GAME 2 PLAYOFFS DIRKIE: PJ!!!!

[SleepingHero]

I lost my voice watching this game. Never been more engaged watching this year. This was a scrappy as hell win. My heart rate reached 130.

Luka had a tale of Jekyll and Hyde possession to possession. He never truly found his rhythm all night. Some of the shots/choices he's making is head scratching. He's never looked this human in the playoffs. Despite that he still showed out with 32 points and went on 6-0 runs by himself. Which in a super low scoring game felt so big. The biggest thing of the night? His perimeter defense. He really REALLY stepped up there. He made so many huge defensive plays all night. He even blocked a dunk! Luka the Rim Protector!

Kyrie was the teams emotional control this game. He led them throughout keeping everyone steady. His shots also weren't falling and he couldn't really find a rhythm but in the 3rd and 4th he stepped up and hit big shot after big shot. He even had a nifty behind the back pass highlight to PJ.

Maxi is incredible man. He is one of the best defenders I've seen in a Mavs uniform. At the same time he might be one of the worst offensive players I've ever seen. He made SO many mistakes offensively that just made my head itch and my eyes bulge out. And yet he hit a HUGE 3 in the 3rd that gave the Mavs so much momentum. Cherry on top? He comes up with the biggest offensive rebound that basically sealed the game. He was huge overall. Protected the rim. Didn't foul. Great game from Maxi. PLEASE JUST HIT SOME SHOTS NOW!!!!

DJJ had a much better defensive game tonight. He wasn't nearly as abused on the perimeter and he held his ground. Offensively he still crashed the rim with reckless abandon but had slightly better results this time. Clippers are not respecting his shot at all. If he can just hit 1-2 threes to punish them it'd be huge. No matter he still had a passable game. Even if he missed 1 of those big FTs at the end of the game.

Gafford...Sheesh man. I don't know whats wrong with him. He's been abhorrent. Almost unplayable. Clippers are scheming the lob out of the way and he just cant get literally anything else to go. Rebounding wise he can't get a single one. Im not sure what to do going forward. Hopefully he isn't super injured. He needs some rest and he has to re lock in.

But on the other note, Lively. This dude can't be a rookie. When Gafford failed tonight, Lively stepped up. He was huge tonight. He was all over the court. He defended the rim incredibly well. He made some rookie mistakes but his impact was felt all night. Great game from him. If he can become a 70+% FT shooter he'd be an all-star right now.

Smaller thoughts: Josh Green is still incredibly rusty. I remember when he was working his way back from his elbow injury it took him about 3 weeks before he looked good. His shot isn't there yet, but his hustle was exactly what the doctor ordered. He came up with so many rebounds tonight and he played some great defense. THJ's defensive IQ should make him unplayable this series. Exum isn't getting any burn at all and I need to review film as to why Kidd isn't giving him literally any burn at all. One would think the bread and butter lineup of Luka/Kyrie/Exum/PJ/Maxi which has worked wonders post TDL would work well here. Yet Kidd thinks otherwise.

Also the bald headed fuck actually used a challenge and won it. Almost a game winning challenge to be honest. Good stuff by Kidd.

Finally my Dirkie winner, PJ. This series is going to be hell. PJ was a difference maker all night. His physicality and defense made the difference tonight. The fact he hit his shots made it all the better. He even let not 1 but 2 bunnies get away so he easily could've had a 20+ point night. Great game from him. Hopefully he carries this momentum into game 3.