do with basketball and everything to do with advancing his entertainment empire.

“I heard all that, ‘t was not about basketball.’ Naysayers and things of that nature. With the season last year and the injury, it just gave them more sticks and more wood to throw on the rise to say the things that they were saying about me. It never stopped my mindset, it never stopped my goal.”

Towards the end, James channeled a little bit of Old Blue Eyes, saying he did it “my way.”

The Lakers are back. They have LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Klutch Sports, and their rich history to credit.

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