"That's for her"- Dereck Lively II gives tribute to late mother Kathy Drysdale with first NBA 3-pointer
Dallas Mavericks rookie Dereck Lively II knocked down his first career 3-pointer during the team's blowout win over the Boston Celtics on Friday. The Mavericks handed a devastating 122-84 loss to Boston at the American Airlines Center in Game 4 of the NBA Finals and avoided getting swept.
Lively played a humongous role in Jason Kidd's team keeping their hopes of winning the NBA championships alive. The rookie had his best outing for the ongoing NBA Finals.
After making the first triple of his young NBA career, rookie Lively paid tribute to his late mother Kathy Drysdale with whom he shared a close bond.
"It's for her. She helped me make it. She helped me make a lot more. She helped me at the free throw line. She helped me make reads. I'm just happy to have Luka pass me the ball in position. I'm happy to knock it down. Just gotta be able to make the next one," Lively told reporters after the game.
The 20-year-old scored 11 points and grabbed 12 rebounds off the bench for Dallas. Seven of the 12 boards came on the offensive end.
He shot 4-of-5 from the field, including 1-of-1 from the three-point range. Lively, who isn't known for his 3-point shooting, confidently knocked down the shot from the corner.
It was Lively's first attempt from the beyond the arc in the ongoing playoffs. Lively took two shots from downtown in the regular season but failed to cash in on either of the attempts.
Jason Kidd on Dereck Lively's 3-pointer
Dallas Mavericks coach Jason Kidd was quizzed about Lively's first-made 3-pointer of his career. Coach Kidd underlined that the three-ball is the next step for his development.
"He was in the right spot and took it from there. He can shoot. That's the next step for his development, is being able to shoot the 3," Kidd told reporters.
"As a 20-year-old, he has grown up in the age...in high school he could shoot and handle the ball. He would tell you that he played point guard. His ability to bring up the ball and shoot threes is the next step for him. He has all the skillset but right now the role which we need him to do is what he did tonight - offensive rebounds, change shots and be able to guard," he added.
Lively had a +/- of +20 in Dallas' Game 4 win over the Celtics. The rookie left his imprint on the game and provided a major boost off the bench. Moving forward, Dallas would want Lively to continue impacting the game and play with energy as the franchise dreams of staging a historic comeback.