GAME 2 PLAYOFFS DIRKIE: PJ!!!!

[SleepingHero]

[Chicagojk]

Tough one. Maxi or Pj. I lean to on though. Mavs desperately needed a 3rd scorer to step up. I didn’t think anyone would. Pj scored plenty late and made two huge free throws that I was expecting one miss. Maxi has a strong case too

[dirkfansince1998]

PJ. Couldn't finish a layup but made three big 3s and defended the most difficult matchups all game long. Kleber a close second. Even better on defense but obviously not as involved on offense.

[BolsDamols]

PJ - had his coming of age game this playoffs. here's hoping Gafford has his one in Dallas

[The Jom]

You all are right that PJ and Maxi stepped up big time. But I’m voting Luka. Usually that’s a hard sell for me cause my expectations of him are so high. But tonight he played defense. Hard. All night. 46 minutes of it. Luka 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 . . . couldn’t have done it.

Don’t mind the shooting percentages. In a game with sloooooooooooow whistles like this one, his shooting numbers are just fine. Amazing that he can score with guys holding, bumping, and stripping him like that. Let alone just 3 turnovers with that kind of usage. Pravi MVP.

I even liked the tech. Obscene how the refs called Q3. Nothing wrong with letting em know now and then, since the coach won’t do it.

Honorable mention, to my surprise, goes to the head coach.

[KillerLeft]

The Kleber/PJ COMBO in the 4th is the right answer, but since I can only vote for one or the other, I choose Washington, whose defense was a relentless presence all night, in bigger minutes.

I won't judge votes for Luka or DJJ either, tbh.

[ThisIStheYear]

Why Luka? He played 46 minutes man. It wasn’t all pretty but he basically played the entire game. It was hard, physical, intense game too. That was a feat.

[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.

[MFFL]

I gotta vote Luka. He worked his ass off on defense.

[KillerLeft]

I gotta vote Luka. He worked his ass off on defense.

He did have a good game, defensively. That’s a good point.

[ballsrchr]

Well...I really don't like these games when the Mavs fiddle fart around a let a team stay in the game--when they have a chance to put them away. This led to the dogfight to the end. We won. So I'm happy.

Kyrie and Luka both did at least the minimum that they should do. PJW picked up his offense enough to help. Team defense was good. Kleber shows how important he is without packing the stat sheet.

The race for my Dirkie comes down to a 2 horse race. Kleber and PJW. PJW or Kleber?

Oh heck...I'll give the Dirkie to P.J. Washington...because he earned it...the old fashioned way.

[MrGoat]

Luka brought the defense today, too.

But this was PJ's second career playoff game so his very welcome and very needed offensive contribution was less expected by me. Luka does sometimes play defense and in the playoffs I'm going to expect to see it more. PJ it is for me

D Live and Maxi also deserve honorable mentions.

[SleepingHero]

https://streamable.com/8bzrvp

What a dagger 3 by Luka

[SleepingHero]

https://x.com/MavsHighlights/status/1782991625632845874

Luka's defense on Kawhi in the 4th!!

[Reunion Mav]

I went with PJ because of how he recovered from missed shots mistakes and unfortunate plays. He is clearly our number one defender though on this team he has lots of help. I thought he progressed massively tonight by being good and resilient.

[GATA]

PJ was bad. This is Maxi times ten

[Jakeospikez]

Shoulda gave it to Luka he got iso'd by their big 3 and didn't allow a single point plus he played 45 2 way mins. I wasn't sure if PJ would be able to hit pressure shots in the playoffs but in the 4th he hit his shots and made his FTs.

[SleepingHero]

https://streamable.com/tpzgw9

Kyrie razzle dazzle to PJ!

[KillerLeft]

PJ was bad.  This is Maxi times ten

I can’t figure out if you haven’t learned the game enough or if you’re just a troll. 

You realize that the interesting stuff happens when you watch everyone BUT the ball-handler, right?

You are showing everyone your ass basically every time you post. That probably means you’re a troll, because if you’re smart enough to type words, you’re smart enough not to have these horrible opinions of Washington and Irving.

[mvossman]

I can’t figure out if you haven’t learned the game enough or if you’re just a troll. 

You realize that the interesting stuff happens when you watch everyone BUT the ball-handler, right?

You are showing everyone your ass basically everyone you post. That probably means you’re a troll, because if you’re smart enough to type words, you’re smart enough not to have these horrible opinions of Washington and Irving.

No question he is a troll.