MAVERICKS SHOCK CLIPPERS, GO UP 2-0
MAVS UNDEFEATED IN PLAYOFF MATCHES AT STAPLES
If the Clippers wanted the Mavericks in this series, they may just have themselves a tiger by the tail. The best-laid plans of Lue and Leonard gang aft agley.
GAME STORY
Dirk was on hand to see the game, and looked very tall and happy. Rick dubbed him the Mavericks' good-luck charm.
FIRST QUARTER
All players were available except Redick. Carlisle went with the same starting lineup that he used for the first time in Game One — Luka, THJ, DFS, KP, Maxi. Coach Lue also decided on his Game One plan, sticking with Pat Bev, PG, Kawhi, Zubac, and Morris.
Both teams came out gunning. The Mavs were hot. Seven minutes in, Maxi (yes, Maxi!) already had 10 points. At 4:52, Doe-Doe was called for his second foul. J Rich served as the next man up. THJ lobbed to a cutting KP for a highlight jam. The Mavs’ fortunes dwindled as both benches filtered in. The Mavs started committing shooting fouls and turnovers. With 11 seconds left, Brunson was called for a foul on a three-point attempt by Kawhi. The quarter ended with a turnover by Luka. A quarter-high for the Mavs of 9 points was down to a 35-33 edge after one. The Mavs were ahead the entire period.
Maxi led the Mavs with 12 points, followed closely by Tim with 10. Kawhi led all scorers with 18, and he and PG accounted for 26 of the Clips’ 33 points. The Clippers hit 10 of their 11 FTAs, while Dallas had no attempts from the line.
SECOND QUARTER
The Clippers tied the game to open the second. A Reggie Jackson three gave LA their first lead of the game. The Mavs’ rim protection was close to non-existent, as the Clips paraded to the basket and the free throw line. A Richardson-WCS lob dunk tied the game at 45-all. I have to admit, I was getting anxious to get these bench-heavy lineups off the floor before it was too late. Maybe Rick was having similar thoughts -- a Mavs timeout brought four starters and Brunson to the floor at the 8:44 mark
JB was slithering to the basket like he was riding a Slip'n'Slide. KP did the same on a bad closeout by Zubac, and then hit a loooong three. A Rondo dash to the rim for a bucket in front of God and Porzee left THJ throwing up his arms at Kris, or so it seemed to me. The Mavs got their first free throw attempts of the game at 5:40, on a Rondo bump of KP. Zinger split the pair. Luka drew another pair, and split those. The sound of sweet string music sang from a sideline three by Luka. A Luka and-one brought him to 20 points. The Mavs were leading 60-53 at 4:23.
Luka then committed a loose ball foul under the Mavericks' basket. The game was delayed to stem the blood oozing from his hand. Kawhi blasted past KP for a score. DFS hit a three off an offensive rebound. Luka hit another from NYC. Another Luka turnover gifted a transition basket to PG. Kawhi scored on a postup of Maxi, despite Kleber’s fierce defense. Luka then turned it over again, which led to a Jackson bucket, returning the score to a tied game at 68-68. Tim drew a foul by Beverley, but missed both freebies. The teams exchanged threes, and Willie was called for a goaltend. The Clips won their first quarter of the series, and went into the locker room with a 73-71 edge.
The Mavs hit 5 of their six 3PTAs in the quarter, but LA had a 24-14 advantage on PIP. Luka led all scorers with 14 points. Kawhi led the opposition with 12. Kawhi (30) and Luka (23) both had or tied for the highest scoring playoff halves of their careers. The Mavs hit 67% of their shots, but the Clips hit 63%, and had the advantage in PIP and free throws. The Mavs bench unit (Luka-Brunson-JRich-Melli-WCS) looked more of a threat to the team than the Clippers.
THIRD QUARTER
DFS began the third with a block of a Zubac layup, depriving Zu of his first points of the game. THJ followed with a three to put the Mavs back in the lead. Paul George was called for his third foul less than two minutes in, hacking Luka from behind. KP picked up two quick fouls, making it four for him at 8:11. Willie subbed in. THJ drew a charge by Patrick Beverley (who vociferously argued the call to Bill Kennedy, who regarded him with the calm and impassive head-nodding demeanor of a therapist), and was the first Mav to complete both free throw attempts. Luka completed another stunner from downtown, which drew a timeout with the score favoring the Mavs 85-78.
Zubac ruined the Clippers' ATO with a defensive three-second call. Marcus Morris fouled Maxi on an offensive rebound attempt, for the Clips fifth in the quarter. THJ went coast to coast for a layup. PG was called for his fourth foul at 3:20. The Mavs built a 12-point lead at 1:55. A Mavs turnover ensued, but Reggie Jackson, rather than capitalizing, sailed the ball all the way down the court and out of bounds. Luka posted up Kawhi, and scored a one-legged fadeaway right over him. Dirk was spotted out of his seat cheering. The Mavs went into the fourth with a 101-92 advantage. Luka and Tim had 12 points apiece. The Clippers scored an embarrassing 19 points in the period. Luka, Tim and Dorian all played the entire 12 minutes.
FOURTH QUARTER
The fourth quarter began with one of the dreaded Luka-less lineups. Brunson-Richardson-DFS-KP-Powell. The starters returned less than four minutes in, with the visitors up 10. Dallas built up a 13-point lead, but it had dwindled to five when they called their sixth timeout with five minutes to go, with the Clippers having made an 8-0 run. Morris fouled out, sliding into Maxi off the ball for an offensive foul turnover. Reggie Jackson came on in his place.
The lead shrank to four with less than two minutes to go, but Hardaway hit a gorgeous three to put Dallas up seven at the 1:03 mark. DFS had the assist. PG dashed to the basket to cut the lead to five. Luka missed a shot, but DFS grabbed the offensive board, and was intentionally fouled with the clock down to 23 seconds. The Clips immediately fouled again, and Josh Richardson came through with both free throws. Batum responded with a three. The Clips fouled again, and Josh answered the call a second time. LA missed a couple of threes, the buzzer sounded, and the Mavs declared victory!!!! FAN-TASTIC!!!!
STATISTICS
Once again, the shooting stats tell it all. The Mavs were 62% on 2PTAs, 53% on 3PTAs, and 54% on free throws. Comparable percentages for the Clippers were 63/39/90. Maverick point differentials were -4 on points from twos, +15 on points from threes, and -5 on made free throws. Living by the three, Mavs fans!! You can't beat it with a stick! The Clips had a 60-48 advantage on PIP, and the Mavs missed 11 free throws (yikes), but their hot shooting overwhelmed LA once again.
PLAYERS
DONCIC. Luka had another amazing night, scoring 39 points, and putting up 7 rebounds and 7 assists (also 7 turnovers and five missed free throws, but why dwell on the negative on a night like this?). In the second half, he turned up his defensive gears and helped limit the Clips to a 48-point last twenty-four. Incandescent! The Clippers cannot stop him! Loved that saucy shot over Kawhi!
HARDAWAY. “Habanero” Hardaway threw flames all over the court, registering 28 points on 9-14 shooting, getting to the line for a team-high 8 FTAs, and leading the team in minutes with 38:12. The sizzling starting back court of Luka and Hardaway combined for 67 points!
PORZINGIS. KP had a better game this time, putting up 20 points on 8-12 shooting, and leading the team with 3 steals and 2 dramatic blocks. Rick attributed the impetus for the win to KP and Luka taking their defense to another level in the third quarter. In off-the-court matters, it was reported before the game that the NBA had fined Zinger $50K for visiting a strip club in violation of protocols. Porzee said after the match that he had been "confused" about the protocols, had made a mistake, and had paid for it. OK, then.
He also said that he had realized that, offensively, they also serve who only stand and decoy, and that he understands now that, with Kawhi guarding him, he draws away the opponent’s best defender and makes a contribution even when he is just standing there.
KLEBER. Maxi, listed as questionable before the game, was able to play for 34 minutes. He had a career high in playoff scoring with 13 points on 5-6 FGAs. He is the Mavericks’ only real answer for Kawhi, and he made Leonard work for every point.
DFS. Doe-Doe cooled off offensively from the previous match, scoring only 3 points and going 1-6 from the field. However, he had 5 rebounds and 3 assists, and his defense against Paul George was indispensable.
BENCH. Josh had 9 points, all earned in the fourth quarter. Four of those were the critical four free throws at the end of the game, when the team as a whole was struggling from the line. His defense in the frame was also key. Brunson put up 9 points in 17 minutes, managed the game when Luka was getting a breather, and frustrated the Clips with his ability to get to the basket. Willie came alive in the third quarter, coming in when Porzingis was called for his fourth foul at 8:17, played the rest of the period, and was a part of the crew that devastated the Clips in that frame. Melli and Powell had cameos. Neither scored, but they gave the other bigs a chance to catch their breath.
CLIPPERS. Kawhi was a wonder, but just didn’t have enough help. He scored a game-high 41 points, and had 10 FTAs, but he was still the second-best player on the court. Paul George had 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists, but ran into some foul trouble at various points in the game. Reggie Jackson had 15 points off the bench. After that, it was slim pickings on the Clippers roster. All of the starters were in negative figures, four of them in double-digit red territory.
OBSERVATIONS
Rick revealed after the game that the coaching staff had showed the team some film at halftime, and challenged them to put up a defensive stand. He was very pleased with their response. In general, he liked his squad's offensive energy and recognition. He acknowledged that the game looked in danger of getting a little chippy at times, and he relied on the veteran experience of THJ and J Rich to help his team stay on an even keel.
This was a TREMENDOUS victory for your Dallas Mavericks. They have beaten the championship-or-else Clippers in the first two games, on the Clips' home floor. It’s of course not over yet, and I hope the young Mavs can maintain their level of intensity back at the AAC. If they can get excellent performances from two of the 77-6-11 trio, and a good performance from the other, I think these players are going to be quite hard to stop.
Statistically speaking, teams who go up 2-0 at the beginning of a series win the series almost all of the time. We have seen the Mavs both go down two and win, and win two and lose. The Clippers are still a formidable team. But the LAC are in a World. Of. Hurt. If Ty Lue has any emergency buttons left to push, now would be the time.
The two teams will face off again on Friday in Dallas in front of 15,000 home fans. These Mavericks look like a very confident team out there!
A great showing, MFFLs! This is the stuff our dreams are made of!
MAVS UNDEFEATED IN PLAYOFF MATCHES AT STAPLES
If the Clippers wanted the Mavericks in this series, they may just have themselves a tiger by the tail. The best-laid plans of Lue and Leonard gang aft agley.
GAME STORY
Dirk was on hand to see the game, and looked very tall and happy. Rick dubbed him the Mavericks' good-luck charm.
FIRST QUARTER
All players were available except Redick. Carlisle went with the same starting lineup that he used for the first time in Game One — Luka, THJ, DFS, KP, Maxi. Coach Lue also decided on his Game One plan, sticking with Pat Bev, PG, Kawhi, Zubac, and Morris.
Both teams came out gunning. The Mavs were hot. Seven minutes in, Maxi (yes, Maxi!) already had 10 points. At 4:52, Doe-Doe was called for his second foul. J Rich served as the next man up. THJ lobbed to a cutting KP for a highlight jam. The Mavs’ fortunes dwindled as both benches filtered in. The Mavs started committing shooting fouls and turnovers. With 11 seconds left, Brunson was called for a foul on a three-point attempt by Kawhi. The quarter ended with a turnover by Luka. A quarter-high for the Mavs of 9 points was down to a 35-33 edge after one. The Mavs were ahead the entire period.
Maxi led the Mavs with 12 points, followed closely by Tim with 10. Kawhi led all scorers with 18, and he and PG accounted for 26 of the Clips’ 33 points. The Clippers hit 10 of their 11 FTAs, while Dallas had no attempts from the line.
SECOND QUARTER
The Clippers tied the game to open the second. A Reggie Jackson three gave LA their first lead of the game. The Mavs’ rim protection was close to non-existent, as the Clips paraded to the basket and the free throw line. A Richardson-WCS lob dunk tied the game at 45-all. I have to admit, I was getting anxious to get these bench-heavy lineups off the floor before it was too late. Maybe Rick was having similar thoughts -- a Mavs timeout brought four starters and Brunson to the floor at the 8:44 mark
JB was slithering to the basket like he was riding a Slip'n'Slide. KP did the same on a bad closeout by Zubac, and then hit a loooong three. A Rondo dash to the rim for a bucket in front of God and Porzee left THJ throwing up his arms at Kris, or so it seemed to me. The Mavs got their first free throw attempts of the game at 5:40, on a Rondo bump of KP. Zinger split the pair. Luka drew another pair, and split those. The sound of sweet string music sang from a sideline three by Luka. A Luka and-one brought him to 20 points. The Mavs were leading 60-53 at 4:23.
Luka then committed a loose ball foul under the Mavericks' basket. The game was delayed to stem the blood oozing from his hand. Kawhi blasted past KP for a score. DFS hit a three off an offensive rebound. Luka hit another from NYC. Another Luka turnover gifted a transition basket to PG. Kawhi scored on a postup of Maxi, despite Kleber’s fierce defense. Luka then turned it over again, which led to a Jackson bucket, returning the score to a tied game at 68-68. Tim drew a foul by Beverley, but missed both freebies. The teams exchanged threes, and Willie was called for a goaltend. The Clips won their first quarter of the series, and went into the locker room with a 73-71 edge.
The Mavs hit 5 of their six 3PTAs in the quarter, but LA had a 24-14 advantage on PIP. Luka led all scorers with 14 points. Kawhi led the opposition with 12. Kawhi (30) and Luka (23) both had or tied for the highest scoring playoff halves of their careers. The Mavs hit 67% of their shots, but the Clips hit 63%, and had the advantage in PIP and free throws. The Mavs bench unit (Luka-Brunson-JRich-Melli-WCS) looked more of a threat to the team than the Clippers.
THIRD QUARTER
DFS began the third with a block of a Zubac layup, depriving Zu of his first points of the game. THJ followed with a three to put the Mavs back in the lead. Paul George was called for his third foul less than two minutes in, hacking Luka from behind. KP picked up two quick fouls, making it four for him at 8:11. Willie subbed in. THJ drew a charge by Patrick Beverley (who vociferously argued the call to Bill Kennedy, who regarded him with the calm and impassive head-nodding demeanor of a therapist), and was the first Mav to complete both free throw attempts. Luka completed another stunner from downtown, which drew a timeout with the score favoring the Mavs 85-78.
Zubac ruined the Clippers' ATO with a defensive three-second call. Marcus Morris fouled Maxi on an offensive rebound attempt, for the Clips fifth in the quarter. THJ went coast to coast for a layup. PG was called for his fourth foul at 3:20. The Mavs built a 12-point lead at 1:55. A Mavs turnover ensued, but Reggie Jackson, rather than capitalizing, sailed the ball all the way down the court and out of bounds. Luka posted up Kawhi, and scored a one-legged fadeaway right over him. Dirk was spotted out of his seat cheering. The Mavs went into the fourth with a 101-92 advantage. Luka and Tim had 12 points apiece. The Clippers scored an embarrassing 19 points in the period. Luka, Tim and Dorian all played the entire 12 minutes.
FOURTH QUARTER
The fourth quarter began with one of the dreaded Luka-less lineups. Brunson-Richardson-DFS-KP-Powell. The starters returned less than four minutes in, with the visitors up 10. Dallas built up a 13-point lead, but it had dwindled to five when they called their sixth timeout with five minutes to go, with the Clippers having made an 8-0 run. Morris fouled out, sliding into Maxi off the ball for an offensive foul turnover. Reggie Jackson came on in his place.
The lead shrank to four with less than two minutes to go, but Hardaway hit a gorgeous three to put Dallas up seven at the 1:03 mark. DFS had the assist. PG dashed to the basket to cut the lead to five. Luka missed a shot, but DFS grabbed the offensive board, and was intentionally fouled with the clock down to 23 seconds. The Clips immediately fouled again, and Josh Richardson came through with both free throws. Batum responded with a three. The Clips fouled again, and Josh answered the call a second time. LA missed a couple of threes, the buzzer sounded, and the Mavs declared victory!!!! FAN-TASTIC!!!!
STATISTICS
Once again, the shooting stats tell it all. The Mavs were 62% on 2PTAs, 53% on 3PTAs, and 54% on free throws. Comparable percentages for the Clippers were 63/39/90. Maverick point differentials were -4 on points from twos, +15 on points from threes, and -5 on made free throws. Living by the three, Mavs fans!! You can't beat it with a stick! The Clips had a 60-48 advantage on PIP, and the Mavs missed 11 free throws (yikes), but their hot shooting overwhelmed LA once again.
PLAYERS
DONCIC. Luka had another amazing night, scoring 39 points, and putting up 7 rebounds and 7 assists (also 7 turnovers and five missed free throws, but why dwell on the negative on a night like this?). In the second half, he turned up his defensive gears and helped limit the Clips to a 48-point last twenty-four. Incandescent! The Clippers cannot stop him! Loved that saucy shot over Kawhi!
HARDAWAY. “Habanero” Hardaway threw flames all over the court, registering 28 points on 9-14 shooting, getting to the line for a team-high 8 FTAs, and leading the team in minutes with 38:12. The sizzling starting back court of Luka and Hardaway combined for 67 points!
PORZINGIS. KP had a better game this time, putting up 20 points on 8-12 shooting, and leading the team with 3 steals and 2 dramatic blocks. Rick attributed the impetus for the win to KP and Luka taking their defense to another level in the third quarter. In off-the-court matters, it was reported before the game that the NBA had fined Zinger $50K for visiting a strip club in violation of protocols. Porzee said after the match that he had been "confused" about the protocols, had made a mistake, and had paid for it. OK, then.
He also said that he had realized that, offensively, they also serve who only stand and decoy, and that he understands now that, with Kawhi guarding him, he draws away the opponent’s best defender and makes a contribution even when he is just standing there.
KLEBER. Maxi, listed as questionable before the game, was able to play for 34 minutes. He had a career high in playoff scoring with 13 points on 5-6 FGAs. He is the Mavericks’ only real answer for Kawhi, and he made Leonard work for every point.
DFS. Doe-Doe cooled off offensively from the previous match, scoring only 3 points and going 1-6 from the field. However, he had 5 rebounds and 3 assists, and his defense against Paul George was indispensable.
BENCH. Josh had 9 points, all earned in the fourth quarter. Four of those were the critical four free throws at the end of the game, when the team as a whole was struggling from the line. His defense in the frame was also key. Brunson put up 9 points in 17 minutes, managed the game when Luka was getting a breather, and frustrated the Clips with his ability to get to the basket. Willie came alive in the third quarter, coming in when Porzingis was called for his fourth foul at 8:17, played the rest of the period, and was a part of the crew that devastated the Clips in that frame. Melli and Powell had cameos. Neither scored, but they gave the other bigs a chance to catch their breath.
CLIPPERS. Kawhi was a wonder, but just didn’t have enough help. He scored a game-high 41 points, and had 10 FTAs, but he was still the second-best player on the court. Paul George had 28 points, 12 rebounds, and 6 assists, but ran into some foul trouble at various points in the game. Reggie Jackson had 15 points off the bench. After that, it was slim pickings on the Clippers roster. All of the starters were in negative figures, four of them in double-digit red territory.
OBSERVATIONS
Rick revealed after the game that the coaching staff had showed the team some film at halftime, and challenged them to put up a defensive stand. He was very pleased with their response. In general, he liked his squad's offensive energy and recognition. He acknowledged that the game looked in danger of getting a little chippy at times, and he relied on the veteran experience of THJ and J Rich to help his team stay on an even keel.
This was a TREMENDOUS victory for your Dallas Mavericks. They have beaten the championship-or-else Clippers in the first two games, on the Clips' home floor. It’s of course not over yet, and I hope the young Mavs can maintain their level of intensity back at the AAC. If they can get excellent performances from two of the 77-6-11 trio, and a good performance from the other, I think these players are going to be quite hard to stop.
Statistically speaking, teams who go up 2-0 at the beginning of a series win the series almost all of the time. We have seen the Mavs both go down two and win, and win two and lose. The Clippers are still a formidable team. But the LAC are in a World. Of. Hurt. If Ty Lue has any emergency buttons left to push, now would be the time.
The two teams will face off again on Friday in Dallas in front of 15,000 home fans. These Mavericks look like a very confident team out there!
A great showing, MFFLs! This is the stuff our dreams are made of!