Speaking on the “Nightcap” show with Shannon Sharpe, former NBA guard Gilbert Arenas explained why the Clippers should be dreading a potential first-round series against the Dallas Mavericks. As Arenas pointed out on the show, Luka always seems to have his best games against the Clippers, and he’s the one they should fear the most heading into the postseason.
“Luka [Doncic] owns them… I mean, [in the] last ten games alone, he’s averaged 37 against them. If the Clippers wanna get out of this series… I’m gonna throw a double at him. They can win four games, and if they get to the second round, they can win one.”
Historically, Luka Doncic has been unstoppable against the Clippers, and he’s nearly crushed their playoff dreams before. In 2020, the Clippers won despite Luka’s heroics, and they won again in 2021, even though the Mavericks took Kawhi and Paul George to seven games. At one point, they even held a lead in the series before Los Angeles came roaring back to life.
So, while the Clippers did win those series, it took nearly everything to scrape by Luka, and the numbers show that he likes to play against this team in particular. Doncic averages 32.8 points and 7.3 assists per game when facing the Clips, which rises to 33.5 points and 9.5 assists in the playoffs.
This year, despite their best efforts, the Clippers are set for a first-round rematch against the Mavericks but a lot has changed since their last encounter. Both Luka and his team have taken steps to improve and the Clippers will have a major fight on their hands to survive the first round.
Mavs And Clippers Are On A Collision Course
After trading for James Harden early in the season, the Clippers hoped to secure a high position in the West to lock up home-court advantage and earn an easier route to the Finals. Instead, after finishing fourth, they will have to get past the NBA’s hottest duo to make any kind of noise.
At 50-30, riding a 5-game win streak, the Mavericks have caught fire at the perfect time, and the tandem of Luka and Irving has never looked better. While they currently rank 5th in the standings, Dallas is considered a sleeper team for the title, given the combined talents of Luka and Kyrie Irving.
If the Mavericks can stay healthy and keep up this level of play through the playoffs, it could be enough to pull off a massive upset, perhaps imitating their run from 2022 when they made the Western Conference Finals with Doncic and Jalen Brunson. At the very least, they’ll have an opportunity to establish themselves as a legitimate title threat in the same tier as the Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves in the West.
Only time will tell how the season ends for these teams, but it’s sure to be an entertaining matchup for the fans, and whoever comes out on top will be considered a massive threat to win it all. For the Clippers’ sake, they better hope their past experience helps them in the series — but this Mavericks team is unlike anything they’ve faced before, and they could prove to be their biggest challenge yet.
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