Dallas Mavericks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. is having one of the biggest falls from graces in recent basketball memory. After being Dallas' third option for much of the season, the 32-year-old hasn't made a shot since Game 6 of the second round.
Fans are destroying Hardaway online after coming up short in Game 3 Wednesday night.
“Scientists will study Tim Hardaway Jr. checking out of the game correlating with a 20-2 run immediately after for decades to come,” @saadYosuf tweeted.
Hardaway scored no points on 0-for-5 shooting with three rebounds and a -16 point differential across 19 minutes in Dallas' 106-99 loss to the Boston Celtics. His biggest lowlight was a wide-open brick from long range with 19 seconds left with the score at 104-98, erasing any chance the Mavs had at coming back. Celtics guard Derrick White tried to foul him intentionally, but it wasn't called. The play can be found at 6:17 of this clip, via Bleacher Report.
With Luka Doncic fouling out down the stretch, Dallas needed its role players to step up and help Kyrie Irving as much as possible. Hardaway wasn't up to the task, though, and many fans questioned why head coach Jason Kidd gave him significant minutes.
One popular meme template is making up a fake conversation between two people, and then posting a funny video making fun of whatever the situation was. @Stephdisciple put on a masterclass of this format.
Another popular saying when a player is bad is “You better start learning Chinese, buddy.” Several NBA washouts have excelled in Asian leagues in recent years, including Dwight Howard and DeMarcus Cousins. @Mavs_FFL predicted Hardaway to be the next has-been to take his talents overseas next season.
NBA pundit Rob Perez even came up with an NSFW metaphor about how bad Hardaway's outing was, via X.
“Out of casino chips, over the ATM daily withdrawal amount, steaming because the dealer just dealt themselves 21 after drawing five cards, so you take out a cash advance chasing a dream that will inevitably end in a str*p club toilet,” he said. “Jason Kidd's Tim Hardaway Jr. minutes.”
Finally, @Trillbrodude went the hyperbolic route, using a statement that could be applied to any fan who only started watching Hardaway since Game 6 of the second round.
“Tim Hardaway Jr is a shooter yet I have never seen him hit a shot in his entire NBA career,” he tweeted.
Will Hardaway and the Mavericks recover from this?
Don't bet on the Mavericks winning more than one game this series
Boston has proven to be the deeper and more well-rounded squad through the first three games of these NBA Finals. The team gets no empty minutes from role players like Dallas does from Hardaway. Derrick White, Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard, and company all contribute heavily on a nightly basis.
With the Mavs now in a 3-0 hole, the team will have to make history to win this series. No NBA squad has ever beaten the 3-0 monster, and it's unlikely that Dallas will achieve the feat against one of the most balanced teams in recent memory.
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