After defeating the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 6 of the West semifinals on Saturday, Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic guided the Dallas Mavericks to the Western Conference finals. With the win, the Mavericks go to their second consecutive Western Conference Finals in three years.
Dallas awaits the result of the Denver Nuggets vs. Minnesota Timberwolves Game 7 on Sunday to find out who their next opponent will be.
Irving says he had to fight back tears when asked to give an impromptu speech in the locker room after the game. Irving played in 3 straight East finals with Cleveland (and NBA Finals) but this is his first conference finals berth as an active player since 2017. He was inactive… pic.twitter.com/vblD6IpWtb
— Brad Townsend (@townbrad) May 19, 2024
During the post-game interview, Kyrie Irving discussed the significance of winning a conference title with the Cleveland Cavaliers again after 2017. Despite being a member of the Boston Celtics in 2018, he could not play in the East finals due to injuries that kept him out of the starting lineup.
“It’s been a long time coming. Just being back in this position, getting back to the finals or the conference finals, it’s just a long way back. You know, looking back at parts of my career where I took it for granted, you know just getting to the conference finals.” Irving said during the press conference.
According to the stats on the NBA website, despite four turnovers, Kyrie Irving ended with 22 points, two rebounds, and three assists on 9 of 23 field goals, including 4 of 10 from beyond the arc.
