Kristaps Porzingis was trying to come up with the right words when he was asked to describe the between-the-legs pass Luka Doncic made that gave Maxi Kleber a wide-open, game-swaying dunk with barely a minute left in overtime Saturday night.
He had to be diplomatic.
“Unbelievable,” Porzingis said. “Not only the way the pass was, but also at the moment in the game to make that pass and have the, what’s a good word, courage to do it.”
Courage. Guts. Perhaps other body parts. That’s what it takes to try, and make, clutch plays like that one, which put the Mavericks up 132-128 with 1:08 to go.
It was the capper – and the winning moment – on a night that Doncic lit up the team with the best record in the NBA.
“That’s just who he is,” Porzingis said. “He can make those incredible plays. We want him to continue making those plays for us.”
Kleber had the job of being ready for the pass. He said it’s usually not a problem because the Mavericks have been with Doncic long enough now to know that they should always expect the unexpected.
“With Luka, you always got to expect to get a pass,” said Kleber, who had 15 points in 21 minutes to support the high-scoring trio of Doncic, Porzingis and Dorian Finney-Smith. “He’s a really great passer, great vision. And that was the best angle for him. So you got to be ready for those passes between the legs. He made those passes with Dwight (Powell) a lot, so you got to be ready.”
Shooting eyes return late: The Mavericks were 9-for-34 from 3-point range in the first three quarters of the game.
Their aim improved dramatically the rest of the way as they hit 8-of-19 triples in the fourth quarter and overtime.
“We struggled making shots for some reason,” Kleber said. “We haven’t really had a hot game yet. But we stayed with it. Everybody on this team can shoot. So we’re just stepping into our shots.
“I feel great about myself shooting. When you got an open look, you got to let it fly because it helps our crash scheme (to the offensive glass) and everything else. So everybody’s confident about it.”
Injury update: The Mavericks got great news on the injury front on Saturday.
Shooting guard Seth Curry returned after a two-game absence because of soreness in his right leg. Finney-Smith, who had been dealing with a left hip strain, also played after being listed as questionable a day earlier.
Both were in the starting lineup, though coach Rick Carlisle said before the game that he and the medical staff would keep an eye on both players.
Curry’s shot was clearly rusty. He was just 1-of-7 shooting and missed all three of his 3-pointers.
Finney-Smith, on the other hand, was very effective at both ends scoring a career-best 27 points and grabbing 11 rebounds.
Greek Freak going for a double? While Doncic was happy to be among the most-improved finalists, the Mavericks were playing against Giannis Antetokounmpo, not only is a finalist for MVP, but also for defensive player of the year.
Only Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon have swept those honors in the same season.
“The thing that stands out to me with Giannis’ improvement is how much he can disrupt things,” Bucks’ coach Mike Budenholzer said. “I think it’s pretty obvious and very special what he can do on the ball. He can guard so many different positions and different types of players. And he continues to grow and evolve. In our minds, he’s clearly the defensive player of the year.”
Twitter: @ESefko
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