Luka Doncic

We're finally down to the NBA's Final Four.

With the Boston Celtics defeating the Milwaukee Bucks and the Dallas Mavericks shocking the world with a 33-point win over the Suns in Phoenix, both have moved on to the conference finals.

Here's how the final two matchups stand:

• Eastern Conference Finals: (2) Boston Celtics vs. (1) Miami Heat
• Western Conference Finals: (4) Dallas Mavericks vs. (3) Golden State Warriors

While much of the attention will be paid to superstars such as Stephen Curry, Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, Jimmy Butler and others, there are a number of X-factors who can swing a series as well.

Here's what to watch for in both series, including role players, lineups, injuries and defensive strategies that could make the difference between going to the NBA Finals or going home.

       

Boston Celtics vs. Miami Heat X-Factors

Grant Williams

Filling in as a starter for the injured Robert Williams III during the final four contests of the Milwaukee Bucks series, Grant Williams exploded for a game-high 27 points in Game 7 after totaling just 11 in his other three starts.

The 27 points were a career high, regular or postseason, and were a total we likely won't see again. That doesn't mean Williams can't swing another game in this series, however, as even his presence as an outside shooting threat can do wonders for Boston's offense.

Putting Williams and Al Horford on the floor together means making Bam Adebayo leave the paint and help open up driving lanes for Tatum, Jaylen Brown and others.

On nights when Tatum's shot isn't falling, having a kick-out option like Williams (who shot 41.1 percent from three this season) could save the Celtics.

        

Battle of the Three-Point Line

The Heat were the NBA's best three-point shooting team during the regular season at 37.9 percent.

The Celtics owned the NBA's best three-point defense, holding opponents to 33.7 percent.

Something's gotta give.

Between Defensive Player of the Year Marcus Smart, Derrick White, Brown, Tatum and others, Boston makes it incredibly difficult to get up quality outside looks. Despite ranking first in three-point efficiency during the regular season, Miami shot just 32.8 percent in three games versus the Celtics.

While the Celtics ranked near the middle of the pack in outside success this year, good three-point shooting has been a staple of Boston's wins this postseason, including a 22-of-55 performance (40.0) percent in a Game 7 win over the Bucks. The Celtics also suffocated the Bucks at their line, with Milwaukee making just four of their 33 attempts (12.1 percent)

      

Status of Kyle Lowry and Robert Williams III

Both teams could be missing key starters for parts, or all, of this series.

Lowry, Miami's starting point guard, has already been sidelined for six of the Heat's 11 postseason games because of a left hamstring injury suffered against the Atlanta Hawks in Round 1. Even when he briefly returned against the Philadelphia 76ers, he managed just six total points on 3-of-14 shooting in Games 3 and 4. Now, the 36-year-old has already been ruled out for Game 1 with his hamstring injury.

The Heat would be better off resting Lowry than playing a hobbled version of the six-time All-Star, as even a five-man lineup of Gabe Vincent, Butler, Adebayo, Max Strus and P.J. Tucker has registered a sparkling net rating of plus-39.5 in 70 total minutes this postseason.

Williams is one of the NBA's best defensive centers who is dealing with left knee soreness that's caused him to miss Boston's last four games. While he was deemed available to play in Game 7 versus the Bucks, he wasn't needed as the Celtics cruised to a victory. His ability to manage the pain will determine how much he can play against Miami.

        

Dallas Mavericks vs. Golden State Warriors X-Factors

Spencer Dinwiddie

Dinwiddie has been the ultimate feast or famine player this postseason, scoring 17 or more points in five games while finishing in single digits five times as well. He dropped 30 off the bench in Game 7 against the Phoenix Suns after shooting 0-of-3 for his two points in Game 5.

During the regular season, Dinwiddie shot 45.2 percent overall in wins compared to just 36.2 percent in losses. When he's on, he looks like one of the NBA's best sixth men with his scoring and playmaking ability, giving the Mavs a much-needed third ball-handler. When he's off, he can kill a Dallas offense that's desperate for playmaking outside of Doncic and Jalen Brunson.

Besides the chance to play for a title, there's some extra financial incentive for Dinwiddie to ball out this round as well.

The 29-year-old just picked up $571,427 for reaching the conference finals, and he would earn another $400,000 should the Mavs reach the NBA Finals, per Spotrac.

In two games versus the Warriors this year, Dinwiddie has averaged 20.5 points and 6.0 assists while shooting 64.0 percent overall.

     

Warriors' Isolation Defense vs. Luka Doncic

While Golden State possesses an all-world defender in Draymond Green and has gotten strong defensive play with Andrew Wiggins this year as well, the Warriors haven't been great when trying to lock up isolation scorers like Doncic.

Golden State's iso defense is allowing 0.96 points per possession, a mark that ranked 27th among all teams during the regular season. Only James Harden registered more isolations than Doncic's 408 this year, with his 1.11 points per possession placing him in the 91st percentile overall.

Stopping Doncic one-on-one is a terrifying task, as his combination of footwork and shooting ability make his next move an impossible one to predict.

This will likely have to be a team effort on Golden State's part, as the Mavs may have the perfect weapon to exploit the weakness in the Warriors' otherwise stellar second-ranked defense this season.

     

Jordan Poole vs. Kevon Looney

Steve Kerr has four starters (Curry, Klay Thompson, Wiggins and Green) chiseled in stone for every game. Finding the right fifth guy, however, has been a matter of trial and error.

On some nights it's been Poole, the star guard who's looked like the Warriors' best player at times. On others, it's been Looney, who's given Golden State a healthier dose of size, rebounding and defense. Rookie Jonathan Kuminga has also drawn three starts this postseason, although it was more matchup-based against a young, athletic Memphis Grizzlies team.

While Poole is the superior player, Looney has made the Warriors the better team when he's on the floor.

With Poole and the regular starting four, Golden State has a net rating of minus-0.8 in 32 minutes these playoffs. With Looney swapped in instead, this number jumps to plus-40.6.

Kerr has long been a mastermind of tinkering with his lineups, not being afraid to make significant changes whenever he feels it necessary. Whoever he tabs as his fifth starter this series (a role that could change from game to game) will undoubtedly be a huge X-factor, helping Curry, Thompson and Green shine in their roles.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James has been a bit more active on social media after his team failed to make the playoffs this season. On Monday, James invited fans to participate in an "ask me anything" session.

One question that caught James' attention was about his favorite player under the age of 25, and he gave that distinction to Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic.

LUKA. He's my fav player!!

— LeBron James (@KingJames) May 17, 2022

James has been enjoying the show like everyone else, as Doncic has been the most exciting player in the postseason. The 23-year-old led Dallas to an upset series win over the top-seeded Phoenix Suns in seven games. He scored 35 points on Sunday in a blowout victory on the road.

Dallas is in the Western Conference Finals for the first time since winning the NBA championship in 2011. Doncic and the Mavs will take on the Golden State Warriors in Game 1 on Wednesday.

Dallas Mavericks star point guard Luka Doncic was voted as MVP of the second round of the 2022 NBA playoffs by users in the B/R App on Monday.

Here are the full voting results:

• Luka Doncic (Mavericks): 57 percent
• Jayson Tatum (Celtics): 25 percent
• Jimmy Butler (Heat): 11 percent
• Stephen Curry (Warriors): 7 percent

The result should come as no surprise after Doncic led Dallas to a 4-3 series upset win over the top-seeded Phoenix Suns, culminating in a blowout victory in Sunday's Game 7.

Doncic dropped 35 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the Mavs' 123-90 win. It was a strong follow-up to his Game 6 performance that saw him put up 33 points, 11 rebounds and eight dimes to help Dallas stave off elimination. In the series against Phoenix, Doncic averaged 32.6 points, 9.9 rebounds and 7.0 assists while shooting 47.6 percent from the field.

With Doncic leading the way, the Mavericks have reached the Western Conference Finals for the first time since their 2011 championship season, where they will face the Golden State Warriors. The 23-year-old brings a certain amount of joy to the team that had Dallas feeling confident despite going up against a team that went 64-18 in the regular season.

"Honestly, I think we deserve this. We've been playing hard the whole series," Doncic said after Sunday's win. "Maybe a couple of games here we weren't ourselves, but we came here with a statement in Game 7. We believed. Our locker room believed. Everybody believed. So I'm just happy."

Even with Doncic's overwhelming win in the MVP vote, Tatum's performance against the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference semifinals should not be overlooked.

Tatum averaged 27.6 points in the seven-game series, including a 46-point performance in Game 6 when the Celtics faced elimination. In Sunday's Game 7, he scored 23 points and dished out eight assists, relying more on his playmaking to help lead Boston to victory.

Tatum will lead the Celtics against Butler and the Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals beginning on Tuesday. Butler is coming off a dominant showing in six games against the Philadelphia 76ers, averaging 27.5 points on 51.5 percent shooting.

Curry and the Warriors will host Doncic and the Mavs in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Wednesday. Curry averaged 26.0 points in six games against the Memphis Grizzlies, but he's also had help from Klay Thompson and Jordan Poole, so he's been willing to take a backseat when one of them has the hot hand.

Dallas Mavericks star Luka Doncic was all smiles following his team's dominant 123-90 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Sunday night in the Western Conference semifinals.

"This was amazing. Everybody was locked in," Doncic said to Allie LaForce on the TNT broadcast. "Everybody played as hard as they can—no rest, we didn't take one play off. So this is an incredible team win. I just have nothing to say."

This will undoubtedly be painted as a meltdown of epic proportions from the Suns. You can't be the top seed in your conference and lose a winner-take-all game at home by more than 30 points. Equally as inexplicable are Deandre Ayton, Devin Booker and Chris Paul combining to score 26 points.

But this was also the kind of effort from Doncic that will take on an added significance if the Mavericks reach the NBA Finals or win it all. With his team as an underdog on the road, the three-time All-Star rose to the occasion and dropped 35 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buQFhwCVhW4

His numbers would've been even bigger had played more than 30 minutes, his fewest of the playoffs so far. When you're up 30 points at halftime, you can afford to have your best player take his foot off the gas in the second half.

Of course, it's important to put this into its proper context to a degree.

For players at Doncic's level—or at least the level he can seemingly attain—the conference semifinals aren't the final proving ground. What happened on Sunday will merely become a footnote should the Mavericks get outclassed by the Golden State Warriors in the next round.

Having said that, this could represent the 23-year-old turning a corner and putting himself on a track to enter the kind of rarefied air reserved for the elite of the elite. The potential was obvious, and now it's translating on the biggest stage. Dallas might even be ahead of schedule as a contender.

Do you want to be the team facing off against Doncic and the Mavericks right now?

Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic said he's enjoyed the verbal exchanges with the Phoenix Suns throughout the teams' second-round playoff series.

"I like when people trash talk to me," Doncic told reporters after the Mavs' 113-86 win Thursday night to force a Game 7. "It gets me going. It's fun."

The comments come after Suns guard Devin Booker stayed down for several seconds after being fouled in Game 5 on Tuesday before calling the act, "the Luka special."

Doncic took heat after a Game 5 performance where here finished with more turnovers (four) than assists (two) in a 110-80 Phoenix victory.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEOlWIcXXXA?

The three-time All-Star bounced back in a major way Thursday. He tallied 33 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists, four steals and just one turnover in 35 minutes as Dallas scored a 113-86 win to level the series at three games apiece.

It continued a trend of Doncic putting on a show in elimination games, per ESPN's Marc J. Spears:

A win in Game 7 in Phoenix will have an impact on several career storylines depending on the result… Meanwhile, @luka7doncic is a problem. @ESPNStatsInfo pic.twitter.com/O8D0YOusAo

— Marc J. Spears (@MarcJSpears) May 13, 2022

The 23-year-old Slovenian sensation isn't worried about his own numbers, though.

"I don't care about stats as long as we win," Doncic said. "If we win, I'm good. The statistics don't really matter to me, but if we win, it's going to be amazing. I think we won this game on the defensive end, and we've got another game."

Mavs head coach Jason Kidd was happy with his point guard's bounce-back outing.

"Elimination is I guess the word that you guys use, but it's just another game for us on this journey, and our journey is to win a championship," Kidd said. "Sometimes it ends early, sometimes you're able to play until June. I think he just enjoys the moment. He's not afraid of the stage."

Another standout showing from Doncic would go a long way in helping the Mavericks upset the top-seeded Suns, who owned the NBA's best record at 64-18 during the regular season.

If Dallas is going to make that happen, it'll have to buck the trend of all six games in the series being won by the home team.

The series returns to the Footprint Center in Phoenix for Game 7 on Sunday.

The Dallas Mavericks kept their season alive with a 113-86 win over the Phoenix Suns in Game 6 of the Western Conference Semifinals on Thursday, and it was largely thanks to the bully-ball played by star point guard Luka Doncic.

The 23-year-old dissected the Suns defense to finish with 33 points, 11 rebounds, eight assists and four steals. With Doncic leading the charge, the Mavericks shot a scorching 41 percent from three-point range.

Doncic wasn't only praised for his production on Thursday, but also his attitude when facing potential elimination.

Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young, who is forever tied to Doncic after they were traded for each other in the 2018 NBA draft, couldn't help but to be among the many people who admired the energy Doncic played with to help his team live to fight another day.

Luka backing that Talk up!!!
He cookin these dudes😂

— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) May 13, 2022

Luka wants all the smoke.
He wants the iso with Bridges, CP3, Crowder, everyone. Nobody can check him

Hope G7 is a good one

— Jason McIntyre (@jasonrmcintyre) May 13, 2022

Luka Is Playing How You Should Play Facing Elimination… I’ll Route For Guys Like That💯

— Maxx Crosby (@CrosbyMaxx) May 13, 2022

Luka. Playing angry, and dominating.

— Mike Leslie (@MikeLeslieWFAA) May 13, 2022

Luka is bullying every single player that matches up with him in the most disrespectful way he can come up with.

— 🦖 Black Big Lebowski 🦖 (@LaJethroJenkins) May 13, 2022

Luka numbers 📈 pic.twitter.com/EMLuZa2sGW

— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 13, 2022

Luka Dončić has his 5th playoff game with 30 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists, breaking a tie with Dirk Nowitzki for the most in Mavs postseason history.

Nowitzki's 4 games came across 145 games in his playoff career; Luka needed just 22 to pass him. pic.twitter.com/L6pkQ151p1

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 13, 2022

https://twitter.com/bobbykaralla/status/1524961566457831428

The Luka Special pic.twitter.com/7AXAYKPvxu

— Jason Gallagher (@jga41agher) May 13, 2022

Luka Doncic took the ball from Chris Paul on one end and then backed him down for a bucket on the other. Get ready for Game 7.

— Tim MacMahon (@espn_macmahon) May 13, 2022

I’m not betting against Luka in Game 7.

— Mark Gunnels (@MarkAGunnels) May 13, 2022

Facing the top-seeded Suns, the Mavericks weren't expected to put up this much of a fight. Game 7 will be in Phoenix, and Dallas has struggled away from home in this series. But the team has an ace in its pocket in Doncic.

The last time Doncic was faced with a Game 7, he poured in 46 points and 14 assists. It can be expected that he will be locked in once again in another win-or-go-home scenario.

Dallas has the chance to pull off the biggest upset of this year's playoffs. Doncic will have to be at his absolute best if the Mavericks hope to advance to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the team's 2011 championship run.