'The Better Team': Jazz Edge Luka Doncic's Mavs, Tie Series
In the thrilling aftermath of the Dallas Mavericks' Game 3 win at Utah, somebody in the DFW media crowed that Dallas is "clearly the better team, even without Luka Doncic.''
It's tantalizingly easy to get caught up in the excitement of the NBA Playoffs, isn't it?
Saturday's Game 4 outcome - a 100-99 nail-biting Mavs loss at Utah that occurred despite Luka's part-magical/part-methodical season playoff debut - offers proof of how fickle this NBA Playoffs thing is.
Which is "the better team,'' Mavs or Jazz?
It depends; which day is it? Which game? Who got hurt? How did the whistle blow? How did the ball bounce?
Before this week's Game 3 win, which gave Dallas its then-2-1 lead, the Mavs had not been victorious at Utah in eight years. Jalen Brunson has worked in this series to overcome that mountain, and now Doncic - back from a calf strain to contribute 30 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in 34 minuted here - will continue to work to do the same.
But "the better team'' isn't determined in one, two or three games; it's determined only by a collection of one, two, three and four wins.
And the third-seeded Mavs aren't better than anybody. Not yet.
Also worth noting: As the series is tied 2-2, with Dallas ultimately holding home-court advantage, Utah isn't yet better than anybody, either.
For one game, though, Utah - led by Jordan Clarkson's 25 points helping Donovan Mitchell's 23 - sort of solved Dallas. Or, at least, benefited from two late Dallas failures. ... a 3-point miss at the buzzer, but before that, two missed clutch-time free throws from Dwight Powell that followed a momentum-stealing Luka trey.
There was a sort-of minutes limit on Luka (until he played 34 of 'em), but the reality is, he controlled the minutes. He did so by moving with a paced deliberation that was more "smart'' than it was "sluggish.''
As befits what could be a long series - "The Best Team'' be damned - Luka was trying to save himself for "the moment.''
Brunson did his thing (23 points), with Spencer Dinwiddie and Maxi Kleber didn't really do theirs, combining for just eight points. And worst of all? Utah shot 42 free throws to Dallas' 23. ... but alas, if only Dallas hadn't just made 18 of theirs.
"The better team'' is often determined at the free-throw line.
The Mavs stormed to an early 13-5 lead, but the Jazz pushed inside to overcome that, and Dallas didn't lead again until the third ... and then led for some of those final delicious seconds, until ... "the better team''?
Which is "the better team''? Monday marks Game 5, at the AAC. After that, eventually, the Mavs and Jazz will inform the world of the truth ... just as soon as one of them wins a fourth game.
The word for Monday?
"Now we just have to protect home,'' Dallas coach Jason Kidd said.
