Tatum Keeps Boston Alive!; PG and Kawhi Dominate Game 3! 5.28.21
It’s a Friday night of NBA basketball and we have 3 more Game 3’s tonight. Hopefully fans can behave themselves this time.
(4) New York Knicks vs (5) Atlanta Hawks
New York Knicks (1-2)
Not so safe without the crowd, right? The Knicks offense was again terrible and this time they didn’t have people to spit in Trae Young and they got dominated. The Hawks ended the first half with a 22-5 run and the 2nd half the Knicks never got back into the game.
The Knicks shot 36% from the field and 30% from 3. The only reason this game was close was that the Knicks were 27/30 from the line. If not for those inflated free throw numbers, this would have gotten a lot uglier. The Hawks 3-PT shooting torched New York and Trae Young continues to be a problem in the pick and roll. He got good looks from outside and his pick and rolls were lethal. The Knicks got dominated down low and their bench was outplayed by the Hawks.
Randle was 2/15, another bad game. He has just been struggling, unable to get good looks with how Atlanta is playing him. Barrett was 2/9, Bullock was 3/8, Burks and IQ were both 2/8. D-Rose was 13/21 from the field with 30 points, their only offense. The Knicks had 29 field goals and D-Rose had 13 of them. Definitely carrying the load.
The Knicks offense has to be better. I picked the Hawks because their offense was significantly better and it’s shown in this series. The Knicks defense wasn’t too bad but if you play this bad offensively, that defense means nothing. Nerlens Noel is essentially a non-factor now, that ankle is really bothering him. Taj Gibson is ok, but not athletic enough in those pick and rolls. The Knicks have to get Barrett and Randle going otherwise they’re going to lose this series.
Atlanta Hawks (2-1)
“See you in the A.” Damn right. The Hawks dominated this game, their Julius Randle defense again excellent. Hunter, Collins, Gallinari, and Capela have all done a great job either one-on-one guarding him or making him pass the ball. They have completely shut him down. The Hawks went on a 22-5 run to end the first half and after that it was game over. The Hawks tied a playoff franchise record with 16 3’s and they got balanced scoring throughout their roster for once. The Hawks take a 2-1 lead as now the pressure is on New York to respond.
Trae Young had a double-double at halftime and finished with 21 points and 14 assists. He has turned things up in this series, as he has been a problem in those pick and rolls.
The Hawks got balanced scoring. Other than Young you have 6 guys in double figures, 7 in total. Hunter, Collins, and Capela continued their great work on Randle and chipped in offensively. Huerter and Gallinari provided some bench scoring along with Lou Williams as the Hawks bench outscored the Knicks bench.
The Hawks dominated down low, outscoring the Knicks by 14 down there. 23 foul leading to 30 free throws is a problem, definitely want to be less handsy. But getting that level of bench scoring is a very good sign. The Hawks shot 52% from the field and 59% from 3. The offense has been very good in this series against the best defense in the league as the Hawks have been very good in this series.
I’m assuming a similar Game 4. Knicks offense is bad and the Hawks have to continue to guard Randle like this, he cannot handle it. Keeping running Trae Young P&R’s, especially with Taj Gibson in the game. The Hawks were getting so many open looks and they just have to keep hitting them. Game 4 is a chance for the Hawks to unofficially end this series.
(2) Brooklyn Nets vs (7) Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets (2-1)
The Nets offense wasn’t that good, surprisingly. They took a 19-4 lead as it looked like a replica of Game 2. But Boston battled back to take the lead and Brooklyn trailed for most of the 2nd half, trying to stop Jayson Tatum after shutting him down in Games 1 and 2.
I say the Nets offense wasn’t good like it was bad. It was good, but not balanced. It was mostly KD and Harden. The Nets shot 51% from the field in the first half but so did Boston. Boston scored 35 points in the 3rd as they were simply outgunning the Nets. The Nets tried to comeback but it was too little too late. Their defense really hurt them in this game.
KD had 39 points and 9 rebounds and Harden had 41 points, 7 rebounds, and 10 assists. Those two were great but Irving was 6/17 from the field. Maybe it had something to do with the crowd booing him, he hasn’t been great in this series, just kind of average.
But the Nets supporting cast was bad. Jeff Green is likely out for the series with a foot injury, so that’s a blow. Joe Harris didn’t get the same looks as the only offense that could be generated was from KD and Harden. The Nets only had 16 assists as they were almost all isolation. That can’t happen, the ball has to move, makes them even more dangerous.
They couldn’t guard Tatum as they kept switching other guys onto him, instead of KD. JT did most of his damage when not guarded by KD. But KD on him! It worked perfectly in the first two games but they went away from it and Tatum dropped 50. The Nets are going to need others to step up, especially with no Jeff Green for (likely) the rest of this series. Kyrie has to be better but I trust him. This is a defense thing and Brooklyn proved they can defend Tatum. Just have to do that again in Game 4 and they’ll be fine.
Boston Celtics (1-2)
The only way Boston could win a game is if Tatum dropped 50. He had 9 combined field goals in Games 1 and 2, so that outcome seemed unlikely. But Tatum played amazingly in this game and saved Boston’s season for all intents and purposes. The Celtics fell behind 19-4 in this game but they rallied back and Tatum put on a show. He had 21 in the first half and he got 23 combined from Smart and Thompson.
The Celtics dropped 35 in the 3rd and got 19 from Tatum in that 3rd, giving him 40 through 3 quarters. The Celtics did their best on Harden and KD, trying to slow them down with Irving rendered ineffective. And they did just that. Tatum hit the dagger over KD with 41.8 seconds left, giving him 50 points as the Celtics take Game 3, staying alive in the series.
50 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists for Tatum who was 13/15 from the line, very aggressive. Boston is going to need this if they want to somehow win this series. 23 for Marcus Smart who hit 5 3’s and did a great job guarding Irving. 19 points and 13 rebounds for Tristan Thompson who was very good with Robert Williams only playing 6 minutes due to that nagging toe injury.
Fournier had 17 and even with Kemba shooting 3/14 from the field, the Celtics won. With all that said, I would be shocked if they do this again. They can prove me wrong, but Nets in 5.
(4) LA Clippers vs (5) Dallas Mavericks
LA Clippers (1-2)
(Rant Alert: Why are the Clippers talking smack? Talking specifically to Marcus Morris and Patrick Beverley. You have no right to do that after winning one game, after getting embarrassed for two straight games. I get Luka has been talking to you all series, but he’s backed it up. You haven’t. Start celebrating when the series is over).
The Clippers started this game off well. No that was a joke. They kept switching Zubac onto Doncic (because that worked well in Games 1 and 2). Dallas was on fire early, leading 30-11. I thought the game was over. Already down 0-2, now down 20 on the road, this was it. LA had failed to respond to adversity last year and so far this year. They finally showed why they’re good.
Luka went out and the Clippers went on a 14-4 run. In the last 6 minutes of the 1st quarter, LA outscored the Mavs by 12 and they only trailed by 3. The 2nd quarter showcased why PG and Kawhi were made a duo. These two hadn’t really had a game where both of them dominated. This was that game.
PG was 6/7 in the 2nd quarter with 13 and Kawhi had 9 in the 2nd as well. PG had 22 in the first half on 77% shooting and Kawhi had 18 while missing just one shot. The only reason this game was close was 26 from Luka as their defense continued to be poor.
Both offenses cooled down in the 3rd but things remained close. In the 4th LA got going and really got some distance between themselves and Dallas. Marcus Morris hit 3 3’s in the 4th and LA hit 6 3’s in the 4th overall. Luka missed 4 free throws, much to the joy of Patrick Beverley on the bench (it’s one game, you didn’t do anything, please chill).
The Clippers desperately needed this game as maybe this gets them going. They still trail 2-1 in the series and they’re going to need to win Game 4 in order for them to be back in the series. This is a step in the right direction.
36 points and 8 rebounds for Kawhi on 13/17 shooting, he was very, very good in this game. Maxi Kleber cannot guard him and he has been very good in this series. PG had 29 points and 7 rebounds on 11/18 shooting. He was only 1/5 from the field in the 2nd half but that first half was great. This is what this duo can do, they just have to do it.
Marcus Morris had 13 in the 2nd half and 15 for the game, finally getting shots to fall. 16 for Reggie Jackson who started in place of Patrick Beverley in this game. The bench was ok and the defense on Luka wasn’t great, but the offense got back to what it does best, score and do that efficiently. I don’t know why LA can’t do this more consistently, but at least they did it. The Clippers know how to play well, they just have to do it. It’s that simple.
Dallas Mavericks (2-1)
The Mavs deserved to lose this game. They couldn’t guard the Clippers wings and they were so reliant on their 3-PT shooting. They couldn’t convert in the paint and they made more 3’s than 2’s. Luka struggled at the free throw line and Porzingis struggled period, as he was awful. Porzingis, Finney-Smith, and Hardaway all struggled as this was a tough game all-around for the Mavs.
Dallas leading 30-11 in the first was the highlight of the night. Luka went out of the game and the bench was awful. Dallas went on a 14-4 run with Luka out and a 20-4 run overall to trail by just 3 after the first quarter. PG and Kawhi dominated in the first half and the only reason the game was close was because of Luka and the 3-PT shooting.
The Mavs continued to shoot well from 3 but they had no inside presence and they couldn’t stop the Clippers, eventually losing because they couldn’t get stops. This is how I expected this series to go, for a few reasons.
Dallas doesn’t have the bodies for Kawhi and PG, we all knew this. Both of them were very good in Games 1 and 2. The key was the offense was great and that Marcus Morris didn’t get going. He had 13 in the 2nd half and the offense was good and bad at the same time, if that makes sense.
The Mavs made 20 3’s on 51% shooting from 3, that’s amazing. But they were 18/47 on non 3-pointers (38%). The Mavs only had 24 points in the paint. They didn’t score down low much and they were only making 3’s. That can’t happen. You have to attack the rim, put pressure on the defense, that sort of thing. Making 3’s isn’t the only thing you can rely on, especially when you can’t guard the Clippers on the other end.
Another Dallas flaw was that they relied so heavily on their role guys and they just didn’t make shots. Save Brunson and Kleber, it was literally just Luka. Finney-Smith was 3/10, KP was 3/10, Hardaway was 4/14. Those 3 guys have to be better, especially Porzingis, who has been a disappointment as a Maverick except for the bubble before he got injured.
With all of that, the inability to hit anything except a 3, terrible defense on Kawhi and PG, and no role-player help, Dallas only lost by 10. The only answer to why that happened is Luka Doncic. 44 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists on 15/28 shooting, 7/13 from 3. His one flaw is that he missed 6 free throws, which can’t happen. But if I’m Dallas, I just need to get to the rim more and get more role player help. That’s it. Luka is unguardable and he single handily kept this game close. Dallas has to play better in Game 4 and they’re certainly capable. Just help Luka and you’ll be fine.
What Are Your Thoughts From The 3 Games Today? Leave A Comment Down Below!
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