After the 5 x 5, then the 3 x 3, it’s time for the 2 x 2. This night, the meeting between the Bucks and Mavericks was an opportunity to see, face to face, two of the best duos in the NBA. On the left, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard. To their right, Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. Their clash did not disappoint with 67 points for the two Bucks, against 74 for the two Mavericks. In the 4th quarter, we saw a sequence of around two minutes where the four scored all the points!
“It sure was fun.”concedes Doncicwhose duel with Giannis livened up the first half. “Obviously, minus the result, but it was fun. They have two guys who are really good and it was fun to challenge each other.” Same impression with Kyrie Irving. “It’s incredibly exciting to play against other NBA stars. We want to be at our best and play well on an individual level. But we also want to win, and tonight, they won. They put their shots at the right time… But when Luke and I play like we did tonight, and other guys complement us, it makes our job easier and we feel better as a team. We’ve done it intermittently, and we need to continue to be consistent. »
Giannis didn’t want to step out of his role
On the Bucks side, same enthusiasm. Starting with Damian Lillard, a regular at his shows between stars. “When we see each other, we see how the evening is going to go… Obviously, we want our team to win, but Kyrie, Giannis and I have been doing this for a long time. Luka is a little younger than us. »
For his part, Giannis assures that he thought of the team first, and even if he scored 40 points, he did not want to turn this match into an individual festival. Above all, he did not want to play against nature.
“I try to be in tune with myself, with my game and how I can help my teammates. I try to lean on my strengths as much as possible. Because I find myself alongside three of the best shooters in the league: Kyrie can make any shot; Luka can take any step and Damian can shoot from that damn logo. How to respond? I can’t… So I play my game. I get rebounds, I defend and attack as best as I can, I create for my teammates…”
Upon arrival, the Bucks defense made the difference in money time for a 4th victory in a row. But Adrian Griffin believes the public has been spoiled.
“This is what the fans wanted to see: Dame and Giannis at their best at the end of the match” concludes the Bucks coach. “The fourth quarter is probably our best. Especially since we were playing against a great team like Dallas. They are well trained, they have very high quality players… So it was huge. The fact that we were down and found a way to come back and win this match is great. »
