The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, 124-103. Luka Doncic recorded 36 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists. Kyrie Irving also scored 36 points and contributed four rebounds and five assists. In the Timberwolves’ setback, Karl-Anthony Towns scored 28 points. The Dallas Mavericks will compete in the NBA Finals, which begin on June 6.

Luka Doncic came out eager to play, scoring his first ten points three minutes into the game. The Wolves replied with solid performances from their big men, with Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert scoring at the rim. In a post-play scramble, Gobert and Derrick Jones Jr. were both called for technical fouls. The Wolves tied it at 18, but Dallas responded with back-to-back dunks by Dereck Lively and P.J. Washington. Doncic was not playing around in this game, connecting on a logo three and a spinning three in semi-transition to score 20 points in under 10 minutes. Dallas allowed only four points in the final six minutes of the opening quarter, taking a 35-19 advantage after one.

With Doncic on the bench, the Mavericks proceeded to dominate the second quarter. The lead climbed to 23 before the Wolves started scoring. Minnesota struggled to score in the lane because numerous Dallas defenders met any Timberwolf in the lane or near the rim. The game slowed in the middle of the frame, with numerous fouls and talks with officials. Dallas extended their advantage to 20 before Lively went down after taking a brutal blow to the head from Naz Reid during a fast break. Dallas leaned on the Wolves for threes from Kyrie Irving and Doncic to extend their advantage to 29 before the half ended. Dallas leads 69-40 after two quarters.

Down 29, the Wolves came out fire, but so did the Mavericks. Dallas extended its advantage to as high as 36 points before Minnesota finally regained its footing midway through the quarter. Towns got going, pressing the ball to the hoop and nailing a three. Doncic, in particular, pulled his foot off the throttle, and the Wolves trimmed their lead to 23. The teams swapped points for the rest of the quarter, with Dallas leading 97-73 entering the final stanza.

The fourth quarter was mostly about Dallas keeping a reasonable advantage and exiting the game without injury. The Wolves would cut the advantage to nearly 20 points, only for Dallas to make a key shot. The Mavericks maintained their lead until the three-minute mark, when Minnesota waved the white flag and brought in bench players. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 124–103. The Mavericks defeated the Timberwolves 4-1 and advanced to the NBA Finals, where they will face the Boston Celtics on June 6th.

The Dallas Mavericks are that good!

This game provides much opportunity for study. Hopefully, our team at Mavs Moneyball does just that. I’d like to take a brief moment to reiterate how excellent and unique this crew is. There will be a lot of predictions in the coming week or so before the NBA Finals, but it’s important to remember how Dallas got here.

The Mavericks were a consistent underdog, defeating the 4-seed Los Angeles Clippers in six games, the 1-seed Oklahoma City Thunder in six games, and the 3-seed Minnesota Timberwolves in five games. This includes the clubs with the fifth-best, second-best, and fourth-best records. Dallas has won nine road playoff games.

None of this is an accident. None of this is a shooting variance. This has nothing to do with the injuries sustained by the other team. Dallas won a spot in the NBA Finals because they are an excellent club. Professional analysts will find a way to argue differently because teams do not do this. It never occurs. Take a look at NBA history; teams outside of the top three seeds in a given conference seldom make it to the Finals.

The Dallas Mavericks have the opportunity to do something remarkable because they are so unique. Now it’s time to go and get it.