Six Better Than Seven! Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavs Look to Eliminate OKC Thunder: NBA Playoffs Preview

Of all the cliche playoff sayings in the NBA, one may reign supreme: the team with the best player usually wins the series. In Saturday’s case, the two players up for discussion are MVP runners-up, Luka Doncic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The two superstars lead their teams in unique ways, and now they’re clashing with one another for a Western Conference Finals berth.

The Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder second-round series has escalated so swiftly that it has inspired ESPN's Stephen A. Smith to turn his back on who he believed (Gilgeous-Alexander) to be the regular-season MVP. After Smith acknowledged Doncic's shortcomings this postseason, he then pointed to No. 77's intangible gift of making teammates better as a shining advantage over Gilgeous-Alexander.

"The flipside to it… is look at the effect Luka's greatness has on the rest of the Dallas Mavericks. When we talk about greatness… one of the things that we look for is not just about [how a player produces]. It's about how you serve to galvanize the troops around you to get the most out of them,” Smith said.

While Gilgeous-Alexander's mid-range shot has hurt the Mavericks, it hasn't broken their back as much as the open 3-point shots from Thunder role players did earlier in the series. Furthermore, Dallas hurt itself by choking away Game 4 by going 12-23 from the free-throw line. Although Dallas kept Oklahoma City at bay by stomaching Gilgeous-Alexander's attack and suppressing any help from his teammates, it was mainly self-inflicted wounds that cost Dallas a chance to wrap this series up early.

At this point, you'd think the Mavericks would have learned to strike when the iron is hot, and with Kyrie Irving being an NBA-best 13-0 in closeout games, that’s what is expected on Saturday night. As important as Irving is, though, Game 5 proved the Mavericks will go as far as Doncic will take them, and unlike Gilgeous-Alexander, it appears his teammates are ready for the challenge. 

Mavericks vs. Thunder Injury Report

Oklahoma City Thunder

N/A

Dallas Mavericks

• Luka Doncic (PROBABLE) - right knee; left ankle)
• Maxi Kleber (OUT - right shoulder)
• Olivier-Maxence Prosper (OUT - left ankle)

WHERE: American Airlines Center (Dallas, TX)

WHEN: Saturday, May 18, 2024, 7 p.m. CT

TV: ABC

ODDS: The Mavericks are 3.5 favorites over the Thunder

FINAL WORD: In the Doncic era, Dallas is 3-2 in Game 6 scenarios. Both losses came against a stacked and healthy Los Angeles Clippers team during the COVID-19 timeline. Dallas isn't remotely the same team of those one-man-show units in which Doncic had to do nearly everything for it to survive. 

With the right help around Doncic, it's apparent this is the most complete team No. 77 has had the pleasure of leading. Perhaps Doncic will lead the Mavericks to their second Western Conference Finals in two seasons.