NBA Game Notes (May 26, 2024)

Here are the NBA game notes for games that were played on May 26, 2024.

May 27, 2024

Three Stars

The three stars in ice hockey are the three best players in a game, with the “first star” considered the best of the three players, similar to the player of the match in other sports. Here are my “three stars” from yesterday’s NBA games.

First ⭐️

Luka Doncic scored a game-high 33 points (tied with teammate Kyrie Irving) as the Dallas Mavericks took a commanding 3-0 series lead with a 116-107 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals. The Mavericks can close out the series with a win in Dallas Tuesday night.

Doncic also contributed seven rebounds, a team-high five assists, and a game-high five steals in 41 minutes played. He shot 10-20 from the field (5-11 on 3-pointers) and 8-10 from the free throw line.

Second ⭐️

Kyrie Irving matched Doncic’s game-high 33 points in the Mavericks’ win over the Timberwolves. Irving went 12-20 from the floor — including 3-6 from 3-point range — and made six of his eight free throw attempts. He registered a rating of plus-12 points in his team-high 42 minutes of action.

Third ⭐️

Anthony Edwards scored a team-high 26 points and dished out a game-high nine assists in the Timberwolves’ loss to the Mavericks. Edwards also recorded nine rebounds and two steals in his game-high 43 minutes of playing time. He went 11-24 from the field (missing both of his 3-point attempts) and 4-6 from the free throw line.

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Milestones

Doncic and Irving have each scored at least 30 points in the same game three times this postseason. They are the first backcourt duo in NBA history to record three such games in a single playoff run.
Doncic and Irving are just the third duo in NBA history to each score at least 30 points in the same game multiple times in a conference finals. They join Shaquille O’Neal & Kobe Bryant (2002) and Kevin Durant & Russell Westbrook (2014 and 2016).
Doncic became the first player in Mavericks history to record at least 30 points, five rebounds, five assists, and five steals in a playoff game. He’s just the third player to reach those marks in a Western Conference Finals game, joining Russell Westbrook (three times) and Stephen Curry (the NBA began tracking steals in 1973-74).
Doncic is just the fourth player in NBA history to record at least five 3-pointers made, five rebounds, five assists, and five steals in a playoff game. The others to achieve the feat are Stephen Curry (May 13, 2015), Victor Oladipo (Aug. 24, 2020), and Khris Middleton (June 17, 2021).
The Timberwolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns went 0-8 from 3-point range, setting an ignominious franchise record for most 3-pointers attempted without a make in a playoff game. The previous mark of six unsuccessful attempts was shared by Anthony Peeler (April 24, 1998) and Edwards (April 25, 2023).

Streaking

Doncic has made at least one 3-pointer in each of his 43 career playoff games, the second-longest such streak to start a playoff career in NBA history. Overall, he tied Paul George for the fourth-longest 3-point streak in NBA postseason history.
Doncic is the third player in NBA history to record at least 15 points, five rebounds, and five assists in each of his first 15 games of a postseason. The others to accomplish the feat are Larry Bird (1986) and Magic Johnson (1987).
Doncic is the fourth player in NBA history to record at least 30 points, five rebounds, and five assists in each of the first three games of a conference finals. The feat was previously achieved by Tim Duncan (2003), LeBron James (2015), and Jamal Murray (2023).
The Dallas Mavericks have won five consecutive games, the second-longest postseason winning streak in franchise history. They won seven straight playoff games during their title-winning run in 2011.

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Doncic and Irving shared nightly scoring honors with 33 points apiece. Edwards was next with 26 points, followed by the Timberwolves’ Mike Conley and the Mavericks’ P.J. Washington with 16 points each.
Towns was the leading board man, pulling in 11 rebounds last night. He was followed by Edwards with nine boards, Washington with eight, and Doncic with seven.
Edwards was the top playmaker last night, handing out nine assists. Doncic was the only other player to record at least five assists, delivering five dimes.
Towns has gone 15-54 (27.8%) from the floor in the Western Conference Finals. The only player to record a lower field goal percentage through the first three games of a conference finals while attempting at least 50 shots is Ron Artest in 2004 (15-57, 26.3%).
Towns is shooting just 4-32 (12.5%) from 3-point range over his last five games. That’s the worst 3-point field goal percentage in NBA postseason history by a player who attempted 30 or more threes over a five-game span.