The shooting efficiency of the Mavs pivots this year is something. While Daniel Gafford narrowly missed out on joining Wilt Chamberlain this season for the most consecutive field goals, his replacement Derek Lively II is also talked about in the same register.
By signing a 3/3 on shots last night in Minnesota, the Mavs rookie (9 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocks) signed a performance never seen before: he did not miss a single shot in the final conference (16/16).
A 100% on shots with so many attempts is unprecedented in a playoff series. And that's not all, because if we include the previous series against the Thunder, Derek Lively is at 21 consecutive shots converted, thus surpassing Chris Andersen for the longest series in the playoffs since the start of the play era -by-play, in 1996-1997.
Not bad for a player, injured in the neck, who was very uncertain for this 5th elimination round. Before the meetingthe pivot explained that he still felt discomfort, without wanting to talk about pain.
But his desire to help his teammates was too strong. “ I have the feeling that they (the Wolves) scored a lot of points in the paint. They got easy shots a lot of times, in situations where I thought I could stop them », he regretted when talking about the previous meeting.
His displayed seriousness contrasted with his enthusiasm following his team's fourth victory, synonymous with reaching the NBA final. In the tunnel, trophy in hand, he blurted out: “ The work is not finished. »
| Derek Lively II | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Party | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2023-24 | DAL | 55 | 24 | 74.7 | 0.0 | 50.6 | 2.5 | 4.4 | 6.9 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 8.8 |
| Total | 55 | 24 | 74.7 | 0.0 | 50.6 | 2.5 | 4.4 | 6.9 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.4 | 8.8 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
