Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said Mavs-Thunder has yet to develop into a prime rivalry, despite three playoff series in six years and a handful of skirmishes this series.
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“He did a really good job”, Thunder coach Billy Donovan said.
This Western Conference first-round series has shown varying results for Durant and his championship-chasing team, but the Thunder can separate from the pesky Mavericks with a win in Saturday night’s Game 4 in Dallas.
While we are on the subject of Paul George, let’s go ahead and discuss the Indiana Pacers.
The Thunder also were given a delay-of-game warning.
“This isn’t about winning one playoff game, it’s about winning a playoff series”, Clifford said of ending the team’s playoff drought.
“It is just fighting until the end, until it is over”. “Fighting till it’s over”. The downside is their teammates stand around and make little effort to be anything more than mannequins.
Dallas guard J.J. Barea confronted Morrow, the Oklahoma City guard and former Maverick who then shoved Barea. A member of the Thunder’s security and official Ken Mauer had to step in between Mejri and Westbrook as they exchanged words.
Durant failed to score 20 points in a game for the first time since November 10, 2015, against the Wizards, when he left at halftime with a hamstring strain after scoring 14.
Not long after Durant’s ejection, Serge Ibaka got a technical for contact with Charlie Villanueva. “There are plenty of plays this season where I’ve blocked shots from behind like that and it’s just unfortunate that I hit him over the head.”It was a flagrant even though I wasn’t intentionally trying to foul him, but the refs had to make a decision and they made the right one”. “I felt bad for Kevin because I don’t think he’s probably ever been thrown out of a game in his entire life”. Now it may be up to the National Basketball Association to decide if Durant’s hit merits a suspension as well. But Carlisle wasn’t interested in discussing that even though he created a stir by calling out Durant before the game.
“Kevin and Russell are such great one-on-one players that you’re not going to run motion offense”, Donovan said.
Mavericks point guard Deron Williams tried to return in his continuing battle with a sports hernia that kept him out of Game 3. He limped to the locker room with 10:31 remaining.
James Harden scored 35 points, including the game-winner with 2.7 seconds left, and the Houston Rockets took advantage of Stephen Curry’s absence to get a 97-96 victory over the Golden State Warriors in Game 3 of their first-round playoff series on Thursday night.
The loss of Williams was compounded by an 0-for-7 shooting night from backup guard J.J. Barea, who is dealing with a groin injury.
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And with Durant out and the Thunder letting a big lead slip, Westbrook sure thrived. The Heat, which shot 58 percent from the field in the first two games, was limited to 34 percent shooting. Enes Kanter had a playoff career-high 21 points and a game-high eight rebounds. The Oklahoma City Thunder are shooting 36.2 percent from beyond the arc and 80.2 percent from the free throw line. Oklahoma City swept a first-round series the next year. Dallas coach Rick Carlisle criticized Kevin Durant and the Thunder for “non-basketball physical escalations” in Game 3.
