Luka Doncic’s Dallas Mavericks are the sensation of this first round of playoffs, and this morning they confirmed their candidacy to give the big chime in front of the Los Angeles Clippers, to whom they have put 2-0 down in the tie at the Staples Center itself after achieving a brilliant and solvent victory by 121-127.
Doncic led the Mavs with 39 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. in a new recital of the Slovenian (16-29 TC; 5-13 3P), shouting and smiling in the final minutes of the game that confirmed the crush of the Texans.
“We had a great time out there. The whole group had fun, we played hard and smart ”The former Madrid player confessed when asked about the key to the success of these Mavericks. “I don’t know, the playoffs are so much fun.”
The 22-year-old star was not alone and had the indispensable help of T
im Hardaway Jr., which ended with 28 points and 5 assists and nailed the triple that sentenced the victory in the absence of a minute of the conclusion (116-123). The forward finished with excellent percentages of 9 of 14 in shooting from the field and 6 of 8 in triples.
Kristaps Porzingis, after his excursion to a strip club in LA that cost him a $ 50,000 fine, he went out without a hangover to the meeting and ended up with 20 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals of the ball in a very measured effort (8-12 CT; 3-4 3P). Dallas’ effort was choral, and Doncic’s teammates seem ready this season to show they deserve to be alongside the Slovenian star.
The Clippers, by contrast, relied too heavily on their two big stars. Kawhi leonard made a great match with 41 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists (14-21 TC, 4-7 3P), while Paul George did not fall short with 28 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists (12-22 TC; 1-7 3P).
The excellence of the duo is not enough for the Angelenos, who accumulate a negative record of 3 wins and 4 losses in playoffs
when the Kawhi-PG pair adds more than 20 points per head.
To the team of Tyronn Lue lacked ‘punch‘beyond its stars and so alone Reggie Jackson, with 15 points from the bench, he stuck his head out a bit in the match. The rest was more a lot for the locals.
Serge Ibaka, again little protagonist, played only 6 minutes in the defeat. The Spanish-Congolese pivot finished with 2 points and a plug, but Lue wanted to be prudent with his recovery after missing more than 30 games in the second leg of the regular season and reaching the playoffs very close.
The hole the Clippers have knowingly gotten into is hard to overcome. 27 of the 31 teams that have managed to win the first two away games of a best-of-seven eliminator in all history they have ended up taking the pass to the next round.
Doncic, who remembers his experience against LA last year, wants no distractions: “We have to keep playing, a lot can happen”. Of course, his motivation to return to play at home in front of his fans, for the first time in a playoffs, bodes ill for LA: “I have been waiting for this for a long time. Play for the fans in our pavilion during the playoffs. “
Motivation is through the roof, and the resolution of these Mavs complicates the lives of some Clippers who h
They juggled qualifying to avoid the Lakers and they did not realize that their main problem was 22 years old and had already made a painting last year.
The only time the Mavs walked away 2-0 in favor of the city of Los Angeles was in 2011, and everyone knows how that story ended. One more reason for Dallas fans to dream big this week.