In the first game of this mini series, the LA Clippers could not overcome Luka Doncic’s first quarter outburst, ultimately falling to the Mavericks on the road, 112-105. The Clippers get a chance to even the season series against the Mavericks on Saturday. Check out the preview below!
Game Information
Where: America Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas
When: 5:30 p.m. PT
How to Tune in: Bally Sports SoCal, AM 570
Projected Starting Lineups
LA Clippers: Reggie Jackson – Terance Mann – Nicolas Batum – Marcus Morris – Ivica Zubac
Dallas Mavericks: Luka Doncic – Jalen Brunson – Reggie Bullock – Dorian Finney-Smith – Dwight Powell
Injury Report
Clippers: Norman Powell Questionable (Toe), Kawhi Leonard Out (Knee), Jason Preston Out (Foot), (Ankle), Paul George Out (Elbow), Jay Scrubb Out (Foot)
Mavs: Tim Hardaway Jr. Out (Foot), Marquese Chriss Out (Knee)
The Big Picture
On Thursday, the Clippers scored one more field goal than the Mavericks, but the Mavs edged them out from behind the arc and at the free throw line. Moreover, although Doncic (and his gimmicks) put up 51 points, he only had six assists and the next highest scoring Maverick was Dorian Finney-Smith with just 12 points. The game was essentially even, when you take away the Doncic’s first quarter outburst.
While the Mavericks will still have the best player in Saturday’s match up, the Clippers have a distinct coaching advantage. It is more than reasonable to expect Ty Lue to make the requisite defensive adjustments to slow down Doncic; after the game, in fact, Lue already had a few ideas. Moreover, Thursday’s game was, simply put, weirdly officiated. There were a few blown and/or “star” calls that hurt the Clippers. On Saturday, the Clippers should get off to a better start, armed with a better defensive game plan, and have a chance to even up the season series against the Mavericks.
The Antagonist
Unfortunately, the Clippers’ best player on the active roster is questionable for Saturday’s game. As he said after the game, Powell has a bruise on the bottom of his big toe, which is causing him pain. Although he had a rough start to Thursday’s game, Powell finished with 19 points on 5/14 shooting (1/3 from three). He also got to the free throw line several times, going 8/10, which played a significant role in the Clippers’ attempted comeback. If Powell does not play, the Clippers will need a lot more from Reggie Jackson, who already had an efficient 18 points and 8 assists on Thursday.
Marcus Morris, Sr. also finished with a nice stat line: 21 points on 9/16 shooting (3/6 from three). Again, the Clippers’ Thursday box score looked fine, if you cut out the first quarter. Therefore, if Powell does not play, the Clippers will have to compensate for his absence, implement new defensive scheme, and out-perform what they did on Thursday. That will be a tough request from this Clippers roster—and that’s not even factoring in the Mavericks’ trade deadline acquisitions (Bertans and Dinwiddie), who might play on Saturday.
Clippers vs. Mavs Game Notes
- Rebounding, rebounding, rebounding: The Clippers were out-rebounded by 10 on Thursday, including giving up eight offensive rebounds. Even if the Clippers have a small lineup on the floor, there needs to be a renewed (again) focus on rebounding. Powell led the team with six, which is a big problem. Zubac only had three in his 26 minutes; Covington only had two in ten minutes; and Morris had none in his 32 minutes. If the Clippers’ cannot correct this on Saturday, the Mavericks will continue to find open three-point shooters after long, offensive rebounds.
- What’s up with Nico Batum?: Batum has had a tough season, being in and out of the lineup and dealing with injuries. But he’s been in the lineup consistently since before the new year, and he’s had a negative plus-minus in eight of his last ten games. Yes, the fact that he’s been playing with the struggling starters plays a big role in +/-, but the eye-test confirms that he has not been as big of a factor as we have come to expect. Basically, it seems like he either has a big night from three or is a non-factor—and we’ve seen more of the latter, recently. It would be great to see Ty Lue run a few plays for Batum to help him get going.
That does it for our preview of the second game of this mini series with the Mavericks. Check out our podcast for more analysis!