The Clippers take on the Mavericks in the first round of the playoffs just eight months after facing them in the Orlando bubble last year. Here are our staff’s predictions for the series.
Joey Linn: Clippers in 6
As the formerly renowned optimist of Clipper Nation, I believe this series will be more difficult than many others do. Dallas does a good job bothering Kawhi and PG with Kleber and Richardson, and have surrounded Luka with a lot of competence. With the way these two teams will defend one another’s superstar, I believe much will ride on role player’s ability to hit shots. The Clippers have those guys everywhere, and that’s why I got Clips in 6.
Dr. Shap: Clippers in 5
Honestly, while I do feel like the Clippers are a better team this year, a lot of the difference in this playoff series vs. last playoff series against these Mavericks is me putting faith in Ty Lue. After watching Doc be so stubborn with our rotations, I think Ty will make the necessary adjustments throughout the series and a hopefully crisp Clipper team will handle this Mavs team.
Erik Olsgaard: Clippers in 5
Last year, the Clippers were miles better defensively whenever Zubac was on the floor. No need to rehash why, but it’s safe to say those troubles are behind us. And according to player matching data (and the eye test) Luka feasted on Lou Williams, Landry Shamet, and Reggie Jackson whenever he could exploit those matchups, either by scoring over them or getting to the charity stripe. With a guard rotation that has far fewer defensive holes and no backup bigs to pick on defensively in pick-and-rolls, Luka will have trouble getting comfortable this time around. We’re a long way from the then-record-setting beatdown that started this season, and I predict a swift end to the Mavericks’ title hopes.
Lucas Hann: Clippers in 6
Ok, this is probably on the pessimistic end. But as good as I think the Clippers are, and as much as I think they’ll get out of this series without too much sweat (much like last year’s 6-game affair where LAC ultimately dominated the series overall), they just aren’t quite clicking at a level where I’m comfortable picking them to win 4/4 or 4/5 games against a Dallas team that has played really good basketball in the latter portion of the season. A lot of folks are going to talk about what’s different this time around, from Kristaps Porzingis’ health to Ty Lue taking over the Clippers to each team’s roster tweaks, most notably Serge Ibaka replacing Montrezl Harrell. What hasn’t been mentioned enough is that the bar for Paul George to improve from his performance in this series last year is basically at the floor, hopefully providing LAC with one major built-in upgrade.
Kenneth Armstrong: Clippers in 5
I think that Mavericks are capable of pushing this to six, just like last year. But a few points sway me towards five: First, Ty Lue seems much more willing to adjust in-game and throughout a series than last season’s coaching staff. Second, Serge Ibaka is an upgrade at backup center and Zubac himself has improved. Finally, home court advantage! The “bubble” influenced the Clippers in several ways last year – and we won’t have to deal with any of that this time around. Last year’s Clips-Mavs series ended up being a warning of bad things to come in the next round. This year, I think the Clippers are a little more humble and a lot more solid as a roster and coaching staff.
Cole Huff: Clippers in 5
I’m going to run it back with my prediction and take the Clippers in 5 as I did last postseason. With everyone healthy and available to play (knocks on wood), the Clips should have more than enough to throw at Dallas on both sides of the ball. More importantly, we’ve gotten what we asked for — no Doc and no Trezz — so there really shouldn’t be any reason for the Clippers to mess this up.
Ralston Dacanay: Clippers in 5
Although the 51-point shellacking that the Christmas-hangover Clips suffered by the Mavs early on in the season remains ingrained in my mind, I don’t see the Clippers having more trouble in a series with Dallas this year than last. While I do believe the Mavericks are more talented this time around with Josh Richardson, Dwight Powell, Jalen Brunson and Willie Cauley-Stein in uniform, I think that the improvements the Clippers have made since the bubble will be more significant. LAC appears to have addressed what killed them last season and received home run showings from a handful of role players since December. The Clippers will be one of the earliest teams to get out of the opening round this year.
Shane Hoffman: Clippers in 6
The Clippers got the matchup they wanted. It makes sense, on paper the Clippers may be the most equipped team in the league to handle Luka Doncic. Kawhi Leonard and Paul George have the ability to make life hell for the third year star, but Doncic showed last year that he is more than capable of dragging his team to a win or two. I think he does the same this year, but again, in the end, the Clippers improved perimeter shooting and a hopefully less woeful George will make the difference.
Robert Flom: Clippers in 6
The Clippers are better than they were last season (or should be), while the Mavericks are largely similar. Considering the Clippers won in 6 last year, and should have won in 5 if they hadn’t been handicapped by Montrezl Harrell and Doc Rivers’ usage of him, a similar result seems in store this time around. The Mavs are quite good, and Luka Doncic is a total stud, but the Clippers are more talented, and have plenty of guys to throw at Luka to slow him down. Winning in 5 would be ideal, winning in 7 would be a red flag, and losing would be a catastrophe.
Thomas Wood: Clippers in 6
The conventional wisdom is to pick five or seven if you take the team with homecourt advantage. I think a lot of us will defy convention because these Clippers do too. The Clippers should win the series against the Mavericks, but I won’t trust them to dispatch a lesser opponent without some unnecessary heartburn until I see it.
Michelle Uzeta: Clippers in 5
The Clippers have a bevy of defenders to throw at (and frustrate) Luka Doncic, exceptional flexibility with regard to both offensive and defensive line-ups and multiple guys who can get hot from behind the arc. Despite what the 51 point loss early in the season might suggest, the Clippers are the better, deeper and more mature squad.
That’s about it for our staff’s thoughts on the Clippers’ second matchup against the Mavs in the playoffs. Leave your predictions for the series in the comments below!
