After not looking like themselves and losing the last two games of this series in Dallas, the Phoenix Suns responded with a 110-80 victory on their home court against the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Now leading this series 3-2, the Suns hold the lead over the Mavericks and are just one win away from advancing to the Western Conference Finals for the second straight season.
Offensively, Phoenix still struggled at times to make things work from 3-point range, but their defense really stepped up and they played to their strengths in this game.
Exposing the Mavericks’ offense and attacking their secondary talents alongside Luka Doncic really worked in Games 1 and 2, which is why head coach Monty Williams and his staff returned to this philosophy in Game 5.
Dallas was limited to just 80 points on 38% shooting from the floor on Tuesday. 3-point shooting is what propelled the Mavericks to two home wins over the Suns in this series, but they shot just 8-for-32 (25%) from deep in this one.
Game 6 of this series will be played in Dallas on Thursday night, a game that is sure to be packed with physical play.
As for Game 5, here are three key takeaways from the Suns’ dominant performance.
“Hero-Ball” triumphed again for Dallas
The reason the Dallas Mavericks won Games 3 and 4 at home, aside from their high defensive effort, was because of how well they “spread the wealth” on offense.
Dorian Finney-Smith, Reggie Bullock, Jalen Brunson and others got involved offensively in addition to Luka Doncic. Early in this series, Doncic had the ball in his hands too many times and the Mavericks were happy to let him play one-on-one constantly, which resulted in them losing the first two games in Phoenix.
In Game 5, Dallas once again relied too much on Doncic playing “hero-ball,” and as a result, the Suns defeated them on Tuesday night.
Perhaps the biggest thing that stands out from this game is the fact that the Mavericks had nine assists all the way and one assist came in garbage time late in the game, so they only really had eight true assists.
Ball movement in this game was nonexistent for Dallas and with them constantly playing one-on-one with Doncic at the top of the arc, Phoenix was able to slowly collapse their defense and focus on the Mavericks All-Star because they knew he wasn’t going. to give up the ball.
This is the biggest problem the Mavs have with their offense right now, and as we’ve seen in this series, good things happen when they move the ball.
Heading into Game 6, this should be a point of emphasis for coach Jason Kidd, especially if they want a chance to force a Game 7 in the desert.
Deandre Ayton’s size is too much for the Mavs to handle
While he sometimes slips under the radar, Deandre Ayton is fast becoming one of the NBA’s great greats. The former No. 1 overall pick has the size and stature to be a beast in the paint against smaller teams in this league and against the Mavericks, he’s proven it.
At times, Ayton has been underutilized against Dallas, but they came back to him in Game 5 and Ayton delivered, scoring 20 points on 9-for-13 shooting and adding nine rebounds overall.
Dallas doesn’t play much with center Dwight Powell, and as a result, they’re left small with Maxi Kleber at center. Kleber isn’t a bad big man and he’s actually an above-average defender, but he doesn’t have the height to compete with Ayton, so the center for the young Suns is the key for them.
Feeding Ayton and playing through the post should be a point of emphasis for the Suns simply because his presence offensively opens up the floor for others to get involved.
With Dallas focusing on Deandre Ayton, Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Mikal Bridges can move freely on the perimeter and create plenty of scoring opportunities by cutting to the basket.
Ayton’s ability to attack the paint on offense has been a big difference for Phoenix in this series and heading into Game 6, they will likely look to build on their success in Game 5.
17-0 runs tend to result in a win
What they did in the third quarter is what allowed the Phoenix Suns to win Game 5 on Tuesday night.
Not only did they outscore the Mavericks 33-14 in the third, but the Suns went on a 17-0 run in the fourth that Dallas had no answers for. Between the role players hitting shots, the Suns defense stalling, and the crowd deafening, this is the point in the series where all the momentum came back to Phoenix.
Because Luka Doncic couldn’t score using his “hero ball” mentality and because the Mavericks weren’t getting others involved, the Suns took over this game and took the win.
No matter what the score is in a game, the team that normally goes 17-0 is going to win and that turned out to be true in this one from Phoenix.
The Suns were one of the best offensive and defensive teams in the league this season, so a streak like this doesn’t surprise them too much, especially against a lackluster offensive team like the Mavericks.
Devin Booker is one of the best scoring weapons in the league right now and with others involved and knocking down shots, Phoenix completely absorbed all of the franchise energy and momentum from the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5.
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- Devin Booker’s big quote after game 5: Devin Booker met with the media after the Phoenix Suns beat the Dallas Mavericks in Game 5. CLICK HERE.
- He said that? VIRAL video of Devin Booker-Luka Doncic Banter during Game 5: Luka Doncic and Devin Booker had a moment during Game 5 that is going viral on Twitter. Booker and the Phoenix Suns lead the series 3-2 against the Dallas Mavericks. CLICK HERE.
Reference-www.si.com