DALLAS — Kyrie Irving danced with his dribble, getting past Clippers forward P.J. Tucker a few times before he stepped aside and launched a 3-pointer from the corner in front of the Mavericks’ bench.
The Mavericks were up by 20 midway through the fourth quarter, putting the Clippers on the verge of elimination, and Irving was putting an exclamation point on his stellar closing performance. Tucker was fouled when he launched a jumper and his teammates surrounded him when the shot hit the net.
It was an instantly iconic moment, the most memorable highlight of Irving’s scoreless second half in the Mavericks’ series-clinching 114-101 victory Friday night at American Airlines Center.
“I was looking at the floor, kind of squinting to see if it was going in,” Irving said after improving his record to 13-0. “I’m seeing the reaction of my teammates, that was the best part of it. We knew it was a dagger in the series.”
Irving scored 28 of his 30 points after halftime as the Mavericks advanced to face the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Semifinals. According to ESPN Stats & Information, this matched the most of any playoff half in his career.
MVP candidate Luka Doncic ultimately got the best of the Clippers, the franchise that swept the Mavericks in the first two playoff series of his career largely due to Irving’s poise and talent. Doncic struggled by his standards in the series while dealing with a right knee sprain he figures he won’t fully recover from until he rests this summer, averaging 29.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 9.5 assists, but The six shot just 40.5% from the floor. game.
Irving excelled throughout the series, averaging 26.5 points on 51.4% shooting and was especially effective after halftime. He averaged 20.0 points over the six-game second half, shooting 60% from the floor and 53% from 3-point range.
“I would call it unbelievable,” Doncic said after scoring 28 points on 9-of-26 shooting, adding seven rebounds and 13 assists in the elimination game. “So that’s even more special, but it’s a pleasure to have a guy like that on your team. Just working with him, just playing with him, no matter what, it’s a pleasure. He’s always full of positive energy Not a single other negative energy, which helps a lot, helps everyone, and we are very happy to have him.”
Irving scored only two points on 1 of 6 shooting in the first two quarters, before the score was tied at halftime.
At one point in the second quarter, Doncic was making a concerted effort to get Irving more involved. Irving calmly assured his co-star that he would find his rhythm within the flow of the game.
“Never have a doubt about Kai,” Doncic said with a smile.
“He doesn’t force anything,” Mavericks forward Derrick Jones Jr. said. “He lets the game come to him and he knows the right moments where he needs to be more aggressive.”
Irving and the Mavericks took control shortly after halftime. Dallas started the third quarter with an 8-0 run to take the lead for good. The surge began with Irving finishing the fast break with a layup off a feed from Doncic and ended with an Irving 3 in transition.
“You make a guy like Kai look like that, that basket gets bigger and bigger,” Clippers star Paul George said. “I thought that was really all he wanted to see. Everything else was a playground for him.”
In the third quarter, Irving scored 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting and Dallas increased the lead to 15 points. He had 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the fourth quarter as the Mavericks prevented the Clippers from ever threatening a comeback.
“It was like 2K,” Mavericks forward PJ Washington said. “He had Mamba takeover. He was just doing what he does. He’s special, and I’m so happy to be on his team.”
Irving also dominated on the defensive end. According to ESPN stats and information tracking, the Clippers were 2 of 18 from the floor with Irving as the primary defender in Game 6.
“I just have to get to that point so I can be ready for the other team to surrender,” Irving said. “One of the hardest things to do as a competitor is to concede or surrender to your opponent. And I want to use this time to give a respectful shout-out and show my respect for the Clippers organization and players. It Always fun, and they made me better.”
