The Mavericks suffered a 110-113 upset at home to the Cavaliers and were overturned with a 20-point lead, which was a morale blow to Doncic. The Cavaliers are almost absent from half of the team today, with core Garland and Mitchell out of action, and superstar Mobley also absent. The only remaining Knights were Okoro and Allen, but these two took the lead, and LeVert on the bench also contributed his part, and they made the impossible possible.
At the beginning of the game, the Cavaliers knocked the mountain and the tiger, and Porter and Okoro scored five points in a row to take the lead. But Doncic turned on the offensive mode, and he scored 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting in nine minutes, and then Curry Jr. also provided firepower support, and the Mavericks led 39-27 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Hardaway and Curry Jr. hit 3 points in a row, Powell hit 2+1 inside, and the Mavericks stretched the difference to 20 points. At the critical moment, Niang, Allen, Okoro and Wade returned from a timeout and fired on their firepower, and the Cavaliers once chased 7 points. Fortunately, Doncic stepped up, he made fouls, broke through 2+1, and there was no one to stop him from mid-range, and the Mavericks continued to lead by 15 points at halftime 69-54.
In the second half, the Cavaliers fought back, they put LeVert on the starting line to increase the firepower, he and Strus scored three points in a row, Okoro also played 2+1, the Cavaliers continued to eat away at the point difference, and the Mavericks only led by 8 points in the third quarter. In the final quarter, LeVert scored 12 points in a row, and the Cavaliers took a 107-105 lead in the final two minutesDoncic was really good enough, he broke through the board and hit a difficult shot, and blocked Guelleville, but unfortunately the counterattack layup was interfered with by Allen.
Okoro stepped to the free-throw line in the final 26 seconds to give the Cavaliers a six-point lead, although Doncic hit a step-back three-pointer to chase down a three-pointer. The Cavaliers did give a chance, and Niang was fouled and missed two free throws, leaving the Mavericks 83 seconds. It's a pity that Doncic was trapped, and Curry Jr. hit a three-point iron and finally lost. Doncic scored 39 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals in the whole game, and he is now like the peak Harden of '18 and '19, trying to keep the basic set when the other core is often injured, but there is also a lot of long-term consumption.
The Mavericks will have to wait for Irving to return, at least for Doncic alone in terms of offensive pressure. For the Cavaliers, Okoro scored 22 points, Allen and LeVert were well-deserved double stars, Allen scored 24 points and 23 rebounds, including 9 rebounds in the frontcourt, and LeVert had 29 points and 7 assists. The two bombarded 53+25+13, and this year's Cavaliers were still able to stabilize in the top eight in the East despite continuous injuries and had a lot to do with these instant combat power.
LeVert and Allen are both former Nets veterans who studed for Harden. Unexpectedly, the Nets disintegrated in a few years, and Allen and LeVert shone in the Cavaliers. Now the Rockets are repentant, and the introduction of Udoka this year is still good to enter the play-offs. But the team can't go up or down, and it can't be bad, and it's very difficult to get into the playoffs. If the Rockets hadn't given up on getting Allen and LeVert, maybe the team would have a better record now.
Because Allen and LeVert will not affect the Rockets' 21-year record, with Allen and LeVert, the Rockets will not choose Jalen Green, an Internet celebrity, but Barnes. Then the current Rockets are strong, Van Jordan and Dillon in the backcourt, Barnes in the third position, Smith in the fourth position, and Shen Jing and Allen in the fifth position are enough to ensure the safety of the Rockets' interior line. Allen and LeVert can both have three first-round picks when they split and sell, and the Rockets don't even want one.