Luka Doncic left this game in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury. The camera strategically placed in the tunnel to the locker rooms showed him hopping away from the trainers as fast as he could on one leg, which showed his grit and determination, but it also showed that his ankle wasn’t feeling too good. Mavericks fans (and the NBA itself, think of those ratings) are hoping that he’s good to return for game four, but if he’s not… it’s TIMMY TIME!
“Timmy Time” refers to a time where Tim Hardway Jr. gets to play a (or THE) leading role on offense. It is not normally a good thing, that is, if it’s currently happening, your team probably isn’t going to win the game.
Dallas is reliant on Doncic to do a lot for them. When you take him out of the picture, whether by putting him on the bench or attacking his ankle with a billy club, things just aren’t going to quite as smoothly. Hardaway can create his own shot, there’s no doubt about that. Whether it’s a shot that you would want him to take is a question, and the answer to that question is “no”.
But this is all hypothetical. What’s not hypothetical is the fact that Hardaway had 22 points this game, and at at least some of those points were created by his own actions alone.