One of the NBA’s best rivalries of the last few years was renewed on Friday night when the Phoenix Suns took on the Dallas Mavericks. As it usually does when these two teams face off, this game came down to the final seconds as the two teams battled back-and-forth down the stretch.
A Jusuf Nurkic putback dunk gave the Suns the lead in the final minute of the game before a Luka Doncic alley-oop to Daniel Gafford tied things back up at 113.
After Kevin Durant’s game-winning attempt missed, Nurkic was right there to collect the offensive rebound before Gafford soared in and fouled him on the putback attempt. The foul was Gafford’s sixth, ending his night, and allowed Nurkic to sink one of the two free throws and secure the win for the Suns.
Jusuf Nurkic was awarded free throws on this final play of Suns-Mavs.
Phoenix survives and improves to 8-1 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Nwp4qcKwje
— ESPN (@espn) November 9, 2024
As you can see, Gafford was out of position for the rebound after seemingly being shoved by Suns forward Royce O’Neale. After the game, Mavericks fans were understandably livid at the call.
“Mavs got robbed. Royce pushed Gafford in the back. That should’ve been free throws for Dallas,” one fan wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Another fan posted, “Shove Gafford in the back but call it on Gafford to ruin the end of a great game. Can’t believe they call anything in that situation.”
Gafford played just 23 minutes in this one before fouling out, but he was effective when he was out on the floor. The veteran big man finished with 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting with seven rebounds. The Mavericks failed to pull out a win at home despite good games from both Kyrie Irving and Luka Doncic, who combined for 59 points on 50% shooting. Dallas drops to 5-4 on the season with the loss.
The Suns improved to 8-1 with this win, and it took a team effort for them to get there. Six Suns players scored in double figures in this one, led by Durant with 26 points. O’Neale had a big night as well off the bench, knocking down all four of his 3-pointers on his way to 18 points.
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