LeBron James spoke about the trust he has in his supporting cast after Austin Reaves and Rui Hachimura starred in the Los Angeles Lakers' Game 1 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday.
The Lakers put together a 69-47 second half to run away with a 128-112 victory, and Hachimura led the team in scoring with 29 points on 11-of-14 shooting off the bench. The trade deadline acquisition hit five of his six three-point attempts, while adding six rebounds in his 30 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, breakout second-year talent Austin Reaves continued his strong form from the end of the regular season with 23 points (eight-of-13 shooting), four assists, a steal and a block, marking his fourth 20-point game from his past five outings.
Anthony Davis was an absolute game-changer on the defensive end, swatting seven shots to go with his three steals, 22 points (10-of-17) and 12 rebounds, but James made sure to credit the lesser-known Lakers for the decisive start to the series.
"It was our supporting cast that won us the game tonight," James said after putting up 21 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, three blocks and two steals of his own. "We trust [Reaves] with the ball in his hands – early in the game and late in the game.
"We got something going in the fourth quarter, and after every stop… we went back to AR and put the ball in his hands.
"He was able to hit a pull-up two, able to hit a three when he had a soft switch, and then hit another pull-up two to put us up eight and close the game for us offensively.
"[Hachimura's performance] speaks for itself, he was huge, he hit timely shots. They made runs – in the third quarter he had two threes in a row – then they made another run in the fourth quarter, and he hit another three off an AR pump-fake, drive, behind-the-back pass.
"He was just on-time, on-target all night tonight, and we needed that. Especially coming off the bench, with how strong [Memphis'] bench is, but we were able to counter that with Rui's big game."
Reaves called playing playoff basketball for the Lakers a dream come true, saying: "You dream about being on a stage like this – I got hot late and I had fun."
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies were not willing to read too much into Hachimura's heroics, with Desmond Bane sharing that the plan was to leave him open, and it may remain the plan.
"That was our game plan going in," he said. "Make him hit shots, and he did, tip your cap. It's probably the best game he's had in his career. It's a seven-game series – let's see if he can do it again Wednesday."
Hachimura understands that is the case, and said of his role: "The way they guard me, they're going to be in the paint, so I got to be ready to shoot those kind of shots."
Game 2 will remain in Memphis on Wednesday, before the series heads to Los Angeles for Game 3 and Game 4.
'He's born for clutch situations' - Doncic salutes 'Mr Fourth Quarter' Irving
Luka Doncic says Kyrie Irving was "born for the clutch situations" as the Dallas Mavericks produced another late show to deny the Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Mavs, who overcame a late two-point deficit, prevailed 116-107 in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals series, becoming the first NBA side in history to take a 3-0 series lead despite trailing in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter in each game.
Dallas had the second-best clutch record (23-9) and best clutch offence (127.1 points per 100 possessions) during the regular season, and have continued that momentum into the playoffs.
Indeed, they also came from behind late on in Game 6 of their conference semi-final series victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Irving scored 14 points in the fourth quarter in Game 3, and now has 31 such points this series; the most by any player in this year's conference finals.
"Unbelievable. That's why some people call him Mr Fourth Quarter, right?" Doncic said of his team-mate. "Just amazing. He's born for these situations. He's born for the clutch situations, so we just get the ball to him."
"Down the stretch, that's where we make our money," Irving added. "I think we have that poise now, and we're just showcasing our skill sets out there that a lot of teams have to guard, the depth that we have. A lot of teams have to guard each one of us, and you got to pick your poison."
Irving and Doncic scored 33 points apiece to become the first starting backcourt to each register at least 30 points in three playoff games over the past 50 seasons.
"I feel like we're both born for this if you ask me, but it's just basketball. You've got to give the game what it needs at times," said Irving, who called for focus in his franchise's quest for a second NBA title.
"It doesn't mean anything if we don't win a ring together. Right now, I want to show a lot of respect to the guys that have come before us and have actually done it. And our time will come."
NBA: Doncic and Irving shine as Mavericks take 3-0 lead on Timberwolves
Luka Dončić and Kyrie Irving each scored 33 points to send the Dallas Mavericks a win away from reaching the NBA Finals with Sunday's 116-107 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals.
WIth its star guard tandem leading the way, the fifth-seeded Mavericks dominated the game's final five minutes to take a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. Dallas can eliminate the third-seeded Timberwolves and earn its first trip to the Finals since 2011 when it hosts Game 4 on Tuesday.
No team in NBA history has come back to win a best-of-seven play-off series after losing the first three games.
That's the challenge now facing Minnesota, which clung to a 104-102 lead with five minutes left before the Mavericks seized control for good with a 14-1 run.
Anthony Edwards finished with 26 points for the Timberwolves, but just four of those came in the pivotal fourth quarter. Minnesota's other All-Star, Karl-Anthony Towns, was held scoreless in the final period after recording 14 points over the first three quarters.
Irving had 14 fourth-quarter points and six during the deciding spurt, which he began with a driving layup that tied the game at 104-104 with 4:35 left. P.J. Washington then sent Dallas ahead by knocking down a 3-pointer on its next possession, and the Mavericks held Minnesota without a field goal until Edwards scored the game's final points on a layup with 15.3 seconds left.
Dallas built a lead as large as 12 points in the first half and went into the break with a 60-52 advantage behind Doncic's 15 points and 14 from Irving. The Mavericks were up by 10 near the midway stage of the third quarter before Minnesota reversed momentum with an 13-1 run.
Edwards had eight straight points during the flurry, along with an assist on Naz Reid's layup that gave the Timberwolves a 79-77 edge with 3:54 left in the third.
Three-point shooting also played a part in Dallas' victory, as the Mavs finished 14 of 28 from beyond the arc. The Timberwolves were 9 of 30 from 3-point range, with Towns missing all eight of his attempts.
Celtics thankful to Holiday's 'big-time play' after taking 3-0 lead against Pacers
The Boston Celtics were indebted to Jrue Holiday after they moved one win away from reaching the NBA Finals with Saturday's victory against the Indiana Pacers.
Holiday converted a three-point play with 38 seconds remaining, then made a game-saving steal as the Celtics overcame an 18-point deficit to beat the Pacers 114-111 for a 3-0 Eastern Conference finals lead.
Indiana's Andrew Nembhard seemed set to claw the Pacers back into Game 3 late on, yet Holiday stepped across for a "trademark steal" to guide his side over the line.
"That's a trademark steal that he always gets with the inside hand," Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said of Holiday.
"He gets that a lot usually when a guy is coming down the sideline, but he got it in transition. He made a big-time play."
As Nembhard looked to cut inside the court, Holiday suggested he always knew what was coming.
"He's a right-hand driver," the Celtics hero said after the game, "and he'd been very, very aggressive all night."
Nembhard managed 32 points and nine assists but even that brilliance was not enough to outsmart one of NBA's best defensive players.
"I was trying to get a shot up," said Nembhard. "He got in front of me. I lost the ball, slipped. Turnover."
Jayson Tatum impressed for Boston with 36 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and no turnovers in 44 minutes, yet he put all the focus on the match-winning Holiday.
"I mean, can't speak highly enough about Jrue," said Tatum. "The ultimate teammate competitor, obviously a champion, wasn't at shootaround today, he was sick.
"Dealing with chills and stuff like that. And we've all been there, how tough that is, to fight through it, and for him to come out there and lay it all on the line for us, make the game-winning play essentially, especially on the defensive end.
"Jrue is just a big-time player, and he made a tremendous play."
The Celtics can clinch their second NBA Finals appearance in three seasons with a win in Game 4 on Monday in Indianapolis.
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