DALLAS — The Dallas Mavericks can clinch an NBA Finals appearance with a victory on Tuesday in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals. Dallas currently holds a 3-0 series lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves, but PJ Washington made it clear while speaking to reporters after shoot-around on Tuesday that he does not want to return to Minnesota for a possible Game 5.
“No sir, I definitely don't (want to return to Minnesota),” Washington said. “But we have to pay attention to this game, be locked in.”
Washington knows the Timberwolves will have a lot of energy in Game 4 with their season on the line. The Mavs breakout playoff star further discussed the plan for Dallas on Tuesday.
“For us, we gotta match their energy for a full 48 minutes and be ready to play,” Washington said.
Dallas has endured a long journey to get to this moment. They had ups and downs during the regular season, and they have had to defeat the No. 4 and No. 1 seeds in the Western Conference just to get to where they are now. However, Dallas is just a game away from upsetting the No. 3 seed as well and officially clinching their spot in the NBA Finals.
The leadership of Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic has proven to be crucial throughout the postseason.
Timberwolves searching for answers vs. Mavericks' Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving
Karl-Anthony Towns also spoke to reporters on Tuesday. He addressed a number of topics, including Minnesota's gameplan against Irving and Doncic.
“I think that, you know, if we're gonna do anything differently… I think our gameplan is just not let them score,” Towns said. “I think that gameplan we had of them scoring was not gonna workout well and it hasn’t. We’re gonna just do a better job this time around of making it more difficult for them to put the ball in the basket.”
Containing Doncic and Irving would help the Timberwolves. It should be noted that Luka is questionable for Game 4 as of this story's writing.
Dallas is a difficult team to battle, though, because even if one of their stars struggles or misses a game they have another star waiting to lead the way. And the Mavs' depth has improved this season, with players such as PJ Washington, Derrick Jones Jr., Dereck Lively II, Daniel Gafford, and Josh Green all stepping up.
Lively, who is dealing with a neck sprain, is not expected to play on Tuesday. Maxi Kleber is trending in a positive direction and has a chance to play in Game 4 for the first time since the Clippers series, however.
The Mavericks, as Washington said, are hoping to take care of business in this contest. Sure, if they lose it would not be the end of the world. A 3-1 lead would still be manageable to say the least. But the Mavericks have no intention of giving the Timberwolves any hope in the Western Conference Finals.
Game 4's tip-off is scheduled for 8:30 PM EST on Tuesday night in Dallas.
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