By Doug Haller, Jon Krawczynski, Tim Cato, Law Murray, Kelly Iko and Eric Nehm
During Friday night’s action, Tyrese Haliburton connected on a three-point play with 1.6 seconds left in overtime to lift the Indiana Pacers to a 2-1 lead in the series against the Milwaukee BucksTHE Dallas Mavericks showed that they didn’t need their stars to shine the brightest just to outshine the Los Angeles Clippersand the Phoenix Suns got blown out and fell into a 3-0 hole.
Tyrese Haliburton’s overtime game winner ???? pic.twitter.com/5VF0IroY54
– Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) April 27, 2024
Here are our takeaways from Friday’s three games.
Series: Minnesota leads 3-0
Game 4: 9:30 p.m. ET Sunday in Phoenix (TNT)
An unexpected hero for Minnesota
The Minnesota Timberwolves are poised to advance to the second round for only the second time in franchise history. One of the main reasons: Nickeil Alexander-Walker was better than Devin Booker And Bradley Beal through the first three games of this series.
Formerly considered a throw-in in a rally that sent D’Angelo Russell from the Timberwolves to Lakers and brought Mike Conley From Utah to Minnesota, Alexander-Walker had 16 points and five assists and played defense against Booker and Beal to put the Wolves on the verge of advancing.
Alexander-Walker made three huge 3-pointers in the third quarter to help the Wolves take control. He pushed Booker to score 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting and his energy helped Minnesota hold off a fourth-quarter surge.
Getting to the second round is generally not a reason to celebrate. In Minnesota, this is something that almost never happens. The only other time the Wolves were eliminated in the first round was in 2004, when Kevin Garnett led them to the Western Conference Finals.
Many believed the Suns had an advantage entering the series due to the success of the scoring trio Durant, Beal and Booker against the Wolves in the regular season.
Edwards was as brilliant as usual, but the contribution from NAW from both sides to support him in this series was unexpected. No one explained that Alexander-Walker was better than most of the Suns’ big three.
Alexander-Walker was plus-28 in the first game, plus-14 in the second game and plus-23 on Friday night. —Jon Krawczynski
Third quarters shut down the Suns
They will play a Game 4 in downtown Phoenix on Sunday. The hometown Suns can get away with it — as long as they don’t play a third quarter. Through three games in this first-round series, the Suns were outscored by 34 in the third. It was a disaster. The main reason Minnesota has a 3-0 lead in the series.
Well, wait. Let’s think about it. Minnesota actually handcuffed Phoenix’s Big 3, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal. They were supposed to make a difference. Instead, Minnesota has role players who have played just as well. The Timberwolves also win the toughness battle. By a margin the size of the Grand Canyon.
All of this left Phoenix playing for pride. It’s unclear how much this will mean to fans. A season that began with championship aspirations turned into a first-round failure. Or something close to it. In Game 4, the Suns have the opportunity to show they have heart. So far in this series, it’s been impossible to tell. —Doug Haller
Mavericks 101, Clippers 90
Series: Dallas leads 2-1
Game 4: 3:30 p.m. ET Sunday in Dallas (ABC)
Maybe Mavs don’t do it I need Doncic and Irving to do everything
This iteration of the Dallas Mavericks doesn’t need 3. They don’t need 40-point games Luka Doncic And Kyrie Irving, not every evening. Since the trade deadline, Dallas has looked different. They don’t shoot as many 3s as they used to, and their rise up the standings has been accompanied by a defense that has been the best in the league over the last 15 games. He relies on his two superstars, yes, but they’re not expected to combine for 80 points every night.
In Friday’s Game 3 win over the LA Clippers, Dončić and Irving barely combined for half: just 43 points on 15-of-42 shooting. Dončić was the team’s center, and his nine assists only accounted for not even fully understanding the impact and influence he had on the match. He carried Dallas’ offense as Irving sat for longer stretches than usual due to foul trouble. Until 1:18 of the third quarter, he had just two points, coming alive to close out the victory that brought Dallas to 2-1 in this first-round series.
This may be the most athletic team in franchise history. In Game 3, they were constantly dunking and running in front of Los Angeles as their defense forced momentum-shifting moments and floor-shifting turnovers. Dallas didn’t look like this before. But it does now, and it’s the Clippers’ problem for the rest of this series. -Tim Cato
Kawhi is not right and the Clippers have the wrong type of fight
Game 3 in Dallas was an absolute disaster for the LA Clippers for a number of reasons, but two of them are worth watching in Game 4.
Kawhi Leonard just isn’t himself. In the second game, Leonard returned to action for the first time in 23 days. Leonard usually has a feeling-out process when returning from injury, but his performance in Game 2 was too rusty to lead a team to the playoffs.
The Clippers listed Leonard as questionable for Game 3, although there were no concerns about Leonard’s setbacks. He was able to travel and participate in Los Angeles’ non-contact practice on Thursday. But these two days did not help Leonard in any way. Leonard didn’t take a single 3-pointer or score in the first half other than an and-one from PJ Washington, and he was even worse defensively.
There were signs that Leonard was finding himself in the third quarter, as he drove for a baseline dunk and got up to complete an alley-oop of Paul Georgesbut even then, Leonard had to protect himself, hanging on the edge for a prolonged period just to land.
Leonard lasted just 25 minutes and made as many turnovers (four) as he made field goals (four of seven attempts). With Game 4 starting in less than 48 hours on Sunday afternoon, how will Leonard prepare to not only start, but play the starring role?
And then there are the altercations. Dallas got punched in the mouth to start the opener, ultimately finishing up 29 points early in that second half. But Dallas fought back. The question now: does Russell Westbrook punch PJ Washington, who annoyed the Clippers all week? Westbrook and Washington were ejected in the fourth quarter, with Westbrook appearing to hit Washington with his previously injured left hand.
Russell Westbrook and PJ Washington were both ejected in the fourth quarter of Mavs-Clippers ????
(via @BallySportsSW)
pic.twitter.com/HqinT4zile– Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) April 27, 2024
Although Westbrook’s offensive production was mediocre (one point, 0/7 FG, 0/4 3, two turnovers), his defense was impactful. The game changed when Westbrook was called for a Flagrant 1 while trying to defend Josh Green on the fast break, and the game then devolved into several reviews of hostile acts. Westbrook is still willing to play despite the hostility, but having the league determine he committed an act that could warrant a suspension may put the Clippers at a disadvantage when playing to even the series. — Murray Law
Pacers 121, Bucks 118 (OT)
Series: Indiana leads 2-1
Game 4: 7 p.m. ET Sunday in Indiana (TNT)
Can the Pacers keep the ball moving?
It’s the core of the Pacers’ philosophy and the epicenter of basketball, but the ball has to move.
Because of the experience of Doc Rivers and Rick Carlisle and their never-ending chess match, playoff basketball can get extremely ugly at times, as decent-sized chunks of this series have shown. The Pacers, who typically play in a high-octane environment, were forced to play at a slower pace, thanks in part to Rivers’ defensive schemes. But when Indiana took over and found effective areas, the ball moved down the court, giving way for some great shots.
During the regular season, the Pacers were the best in the league at moving the ball, averaging 308.3 passes per game, while leading the standings. NBA in assists per game (30.8). They were also among the top five teams in secondary and potential assists, further underscoring their commitment to unselfish basketball.
In the second game, Indiana recorded 38 assists on 50 field goals. The Bucks seemingly took their defensive aggressiveness up a notch on Friday, forcing the Pacers to generate consistent offense outside of Pascal Siakam — using a combination of doubles, pressure and zone. By halftime, Indiana had 22 assists, with Haliburton having 10.
The second half (and overtime in particular) turned into a real fight, but the Pacers did not succumb to the Bucks’ persistence. Indiana had its share of bad basketball, settling for ineffective shots, but the ball never stopped moving. The Pacers finished with 32 assists, half of which came from Tyrese Haliburton. In the end, Indiana was the last team to engage in a thrilling end-to-end duel. -Kelly Iko
Are the Bucks running out of gas?
After being listed as questionable before the game, Middleton scored 42 points on 29 shots. He played 41 minutes in a dogged effort despite his injury, but ultimately it wasn’t enough, and now it’s fair to wonder what the Bucks have left in the tank heading into Game 4.
Without Giannis Antetokounmpothis veteran team has little to give, and losing a heartbreaking 53 minutes could put them in a tough spot moving forward.
The Pacers took a 17-point lead after one quarter, and the Bucks got back into the game. But at the end of the day, they just didn’t have enough size and strength to close out defensive possessions. Steadily throughout the fourth quarter and overtime, the Pacers outscored the Bucks and kept possessions alive, which only tired the Bucks more. The Pacers scored 32 points off 19 offensive rebounds, and it ended up being a huge difference.
Without Antetokounmpo, the Bucks find themselves in deficit in many categories, and those deficits all ended up working against them on Friday. Winning in Game 4 will be a gargantuan task, but it may be the only way the Bucks survive this series against the young upstart Pacers. — Eric Nehm
This story will be updated.
(Photo by Tyrese Haliburton: Trevor Ruszkowski / USA Today)
